Jaden

[Coolbreeze44]

Nothing much was said about the block he had last night. He took that thing high off the glass. My timeline on X has been filled with reaction about it. I don't think he can effectively guard strong 4's yet, primarily due to picking up fouls. But maybe we need to start Clark and get Jaden off the ball a good deal of the time. He could really help on the interior when Rudy sits. It would also leave him more energy for the offensive end where he is becoming a star.

Speaking of which, what happens when Ant comes back? Obviously Ant and Julius are going to get the most touches. But it would be a shame if Jaden doesn't maintain a large role on offense. He's becoming hard to stop. What do y'all think?

[Phenom]

Jaden is one of the best rim protectors in the league but we just don't get to see it much. I'm also in favor of getting him off ball more.

Also agree he needs to keep his involvement up on offense. I don't see much of an argument from anyone else. I love when he has the ball in the paint.

[SameOldNudityDrew]

Yeah, Jaden's offensive growth gives us more flexibility. We absolutely need to keep finding him in transition, and I hope we keep him involved in the half court offense as well. Both Ant and Julius have gotten better about making quicker decisions and getting their teammates (especially Jaden) involved, and that needs to continue.

To me the big question is still our defense. We should definitely plug Clark into the NAW role more and play Jaden off the ball defensively, not just to save his legs for offense, but because I think it's a better role for both Jaden and Clark, honestly.

The big problem is that The Randle-Reid frontcourt just isn't holding up well defensively, even if Jaden is out there. Clark and the return of Ant should help contain the ball handlers better. It was kinda cool to see Rudy, Randle, and Reid out there against the Nets with Jaden too. I think we may need to test Beringer minutes too, with Beringer, Reid, and Jaden, just to see how that affects the defense and how much it might be a bit awkward offensively. With Clark (hopefully) getting minutes and Ant coming back, it would probably land TSJ on the bench more, but as good as he can be, we've just got to fix these defensive problems first, and then worry about integrating him (and Dillingham).

[thedoper]

Nothing much was said about the block he had last night. He took that thing high off the glass. My timeline on X has been filled with reaction about it. I don't think he can effectively guard strong 4's yet, primarily due to picking up fouls. But maybe we need to start Clark and get Jaden off the ball a good deal of the time. He could really help on the interior when Rudy sits. It would also leave him more energy for the offensive end where he is becoming a star.

Speaking of which, what happens when Ant comes back? Obviously Ant and Julius are going to get the most touches. But it would be a shame if Jaden doesn't maintain a large role on offense. He's becoming hard to stop. What do y'all think?

I think its worth the experiment to get Jaden at the 4. There are so few teams that play a traditional 4 anymore which is why Ju is tearing it up. Id rather take our lumps with the few teams that have an offensive advantage. I suspect he would eventually figure out the fouling. This ant injury has been a blessing similar to the Kat injury a few years back and the fuel it poured on Ant's offensive development. If this is really the new Jaden we have a legit 3rd option to get their own. I want to lean into it as you are saying.

[Q-is-here]

Nothing much was said about the block he had last night. He took that thing high off the glass. My timeline on X has been filled with reaction about it. I don't think he can effectively guard strong 4's yet, primarily due to picking up fouls. But maybe we need to start Clark and get Jaden off the ball a good deal of the time. He could really help on the interior when Rudy sits. It would also leave him more energy for the offensive end where he is becoming a star.

Speaking of which, what happens when Ant comes back? Obviously Ant and Julius are going to get the most touches. But it would be a shame if Jaden doesn't maintain a large role on offense. He's becoming hard to stop. What do y'all think?

I think its worth the experiment to get Jaden at the 4. There are so few teams that play a traditional 4 anymore which is why Ju is tearing it up. Id rather take our lumps with the few teams that have an offensive advantage. I suspect he would eventually figure out the fouling. This ant injury has been a blessing similar to the Kat injury a few years back and the fuel it poured on Ant's offensive development. If this is really the new Jaden we have a legit 3rd option to get their own. I want to lean into it as you are saying.

I agree that Jaden's best position is probably the 4, but he's not going to spend much time there unless someone gets traded (Julius, Rudy, or Naz).

