Minnesota Sports Forum

Lipoli390 wrote: ↑Sat Aug 01, 2026 8:49 pm

Phenom wrote: ↑Sat Aug 01, 2026 6:14 pm I think Lyles is the top option with a caveat. I agree with those that say he should pair most with Joan and I say that because defensive rebounding isn't Joan's greatest strength. So depending on how Finch's rotations fall, starting Lyles may or may not line him up with Joan the most. Most teams don't deploy two backup bigs together so it may very well be that starting Lyles will end up with him playing next to Joan for most of Joan's minutes.

I think Josh is probably more likely to be the 5th starter. The idea here is his high energy and athleticism allows him to guard many 4s but also makes him viable to a defense that can switch 1-4 and also cross match effectively.

JC also fits this description but I think I like him as Jaden's backup more.

I think TJ and Ayo should be, firstly backups to Melo and Ant to maximize their on ball juice while also putting them both out there with LaMelo, when Ant is out to push tempo.

That makes some sense, Phenom. But if we sign Kevin Love, it might make more sense to start Trey Lyles and have Love come off the bench to pair with Joan since Love is still and excellent defensive rebounder who boxes out really well. On the other hand, I like the idea of Green’s energy, toughness and low-usage 3-point shooting on the court as part of our starting lineup.

I think Love on a minimum would be a good choice at this point as someone who only needs to play certain matchups, for the reasons you stated. When facing bigger, physical teams, Love has the tools this team lacks. And he still spaces the floor.

Phenom wrote: ↑Sun Aug 02, 2026 8:57 am

Lipoli390 wrote: ↑Sat Aug 01, 2026 8:49 pm

Phenom wrote: ↑Sat Aug 01, 2026 6:14 pm I think Lyles is the top option with a caveat. I agree with those that say he should pair most with Joan and I say that because defensive rebounding isn't Joan's greatest strength. So depending on how Finch's rotations fall, starting Lyles may or may not line him up with Joan the most. Most teams don't deploy two backup bigs together so it may very well be that starting Lyles will end up with him playing next to Joan for most of Joan's minutes.

I think Josh is probably more likely to be the 5th starter. The idea here is his high energy and athleticism allows him to guard many 4s but also makes him viable to a defense that can switch 1-4 and also cross match effectively.

JC also fits this description but I think I like him as Jaden's backup more.

I think TJ and Ayo should be, firstly backups to Melo and Ant to maximize their on ball juice while also putting them both out there with LaMelo, when Ant is out to push tempo.

That makes some sense, Phenom. But if we sign Kevin Love, it might make more sense to start Trey Lyles and have Love come off the bench to pair with Joan since Love is still and excellent defensive rebounder who boxes out really well. On the other hand, I like the idea of Green’s energy, toughness and low-usage 3-point shooting on the court as part of our starting lineup.

I think Love on a minimum would be a good choice at this point as someone who only needs to play certain matchups, for the reasons you stated. When facing bigger, physical teams, Love has the tools this team lacks. And he still spaces the floor.

Yes. The more I think about it, the more I consider signing Love a no-brainer for this team and I’m at a point where I’ll be really disappointed if we don’t.

FNG wrote: ↑Sat Aug 01, 2026 4:14 pm

AussieWolf3 wrote: ↑Sat Aug 01, 2026 3:34 pm What is the argument for Lyles at 4 and Jaden at 3 besides simply googling their ht/wt measurements?

I'll get in front of the obvious point which is that Jaden staring at SF is the status quo, so why disrupt that? To which the obvious reply is that the status quo was already disturbed when they swapped Randle and Naz for LaMelo and Green, so that point loses weight right off the bat.

I find it very hard to believe that Lyles will be a more positive contributor than Jaden as a 4. However, what's nice about a player like Lyles and perhaps a roster with a less set in stone pecking order is that you can up Lyles minutes in certain matchups and slide Jaden over to the 3.

