(08-07-2021, 06:45 PM)DanSchwartzgan Wrote: You call it brow beating, I call it poking the bear with a slight bit of humor (without addressing the bear directly). Tomato - Tom-ah-to.So this is perfectly said. I don’t think any different than what you said above. I guess I didn’t see the brow beating (I felt that was a soft enough term to not offend, sorry if it did!) as sarcasm with it being a follow-up to another complaint from another poster. Sorry for escalating that.
Sorry to disappoint in terms of not committing to any single “best” version of the summer. I didn’t really love anything. Killer called it right, I probably enjoy the strategy part more than anything. Part of the issue with saying “this is the way it has to be or I’ll be upset was there were too many variables and uncertainties:
1. Unless you absolutely knew the plan for KP (here or gone)
2. Unless you absolutely knew the plan for KP (C or PF).
3. Unless we knew the preferences of a new coach.
3. Plus, there just wasn’t a clear cut, obvious and realistic path to a no-brainer star.
I wanted improvement…big or small and didn’t (and still don’t) see the point of getting too upset that we didn’t go in any particular direction. I did express in some of my writing that I hope this isn’t Sammy Superstar Chase Volume 8 and miss out on other good things (thankfully they didn’t). I warned as early as the beginning of the season that improving without giving up THJ would be an issue. People said he was a one-hit wonder. Thankfully he gave us a repeat performance.
I really like Holmes, but if KP is playing C, then he’s not the highest and best use of money. It is REALLY hard to find the perfect PF to put next to KP and the only one who might have been close was never getting out of Atlanta’s grips without us paying a massive price in terms of talent. I like the geriatric PG’s, but not at what they would have cost in cap space or outgoing players. This is what happens when the cupboard is bare. You can’t do the same things other teams do. I tried to come up with clever angles to make something fantastic work, but most were never going to happen if players are dead-set on a certain outcome.
Where I depart from a lot of people is that I think we were closer than most here perceive. “Closer” is a nebulous term. People often retort that I’m nuts if I think we are a “Contender”…another nebulous term (I really like when people add “True” in front of “Contender” like that makes it more clear). As I’ve said, if we had the marginal improvement of us having Batum or Crowder instead of them playing for LAC/Phoenix, I think we might have won two series last season (especially if we hadn’t had all the internal in-fighting). I see Bullock instead of JRich as just such a move. I really like us to win game six against the Clipps (with Kawhi) with that exchange. Sterling has a chance to be helpful also. Both are really good moves.
It does feel like we need one more piece (how good would it be if we had De’Andre Hunter or Patrick Williams to push someone to the bench and provide a slightly bigger frame at the 4/3 than what DFS provides). Heck, imagine if we had done Crowder or Batum last summer to go with Bullock/Sterling this summer (never mind, that’s completely another topic). But, more than anything, we need good KP back. There isn’t any secondary playmaker who is going to make more of a difference than Good-KP makes. And, there isn’t any secondary playmaker who can make up for Bad-KP.
I think this basic run it back offseason with possible improvement from a few changed out names and big change of coaching has a decent chance of getting us hca in at least the first round and a good possibility of a second round trip. Like you said, if we take a big step forward, it’ll probably mostly be because of KP.
While I can see a path to huge improvement over last year with this run it back approach, I can’t fault those who are very upset with little change in roster names and another year of failed plan A. I don’t fully hate the more optimistic views either, but they get under my skin a bit too. I’m constantly being triggered these days during the offseason with my wait and see approach, but I can’t figure out how to pick a side.