He needs to be more assertive on offense. Use the jumper get in there and slam some down. Oquinn has been the best player in pre season(with d will). He's highly confident and has more skill than he is given credit for. I spoke the Knicks to start Oquinn at pf and use Porzingis and Seraphim off the bench.
I think for right now it makes sense to have O'Quinn on the second unit, along with DWill, Grant and Galloway.
RLopez - he had 10pts in first qtr against Philly, so he's assertive when it's there for him. He got two quick fouls last night, one was a frustration foul after he missed an easy dunk attempt (Celtics probably fouled him, wasn't called, and he fouled back out of frustration)
I think RLopez will be fine and his offense will be there when it is needed. I think it makes a lot of sense to start KP alongside him - create more space inside with KP's range and mobility. Lance Thomas does not do that.
You left out Melo, who has looked very very good in pre-season. We may sort of expect it, but it's a good sign he's been so locked in on both ends.
I think it's impossible to judge the lineups til we see the starters actually all play a game together.
It's unfortunate, but we have not yet seen the projected starters play even one quarter together in pre-season:
Calderon
Afflalo
Melo
KP
Lopez
crzymdups wrote:I think it's impossible to judge the lineups til we see the starters actually all play a game together.It's unfortunate, but we have not yet seen the projected starters play even one quarter together in pre-season:
Calderon
Afflalo
Melo
KP
Lopez
We might see that tonight in Charlotte.
herkyJerky wrote:crzymdups wrote:I think it's impossible to judge the lineups til we see the starters actually all play a game together.It's unfortunate, but we have not yet seen the projected starters play even one quarter together in pre-season:
Calderon
Afflalo
Melo
KP
Lopez
We might see that tonight in Charlotte.
Sounds like Melo isn't planning on playing... it'd be nice to see the full starters play at least the first quarter.
crzymdups wrote:herkyJerky wrote:crzymdups wrote:I think it's impossible to judge the lineups til we see the starters actually all play a game together.It's unfortunate, but we have not yet seen the projected starters play even one quarter together in pre-season:
Calderon
Afflalo
Melo
KP
Lopez
We might see that tonight in Charlotte.
Sounds like Melo isn't planning on playing... it'd be nice to see the full starters play at least the first quarter.
I would give Anthony the rest. His shot was off yesterday, although he did some other things...makes a lot of sense to sit him, and a lot of teams have done this later in the pre-season with their established vets.
I would actually start Early at SF tonight and see what he gives you. Looked pretty confident yesterday, and I'd like to see him make the case for more playing time in the regular season.
BRIGGS wrote:He needs to be more assertive on offense. Use the jumper get in there and slam some down. Oquinn has been the best player in pre season(with d will). He's highly confident and has more skill than he is given credit for. I spoke the Knicks to start Oquinn at pf and use Porzingis and Seraphim off the bench.
I think Lopez takes what's there. Had the game where he was hitting some open jumpers, but if they are not there you don't want him forcing things.
I've been pretty happy with his play- seems to play within the flow of the offense and does his thing on D. I don't think he ever going to put up crazy numbers, but we have enough scorers on this team where we don't need that much from him.
Maybe I'll change this opinion as the season progresses, but I need to see more of his game first.
BRIGGS wrote:He needs to be more assertive on offense. Use the jumper get in there and slam some down. Oquinn has been the best player in pre season(with d will). He's highly confident and has more skill than he is given credit for. I spoke the Knicks to start Oquinn at pf and use Porzingis and Seraphim off the bench.
He is not that reactive and coordinated to make quick decisions on the offensive end...U can see he tries to make a quick move like a hook shot after an adjustment and miss by a mile...Looks like he has to be stationary to be on target or just go straight to the hole...
WaltLongmire wrote:I would actually start Early at SF tonight and see what he gives you. Looked pretty confident yesterday, and I'd like to see him make the case for more playing time in the regular season.
Lance Thomas got the teacher's pet role locked up
Im very happy to see Lopez anchoring the D, can already see dividends. When the lineup is more or less solidified, Im guessing we will see Lopez being a larger part of the offense, especially when Grant is on the floor with him. I can see lots of easy flushes.
martin wrote:WaltLongmire wrote:I would actually start Early at SF tonight and see what he gives you. Looked pretty confident yesterday, and I'd like to see him make the case for more playing time in the regular season.
Lance Thomas got the teacher's pet role locked up
This is true, but I would not be surprised to see Early start tonight if Melo sits. I think he deserves a shot after last night's performance. We shall see...
BRIGGS wrote:He needs to be more assertive on offense. Use the jumper get in there and slam some down. Oquinn has been the best player in pre season(with d will). He's highly confident and has more skill than he is given credit for. I spoke the Knicks to start Oquinn at pf and use Porzingis and Seraphim off the bench.
Just so that you know, there are times we agree on things.....And this is one of them. I like O'quinn in the starting lineup as well. Every championship team has a Dennis Rodman / Junk yard dog type of player. O'quinn is the perfect player to help relieve Melo from banging against those strong PF's.....O'quinn would help reduce the wear and tear on Melo. KP can own the second unit....KP, Dwill,Grant, Gallo, Seraphin.....thats a nice 5 off the bench. And it's balanced just like the starting unit.
blkexec wrote:BRIGGS wrote:He needs to be more assertive on offense. Use the jumper get in there and slam some down. Oquinn has been the best player in pre season(with d will). He's highly confident and has more skill than he is given credit for. I spoke the Knicks to start Oquinn at pf and use Porzingis and Seraphim off the bench.
Just so that you know, there are times we agree on things.....And this is one of them. I like O'quinn in the starting lineup as well. Every championship team has a Dennis Rodman / Junk yard dog type of player. O'quinn is the perfect player to help relieve Melo from banging against those strong PF's.....O'quinn would help reduce the wear and tear on Melo. KP can own the second unit....KP, Dwill,Grant, Gallo, Seraphin.....thats a nice 5 off the bench. And it's balanced just like the starting unit.
I could see the switch eventually being made... though I think KP offers more spacing in the starting unit. The starting unit really struggles with spacing and production with KP out. It's actually very reminiscent of the 2012-3 group. The bench allows them to mix up looks. But I think KP starting will help that a lot.
Lopez tends to let his fellow players get the stats- he helped Aldridge get more rebounds, I suspect he makes it easier for other players to score too. I don't think his individual stats are going to tell the full story with him.
smackeddog wrote:Lopez tends to let his fellow players get the stats- he helped Aldridge get more rebounds, I suspect he makes it easier for other players to score too. I don't think his individual stats are going to tell the full story with him.
Yeah, there was a play last night - off a missed three by Lance - that Lopez boxed out two Celtics and created space for Melo to get an easy rebound and put back. I think he'll do a lot of that this season.
martin wrote:WaltLongmire wrote:I would actually start Early at SF tonight and see what he gives you. Looked pretty confident yesterday, and I'd like to see him make the case for more playing time in the regular season.
Lance Thomas got the teacher's pet role locked up
I see Lance, and he's moving to all the right spots, but he's shooting blanks. Still trying to figure out his purpose. Is he there to reinforce the Triangle, or is he being showcased for a trade? In either case, he's not bringing much to the floor and should probably sit so that some other combinations can be tried out.
