Trade & FA 2024-25:

[KillerLeft]

Hardy - when I say PG I don’t mean 90’s PG. I mean initiate the offense, on ball PnR as the ball handler, making decisions out of double teams, etc.. I’d call Kyrie a PG even though he’s a SG here. But Hardy is a carbon copy of Tim Hardaway Jr to me. Play exclusively off ball, CnS threes, a bit of two dribble pull up in the mid range. I never want Tim to be a decision maker in the same way I don’t want Hardy to be one.

Green - he is undersized as a forward, on switches he’s not big enough to have any real impact on the opponent’s shot. Because he’s so bad at screen navigation, he gets matched up on forwards regardless but he needs to get better at it. On offense I think he’s more than capable of being a decision maker, running some PnR actions, moving off the ball/slashing and being a traditional 2 but LuKai are here so naturally his role will only be an undersized forward. Still not his natural position, which is my point.

You make some good points. I just reach different conclusions than you do. I think it's pretty clear that Hardy has developed quite a bit as an offensive decision maker, and if you limit him to catch and shoots and 2-3 tried and true two-dribble shot solutions, I think you're turning your back on what the Mavs liked about him, which is, in my opinion, his plethora of really polished iso counters, mostly in the mid-range. I think he's really quite advanced in some ways, offensively. And, I think he's starting to make the right pass, and accurately, when he actually looks to pass. For me, all he has to do is stop over-penetrating. BUT, I sure as heck don't want to take away his license to penetrate, because he's REALLY good at it, and that's something the Mavs need. In order for him to play that way, he needs the ball, and in order for him to have the ball, he needs to be able to play PG, at least a little, especially in this kind of offense. I honestly thought the progress he made this year on this front was encouraging, and I'm expecting a big year from him next season if he's here. 

I agree with some of what you're saying about Green's defense. He's never going to bother someone like Jason Tatum, for example. So, from that perspective, I agree that he's not that type of forward. But, as long as Luka Doncic is on this team, they'll need smaller quicker guys who can play forward on offense and credibly guard down. Totally agree that screen navigation has to improve if he's to be worthwhile at any position for much longer. And my goodness, do we see a different player on offense. His handle is decent, and he CAN make passes. I like when he has the ball in transition. But "running some PnR?" I couldn't disagree with that more if I tried, and compared to him, I think Hardy is Chris Paul. Right now. 

Still, thanks for responding. I wish more people got into this stuff around here, personally. I'll argue with you anytime.