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A Little Adversity is Good

Handlogten's Heros

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Just wanted a quick silver lining thread here. Not playing our best right now but a little adversity is good. Getting in some close games is good for us and even losing some is fine too. I think we likely end up with the #1 seed out west but there is no guarantee that the Lakers end up #2 or #3 so you may end up playing both LA teams either way.

The trade deadline is also right around the corner. If life is all rainbows and butterflies then you don't look around at deals. Not saying something worthwhile comes up... but we are going to be more willing to answer the phone if we see some of our flaws.
 
It's fine. We have weaknesses and last night wasn't us "dropping off." That team is definitely us, as is the team that won a lot of games. It's a lot about timing, but then it's also a lot about other issues with matchups. NOP has given us problems past couple years. But the biggest problem that last night highlights is that our rebounding on paper always looks better because of our style of play, but we get particularly hurt when we're going up against physical rebounders, hustle guys, or people who will muscle rebounds. If Rudy contests, hustle guys can easily get in there for rebounds. This is why a guy like a PJ Tucker, despite not being some amazing rebounder, can kill you in a key moment getting a putback, as he did against us previously.

There are no easy solutions to this because of what we put out on the floor. There's obviously a trade off having a non-shooter like RHJ, but a guy you can put in for a bit to match some physicality and get a couple extra possessions through hustle or rebounds.

Here's my list of three guys that can help that are there for the taking:

RHJ - as per above.

Udoh - allow you to rest Favors and get healthy. I've always said if we're looking for rim protection, we need to go for elite rim protection. We chose Favors for "okay" rim protection and good rebounding and decent offense. Right now his D isn't looking very good. Allow him to rest or whatever, get some extra minutes of serious rim protection on the floor.

Korver - same concept of resting Favors, this can allow you to rest Ingles.
 
^^^ we should actually sign all those guys.
 
I don’t know if I’d describe this as adversity.... I think this just more of who we are.

The Pelicans show us a side of ourselves that we should know is there: we can be physically bullied.

The Clippers show us a side of ourselves that we should know is there: our offensive rhythm can be broken by a stiff perimeter defense.

Neither of these things should surprise us, but I know all the winning had us entertaining ideas that we’d overcome them.

Unfortunately, these are two problems that will be much more prevalent in the playoffs. So I understand the hesitation that some national folks have about us.
 
I don’t know if I’d describe this as adversity.... I think this just more of who we are.

The Pelicans show us a side of ourselves that we should know is there: we can be physically bullied.

The Clippers show us a side of ourselves that we should know is there: our offensive rhythm can be broken by a stiff perimeter defense.

Neither of these things should surprise us, but I know all the winning had us entertaining ideas that we’d overcome them.

Unfortunately, these are two problems that will be much more prevalent in the playoffs. So I understand the hesitation that some national folks have about us.
iawtp

These are weaknesses I think many of us here already saw, hence the call for a physical athletic wing who can defend and maybe hit the 3, something of a disruptor who can help offset some of this. One single player won't fix everything, but having this as an option while improving our effort and making adjustments could be what we need to get through a tough 7-game series.

I still think we get pretty far in the playoffs as presently constituted, but I think us getting to the finals, let alone winning it, is a real long shot without any way to mitigate these weaknesses. And more Niang circus shots are not the answer.
 
It's fine. We have weaknesses and last night wasn't us "dropping off." That team is definitely us, as is the team that won a lot of games. It's a lot about timing, but then it's also a lot about other issues with matchups. NOP has given us problems past couple years. But the biggest problem that last night highlights is that our rebounding on paper always looks better because of our style of play, but we get particularly hurt when we're going up against physical rebounders, hustle guys, or people who will muscle rebounds. If Rudy contests, hustle guys can easily get in there for rebounds. This is why a guy like a PJ Tucker, despite not being some amazing rebounder, can kill you in a key moment getting a putback, as he did against us previously.

