Kingster
Hall of Famer
I didn't suggest he needed to experiment with every possible lineup combination. I am saying that a coach constantly reads and reacts to new performance data of individuals and combinations in training camp and regular season that may validate or contradict his plan of action. This process never ends. The coach should know as well as anyone if you are constantly tinkering you open yourself up to instability. The chemistry you aspire to is never achieved. But the desire for stability and role definition has to be balanced with changes when justified. For example if he chooses and trusts in Iman as a backup wing from the outset and he shoots 30% over the first dozen games then maybe it is time to see what Jackson can do with those same minutes. I am not saying anything outrageous here. The main point I was making however is the allocation of minutes starts with defining your rotational players. You are in or out. If you are out you may or may not be out for good. Chances are over the long season with injuries and whatnot temporary bench warmers will be given the chance. Taking X minutes and trying to divide them up over X players is theoretical exercise without practical value. It will always lead to the conclusion there are not enough minutes to go around.
It's not a theoretical exercise. Ninety-six minutes for the 4 & 5 positions isn't theoretical. And the number of players at the 4 & 5 isn't theoretical. And if you think that such an exercise will always lead to the conclusion that there won't be enough minutes go around, go back to last year with the small forward position and do the same exercise, this time for 48 minutes. Would you really have believed at the beginning of the season there just wasn't enough minutes to go around for JJ and whomever?
I expect Divac and Joerger have both done something like this exercise and know there is an issue for the 4 & 5 because of the scarcity of minutes, which in turn will lead them to trade one or two of these guys, hopefully sooner rather than later. Hopefully, they will do something proactively and won't wait until 30 games into the season to see how it all works out and then be forced to do something reactively. A player sitting on the bench isn't one that normally gets you value in a trade. Also, let's face it. The issue of minutes usually isn't a big deal on a winning team. Such a team already has a defined cast and the players who don't get the minutes are willing to suffer it because the team is winning. The Kings are not going to be that team next year. Depending on how they manage the distribution of minutes, they could have dissension in the ranks, not the culture that Vlade was hoping for.