What upgrades are needed to make us a contender?

[HermanG]

Lauri is without a doubt on that #2 level.

I think he can even be a #1. He has such versatility and can finish efficiently on all 3 levels. Plus he has most shots in his arsenal and can drive, cut, roll and iso.

He just needs to step up and start using those tools 2x as often as he does now.

 

[sip]

I merely said he doesnt play within the system as well as Conley. I think that is pretty obvious to see based on almost 25 minutes per game in 15 games.

My problem is we dont have anyone who can spell Conley without breaking the style that has gained us 10 wins. It was better early season when JC was looking around more.

I would actually say that Conley's style has less to do with us having 10 wins than our incredible bench play. Every game we have at least a couple guys coming off the bench and destroying the opposing teams bench.

 

[HermanG]

I would actually say that Conley's style has less to do with us having 10 wins than our incredible bench play. Every game we have at least a couple guys coming off the bench and destroying the opposing teams bench.

Except early in this season when our starters were killing it and bench was allowing them back in.

But I do agree our bench should be our strength.

 

[Handlogten's Heros]

Lauri is without a doubt on that #2 level.

I think many would say he is without a doubt not on that level yet… so I’d say doubt abounds… if you think he’s there then cool

 

[HermanG]

I think many would say he is without a doubt not on that level yet… so I’d say doubt abounds… if you think he’s there then cool

"Without a doubt" not on that level? Thats a harsh way to put it. He gets #1 treatment defensively and doesnt get the touches or shots that even an average #2 gets because of our system. So production is not in line with top #2s but there is an obvious reason for it.

I wonder what do you think he is missing?

 

[HeatCheck]

I think he can even be a #1. He has such versatility and can finish efficiently on all 3 levels. Plus he has most shots in his arsenal and can drive, cut, roll and iso.

He just needs to step up and start using those tools 2x as often as he does now.

I like Lauri but he got destroyed by Porzingis.

 

[Handlogten's Heros]

"Without a doubt" not on that level? Thats a harsh way to put it. He gets #1 treatment defensively and doesnt get the touches or shots that even an average #2 gets because of our system. So production is not in line with top #2s but there is an obvious reason for it.

I wonder what do you think he is missing?

#2 on a contender is a high bar. #1 is an impossible bar... we are talking Steph, Giannis, Tatum, Lebron, healthy Kawhi, KD. The #2 guys like Jrue, Middleton, Pascal, Wiggins?, Green generally have been all-stars and can do something with the ball on the perimeter... or they are world class defenders. I think Lauri is awesome but not sure he is there yet... maybe. The without a doubt part is just a response to Cy who said he is without a doubt on that tier... and I think there are many that would say he is without a doubt not there. So there is doubt is all I am trying to say.

He's a great player... can he be a #2 on a team that wins 50 games... I think so. The main thing that holds him back imo is self creation. He can do it in some ways but its limited. Its the difference between him and a guy like Dirk that someone kinda compared... Dirk could get the ball at the elbow and command a double team and find guys. Otherwise he was going to score at the rim or off his fade away. Not sure Lauri can just ramp of the volume on any given night.

My concern is I don't know where we are going if we aren't able to get a guy that is better than Lauri in the next year or two. I still am not sure what I think about most of the guys on the roster... happy to be surprised.

 

[Eddie Zero]

I merely said he doesnt play within the system as well as Conley. I think that is pretty obvious to see based on almost 25 minutes per game in 15 games.

My problem is we dont have anyone who can spell Conley without breaking the style that has gained us 10 wins. It was better early season when JC was looking around more.

I guess I don't understand what you mean by doesn't play within "the system" Are you saying he is not playing within the flow of the offense or something?
I have yet to see Sexton actually playing to his potential on the Jazz yet. He was much better than this on the Cavs.

 

[Eddie Zero]

I think he can even be a #1. He has such versatility and can finish efficiently on all 3 levels. Plus he has most shots in his arsenal and can drive, cut, roll and iso.

He just needs to step up and start using those tools 2x as often as he does now.

I disagree he is a 1 on a true contender. 1b maybe fair assessment if he becomes a better playmaker one would hope. Right now he is a 2 or even a 3rd option because as good as he has been, he has not been a creator.Worse he is unable to solve the defensive struggles inside despite so much of his offensive game exploding inside this season. Embiid scoring 59 on the Jazz is even more renenforcement to how big a hole exists at the 5, but more importantly getting one, removes Marky as the guy attacking the paint as often as well.

 

[Handlogten's Heros]

I do need Will to run more stuff for Lauri and agree with the assessment that Vando is a little too involved in the screen, dho game. Make him PJ Tucker on offense a little more... he banging that corner three and can crash the glass from that spot.

 

[Saint Cy of JFC]

I think he can even be a #1. He has such versatility and can finish efficiently on all 3 levels. Plus he has most shots in his arsenal and can drive, cut, roll and iso.

He just needs to step up and start using those tools 2x as often as he does now.

