What's new
By:

2024-2025 Tank Race

Saint Cy of JFC said:
Hornets are full strength now. Could pull off some more Ws
Click to expand...
For the uninitiated, what are the injuries that have rendered them to the very bottom-tier of the NBA?

Would have preferred that they didn't beat a team vying with Minnesota in the standings tonight, but I shouldn't complain.
 
NUMBERICA said:
For the uninitiated, what are the injuries that have rendered them to the very bottom-tier of the NBA?

Would have preferred that they didn't beat a team vying with Minnesota in the standings tonight, but I shouldn't complain.
Click to expand...
Mark Williams to start. Then Ball and Bridges missed a lot of time
 
And I guess they aren't full full strength. Mann is still out, but they have all the main needle movers playing now
 
Ainge needs to tamp down on this quickly: "The messaging doesn’t change,” head coach Will Hardy told Jones. “The players deserve all of the credit. They have dug in, and they have bought into the little things that it takes to win. This has become a cohesive group that’s committed to helping each other."
 
jazznik said:
Then this entire season is besides the point if we MUST land Flagg/Harper, because statistically we are not getting them regardless of our record (27% chances in the best case scenario). The goal of tanking is not getting for sure 1st or 2nd pick but significantly improving your chances to end up with a higher pick. Having 1st vs 5th odds does exactly that.
Click to expand...
I didnt make up the rules. I only replied to HotRod saying we need to land top 2. In that context, the difference between worst and 5th worst record is not really meaningful... you need to get very lucky either way.

I hope I dont have to spell this again.
 
Handlogten's Heros said:
Now do the other team building strategies. What exactly is the alternative? We are both doing the tank and middle build by holding other teams picks. If we opt to build through FA and trades we have the necessary fodder to do that. The tank is one component of what we opted to do. None of the strategies have high success rates. Even trading for stars has some catastrophic consequences and a low success rate.

Its likely a multi-year endeavor though as we haven't hit on the drafted star with our mid/late lotto or other picks (most likely) and haven't gotten the luck of jumping into the top 4 to have a better shot at drafting the star. At this point we have to likely sell off part of the infrastructure that would make it a quick rebuild.
Click to expand...
Most in here arent really fans of Ainges "keep options open" approach and they want more committal decisions... but I actually think there is some sense in not going all-in either way at this stage. The "trade for a star" approach is a bit less feasible than it was 2 years ago, but I dont think its dead. We arent that bad despite giving a lot of minutes to guys who arent necessarily conductive to winning (Key, Collier, Cody, Flip). Selling is also still possible, and its definitely in the realm of possibilities we may swing for a young stud with a Lauri trade next offseason.

The real reason I like the strategy is that you cannot force lottery luck... and if we get lucky we are in position to start building up immediately. If we dont get lucky, we still got some assets to trade away to kick the can down the road until we get lucky.
 
HermanG said:
Most in here arent really fans of Ainges "keep options open" approach and they want more committal decisions... but I actually think there is some sense in not going all-in either way at this stage. The "trade for a star" approach is a bit less feasible than it was 2 years ago, but I dont think its dead. We arent that bad despite giving a lot of minutes to guys who arent necessarily conductive to winning (Key, Collier, Cody, Flip). Selling is also still possible, and its definitely in the realm of possibilities we may swing for a young stud with a Lauri trade next offseason.

The real reason I like the strategy is that you cannot force lottery luck... and if we get lucky we are in position to start building up immediately. If we dont get lucky, we still got some assets to trade away to kick the can down the road until we get lucky.
Click to expand...
Yeah I am more a fan of the Presti method of "here is the 5 year plan and we do not deviate" but there is some bias there because it has worked so well. I also thought it was dumb they didn't at least add a cheap big to supplement the roster a bit because they are so "disciplined". So i think there is merit to Ainge's opportunistic approach.

I think my big criticism of the approach Ainge has is just overconcerned with the dimes and nickels versus the dollars at times. Like don't trade Bogey for KO... you had a roster hole which is how you gain a lot of ground in the tank race (we didn't know walker would be good immediately). Wanted full value for Mike and others rather than settling earlier (maybe he didn't have the opportunities... I think he did). Adding Svi and Drew this year may pay off and not hurt the tank too much but both have been good and provide more infrastructure for winning. If they simply trade one player and manage vet time with Sexton/Lauri/Kessler AND (the real key) prioritize 20 minutes for both Collier and Williams every night no matter what... then the tank should be fine. Neither guy should spend a minute in the G. I don't care what is better for their development. They are nickels and dimes and a top 5 pick is the dollar (maybe quarter).

So overall I appreciate what I think the franchise is trying to do as the last few years of DL was terrible and frustrating. Its nice at least to have a little bit of proactivity even if it misses the mark at times.
 
Yesterday Washington played Houston and put out the following starting five: Sarr - Kyshawn George - Kuzma (they limited him to 17 minutes) - Coulibaly - Carrington. The Wizards lost by 23. THAT is how you should tank.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Share this page
Back
Top