Fair question, especially since we don't know what Lyles has left in the tank after a year away from the NBA. But assuming he is capable of handling a starting role (and he may not be) here's the argument. You mentioned the first point...it would be nice to have someone who has both the length and bulk to defend PFs. More importantly, having someone who is big enough to defend 4's allows Finchy to use Jaden in the role he prefers him in...guarding the opponent's most potent wing. Finally, Ayo has been mentioned as a possible 5th starter at SF if Jaden has to play the 4...there are several on this board that think Ayo's best role is as a high-scoring 6th man.

Again, were relying on Google measurements.
I've literally watched Jaden defend 4s, and I have presume you have too. He handles himself fine against most, a lot of which he's actually taller and longer than. As far as weight, Google Jaden and Kawhi... People trying to sell that Jaden is only 2 inches taller and 40 pounds lighter..... Ok

Here's what I see. Jaden has gotten worse year over year as a perimeter defender. Kid has one all defensive team to his name and we act like he elite here. He hasn't been, empirically, even if the data set (media awards) is flawed.

Obviously watching Jaden looking like the stuff of Jamaal Murray's nightmares this PS was inspired, but that isn't what you're getting all season. Jaden also has a burgeoning offensive game that is much harder to tap into if he continues to commit this much energy to the POA.

You know what Jaden has gotten really good at? Backside rim protection. He's as good as it gets at filling in behind Rudy when he has to play up on the PnR, in a way that completely alters the defense and how we all would plead for Julius to do. Jaden is also a dog, so are we really gonna at like he won't dig in down low and fight for boards?

Having someone like Jaden who had the length and yes, I believe the size, to man the pf position who can also switch onto guards is a powerful weapon and it's gotten completely ignored in this conversation where everyone has basically memeified Jaden's defense. Apparently the NBA is filled with Charles Barkleys this year with elite post up games. "Behemoths" has been thrown around a lot, such a the indomitable P.J. Washington who is all of *lowers eyeglasses* 6 ft 6 and 220 lbs...... A real monster.

Lyles who clearly has more bulk to him, more than most PFs tbh, will be a useful tool against bigger matchups and honestly I'm pretty excited about the idea that you can sub him in and slide Jaden up to the 3.

Now the big question: who plays SF if Jaden plays PF? Well this is kind of become a non issue to me despite the overall consensus that has grown which is that Jaden is still gonna have to defend the perimeter even if he is nominally a big. An assertion that I find perplexing given the abundance of wing defenders: Ayo, Clark, Green, Ant, TJ and eventually Dante. Are any of them besides Clark as good as Jaden? Probably not, but the combination and versatility of a Jaden plus whoever emerges as the best defenders from this group will certainly be better than Jaden and Julius, cause Julius is a horrible horrible defender (did we all forget that?).

Obviously there was a loss of size with Naz and Ju going out and I would have loved to have someone like Jonathon Issac as a tool, but imo the versatility has improved, by a lot, imo

AussieWolf3 wrote: ↑Sun Aug 02, 2026 12:39 pm

FNG wrote: ↑Sat Aug 01, 2026 4:14 pm

AussieWolf3 wrote: ↑Sat Aug 01, 2026 3:34 pm What is the argument for Lyles at 4 and Jaden at 3 besides simply googling their ht/wt measurements?

I'll get in front of the obvious point which is that Jaden staring at SF is the status quo, so why disrupt that? To which the obvious reply is that the status quo was already disturbed when they swapped Randle and Naz for LaMelo and Green, so that point loses weight right off the bat.

I find it very hard to believe that Lyles will be a more positive contributor than Jaden as a 4. However, what's nice about a player like Lyles and perhaps a roster with a less set in stone pecking order is that you can up Lyles minutes in certain matchups and slide Jaden over to the 3.

Fair question, especially since we don't know what Lyles has left in the tank after a year away from the NBA. But assuming he is capable of handling a starting role (and he may not be) here's the argument. You mentioned the first point...it would be nice to have someone who has both the length and bulk to defend PFs. More importantly, having someone who is big enough to defend 4's allows Finchy to use Jaden in the role he prefers him in...guarding the opponent's most potent wing. Finally, Ayo has been mentioned as a possible 5th starter at SF if Jaden has to play the 4...there are several on this board that think Ayo's best role is as a high-scoring 6th man.