There are no easy solutions to this because of what we put out on the floor. There's obviously a trade off having a non-shooter like RHJ, but a guy you can put in for a bit to match some physicality and get a couple extra possessions through hustle or rebounds.

Here's my list of three guys that can help that are there for the taking:

RHJ - as per above.

Udoh - allow you to rest Favors and get healthy. I've always said if we're looking for rim protection, we need to go for elite rim protection. We chose Favors for "okay" rim protection and good rebounding and decent offense. Right now his D isn't looking very good. Allow him to rest or whatever, get some extra minutes of serious rim protection on the floor.

Korver - same concept of resting Favors, this can allow you to rest Ingles.
I can only agree with the RHJ signing of the three. I think we might want to get Morgan some run as a backup 5 if Favs can't give us great things every night. Come playoff time I think Favs will step up.

Udoh and Korver are likely retired. I think Oni has been good enough and was really starting to shoot the ball... he can spell Joe and Mike.

Sterling Brown is still a guy I'd kick the tires on. I think Shaq has cleared waivers by now so I don't think we can duck the tax without a big move.
 
I agree. It was nice to see us come back last night even if it wasn’t meant to be, it was right there. We are getting every teams best shot, and being on the road this year especially is just brutal.

You are going to walk into some opposing arenas this year against lesser, but still very talented teams, and take some L’s. Until it’s clear that something isn’t working or ‘the book’ is out on us. I’m not too worried. I think we’ll be continue to be dominate at home at the least.

That being said. A win tomorrow heading into the break would be mighty nice.
 
I can only agree with the RHJ signing of the three. I think we might want to get Morgan some run as a backup 5 if Favs can't give us great things every night. Come playoff time I think Favs will step up.

Udoh and Korver are likely retired. I think Oni has been good enough and was really starting to shoot the ball... he can spell Joe and Mike.

Sterling Brown is still a guy I'd kick the tires on. I think Shaq has cleared waivers by now so I don't think we can duck the tax without a big move.
I wouldn’t shoot down Udoh and Korver so quickly because my next round of suggestions will include Ron Artest and Ben Wallace.
 
I really liked Oni's hustle. He gets a lot of tip outs on rebounds and brings energy. I'd like to see him get a few more minutes with the second unit. He could help negate some of favors mobility issues when he's dinged up by staying in front of people.
 
Yes one thing this team is missing is some ugly, some mean, some in-your-face. We whine to the refs pretty good, but we don't have anyone that will really get in there and knock around with these guys. We need some nasty.
 
Who originally touted RHJ? Whomever it was is right - we need his defense. With the final spot I'd be down for the best overall player available.

Although RHJ makes sense (for numerous teams) I would be surprised if we signed him. So that said, it's going to be interesting to see how the waiver wire plays out.
 
Who originally touted RHJ? Whomever it was is right - we need his defense. With the final spot I'd be down for the best overall player available.

Although RHJ makes sense (for numerous teams) I would be surprised if we signed him. So that said, it's going to be interesting to see how the waiver wire plays out.
That would be me.
 
Good call. We need to get DL and JZ on the horn and convince them to sign him. I don't see another elite defender being waived this season and we have two spots. We need to upgrade.
Here's from this pre-season.

 
Here's from this pre-season.


I only question why no one has picked him up, Literally every team can use a backup wing that can defend. What is the big hang-up on this guy?
 
I only question why no one has picked him up, Literally every team can use a backup wing that can defend. What is the big hang-up on this guy?
They're too intimidated by his badassery.
 
I mean, if we were willing to take a flyer on Shaq and bite the bullet and waive him, wouldn't it at least make sense to take a flyer on this guy who has some clear skills that we need? But, obviously, they don't see it that way. That's why DL and his cadre of GMs in the FO get paid lots of money to make these decisions and why I spend my free time offering up these gems for free for my franchise.

@Handlogten's Heros can I count my hours I spend on here offering this gratuitous service as a tax deductible donation at my typical rate, kind of like when you donate to DI and they offer to give you a receipt for your donation?
 
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