(01-22-2021, 06:31 AM)SleepingHero Wrote: [ -> ]Wouldn't just a change in playstyle would solve their problems theoretically?
Maybe, but:
A) This is how Milwaukee thinks it's best to play him and to build around him - like he's point forward Lebron James. In Milwaukee, he's an above the break player (almost exclusively). He's working on his 3-point shot. This is a dead end, imo. They have already wasted so much time investing in him down this specific pathway. I don't see them changing course soon, and because he willingly signed up for much more of this, I wonder if that's not the way HE thinks he should be playing, too.
B) Talk about a team in financial trouble, yeesh. They have no way to get the player(s) needed to make the changes needed, as far as I can tell. Middleton and Holiday are good players, so no insult to them. They have other good role players, too. I think if Giannis was the TYPE of player the team thinks he is, the roster would be good enough to get the job done. But, again, it's all based on Giannis being Lebron, which he's not. To win a title, the team needs a Harden, Lillard, Irving, Doncic, etc. They need a PREMIUM ball-handler/scoring threat. The Holiday trade was their last chance to recognize their issue and make things right, and while he's a great player, he's not one of THOSE guys. I don't know that they have ANY chance to get one of those guys now, unless they start to seriously rearrange the roster. Even if they did that, it would take lots of luck. Their payroll is bloated, their Spring has expired. I think they are a dead team walking without even knowing it, personally.
The fact that they blew their wad on Holiday when Harden was potentially on the market seems foolish to me. But that's just an aside. The REAL problem is that while Giannis is made to be the screener for Harden or Doncic, either HE or THEY don't see it. Don't get me wrong, his ball-handling and creativity is important. I just think it should be confined to fast breaks, short-roll situations, etc.
Even the narrative on Inside the NBA last night was "Giannis needs to get better" which is EXACTLY what I'm talking about. They're judging him as he's being presented by the dumb ass Milwaukee Bucks and dumb ass Mike Budenholzer. They touched a little bit on the strategy portion of what has gone wrong with him, but not enough, imo.
I've already rambled too much about this, and all before I've finished my morning coffee, so it's probably incoherent gibberish. I guess what I'm saying is that yes, a play style change could fix this, but it might be too late for that by the time he/they realize that's what's needed. If they ever do.
