For the first time, we saw KP and Beas together (KP at the 5; Beas at the 4) and it worked well. Having KP and Beas out there together to close out, you have two players who demand double teams and can go ISO and score (or go off) at any time. That puts a lot of pressure on opposing defenses. I would like to see more of this.

Secondly, Frank and Baker closed out the game. Frank had the best game of his career and led the team to the victory. He was a 2 way player and had the best plus/minus. He needs to close games going forward (not Jack). For the first time today, we saw Jack finally being fazed out. He can continue to start games and quarters but not close. Baker had a solid game but will be replaced by THJ, which will give the lineup some serious firepower.

Now the closing linuep going forward:

1) Frank
2) THJ
3) Lee/Dougie (depending on who is playing better)
4) Beas
5) KP

IMO, this is the best lineup to win and close out games. This lineup is a nightmare to defend by opposing teams and has enough to close out games.

Let's see what Horny does...

nyknickzingis wrote:I've been saying for a while now that KP has to get into playing the 5 spot with a player that can spread the floor at 4 with him. Beasley does not have a great jumpshot but he can catch the ball outside. He's naturally a ballhandling wing player.

Kanter should not be in our longterm plans at all. We shouldn't even think of giving him in any kind of longterm deal. He may do some things well, but not a single team that is competing for a title starts Kanter. He's a 6th man or off the bench player. If he want stay for that role and that money, sure. We should be starting O"Quinn at 5, he can stretch/space the floor as well and then move KP to 5 as the game evolves. KP needs to man up and eventually get used to being a 5 against physical players. In today's NBA you won't win playing Kanter/KP lineups. No way.

+100

But no to starting KOQ, his role is off the bench.

martin wrote:

nyknickzingis wrote:I've been saying for a while now that KP has to get into playing the 5 spot with a player that can spread the floor at 4 with him. Beasley does not have a great jumpshot but he can catch the ball outside. He's naturally a ballhandling wing player.

Kanter should not be in our longterm plans at all. We shouldn't even think of giving him in any kind of longterm deal. He may do some things well, but not a single team that is competing for a title starts Kanter. He's a 6th man or off the bench player. If he want stay for that role and that money, sure. We should be starting O"Quinn at 5, he can stretch/space the floor as well and then move KP to 5 as the game evolves. KP needs to man up and eventually get used to being a 5 against physical players. In today's NBA you won't win playing Kanter/KP lineups. No way.

+100

But no to starting KOQ, his role is off the bench.

I would still keep Kanter, but eventually move him to a 6th man role as we shift KP to the 5. It's not difficult. Kanter would be an awesome 6th man in the future.

martin wrote:

nyknickzingis wrote:I've been saying for a while now that KP has to get into playing the 5 spot with a player that can spread the floor at 4 with him. Beasley does not have a great jumpshot but he can catch the ball outside. He's naturally a ballhandling wing player.

Kanter should not be in our longterm plans at all. We shouldn't even think of giving him in any kind of longterm deal. He may do some things well, but not a single team that is competing for a title starts Kanter. He's a 6th man or off the bench player. If he want stay for that role and that money, sure. We should be starting O"Quinn at 5, he can stretch/space the floor as well and then move KP to 5 as the game evolves. KP needs to man up and eventually get used to being a 5 against physical players. In today's NBA you won't win playing Kanter/KP lineups. No way.

+100

But no to starting KOQ, his role is off the bench.

I could be wrong, but I think a player like O'Quinn would have far more value on top teams like Golden State, Houston and San Antonio than Kanter. I think Kanter has the lesser value on a contender, because he doesn't move the ball. doesn't shoot from outside and forces the team to sort of play a certain style of offense. Kanter is a great rebounder, great at playing around the basket. but in today's league rebounding and playing around the basket like that are of minimal value. We have to get away from this style of play ASAP.

nyknickzingis wrote:

martin wrote:

nyknickzingis wrote:I've been saying for a while now that KP has to get into playing the 5 spot with a player that can spread the floor at 4 with him. Beasley does not have a great jumpshot but he can catch the ball outside. He's naturally a ballhandling wing player.

Kanter should not be in our longterm plans at all. We shouldn't even think of giving him in any kind of longterm deal. He may do some things well, but not a single team that is competing for a title starts Kanter. He's a 6th man or off the bench player. If he want stay for that role and that money, sure. We should be starting O"Quinn at 5, he can stretch/space the floor as well and then move KP to 5 as the game evolves. KP needs to man up and eventually get used to being a 5 against physical players. In today's NBA you won't win playing Kanter/KP lineups. No way.

+100

But no to starting KOQ, his role is off the bench.

O'Quinn is a stop gap starter. He is not the longterm guy. In the short term he plays the right way and gets the offense to run the right way, and keeps KP away from having to defend the opposing team's best phsyical big right away to start games. I think we need to find a better version of O'Quinn eventually for KP anyway. A Center that can space the floor, pass, has the size to defend inside.

I could be wrong, but I think a player like O'Quinn would have far more value on top teams like Golden State, Houston and San Antonio than Kanter. I think Kanter has the lesser value on a contender, because he doesn't move the ball. doesn't shoot from outside and forces the team to sort of play a certain style of offense. Kanter is a great rebounder, great at playing around the basket. but in today's league rebounding and playing around the basket like that are of minimal value. We have to get away from this style of play ASAP.

For the entire season, I saw Kanter for his pluses and minuses and his poor +/-. He is the epitome of old school and simply doesnt have the wheels and athleticism to stay with most 5s. He ranked 26/30 on ESPN rating of 5s in 2017. Perhaps now at best he’s 20. To compete with Boston, ans Phili we will need talent at the 5 to stymie Embiid and Horford. Kanter cannot.