Again, were relying on Google measurements.
I've literally watched Jaden defend 4s, and I have presume you have too. He handles himself fine against most, a lot of which he's actually taller and longer than. As far as weight, Google Jaden and Kawhi... People trying to sell that Jaden is only 2 inches taller and 40 pounds lighter..... Ok

Here's what I see. Jaden has gotten worse year over year as a perimeter defender. Kid has one all defensive team to his name and we act like he elite here. He hasn't been, empirically, even if the data set (media awards) is flawed.

Obviously watching Jaden looking like the stuff of Jamaal Murray's nightmares this PS was inspired, but that isn't what you're getting all season. Jaden also has a burgeoning offensive game that is much harder to tap into if he continues to commit this much energy to the POA.

You know what Jaden has gotten really good at? Backside rim protection. He's as good as it gets at filling in behind Rudy when he has to play up on the PnR, in a way that completely alters the defense and how we all would plead for Julius to do. Jaden is also a dog, so are we really gonna at like he won't dig in down low and fight for boards?

Having someone like Jaden who had the length and yes, I believe the size, to man the pf position who can also switch onto guards is a powerful weapon and it's gotten completely ignored in this conversation where everyone has basically memeified Jaden's defense. Apparently the NBA is filled with Charles Barkleys this year with elite post up games. "Behemoths" has been thrown around a lot, such a the indomitable P.J. Washington who is all of *lowers eyeglasses* 6 ft 6 and 220 lbs...... A real monster.

Lyles who clearly has more bulk to him, more than most PFs tbh, will be a useful tool against bigger matchups and honestly I'm pretty excited about the idea that you can sub him in and slide Jaden up to the 3.

Now the big question: who plays SF if Jaden plays PF? Well this is kind of become a non issue to me despite the overall consensus that has grown which is that Jaden is still gonna have to defend the perimeter even if he is nominally a big. An assertion that I find perplexing given the abundance of wing defenders: Ayo, Clark, Green, Ant, TJ and eventually Dante. Are any of them besides Clark as good as Jaden? Probably not, but the combination and versatility of a Jaden plus whoever emerges as the best defenders from this group will certainly be better than Jaden and Julius, cause Julius is a horrible horrible defender (did we all forget that?).

Obviously there was a loss of size with Naz and Ju going out and I would have loved to have someone like Jonathon Issac as a tool, but imo the versatility has improved, by a lot, imo

Overall I think this is a good post. A couple things I will add.

I don't think saying Randle was a horrible defender is accurate. I think he was definitely inconsistent and when he was bad he was pretty bad. I think the other thing was he just didn't grab enough rebounds and that consistently was an issue.

A fair consideration has been said by Cool that Jaden will get in foul trouble at PF. The reality is that he got into foul trouble as a perimeter defender. Will he foul more at PF? I'm not sure about that. Some nights might be a bit of a night off for him.

The Wolves dealt away Randle and Naz and yes that's some size in one way shape or form and both of those guy are either starting level players or high end rotation players. Still if you think about the roster now compared to last season the Wolves now have one player under 6'4" on the roster that's Bones Hyland who still at least has a long wingspan but is skinny. Ball is 6'7" at PG. The Wolves added Lyles who has length of some centers. They will likely add another bigger player at some point. The Wolves went from having an uncertain group at the guard spot next to Edwards to now having a massive strength at the guard positions adding more size and a huge jump in playmaking with Ball. Another addition in size comes from Beringer playing more minutes than last season and if he is reasonably ready that's gonna bring more rebounding and rim protection than anyone we lost from the roster last season. I don't really know what type of defender we really lost in Naz. I didn't spend a ton of time concerning myself with it because he was signed long term. In general he wasn't a rim protector but I think he did some good things on defense. He often didn't exactly play as big as his size on that end. Randle was always a little undersized in terms of length but he had girth and was a pretty good athlete. He didn't always use the physical gifts he had though and his lack of length did show up at times.

