01-24-2020, 11:55 PM
(01-24-2020, 11:10 PM)SleepingHero Wrote:(01-24-2020, 08:51 PM)jesusshuttlesworth82 Wrote: I dont see how Markkanen would hurt team chemistry. If anything, shouldn't you be more concerned with WCS hurting team chemistry? Markkanen has the best shooting stroke I've ever seen in a ~7 footer. I'm just talking mechanically. Mavs should still be in the talent acquisition business.
I doubt it's on the radar though with his injury and all the resources we have committed to bigs.
What I meant by team chemistry is that everyone is currently playing a role. And they are thriving in it. Our bench especially. Maxi, Seth, Brunson, Wright. Its working. Yes some are angling for more minutes but at the end of the day at least for this year our bench is clicking.
In the hypothetical trade, we blew up our bench and the roles they are playing to bring in Lauri. Thus shifting everyone's role midseason and would make them adjust to something new. Could it go smoothly and we get better? Sure. But how much better? The Mavs are on a 52 win pace, and that's with injuries to our best players. And it also could go horribly wrong and the wheels come off ala Rondo (not saying the same thing would happen, just saying the team would start to underperform). Is it worth to risk all of that for a guy like Lauri? I don't think so. That was my main point. I have no doubts that Lauri would thrive here and fit in culturally, but to torpedo our depth to bring him in is just not worth it.
Regarding WCS, I'm more worried about RC never playing him than him not fitting in with the team. Bringing him in was a precise move to fill a hole that opened up that we desperately needed. No one's roles are changing for WCS.
Two things: 1) If your last bit is true, then WCS's role is to replace Powell in the starting lineup. Fab! Love it! But he'll obviously get less minutes than Powell did because he doesn't know the system. 2) The Mavs don't have anywhere near the talent quotient to worry about disrupting the roles of bit players (btw, Delon Wright and Jalen Brunson, two members of the 8-man rotation post-Powell injury, would tell you that they have no idea what their roles on the team are) as an excuse to sour grapes talent acquisition. Lauri has the talent to be a top-100 player - perhaps more. If you can acquire him for peanuts, you do it. You're elephantizing this year's postseason when we are not contenders, period. We aren't tanking, but we are playing for the years beyond this one, 100%.