(11-13-2019, 09:52 AM)StepBackJay Wrote:Ah, now I get it, thanks for clarifying.(11-13-2019, 02:09 AM)mavsluvr Wrote:(11-12-2019, 11:50 PM)StepBackJay Wrote: So ya I am concerned. He does look like he's lost. I do agree he's better when he just has to shoot. I don't understand why they don't set off-ball screens for him. I thought that was a big part of his game and would let him just shoot open jumpers. At this point, until he gets comfortable I would like to see more sets that just get him open shots. Even if he's missing them (such as open 3s) they usually start falling after a while. His other parts of his game just aren't there right now and they shouldn't try to force it too much.KP has made it very clear that he has no interest in playing center, so they are using him mostly as a PF with another big. I assume that he is willing to play some center if they need him to.
Another thought, I wonder if Mavs are eventually going to punt on the idea of KP being a full-time center. He may just play better along side a more traditional big. We have seen him play well with Boban. KP at the 5 creates all kinds of space which is nice but then I think it might be negatively affecting his overall game.
Carlisle talked about KP some on the Lowe post today. Zach asked him why they don't run more Luka-KP pick and rolls. Rick said that such a strategy was likely to lead the opponent to switch, which could result in isolation play, slowing the game down, which was undesirable. Zach brought up Carlisle's use of the switching strategy in San Antonio in their last 7-game series, which was successful in drawing the Spurs into a series of isolation plays as a possible example of what Carlisle was talking about. (FWIW, not sure i'm totally buying Carlisle's reason. Maybe just coach speak for letting us know that he doesn't want KP posting up very much, for whatever reason. In this regard, Phil Jackson, suspecting that KP's ceiling might be lower than a franchise player, noted his difficulties posting up.)
Zach also asked if spotting KP up marginalized him in the offense. Carlisle said they are working on getting him integrated, and it's a work in progress.
So Mavs are kind of playing him center in that they are playing other PF/center hybrids next to him. So what I am saying is instead of basically playing 2 PFs Mavs might punt on that idea and get a Steven Adams tyoe in there next to him.
Positions have gotten a lot less well-defined than they used to be, and I think KP's stance is that what we think of as a traditional center is not his preferred position. So, if a traditional center is used in the lineup, the team will generally make an effort to make sure that is not KP. Carlisle was saying in the interview that five out is the norm in the NBA now, and we see that he often doesn't use a big, burly center who hangs out at the basket. I think you are saying that they should reconsider that philosophy. Do I understand you correctly now?