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Is Paul Millsap's future at Small Forward?

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pappyman

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I know that some of you will balk at this, but I think that it is. Some have said that he is not quick enough to play at the 3. I personally think that he is. He has also developed an above average outside shooting ability that could become his calling card with time. With Paul only being 6'8" on a good day and 250 pounds, he simply does not have the size to play the PF position. Especially when we are playing against teams like the Lakers (twin towers). I think that his future is at Small Forward for the Jazz. Now that we have traded for Derrick Favors (6'10" and 246 pounds), I think that he is our Power Forward of the future. I have watched several of his highlights. He looks like the type of player that could develop into a star at the PF position. He has the elite athleticism, defensive ability, and rebounding prowess to dominate the position. With Favors at the 4 (6'10" and about 250) and Jefferson at the 5 (6'10" and 280"), we finally have the size and length to compete with the Lakers' front court duo of Gasol and Bynum. Maybe not this year, but I would eventually like to see this depth chart:

PG: Devin Harris, Earl Watson, Ronnie Price
SG: C.J. Miles, Raja Bell, Ronnie Price
SF: Paul Millsap, Gordon Hayward, Jeremy Evans
PF: Derrick Favors, Andrei Kirilenko, Francisco Elson
C: Al Jefferson, Kyrylo Fesenko, Mehmet Okur (injured)

Also, did you guys see that our old pal Boom Bitches (A.K.A. Kosta Koufos) was traded to Denver as part of the Carmelo to New York trade? Wasn't it against Denver last year when Doufos got his "Boom Bitches" nickname? I think that it was. Funny world we live in, eh?
 
Offensively, yes, his shot is more than good enough to play the position. Defensively he gets burned though, especially on a wing who has a solid three point shot which he must respect.
It's probably not any worse of a solution than matching him up against someone like Larmarcus Aldridge though, who simply kills him in the post.
 
If Paul were moved to SF full time, I think that eventually he would stop getting burned by the type of wing players you just mentioned. Also, with Favors having unbelievable defensive potential, one would think that Millsap would have help behind him if he were to get burned.
 
pappyman said:
If Paul were moved to SF full time, I think that eventually he would stop getting burned by the type of wing players you just mentioned. Also, with Favors having unbelievable defensive potential, one would think that Millsap would have help behind him if he were to get burned.
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Yes, but its not just about helping Paul on the initial drive. Teams that can spread the floor will simply abuse the Jazz because of their inherent slow rotations.
 
Jazz4ever said:
It's probably not any worse of a solution than matching him up against someone like Larmarcus Aldridge though, who simply kills him in the post.
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The same thing can be said about Pau Gasol, Amare Stoudamire, Kevin Garnett, and others. I really think that if Millsap's future is with the Jazz, he will become our starting Small Forward with Favors and Jefferson at the PF/C positions. Especially if we resign AK. I would expect for Andrei to eventually become the back up Power Forward behind Favors.
 
I think this is a great line-up, but I don't know if Favors is ready yet for the full time starter role. I think we should give it to him though and use these last 30 or whatever games to get him as much PT as possible. So I'm all for starting Favors as I agree he's our best big man prospect. I like the idea of a frontcourt of Sap/Favors/Al against most teams, but certainly we'd have to make adjustments to certain teams. Sap couldn't hang with a Granger, Durant, Melo, etc. so in those moments swap him out with AK.
 
Sooner or later he has to be traded for a wing player. There is not enough playing time for millsap and favors if jefferson stays.

He can't play sf at all.
 
I know the Jazz spent a couple years working with Millsap trying to turn him into a SF (or at least develop those skills). Then they stopped.

Paul can cause nice mismatches on the offensive end, bet he's also the victim on the defensive end. It could work against a few opponents, but not against great shooters and/or quick/athletic wings. There are a lot of wings that fit into one of those two categories.
 
Other than spot minutes, Sap does not have the quickness or the range to play the 3 either defensively or offensively. He is solid back up PF. He is not a solid back up SF.
 
I've had the same thought, but his lateral movement defensively is way too slow against quicker SF's. I would use him some at SF against slower SF's, however. It would depend on matchups.
A good 3-man rotation at PF and C would give Millsap plenty of PT, assuming Favors can also play C, which I think he could down the road. I do see Millsap as a 'super-sub' 6th man more than a starter. Same with Miles at SF.
Without Deron here commanding huge $$, I see us re-signing AK, and he would start at SF.
 
Paul is being paid like a 4th or 5th starter or a six-man off the bench. And that is what his role should be. He isn't and will never be good for more than spot duty at SF.
 
Paul Millsap could probably develop a good enough outside shot to play the 3. He could also improve his dribbling skills also. I think in time both of those would be good enough after about a month of playing the SF position. He would be amazing at rebounding for the SF position.

But the problem again goes back to lateral movement. Sloan tried to play him at the 3 position his first 2 years here. It doesn't work. Every player was driving right past him. Now do I think if we told him one summer "you are going to play SF next year so work on your lateral athleticism"....... could he do it? probably. I have seen that improve. Ronnie Brewer improved that. i do think he has the ability to. It just would take some technique changes and he would need to slim down a little bit and work on his lateral movement.

The problem is that it would take a lot of work. And he is more valuable as a trade asset this summer than being a SF for us which most likely would not work.
 
gregbroncs said:
He would be exactly like harpring in his last few years. Which was beyond pathetic on defense. You really want to turn Millsap into Harpring 2.0?
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I can't decide - perhaps we can watch him get destroyed in the post night after night against every PF 6'9" or taller.
 
Bingo, 'candrew'. There are many PF matchups where Millsap gets eaten alive on defense. He'd be much more effective in specific matchup situations at either SF or PF.
 
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