Considering he is coming off (unrelated) injuries, it's not the best look that he starts his season with us... injured.
He didn’t have a great preseason, but he showed more than Jones IMO. Will be nice to have him back eventually just for situational purposes and depth
What sucks is he still isn't back to his pre-injury self from Washington. He needs time to get there and the fact that he had an injury here that kept him off the court only prolongs that turnaround time. I have much higher hopes for him then Jones. He was a really good starting C who was on the way up before the injuries. But we need to find out soon whether he can get there or not, otherwise the need for frontcourt help on the trade market greatly increases. AD cannot sustain the current ask for an entire year without help.
Playing with Russ and Dennis on the 2nd unit should build up his wind and confidence. If he runs the floor well, he should get a lot of opportunities for some easy buckets. A few lobs and layups might help get his jumper going.
I think he cracks the rotation and has a chance to become a key contributor. I’m unsure how he does in our drop coverage concept on D though. Most places have used him in high coverage taking advantage of his quickness. Which is why he could be an interesting C next to AD who can provide weak side help defence at the rim. One of the lakers Twitter guys, I think Cranjis suggested we look at Whiteside for a drop coverage C. But I’d prefer Bryant if his shot comes back.
Luckily this is a hand injury and not a lower body one that will need extended ramp up to get back into playing shape. We need him back to (hopefully) relieve AD a bit.
So, here's the deal, IMO. He and Russ have a very good connection (Washington Wizards teammates)... I think they'll do well against most teams 2nd units. Issue is defensively with Bryant. He has slow feet, can't guard the perimeter and his shot in the preseason from three wasn't falling. I don't know if he has better utility than Wenyen currently or if they can possibly play together (might be spacing issues), but who cares? We're 3-10 and we have to see if he works or not. Jones is essentially out of the rotation.
Liking him together with AD. Really liking him. Perhaps should start. Bryant + AD + Bron + 2 of (LW, TB, AR, Dennis). Of course some cross-matching up on D, to hide Bron.