If we can maybe get away from what we don't have on the roster and look at what we do have it could be exciting on defense. Remember that time when we played scramble defense players doing all the things all over the place that we did around Towns before they traded for Rudy? Imagine playing that type of defense around a guy like Gobert? Vanderbilt was pretty good and having him and McDaniels in the frontcourt was pretty good but there were some other guys in the rotation that were worse defenders like Beasley than the guys the Wolves are likely gonna be putting out there. It's also legit mostly NBA vets other than Beringer and TSJ and Clark in the rotation. If the Wolves need to make a move for someone that's a more legit PF a few months from now they will likely have plenty of avenues to do so. There is also some sort of small real chance they have or will have an option on their roster when the season starts.

AussieWolf3 wrote: ↑Sun Aug 02, 2026 12:39 pm

FNG wrote: ↑Sat Aug 01, 2026 4:14 pm

AussieWolf3 wrote: ↑Sat Aug 01, 2026 3:34 pm What is the argument for Lyles at 4 and Jaden at 3 besides simply googling their ht/wt measurements?

I'll get in front of the obvious point which is that Jaden staring at SF is the status quo, so why disrupt that? To which the obvious reply is that the status quo was already disturbed when they swapped Randle and Naz for LaMelo and Green, so that point loses weight right off the bat.

I find it very hard to believe that Lyles will be a more positive contributor than Jaden as a 4. However, what's nice about a player like Lyles and perhaps a roster with a less set in stone pecking order is that you can up Lyles minutes in certain matchups and slide Jaden over to the 3.

Fair question, especially since we don't know what Lyles has left in the tank after a year away from the NBA. But assuming he is capable of handling a starting role (and he may not be) here's the argument. You mentioned the first point...it would be nice to have someone who has both the length and bulk to defend PFs. More importantly, having someone who is big enough to defend 4's allows Finchy to use Jaden in the role he prefers him in...guarding the opponent's most potent wing. Finally, Ayo has been mentioned as a possible 5th starter at SF if Jaden has to play the 4...there are several on this board that think Ayo's best role is as a high-scoring 6th man.

Again, were relying on Google measurements.
I've literally watched Jaden defend 4s, and I have presume you have too. He handles himself fine against most, a lot of which he's actually taller and longer than. As far as weight, Google Jaden and Kawhi... People trying to sell that Jaden is only 2 inches taller and 40 pounds lighter..... Ok

Here's what I see. Jaden has gotten worse year over year as a perimeter defender. Kid has one all defensive team to his name and we act like he elite here. He hasn't been, empirically, even if the data set (media awards) is flawed.

Obviously watching Jaden looking like the stuff of Jamaal Murray's nightmares this PS was inspired, but that isn't what you're getting all season. Jaden also has a burgeoning offensive game that is much harder to tap into if he continues to commit this much energy to the POA.

You know what Jaden has gotten really good at? Backside rim protection. He's as good as it gets at filling in behind Rudy when he has to play up on the PnR, in a way that completely alters the defense and how we all would plead for Julius to do. Jaden is also a dog, so are we really gonna at like he won't dig in down low and fight for boards?

Having someone like Jaden who had the length and yes, I believe the size, to man the pf position who can also switch onto guards is a powerful weapon and it's gotten completely ignored in this conversation where everyone has basically memeified Jaden's defense. Apparently the NBA is filled with Charles Barkleys this year with elite post up games. "Behemoths" has been thrown around a lot, such a the indomitable P.J. Washington who is all of *lowers eyeglasses* 6 ft 6 and 220 lbs...... A real monster.

Lyles who clearly has more bulk to him, more than most PFs tbh, will be a useful tool against bigger matchups and honestly I'm pretty excited about the idea that you can sub him in and slide Jaden up to the 3.

