05-28-2025, 08:48 AM
(05-28-2025, 07:57 AM)Winter Wrote: Things are going to change a little after the draft and again in free agency. There's no good way to predict precisely how this unfolds for the starting lineup for next season. I think it's likely though that AD will understand the he cannot be wedded to one position with the current roster.
No one from the FO will say this publically, but Cooper Flagg is more important than AD. Whatever positions people end up playing, CF's skill set will try to be maximized. There's a lot of time to figure out what the best position is for CF, but really AD's interest in playing the PF position is secondary now to the team's overall function. The mission of the front office is not to appease a superstar's demands of playing a particular position. AD knows this. He's been around the block.
Interestingly, the FO will have to predict some of this starter lineup stuff before they make a trade, and maybe before the draft. They are going to imagine the starting lineup long before we know anything.
I hope you're right, because if AD is willing and enthusiastic about playing center, even if he starts next to Lively and then they split the position throughout the game, this team is going to be versatile and scary.