Now, after a week long break for the AS week, we are getting two players back, iHart and DDV. We are hopefully, if everything goes right, going to start to get the rest of our rotation back. Two weeks away could be the return of OG. Another week (3 weeks) and we could get Randle back. And 4 weeks from now, we could see the return of Mitch.

This would be the ideal situation for us. We will have some time with the band back together to build momentum going into the playoffs. We all know what the starting line up should look like. Even if Mitch gets his starting role back, we are still very solid there. The big questions come with what the 2nd unit looks like and if Thibs will expand the rotation.

While Burks and Bogdanovic add scoring, they really shouldn't play together unless you want a squad who will play hard but not be able to defend. I like the idea of Deuce having a secondary ball handler who can also score, but Burks is going to have to really settle down and take better shots.

Achiuwa has EARNED a rotation spot. He also plays very well with iHart. I hope Achiuwa and Deuce aren't odd men out. I'm not sure how this shakes out when everyone is back. There is the possible scenario where Randle doesn't stay healthy for the playoffs. His shoulder even when healed enough, will be more vulnerable to re-injury. In this scenario, Bogdanovic is a nice insurance policy as a Randle replacement.

This is going to be a long and stressful 2-3 weeks waiting on the injury status of OG, Randle and Mitch. Let's also hope iHart is truly back and we don't have to worry about his achilles. This has been the most fun season up until now. I have gotten used to winning and thinking we can win against every other team in the league.

What we "saw" for a a very brief time was that while we were able to play the "build around" guys together no team in the league could beat us it seemed. What has to happen is we need to get these guys back and playing together and then we will see.

We are still young and the group looked so promising.

fishmike wrote:to coin a phrase we are "built around" Brunson/OG/Randle. The centers are really important. The other guys are high end role players.

What we "saw" for a a very brief time was that while we were able to play the "build around" guys together no team in the league could beat us it seemed. What has to happen is we need to get these guys back and playing together and then we will see.

We are still young and the group looked so promising.

Our core has a great balance of floor spreading, scoring and defense when healthy. The 2nd unit needed a scorer and we got 2. Too bad neither one can hold IQ's jock strap on the defensive end. Deuce has potential as a 2-way player but he is not looking like a lead guard. I'm really curious to what Thibs does with the 2nd unit. He should get some time to mix and match before the playoffs. Even so, a play in is risky as ****

I see the rest of the season being about how far we can go without adding another star.

The injuries might be too much for the team to overcome. Will be glad to see the Knicks play sleeper. but if the injuries are too much of a drag on the team, then no biggie. The FO will have a good idea of what to do next. Who should stay. who should go. Glad to see the dealmaking picking up steam.

Rookie wrote:

BigDaddyG wrote:We are approaching play-in territory until we get some reinforcements back. I'm not the biggest Thibs fan, but I give him credit for rounding up and getting effort from the remaining troops. But a lot of times it just comes down to the opposing teams Xs being better than our Os.

We play 2 teams with losing records in our next 10. We are definitely staring into the abyss. The reality is we are most likely dropping into the play in. From there it's going to be a battle to stack wins and move back up to 5th or 6th seed.

Reverse Jinx move! Keep it coming!

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GustavBahler wrote:Unless we luck out and get healthy at the right time, the playoffs or play-in will be a prelude to a big trade this summer. No deep run this season. Get the feeling that Leon is going to start cashing in those picks.

I see the rest of the season being about how far we can go without adding another star.

The injuries might be too much for the team to overcome. Will be glad to see the Knicks play sleeper. but if the injuries are too much of a drag on the team, then no biggie. The FO will have a good idea of what to do next. Who should stay. who should go. Glad to see the dealmaking picking up steam.

Rookie wrote:We learned that with Mitch out, we can still win with iHart. And then when Randle went down, Brunson and crew stepped up and we still found a way to win. And then....OG went down and even then, winning was possible at least against teams under .500. And then...losing iHart and DDV really pushed us to the limit and winning became surviving until we can get some healthy bodies back. Although we had good grades on our trade deadline, Burks and Bogdanovic having to be used as primary players in lieu of their role as limited reserve scoring was very ugly.

Now, after a week long break for the AS week, we are getting two players back, iHart and DDV. We are hopefully, if everything goes right, going to start to get the rest of our rotation back. Two weeks away could be the return of OG. Another week (3 weeks) and we could get Randle back. And 4 weeks from now, we could see the return of Mitch.

This would be the ideal situation for us. We will have some time with the band back together to build momentum going into the playoffs. We all know what the starting line up should look like. Even if Mitch gets his starting role back, we are still very solid there. The big questions come with what the 2nd unit looks like and if Thibs will expand the rotation.

While Burks and Bogdanovic add scoring, they really shouldn't play together unless you want a squad who will play hard but not be able to defend. I like the idea of Deuce having a secondary ball handler who can also score, but Burks is going to have to really settle down and take better shots.

Achiuwa has EARNED a rotation spot. He also plays very well with iHart. I hope Achiuwa and Deuce aren't odd men out. I'm not sure how this shakes out when everyone is back. There is the possible scenario where Randle doesn't stay healthy for the playoffs. His shoulder even when healed enough, will be more vulnerable to re-injury. In this scenario, Bogdanovic is a nice insurance policy as a Randle replacement.

This is going to be a long and stressful 2-3 weeks waiting on the injury status of OG, Randle and Mitch. Let's also hope iHart is truly back and we don't have to worry about his achilles. This has been the most fun season up until now. I have gotten used to winning and thinking we can win against every other team in the league.

I did not watch the last few games. I'd catch the 4th quarter and see whats up.
Call me fair weather dude, or what ever. That many injuries make leads hard to stick when that much talent is out.
Its really crazy how we got hit so hard so fast. Its been hard to watch.
But......the ceiling was defined as high. There is potential and we have a likable group. If we can get that group back and playing that way we can get to ECF and then anything can happen!

We got 27 games left. This won't be easy. If we are a play in team, hope we go in healthy. If so, we can **** up someone's season. In the age of parity, other teams might get injury bug and we can simply take them out.
"You want to be the man, you have to play the man"! Eventually and perhaps sooner in playoffs than one would want.

As for Gustaves Star gazing? Its a fall back fantasy we been wishing upon for a long time. Who? I have no idea. Thats what makes it fun.
More fun when that middle tier player rises to be the star! Then its a blast! Hope we can get back to the January level of play with a full squad.

Rookie wrote:

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