Was looking through available free agents last night and aside from Dorell Wright, the prospects at the 3 spot are very, very thin. Xavier is still only 24 too. Interested in how his recovery is going.
First off, where's our boy Upshaw? Second, I think the real way the minutes will be spread out is with Lou Williams getting the backup minutes at the 2 as well with Kobe filling in the rest. Clarkson will be more of the backup pg. It's honestly going to look more like a 3 guard rotation since Lou, Russell and Clarkson can all play either spot and Kobe fills in spot minutes when there's an injury or foul trouble and Brown/Ellington would get very little playing time unless there was an injury. Even Nick Young can play guard. I think Ellington is definitely out just due to roster spots. We will have 3 guys who can play point guard in Russell, Clarkson and Lou and 3 more guys who can play sg in Kobe, Brown and Swaggy. That's half our active roster.
Possibly, I kind of hope so, not because I don't like Swaggy, but because he doesn't really serve a purpose on this roster with Lou Williams as our offense off the bench. And we should have plenty of offense. Kobe, Clarkson, Randle, Russell, Williams...we need some lockdown D on the wing.
Upshaw hasn't shown he's an NBA player yet nor has he shown he can stay clean. Let's get through at least a few Summer League games before we hand him anything. I don't disagree, but in the event we need those minutes I'd rather go to a dependable guy like Wayne. I like Brown a lot, but he's not as proven as Wayne is at this point. For me the rotation is: Russell (25)/Clarkson (10)/Williams (13) Clarkson (20)/ Williams (15)/ Ellington or Jabari (13) Kobe (28)/ Young or replacement (20)/Brown (garbage time) Randle (25)/Bass (23)/Nance Jr. (garbage time) Hibbert (30)/Black (18)/Upshaw (spot minutes if he's on the roster) There you've got Clarkson, Russell, and Williams dominating the guard rotation with 83 out of the 96 available minutes but there's still room for another body in there. Jabari would probably do just fine, but until I know for sure that Jabari can play I like the idea of the more steady Ellington in that position. I suppose if you're unable to get Ellington, you can do this though: Russell (25)/Clarkson (10)/Williams (13) Clarkson (20)/ Williams (15)/ Kobe (13) Kobe (15)/ Young or replacement (25)/Brown (8) Randle (25)/Bass (23)/Nance Jr. (garbage time) Hibbert (30)/Black (18)/Upshaw (spot minutes if he's on the roster)
1. Dorel Wright - 35+% three point shooting veteran over his career. Would fit very well. 2. Caron Butler - Crafty SF, can he still play at a respectable level? Played 78 games last year at 20 mpg averaging around 6pts and shot well from outside. Kobe would sure love one last season with one of his more favorite ex teammates. 3. Luc Mbah a Moute - Defensive veteran presence. Here he's a great mentor for young players.
We've got up 15 spots and the team I posted above is only 12 guys. We can just sign Upshaw if we want to, we don't need to drop Young. The team I proposed doesn't have Kelly or Sacre because I believe they're pretty much goners at this point.
Dorell Wright: Just four years removed from leading the NBA in both three-pointers made and attempted, Wright can help a team as a reserve shooter and wing in lineups that spread the floor. He did not average 15 minutes per game in either of his two seasons with the Portland Trail Blazers, but he shot 38 percent on threes in 2014-15 and should be able to help a team in need of depth. http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nba-b...-agents-who-can-help-nba-teams-045311370.html
No it's 15 full roster and up to 16 if someone is hurt. Minimum of 12 guys total. The Lakers almost always go with a 13-14 man rotation because it gives them depth but also leaves open one spot in case we take back one more player in a trade.
Heard he's likely to go back to Brooklyn. Wright would be a decent grab, especially if we trade away Nick. Wright would hopefully be able to give Brown a season to marinate. They're pretty similar players.
He was in Golden States run and gun offense when he was on top of the 3pt ladder. Then Wes Mathews happened in Portland and was overtaken by Aflalo after that. I think he can still contribute, but I could see him going to San Antonio in a system where he would be utilized effectively.
I'd go 2, 3, 1. Butler is a two way player...veteran presence and can play the "good cop" on a crew with younger players. Mbah a Moute is younger and I put a premium on defense plus the points he gets you is gravy. Wright? Good player but if Anthony Brown is who he is supposed to be then he is just a replication.
wait, so if we can't trade them, we can just waive them off the roster and the books? didn't we pick up Sacre's option?