Now the big question: who plays SF if Jaden plays PF? Well this is kind of become a non issue to me despite the overall consensus that has grown which is that Jaden is still gonna have to defend the perimeter even if he is nominally a big. An assertion that I find perplexing given the abundance of wing defenders: Ayo, Clark, Green, Ant, TJ and eventually Dante. Are any of them besides Clark as good as Jaden? Probably not, but the combination and versatility of a Jaden plus whoever emerges as the best defenders from this group will certainly be better than Jaden and Julius, cause Julius is a horrible horrible defender (did we all forget that?).

Obviously there was a loss of size with Naz and Ju going out and I would have loved to have someone like Jonathon Issac as a tool, but imo the versatility has improved, by a lot, imo

I don’t necessarily disagree with your overall take, Aussie. But I’ll just note that PJ Washington measured at 230.4 lbs at the draft combine and he certainly isn’t 10 pounds light than when he was 20. Further, PJ has a 7’2.25 wingspan anbd 8’10.5 standing reach, which means his height is irrelevant. Jaden has a slightly longer vertical reach and a slightly smaller wingspan than PJ. Jaden is also about 30 pounds lighter even if we assume Jaden is 200 lbs and not his listed 185 lbs weight. I think Jaden would be overpowered physically inside by some NBA PFs, but I think we could cover for that by playing Trey Lyles (and maybe Kevin Love if we sign him) against those physically powerful PFs. That’s why I don’t feel desperate to trade for a starting caliber PF.

But I do think we’d be a better team next season if we traded Green and Donte for PJ Washington because PJ is much better than Trey or the 37 year old version of Kevin Love and I think we’re a better team overall with Jaden and PJ consistently as our two starting forwards instead of Jaden and some assortment of others depending on matchups. I also think we’d be better off making that deal because we won’t have Donte on the court next season until MAYBE the playoffs and even then he probably won’t be 100%. All this presumes the Mavs would do that deal and I’m not convinced they would.

Lipoli390 wrote: ↑Sun Aug 02, 2026 4:02 pm

AussieWolf3 wrote: ↑Sun Aug 02, 2026 12:39 pm

FNG wrote: ↑Sat Aug 01, 2026 4:14 pm

Fair question, especially since we don't know what Lyles has left in the tank after a year away from the NBA. But assuming he is capable of handling a starting role (and he may not be) here's the argument. You mentioned the first point...it would be nice to have someone who has both the length and bulk to defend PFs. More importantly, having someone who is big enough to defend 4's allows Finchy to use Jaden in the role he prefers him in...guarding the opponent's most potent wing. Finally, Ayo has been mentioned as a possible 5th starter at SF if Jaden has to play the 4...there are several on this board that think Ayo's best role is as a high-scoring 6th man.

Again, were relying on Google measurements.
I've literally watched Jaden defend 4s, and I have presume you have too. He handles himself fine against most, a lot of which he's actually taller and longer than. As far as weight, Google Jaden and Kawhi... People trying to sell that Jaden is only 2 inches taller and 40 pounds lighter..... Ok

Here's what I see. Jaden has gotten worse year over year as a perimeter defender. Kid has one all defensive team to his name and we act like he elite here. He hasn't been, empirically, even if the data set (media awards) is flawed.

Obviously watching Jaden looking like the stuff of Jamaal Murray's nightmares this PS was inspired, but that isn't what you're getting all season. Jaden also has a burgeoning offensive game that is much harder to tap into if he continues to commit this much energy to the POA.

You know what Jaden has gotten really good at? Backside rim protection. He's as good as it gets at filling in behind Rudy when he has to play up on the PnR, in a way that completely alters the defense and how we all would plead for Julius to do. Jaden is also a dog, so are we really gonna at like he won't dig in down low and fight for boards?

Having someone like Jaden who had the length and yes, I believe the size, to man the pf position who can also switch onto guards is a powerful weapon and it's gotten completely ignored in this conversation where everyone has basically memeified Jaden's defense. Apparently the NBA is filled with Charles Barkleys this year with elite post up games. "Behemoths" has been thrown around a lot, such a the indomitable P.J. Washington who is all of *lowers eyeglasses* 6 ft 6 and 220 lbs...... A real monster.

