I watched Drummond last night on NBA TV.
If I didn't know better I'd say he intentionally threw the game. He gave a terribly lackluster effort even when the Pistons were still in the game. He finished 3 of 10 and minus-21
I think a motivated Drummond could be a dominant roll man, but the biggest issue is his contract. Centers just aren't valued the way they used to be and I can't imagine the analytics friendly Mavs committing that much money to the least valuable position on the floor. The Mavs spend less than $22 million for their entire 3 man center rotation. Plus they have KP who will play center more if/when the Mavs add another wing/ small-ball four. Drummond costs $27 million alone.
So while I do think Drummond can be a winning player on the right team, you really have to factor in the contract along with the player evaluation. If Drummond will opt out and resign at $12 million per? Sure. Otherwise, since the Mavs already have much of what Drummond provides i.e. Powell's dominant roll-man efficiency -- as well as good play in areas that Drummond doesn't do well i.e. Kleber's floor spacing three point shooting -- I think the Mavs have use their limited assets (money) to acquire more a valuable resource i.e. dynamic guard or wing.
If I didn't know better I'd say he intentionally threw the game. He gave a terribly lackluster effort even when the Pistons were still in the game. He finished 3 of 10 and minus-21
I think a motivated Drummond could be a dominant roll man, but the biggest issue is his contract. Centers just aren't valued the way they used to be and I can't imagine the analytics friendly Mavs committing that much money to the least valuable position on the floor. The Mavs spend less than $22 million for their entire 3 man center rotation. Plus they have KP who will play center more if/when the Mavs add another wing/ small-ball four. Drummond costs $27 million alone.
So while I do think Drummond can be a winning player on the right team, you really have to factor in the contract along with the player evaluation. If Drummond will opt out and resign at $12 million per? Sure. Otherwise, since the Mavs already have much of what Drummond provides i.e. Powell's dominant roll-man efficiency -- as well as good play in areas that Drummond doesn't do well i.e. Kleber's floor spacing three point shooting -- I think the Mavs have use their limited assets (money) to acquire more a valuable resource i.e. dynamic guard or wing.