Only way he could be a #1 is if you had a Chris Paul type player in his prime on your team w/ a deep roster.

 

[Jingled]

I definitely think Lauri can be a #2 option on a championship level team. Right now he's the main guy on opposing teams scouting reports, and the guy they are most concerned with stopping, and he's still putting up 22 and 9 on good efficiency. It's clear he's not cut out to be the #1 option on a championship team, but I think he would thrive in that #2 role. The real challenge for us is going to be finding that #1 guy...to actually compete for a championship it almost certainly has to be a top 10 player in the league, maybe even top 5. Those guys don't just grow on trees.

 

[HermanG]

I disagree he is a 1 on a true contender. 1b maybe fair assessment if he becomes a better playmaker one would hope. Right now he is a 2 or even a 3rd option because as good as he has been, he has not been a creator.Worse he is unable to solve the defensive struggles inside despite so much of his offensive game exploding inside this season. Embiid scoring 59 on the Jazz is even more renenforcement to how big a hole exists at the 5, but more importantly getting one, removes Marky as the guy attacking the paint as often as well.

This post was more about the potential. Can be, meaning he has the upside and potential. Maybe not top 5 like Giannis, Luka or KD, but top 15.

 

[MT Steve]

I think if we upgraded Kessler from bench player to starter that'd be a big step.

 

[HermanG]

Yea

I guess I don't understand what you mean by doesn't play within "the system" Are you saying he is not playing within the flow of the offense or something?

Yeah exactly that. Move ball movement, less dribbling.

To be fair, its not really his game. He is so fast with the ball and needs to use that speed to be at his best. Spreading out and playing catch and shoot is not best for his skillset.

 

[Tom349]

Doesn't matter if Lauri is no. 1, 2 or 3 option. The beauty of him is he could potentially be any number of those options but because of his unique skillset at his size, he is essentially the perfect player to build around especially given his contract situation. For arguments sake if Mitchell was still on the roster than as a heavy usage guard to be able to partner him with a low usage but incredibly efficient scorer would be very valuable. Likewise we could trade everything for a Bam Adebayor type of C and have elite defense with playmaking/scoring capabilities that would form an elite front court.

Personally I really want to get either Kuzma or Jerami Grant in the off season as a free agent then draft/trade for an elite guard/centre in due time. It also why Im tempted to trade for Myles Turner for two reasons. 1 to see if he is capable of more than he has shown due to injuries and the players he has played with previously potentially denying him room to show what he is capable of. 2 to see what our team looks like with elite help defense opposed to Kelly Olynyk who tries but is too small and unathletic to do anything.

 

[SoberasHotRod]

So far there is a lot of parity in the NBA this season. I don't see any team as being truly dominant and running away as title favorites. I guess it's been that way for a couple of seasons, but seems even more so this year. Right now on top of the Western Conference standing is Portland, Denver, and Utah. The highest point differential is Phoenix at +6.4. There are a lot of question marks for those teams.

It seems like with the right acquisitions a team could put themselves ahead of the pack. We certainly have enough assets to make something happen. It will be interesting to see how things continue to evolve and how the front office is feeling around the trade deadline.

 

[LogGrad98]

So far there is a lot of parity in the NBA this season. I don't see any team as being truly dominant and running away as title favorites. I guess it's been that way for a couple of seasons, but seems even more so this year. Right now on top of the Western Conference standing is Portland, Denver, and Utah. The highest point differential is Phoenix at +6.4. There are a lot of question marks for those teams.

It seems like with the right acquisitions a team could put themselves ahead of the pack. We certainly have enough assets to make something happen. It will be interesting to see how things continue to evolve and how the front office is feeling around the trade deadline.

Really Milwaukee has to be that team right now. They are flat out killing it, and the greek freak is at his best, even better than his MVP year. Should win it again if they continue winning at this clip.

 

[SoberasHotRod]

Really Milwaukee has to be that team right now. They are flat out killing it, and the greek freak is at his best, even better than his MVP year. Should win it again if they continue winning at this clip.

Yeah, I agree, they are the front runners, but I was focusing more on the Western Conference. Even then they only have a +4.5 net rating over an extremely easy schedule. To be honest I'm not sure what their injury outlook is looking like, but if they don't have everyone back and in good conditioning by the playoffs then I'm not sure they are that scary either.

 

[sip]

So far there is a lot of parity in the NBA this season. I don't see any team as being truly dominant and running away as title favorites. I guess it's been that way for a couple of seasons, but seems even more so this year. Right now on top of the Western Conference standing is Portland, Denver, and Utah. The highest point differential is Phoenix at +6.4. There are a lot of question marks for those teams.

It seems like with the right acquisitions a team could put themselves ahead of the pack. We certainly have enough assets to make something happen. It will be interesting to see how things continue to evolve and how the front office is feeling around the trade deadline.

I would be very surprised to see this team make any win now moves. You mention the parity in the west but I think that actually makes us more likely to trade pieces away because we don't have to be nearly as bad to get into that bottom 4 of the west. A few calculated moves and we could be right there.