Lyles who clearly has more bulk to him, more than most PFs tbh, will be a useful tool against bigger matchups and honestly I'm pretty excited about the idea that you can sub him in and slide Jaden up to the 3.

Now the big question: who plays SF if Jaden plays PF? Well this is kind of become a non issue to me despite the overall consensus that has grown which is that Jaden is still gonna have to defend the perimeter even if he is nominally a big. An assertion that I find perplexing given the abundance of wing defenders: Ayo, Clark, Green, Ant, TJ and eventually Dante. Are any of them besides Clark as good as Jaden? Probably not, but the combination and versatility of a Jaden plus whoever emerges as the best defenders from this group will certainly be better than Jaden and Julius, cause Julius is a horrible horrible defender (did we all forget that?).

Obviously there was a loss of size with Naz and Ju going out and I would have loved to have someone like Jonathon Issac as a tool, but imo the versatility has improved, by a lot, imo

I don’t necessarily disagree with your overall take, Aussie. But I’ll just note that PJ Washington measured at 230.4 lbs at the draft combine and he certainly isn’t 10 pounds light than when he was 20. Further, PJ has a 7’2.25 wingspan anbd 8’10.5 standing reach, which means his height is irrelevant. Jaden has a slightly longer vertical reach and a slightly smaller wingspan than PJ. Jaden is also about 30 pounds lighter even if we assume Jaden is 200 lbs and not his listed 185 lbs weight. I think Jaden would be overpowered physically inside by some NBA PFs, but I think we could cover for that by playing Trey Lyles (and maybe Kevin Love if we sign him) against those physically powerful PFs. That’s why I don’t feel desperate to trade for a starting caliber PF.

But I do think we’d be a better team next season if we traded Green and Donte for PJ Washington because PJ is much better than Trey or the 37 year old version of Kevin Love and I think we’re a better team overall with Jaden and PJ consistently as our two starting forwards instead of Jaden and some assortment of others depending on matchups. I also think we’d be better off making that deal because we won’t have Donte on the court next season until MAYBE the playoffs and even then he probably won’t be 100%. All this presumes the Mavs would do that deal and I’m not convinced they would.

Fair point about PJ. I was going off memory and after the several concussions I've had in my life that's kind of a dumb idea lol.

I don't disagree at all that there will be some matchups in which the team feels a little small, however I'm fairly confident that those will be by far the minority. What remains the sticking point for me is that I'm not buying that this will be a huge problem, or said another way, I don't think Jaden playing PF is negative proposition and might be the best course for the team barring acquiring an All star level 4.

The reason why is because it's allows the team, if they see the opportunity, to tap into Jaden has a true defensive weapon- something he'll be able to do in the majority of matchups. Add in if Clark is hitting his 3s and Ant is playing to his capabilities on that end and now you championship roster in my opinion. That's obviously the highly optimist perspective and I understand casting doubt on that, but I think too many people are ignoring the upside of Jaden starting at 4.

I also don't foreseen him piling up fouls playing as a big, in fact I reckon the foul rate will drop a little.

I'm curious about Jaden wingspan too he's rather shockingly listed with 6ft 11 wingspan which puts him only 2 inches longer than his listed height.

Well if you're like me and buy that Jaden has grown since the combine --- look up pictures of him standing next to Kat--- I wonder if he gained a little on his wingspan. Jaden has Incredibly long arms, but i suspect his narrow shoulders contribute to the shorter than expected wingspan. Which of course begs the questions, what's more useful long arms or longer total wingspan that's being boosted by your shoulders?

At this point I'm probably coming across like a pollydanna fan, but rather I've just been a big fan of Jaden for a while and think his abilities have been diminished by having chase ball handlers over and through screen season after season

AussieWolf3 wrote: ↑Sun Aug 02, 2026 4:38 pm I'm curious about Jaden wingspan too he's rather shockingly listed with 6ft 11 wingspan which puts him only 2 inches longer than his listed height.

