Welcome Kevin Huerter
- Thread starter Tetsujin
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I brought this up before, but in looking at the Hawks 5 man lineups very rarely was Huerter either not next to a player of equal size, or next to someone that can cover SF's. He was usually next to Hunter, Bogdan, or Luwawu-Cabarrot. I think experimenting with Monk and Huerter is fine, but overall this dudes minutes were essentially next to someone bigger than him or at least the same size. The idea of moving Barnes out of the starting lineup should only be brought up by necessity at this point. Barnes is at this moment probably the 3rd most ready and ably skilled player on this squad. No doubt, his best moments for this team were at PF. However, that could very well be because he was the only legit option as a spacing, small ball, mismatch PF which is not only modern BBall to a T but the best spacing Fox saw around him. It certainly felt like Barnes played most of his minutes at SF last season even if to the detriment of the overall abilities of the team. Now is the time to see if Barnes and Keegan are a nightmare for opposing frontlines with their shooting ability and size. Fox/Huerter/Barnes/Murray/Sabonis is small ball, but with a unique twist on size. That's a HUGE small ball type team. Now, defensively it could be so bad that it's not worth it but Brown should make sure first. On paper there are no answers individually on the defensive end other than a non spacing C in Holmes and a 6 foot tall PG, so unless something unusual happens, it seems that unit is the best overall on both ends in terms of what things say on paper. I've seen various videos of non Kings fans predicting that Monk will start and Huerter will back up at the SG/SF spots. It could happen but obviously Monk has the makings of a 6th man of the year type of player with this scoring ability. Davion/Monk/Holmes as the bench spark looks great on paper as long as they buy in. The truth is unless Brown platoons (bad idea but could work for a bit as long as Fox/Sabonis are your foundation legit starters minutes guys) then all 3 could potentially be looking at 15-24 mpg at best.
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Would it really be small ball tho? You have 6'3", 6'7", 6'8", 6'9, and 6'11 running out. That's legit size all the way around, with maybe giving up an inch or 2 at most at 2 positions and taking those back at 2 other positions.
I think the key is Brown being able to squeeze solid team D out of that unit, however it should be attainable due to the overall IQ of that unit.
I think the D for that unit really boils down to Fox and his effort at the point of attack, if he can even be passable then we really wouldn't need a shotblocker. 02 didn't have a true shotblocker, Pollard and before him Keon Clark were your best rim protectors during that run. Idk, I don't really see a need for a true shotblocker if you can slow teams down on D and drop 120 on them on the other end which is certainly doable, at least on paper.
I would imagine Brown is excited for this challenge as his last head coaching gigs probably weren't as potentially potent as this one is. This team needs a leader on the sidelines as well as one on the court. I think we have both finally.
Would it really be small ball tho? You have 6'3", 6'7", 6'8", 6'9, and 6'11 running out. That's legit size all the way around, with maybe giving up an inch or 2 at most at 2 positions and taking those back at 2 other positions.
I think the key is Brown being able to squeeze solid team D out of that unit, however it should be attainable due to the overall IQ of that unit.
I think the D for that unit really boils down to Fox and his effort at the point of attack, if he can even be passable then we really wouldn't need a shotblocker. 02 didn't have a true shotblocker, Pollard and before him Keon Clark were your best rim protectors during that run. Idk, I don't really see a need for a true shotblocker if you can slow teams down on D and drop 120 on them on the other end which is certainly doable, at least on paper.
I would imagine Brown is excited for this challenge as his last head coaching gigs probably weren't as potentially potent as this one is. This team needs a leader on the sidelines as well as one on the court. I think we have both finally.
I think the starting 5 will end up usually being Fox, Huerter, Barnes, Murray, Sabonis.
Hopefully Brown does follow through on getting De'Aaron to focus on defense. My guess is that the difference in Huerter's net rating is in part based on him not having to cover for Trae Young and guard ballhandlers at the point of attack when he's the SF in a lineup.
If teams go small, the Kings definitely have options but I don't regularly want to see Monk and Huerter as two of the three primary wing defenders, especially against teams with bigger wings like the Clippers or Celtics.
Hopefully Brown does follow through on getting De'Aaron to focus on defense. My guess is that the difference in Huerter's net rating is in part based on him not having to cover for Trae Young and guard ballhandlers at the point of attack when he's the SF in a lineup.
If teams go small, the Kings definitely have options but I don't regularly want to see Monk and Huerter as two of the three primary wing defenders, especially against teams with bigger wings like the Clippers or Celtics.
Yeah, the real smallball lineup would be Fox, Monk, Huerter, Barnes, Murray. As long as you aren't playing a team with a strong low post presence (Sixers, Nuggets etc) they wouldn't be much worse defensively than a starting lineup that swaps Sabonis for Monk, but offensively you'd trade Sabonis' playmaking and screen setting/pick and roll game for surrounding Fox with four shooters.
That's what I think, but honestly that lineup should only be used sparingly and in certain matchup situations anyway. If Sabo has legit range after his off-season work then I would imagine the other lineup is one of the most potent in the league offensively. Even a middle tier defensive rating should be enough.
The potential is exciting, on paper. Like many around these parts I'm trying REAL hard not to set too much of an expectation on this coming season but the tools are definitely there to be a top 6 team. There is a good mix of youth, talent, experience, and a solid IQ overall. I think it will come down to effort and fit, which again looks real good on paper for both. Just need Fox to earn that paycheck.
The potential is exciting, on paper. Like many around these parts I'm trying REAL hard not to set too much of an expectation on this coming season but the tools are definitely there to be a top 6 team. There is a good mix of youth, talent, experience, and a solid IQ overall. I think it will come down to effort and fit, which again looks real good on paper for both. Just need Fox to earn that paycheck.
