I don't think we traded for KAT to play him at the 4. Doesn't mean we can't see him at times there, but I doubt he was ever going to be anything but the starting 5.
he's a 5 who can play the 4 because of his shooting. He's a 5 and has always been a 5.
I agree that there could be instances were he and mitch co exist but KAT is not that far from Embiid in terms of what he can do.
He had at tough stretch with injury, Covid, and his mom passing. We in the mecca of course do the "he soft". The Jimmy thing was not a good look for anyone. KAT also might have been immature early either. Is Nalod right? KAT will demonstrate his ability not on forums but on the court. He earned his criticisms so its all fair. Its about the contract and what he can do going forward.
I think he is at his best at C. I think the defensive worries of him at C can be improved with Thibs. Without slight to Hart, if anything, I would want to bring in a PF to slot OG at SF and Bridges at SG. Tari Eason is like the Hart of PFs. He's averaging 2.3 steals in 17 minutes for the first 4 games of 24-25.
But I don't see Hart getting less minutes anytime soon which blocks any other changes.
fishmike wrote:he's a 5 who can play the 4 because of his shooting. He's a 5 and has always been a 5.
He was playing the 4 in Minny. I heard a few posters saying they would like to see KAT moved to the 4, with Mitch or Huk playing the 5. Wanted to hear if they still felt that way.
Note: I don't think I understood the poll correctly. I voted "Yes" as in Thibs wants to keep KAT at the C, though that appears to contradict the poll title.
EwingsGlass wrote:I think he is at his best at C. I think the defensive worries of him at C can be improved with Thibs. Without slight to Hart, if anything, I would want to bring in a PF to slot OG at SF and Bridges at SG. Tari Eason is like the Hart of PFs. He's averaging 2.3 steals in 17 minutes for the first 4 games of 24-25.But I don't see Hart getting less minutes anytime soon which blocks any other changes.
I feel like the Knicks think this too, ideally speaking.
I don't know Eason well enough but I think you right on the archetype. May need a bit more distance shooting and rebounding but I'm not sure what he brings.
EwingsGlass wrote:Note: I don't think I understood the poll correctly. I voted "Yes" as in Thibs wants to keep KAT at the C, though that appears to contradict the poll title.
My bad, the thread title was the poll question.
He’s a 5, and then once if/when Mitch is healthy they can play in certain lineups together against teams like Cleveland. I like the spacing though with towns at the 5.
GustavBahler wrote:EwingsGlass wrote:Note: I don't think I understood the poll correctly. I voted "Yes" as in Thibs wants to keep KAT at the C, though that appears to contradict the poll title.
My bad, the thread title was the poll question.
Yeah I did the same by accident.
Not for nothing but the Knicks have been trying to run a 5-out with iHart but he was just not *out enough* at the top of the key and they made up for that by his passing and the down hill thing and the Nova cutting.
Knicks will get it done and it will be beautiful. Once Brunson figures out how to see guys better.
I just want more help at the PF position in terms of size. Prescious fits that perfectly when he gets back.
i said yes but it's situational when we need to be big, e.g., cleveland
Anyone who is asking for this doesn't understand why we made the trade.
There may be situations where he plays the 4 next to Mitch IF we keep Mitch. However its more likely you see Precious out there playing quasi 4-5 next to Towns and you wouldn't notice the size gap we currently have. I think Precious is a 18-20mpg player on this team.
GustavBahler wrote:fishmike wrote:he's a 5 who can play the 4 because of his shooting. He's a 5 and has always been a 5.
He was playing the 4 in Minny. I heard a few posters saying they would like to see KAT moved to the 4, with Mitch or Huk playing the 5. Wanted to hear if they still felt that way.
he played in Minn for 9 seasons. 7 of them he was the starting C. Did you ever watch them with Rudy? Kat never really played the 4. Minn just played two centers.
KAT is huge. The LAST thing I want is him chasing 4s like OG/Randle/Tatum/Siakem/Orlando guy w/ Spanish name/etc
Will KAT/Mitch share the floor? For the reasons above that's not a rotation I want to run often. Situational at best. KAT's offensive game allows you to play muscle like Precious.
So far the KAT/OG/Josh frontcourt has been fantastic IMO. Josh has really shown out as a 2nd ball handler and slashing drive and dish game is a great compliment to all the gravity Jalen/KAT create.
Really the problem (we knew this) is depth. If Precious was healthy he would be getting 25 minutes a night behind KAT and OG at the 4/5. That's really hurting us right now. Temporary as he will be back AND Huk looks like a good prospect (and of course Mitch)
GustavBahler wrote:fishmike wrote:he's a 5 who can play the 4 because of his shooting. He's a 5 and has always been a 5.
He was playing the 4 in Minny. I heard a few posters saying they would like to see KAT moved to the 4, with Mitch or Huk playing the 5. Wanted to hear if they still felt that way.