I do think he has grown into a legit 3rd offensive option, something he already demonstrated in last year's playoffs. While his usage will go down when Ant gets back, I agree that they need to keep running stuff for him. He should probably be at about an 18-20% usage rate when everyone is healthy. That is similar to where Mikal Bridges and OG are at with the Knicks, both of whom sort of share that 3rd option role.

[Q-is-here]

Yeah, Jaden's offensive growth gives us more flexibility. We absolutely need to keep finding him in transition, and I hope we keep him involved in the half court offense as well. Both Ant and Julius have gotten better about making quicker decisions and getting their teammates (especially Jaden) involved, and that needs to continue.

To me the big question is still our defense. We should definitely plug Clark into the NAW role more and play Jaden off the ball defensively, not just to save his legs for offense, but because I think it's a better role for both Jaden and Clark, honestly.

The big problem is that The Randle-Reid frontcourt just isn't holding up well defensively, even if Jaden is out there. Clark and the return of Ant should help contain the ball handlers better. It was kinda cool to see Rudy, Randle, and Reid out there against the Nets with Jaden too. I think we may need to test Beringer minutes too, with Beringer, Reid, and Jaden, just to see how that affects the defense and how much it might be a bit awkward offensively. With Clark (hopefully) getting minutes and Ant coming back, it would probably land TSJ on the bench more, but as good as he can be, we've just got to fix these defensive problems first, and then worry about integrating him (and Dillingham).

I agree that Shannon may be the odd man out once everyone is healthy. I really had high hopes for him, but he has had a rough start and Clark's defense and Dillingham's development at PG probably take precedent for now.

The Reid/Randle pairing with Rudy on the bench has been an absolute disaster defensively. And then if you look at when Reid is paired with Rudy it's like the greatest defense ever. Crazy.

A criticism for Connelly's roster building....How on earth do you come into this season with three PFs that literally can't play any other position and all are basically one-way players: Randle, Reid, and Leonard Miller. So much redundancy there while we have a MASSIVE hole in terms of defensive bigs behind Rudy.

[Lipoli390]

Yeah, Jaden's offensive growth gives us more flexibility. We absolutely need to keep finding him in transition, and I hope we keep him involved in the half court offense as well. Both Ant and Julius have gotten better about making quicker decisions and getting their teammates (especially Jaden) involved, and that needs to continue.

To me the big question is still our defense. We should definitely plug Clark into the NAW role more and play Jaden off the ball defensively, not just to save his legs for offense, but because I think it's a better role for both Jaden and Clark, honestly.

The big problem is that The Randle-Reid frontcourt just isn't holding up well defensively, even if Jaden is out there. Clark and the return of Ant should help contain the ball handlers better. It was kinda cool to see Rudy, Randle, and Reid out there against the Nets with Jaden too. I think we may need to test Beringer minutes too, with Beringer, Reid, and Jaden, just to see how that affects the defense and how much it might be a bit awkward offensively. With Clark (hopefully) getting minutes and Ant coming back, it would probably land TSJ on the bench more, but as good as he can be, we've just got to fix these defensive problems first, and then worry about integrating him (and Dillingham).

I agree that Shannon may be the odd man out once everyone is healthy. I really had high hopes for him, but he has had a rough start and Clark's defense and Dillingham's development at PG probably take precedent for now.

The Reid/Randle pairing with Rudy on the bench has been an absolute disaster defensively. And then if you look at when Reid is paired with Rudy it's like the greatest defense ever. Crazy.

A criticism for Connelly's roster building....How on earth do you come into this season with three PFs that literally can't play any other position and all are basically one-way players: Randle, Reid, and Leonard Miller. So much redundancy there while we have a MASSIVE hole in terms of defensive bigs behind Rudy.

Spot on with all your points, Q. I’m a huge fan of both Randle and Reid. I love what Randle is doing for us offensively so far this season. Naz is coming around and getting his game back, which makes him a huge positive on the offensive end. And as you noted, Naz and Rudy are a strong defensive pairing. But collectively, it’s just not optimal. Perhaps the answer is for Finch to make sure Jaden, Ant and Clark are always on the court when Rudy is sitting to mitigate the defensive weakness of the Naz/Julius combo.