But it’s not just giving up Barnes 1.5 3pt shots a game. His presence and spacing allows his teammates to get better looks so the real question is can we afford to give up his shots AND decrease the FG% Sabonis, Fox, Huerter, Murray, etc.? This is a team sport and the fit/chemistry impacts everyone else.
Again, it would be a significant change to what we’ve observed offensively this year to have someone who’s not a threat outside 10ft share the court with Sabonis. Essentially all of Sabonis’ minutes have been next to Fox, Mitchell, Huerter, Monk, Davis, Murray, Barnes, and Lyles. All of these guys are threats outside 10ft. Adding someone like Okongwu could be a shock to our offense (and not a good shock) and make it much easier to game plan for (especially in the playoffs).
Below is a list of players (with their per 36 min stats to reference) that will be FAs either this offseason or next offseason who could be solid additions at SF/PF (I've also included the Kings SFs/PFs as a comparison):
View attachment 11761
I'd preferably want to go after who has PF size (vs. SF size like O'Neale, Hart, Bullock, Nesmith, Brooks, etc.) but this is generally the archetype we should be targeting.
This is where we're just never going to agree. I know it will change the offense for the worse in some ways. It will also change the defense for the better and I'm okay with that trade-off. I want a shot blocker on the floor so that we don't get punked by guards driving to the basket, fouling out Sabonis, and beating us at the FT line. This has been the formula that other top playoff teams (Milwaukee, Memphis, Boston, Phoenix) have used to beat us this season. I just disagree with your premise that we should only be looking at floor spacers for the starting lineup. There will be shooters to work in and out of the rotation throughout the game (Monk, Lyles, Edwards?, Vezenkov?) -- where we're really lacking is in tough, physical defenders -- especially near the basket.