Yes, I think it’s something we should take a look at when Mitch gets healthy. Kat is our starting 5 but there could be stretches where he moves to the 4. It would have made a difference against Cleveland’s length. Having players that can play multiple positions is a good thing. And about this 5 out thing. I’m really trying to see it but I don’t. Our spacing isn’t good. Teams are playing half way and are having no trouble getting up on shooters or collapsing into the paint. Lots of time when we attack it’s looks like there’s 3 defenders standing there. If we are trying to play 5 out I’m really not seeing it.
fishmike wrote:GustavBahler wrote:fishmike wrote:he's a 5 who can play the 4 because of his shooting. He's a 5 and has always been a 5.
He was playing the 4 in Minny. I heard a few posters saying they would like to see KAT moved to the 4, with Mitch or Huk playing the 5. Wanted to hear if they still felt that way.
he played in Minn for 9 seasons. 7 of them he was the starting C. Did you ever watch them with Rudy? Kat never really played the 4. Minn just played two centers.KAT is huge. The LAST thing I want is him chasing 4s like OG/Randle/Tatum/Siakem/Orlando guy w/ Spanish name/etc
Will KAT/Mitch share the floor? For the reasons above that's not a rotation I want to run often. Situational at best. KAT's offensive game allows you to play muscle like Precious.
So far the KAT/OG/Josh frontcourt has been fantastic IMO. Josh has really shown out as a 2nd ball handler and slashing drive and dish game is a great compliment to all the gravity Jalen/KAT create.
Really the problem (we knew this) is depth. If Precious was healthy he would be getting 25 minutes a night behind KAT and OG at the 4/5. That's really hurting us right now. Temporary as he will be back AND Huk looks like a good prospect (and of course Mitch)
Had to laugh!!!! Good take. Paolo is not "Pablo".......
Banchero is of African-American descent on his mother’s side and of Italian descent on his father's side.
In February 2020, he received Italian citizenship because of his paternal ancestry.[59]
KAT is a center and he is a handful for most teams. I think his defense will be just fine from what I have seen. He really locked down the JOker last year and eliminated Denver. As he hits 30 we want him more like BroPez who started his career often solid not missing games to some back issues, then very solid again.
KATs fundamentals are very solid and his is very large. Just because he was a sort of 4 in minny does not mean he is here. He really is a sort of unicorn more in vein of Embiid than KP. He can bang in the paint!
I've said this many times but this might not be our year. We are not deep enough. The wishlist many fans speak of we don't have the cap space or trade assets. Plug a hole we create another. Shamet is not our savior. Matt Ryan? Nice players and in limited roles can and should help. If Huk, Kolek or Dadiet can step up that would be massive. Cam Payne? Not saying he can be DDv but he needs more time.
My concern is when other injuries mount. Josh is 4 games in and looks playoff wear and tear already. Nalod liked his role last year where he was our 6th man but finished games frequently. Thibs is going to kill him.
The term Power Forward will be obsolete soon just like Point Guard, Shooting Guard and Centers. That’s what basketball used to be but not where it’s going.
Towns and our wing stop forwards, even JB, Deuce and Hart (for example). These guys are positionless players. And that’s the future of basketball. Some may argue it’s now the current structure of today’s basketball game. Yesterday PGs are today’s SGs (for example). iHart or Towns were centers yesterday, today they are point forwards or point centers making back door passes. Town really does everything.
So Towns was brought in to cause mis-matches and to add flexibility to an already flexible roster where we now have ALL 5 positions, especially on the starting lineup, can play multiple positions. Randle and Mitch for example play 1 position. Them two together reduced our flexibility. Towns and others on the roster can play 2-4 positions.
Perfect roster build to match up with any NBA team. Against the cavs, Mitch and Towns might be a better strategy against them. Other teams like Boston, we need towns at the 5 for example. So Thibs has a lot of flexibility on hand. Will be interesting to see how he utilizes this flexibility.
I think KAT with Mitch will be great. If Mitch can work with Randle then KAT and Mitch would be really good. KAT will get his time a the 5 spot when Mitch is on the bench.
blkexec wrote:The term Power Forward will be obsolete soon just like Point Guard, Shooting Guard and Centers. That’s what basketball used to be but not where it’s going.Towns and our wing stop forwards, even JB, Deuce and Hart (for example). These guys are positionless players. And that’s the future of basketball. Some may argue it’s now the current structure of today’s basketball game. Yesterday PGs are today’s SGs (for example). iHart or Towns were centers yesterday, today they are point forwards or point centers making back door passes. Town really does everything.
So Towns was brought in to cause mis-matches and to add flexibility to an already flexible roster where we now have ALL 5 positions, especially on the starting lineup, can play multiple positions. Randle and Mitch for example play 1 position. Them two together reduced our flexibility. Towns and others on the roster can play 2-4 positions.
Perfect roster build to match up with any NBA team. Against the cavs, Mitch and Towns might be a better strategy against them. Other teams like Boston, we need towns at the 5 for example. So Thibs has a lot of flexibility on hand. Will be interesting to see how he utilizes this flexibility.
yeah... its bigger wing and smaller wing. The league has like 3 positions. PG, C and wing. You are one of those 3. You can play 2 PGs. You can play 2 Cs. But that's really it.
KAT is not a wing. Every time he's gotta guard one anywhere but the paint we are losing that matchup. Dude should NOT be burning calories out there. Look at him vs. Bam. You really need more evidence? 
