Phenom wrote: ↑Thu Jun 25, 2026 10:48 am
I haven't been paying attention, how's Josh Green these days? Should he be kept or is he more easily replaced with a minimum signing?
No idea but looks like he is coming up on the last year of a 3 year deal at 14m this season. Not sure all the hurdles of trading a guy you just got but he should be available to be an asset at trade deadline?
I peeked at his stats earlier and if nothing else Green is a 39-40% 3pt shooter the past 2 seasons.
If they flip him it'll all be part of the existing trade they have in the queue for July 6th. The Randle trade is now 4 teams and they can easily add more. Like last year when we ended up with like a 7 team NBA trade after a few different trades were merged into 1.
Yep, I was just thinking about what Ball did for Knueppel last season, and my sources tell me that Ant is almost as good as Kon . We needed to get Ant off ball, and adding a true Ball-dominant guy does just that. Ant and Jaden are going to get so many open looks now if they move without the ball.
Yes, our backcourt might struggle defensively. We will start two guys who are mirror images of each other, both possessing the physical gifts to be plus defenders but not always the drive. But Ball is truly elite offensively. Each of the last two seasons the Hornets have scored more than 11 more points per 100 when he has been on the court. I'm a little surprised Charlotte did this after finishing the season 27-10 last year! But they did, and our team has immediately become more entertaining...and probably much better depending on what TC does at the 4 (I don't see Jaden as the answer).
Didn't McDaniels get a halfway decent sample run as a PF last season? I think we'll see him more there next season regardless of who comes in... mostly because it will allow the Wolves to have their five most talented (and expensive) players on the floor at the same time.
WildWolf2813 wrote: ↑Thu Jun 25, 2026 11:25 am
if Ayo starts at SF, doesn't that make us overly reliant on Conley as a backup PG AGAIN?
I hope TC has plans to keep Jaden at the 3 and Ayo as 6th man. But if he can't find a starting PF and Ayo starts at the 3, I think we're fine with backup PG reserves of TJ, Mike and maybe Bones. Actually, I think those 3 will be backing up Ball regardless.
I'll say this as a fan of both players if you asked me simply which player is better and which player would you rather have on the roster I would pick LaMelo. It's not as simple as that but it's worth saying.
This deal makes me nervous because of Ball's injury history but I also can see how it could REALLY work and that makes me pretty excited.
Wow, the big surprise to me is that it was NAZ and not Rudy. I don't have a problem with the price we paid, but I have a problem with a couple side effects to this deal. First, I do NOT agree that Ant and Melo are a good compliment to each other. They both need the ball in their hands and their is only one Ball (no pun intended). I don't think Ant will be happy playing almost exclusively off ball. (pun intended) And the second problem is guess who are POA defender still is? I thought we were going to get a defensive minded guard so Jaden could play off ball defense, maximizing not only his defensive skills but aiding his offensive output.
I don't think this is going to work. Why is Rudy still on the team? Who is going to play PF? Are there still more moves forthcoming?
WildWolf2813 wrote: ↑Thu Jun 25, 2026 11:25 am
if Ayo starts at SF, doesn't that make us overly reliant on Conley as a backup PG AGAIN?
I hope TC has plans to keep Jaden at the 3 and Ayo as 6th man. But if he can't find a starting PF and Ayo starts at the 3, I think we're fine with backup PG reserves of TJ, Mike and maybe Bones. Actually, I think those 3 will be backing up Ball regardless.
Those 2 guys are FAs so we aren't even sure they will be here. I would expect Conley back and Bones and Connelly have history but with Ball coming here there might be less of a opportunity for Bones.
WildWolf2813 wrote: ↑Thu Jun 25, 2026 11:25 am
if Ayo starts at SF, doesn't that make us overly reliant on Conley as a backup PG AGAIN?
I hope TC has plans to keep Jaden at the 3 and Ayo as 6th man. But if he can't find a starting PF and Ayo starts at the 3, I think we're fine with backup PG reserves of TJ, Mike and maybe Bones. Actually, I think those 3 will be backing up Ball regardless.
In order to keep Ball's minutes down, playing Ayo as the 6th man PG is ideal. Plus being able to easily shift into a small ball lineup during games with Jaden at the 4 is a nice option. if they can land a stretch 4 to start, they'll have quite the versatile rotation.
Coolbreeze44 wrote: ↑Thu Jun 25, 2026 11:36 am
Ayo needs to come off the bench now, Jaden needs to stay at the 3. Who the hell is going to be our 4? I have to believe TC isn't done quite yet.
Someone like John Collins would be interesting, but that would probably require flipping Green or DDV to have enough space. I love the idea of doing some small ball at times with Jaden at the 4, but don't want to see that being the default.
Coolbreeze44 wrote: ↑Thu Jun 25, 2026 11:36 am
Ayo needs to come off the bench now, Jaden needs to stay at the 3. Who the hell is going to be our 4? I have to believe TC isn't done quite yet.
Someone like John Collins would be interesting, but that would probably require flipping Green or DDV to have enough space. I love the idea of doing some small ball at times with Jaden at the 4, but don't want to see that being the default.
Yeah no way he is done. Even if Jaden played PF ( I don't want to see that either) here are guards wings likely deserving of minutes at SG SF
Edwards
Ayo
TSJ
Josh Green
Even if you include some backup PG mins for Ayo that's a bit of a crowded group and that doesn't include any FA (like a smaller guard playing SG) or other young players etc.
. We needed to get Ant off ball, and adding a true Ball-dominant guy does just that. Ant and Jaden are going to get so many open looks now if they move without the ball.