SocraticBallin22 wrote:I really liked the unit that closed out the game today, and not only closed out the game (something the team has been struggling to do all season), but extended the lead and blew the game wide open.

For the first time, we saw KP and Beas together (KP at the 5; Beas at the 4) and it worked well. Having KP and Beas out there together to close out, you have two players who demand double teams and can go ISO and score (or go off) at any time. That puts a lot of pressure on opposing defenses. I would like to see more of this.

Secondly, Frank and Baker closed out the game. Frank had the best game of his career and led the team to the victory. He was a 2 way player and had the best plus/minus. He needs to close games going forward (not Jack). For the first time today, we saw Jack finally being fazed out. He can continue to start games and quarters but not close. Baker had a solid game but will be replaced by THJ, which will give the lineup some serious firepower.

Now the closing linuep going forward:

1) Frank
2) THJ
3) Lee/Dougie (depending on who is playing better)
4) Beas
5) KP

IMO, this is the best lineup to win and close out games. This lineup is a nightmare to defend by opposing teams and has enough to close out games.

Let's see what Horny does...

martin wrote:

nyknickzingis wrote:

martin wrote:

nyknickzingis wrote:I've been saying for a while now that KP has to get into playing the 5 spot with a player that can spread the floor at 4 with him. Beasley does not have a great jumpshot but he can catch the ball outside. He's naturally a ballhandling wing player.

Kanter should not be in our longterm plans at all. We shouldn't even think of giving him in any kind of longterm deal. He may do some things well, but not a single team that is competing for a title starts Kanter. He's a 6th man or off the bench player. If he want stay for that role and that money, sure. We should be starting O"Quinn at 5, he can stretch/space the floor as well and then move KP to 5 as the game evolves. KP needs to man up and eventually get used to being a 5 against physical players. In today's NBA you won't win playing Kanter/KP lineups. No way.

+100

But no to starting KOQ, his role is off the bench.

O'Quinn is a stop gap starter. He is not the longterm guy. In the short term he plays the right way and gets the offense to run the right way, and keeps KP away from having to defend the opposing team's best phsyical big right away to start games. I think we need to find a better version of O'Quinn eventually for KP anyway. A Center that can space the floor, pass, has the size to defend inside.

I could be wrong, but I think a player like O'Quinn would have far more value on top teams like Golden State, Houston and San Antonio than Kanter. I think Kanter has the lesser value on a contender, because he doesn't move the ball. doesn't shoot from outside and forces the team to sort of play a certain style of offense.

Kater is the stop gap starter.

KOQ has a nice vibe with Doug and the bench players. I'd guess against starters KOQ would wilt over the long haul. Or foul out within minutes. He's a fouling machine against second line players.

If this is the case do we move a Kanter at the deadline?

His offensive rebounding is unreal

Knixkik wrote:

martin wrote:

Knixkik wrote:

martin wrote:

nyknickzingis wrote:I've been saying for a while now that KP has to get into playing the 5 spot with a player that can spread the floor at 4 with him. Beasley does not have a great jumpshot but he can catch the ball outside. He's naturally a ballhandling wing player.

Kanter should not be in our longterm plans at all. We shouldn't even think of giving him in any kind of longterm deal. He may do some things well, but not a single team that is competing for a title starts Kanter. He's a 6th man or off the bench player. If he want stay for that role and that money, sure. We should be starting O"Quinn at 5, he can stretch/space the floor as well and then move KP to 5 as the game evolves. KP needs to man up and eventually get used to being a 5 against physical players. In today's NBA you won't win playing Kanter/KP lineups. No way.

+100

But no to starting KOQ, his role is off the bench.

I would still keep Kanter, but eventually move him to a 6th man role as we shift KP to the 5. It's not difficult. Kanter would be an awesome 6th man in the future.

Kanter would be a decent 6th man, but at what price? $12M, yes; $15M, maybe; more than $15M and you are clogging up your salary cap.

Push comes to shove, I'd love to keep KP at the 4 and find a decent 5 to grow with him. He can play 5 for some minutes against small linueps, but his body type may never hold up at the 5 full time. At the 4 he as a really big height advantage without the constant pounding. Can you find a bouncy/strong enough player next to KP who is 6'9" and above who can stretch the floor?

Maybe you're talking about a guy like Larry Nance? But still, not a lot of guys who can compliment Porzingis better than Kanter. And Kanter can play his 24-26 mpg, and you get Porzingis at least half of his minutes at the 5 either way. To me that's the best of both worlds. But i agree, it comes down to the Kanter price tag. I want to believe we can lock him up at 15 mil per year over 4 years. I'll do it, and keep him as a starter with the possibility of moving him to 6th man down the road. He still provides the heart and toughness that helps build a nice identity here. But like anyone, it has to be at the right price.

IMHO Kanter is not a starter on a deep playoff team, so the pairing of Kanter-KP is fools gold.

BRIGGS wrote:The team can play a bunch of different ways.

I like what KP did today. Only 27 minutes--took shots that came to him--rebounded and dished. Didnt force but 1 shot. He doesnt need 25 shots.

I think the best team might be

C-KP
F Beasley
F Mcdermott
G Hardaway
G Frank N

back it up with

Kanter
Oquinn
Lee
Jack
Baker

I like that lineup too. But KP better become a better rebounder.
I believe in short time we'll be substituting Burke for Jack on the second unit. He fit right in out there today.