Well if you're like me and buy that Jaden has grown since the combine --- look up pictures of him standing next to Kat--- I wonder if he gained a little on his wingspan. Jaden has Incredibly long arms, but i suspect his narrow shoulders contribute to the shorter than expected wingspan. Which of course begs the questions, what's more useful long arms or longer total wingspan that's being boosted by your shoulders?

At this point I'm probably coming across like a pollydanna fan, but rather I've just been a big fan of Jaden for a while and think his abilities have been diminished by having chase ball handlers over and through screen season after season

It's hard for any player to be constantly fighting through screens while guarding some of the best players in the league, much less a guy who is 6'-11" like Jaden. It has to take a toll on him and it has to limit his effectiveness on the offensive end. As much as I'm looking forward to seeing Ball and Ant play together, I was also looking forward to getting Jaden off the ball and unleashing his offensive game. If we had instead acquired Suggs or Dejounte Murray we probably would have seen the best of Jaden. But with the current roster construct he almost has to be our POA defender, doesn't he? And as of today I think Lyles needs to start at the 4 to balance out the starting lineup.

Coolbreeze44 wrote: ↑Sun Aug 02, 2026 5:18 pm

AussieWolf3 wrote: ↑Sun Aug 02, 2026 4:38 pm I'm curious about Jaden wingspan too he's rather shockingly listed with 6ft 11 wingspan which puts him only 2 inches longer than his listed height.

Well if you're like me and buy that Jaden has grown since the combine --- look up pictures of him standing next to Kat--- I wonder if he gained a little on his wingspan. Jaden has Incredibly long arms, but i suspect his narrow shoulders contribute to the shorter than expected wingspan. Which of course begs the questions, what's more useful long arms or longer total wingspan that's being boosted by your shoulders?

At this point I'm probably coming across like a pollydanna fan, but rather I've just been a big fan of Jaden for a while and think his abilities have been diminished by having chase ball handlers over and through screen season after season

It's hard for any player to be constantly fighting through screens while guarding some of the best players in the league, much less a guy who is 6'-11" like Jaden. It has to take a toll on him and it has to limit his effectiveness on the offensive end. As much as I'm looking forward to seeing Ball and Ant play together, I was also looking forward to getting Jaden off the ball and unleashing his offensive game. If we had instead acquired Suggs or Dejounte Murray we probably would have seen the best of Jaden. But with the current roster construct he almost has to be our POA defender, doesn't he? And as of today I think Lyles needs to start at the 4 to balance out the starting lineup.

I think green plus Jaden would be a better starting line up than Lyles plus Jaden.

Green is big enough to handle 1-3 and is a very reliable C&S shooter. Otherwise best case scenario is Clark can be relied on to shoot at least league average or better. I like Ayo off the bench for his offense but he should be fine leading the 2nd while also taking on the POA. Then of course there is Ant, who shouldn't be your primary ball stopper but if he actually buys in on this end would be a force as a helper.

Bottom line, I think the abundance of wings and guards is a boon for this team and I don't see any reason that Ayo, Green and Clark can't be great fill ins for Jaden, and it's not like Jaden wouldn't be on ball at times also, Ant as well.

I can see Green being very complementary to a lot of our other guys in that you can tell him to just go guard his ass off, hustle, and hit corner 3s (which he's already proven he can do at a high %), but otherwise move the ball and let others get most of the usage (Ant, LaMelo, Jaden, Ayo, Shannon).

Green also has enough size/bulk where I could see him guarding some 4's, meaning that just because Jaden is the tallest forward doesn't mean he's ALWAYS guarding opposing 4s. For example, let Green take the beating/fouls guarding someone like Zion, but give him a ton of backside help (which Rudy AND Jaden could help with). OKC and the Spurs did this to great effect against Julius Randle. Or how often did we see KAT struggle trying to post up smaller wings or even guards defending him in the post because they could get away with being so much more physical against him?