Minnesota Sports Forum

I'm surprised people are interested in Okafor on here. Everyone seems to always be searching for two way players, which he isn't close to being.
I'll keep the fifth and get some perimeter help. Find a defensive big via free agency.

So do you appease tyus and grab okafor or do you appease towns and grab russell?

This is actually a real hard decision. I like the idea of okafor and towns. I also dont think okafor is as bad at defense as he is credited for. His post game is crazy good as i remember him destroying towns this last season.

Russells snitch thing i think is overblown. Okafor was better last year than him but i think russell was in a tough spot with the hand he was dealt (kobe, young, clarkson) Russell did really well i thought towards the end of the season.

I would like to know how russell did defensively and projects. My mind says okafor is the better deal and my heart says russell.

I think both will be better than who we get at 5. The draft always has way too much hype with it. For the cousins and leonards there are too many flynns, wes johnsons, and derrick williams. I take either russell or okafor both over the 5 pick

AbeVigodaLive wrote:

thedoper wrote:

AbeVigodaLive wrote:

thedoper wrote:

Q12543 wrote:

thedoper wrote:I think low post touches could be great if used efficiently. We should be asking who could guard a front court of Towns and Okafor as much as we would ask who they would guard. The reality is they would be unguardable together, the matchup options having Towns and Okafor as a front court is crazy. I don't think it would ever happen but a great coach could very easily make this work.

Length is always going to be an asset. Imagine those two walling up for Thibs, especially with Towns being able to work for the weak side. He would find a way to use Okafor's length on d, I am quite positive.

I get the allure offensively when viewed through the lens of just Towns and Okafor. But Towns, Wiggins, and LaVine all have the potential to be 20+ PPG scorers in this league. Now you bring Okafor into the picture who is borderline useless without getting 15-20 shots per game. Where do those shots come from?

I just think the law of diminishing returns kicks in when all you do is add more scorers to your roster. Each additional scorer has a diminishing positive affect on team performance.

At this point wouldn't you just take the most efficient and call it a day? Of these "potential" 20 ppg players only one (wiggins) has done it and rather inefficiently to this point. If Okafor can consistently shot 50-60% he can be much more than useless with 10 shots, especially on a team with nothing going for it on its second unit.

I think size and length with skill rarely has a diminishing return on a team.

As a young guy searching for his identity (and subsequent payday)... will he be happy with only 10 looks if he's that efficient?

I know I keep harping on this point lately... but I most definitely think it's a very real concern on young teams with a ton of talent. It's rare to find super young guys willing to concede or take a back seat to other guys, especially if they think they're better. Even with Towns looking like he's going to be THE guy for a very long time, we're outsiders watching it from afar. Do players fighting for themselves and trying to balance that in a team environment while being super young with dozens of hanger-ons surrounding them while trying to make sense of the tens of millions of dollars and fame they have... with nobody really around to show them the proper way to play (and win)?

It's not always easy. In fact, it usually isn't.

Well he's already taking a dose of humble pie with getting traded after one season. With a right coach if he got more touches it would be because he deserves it. You are right in pointing out the chemistry concerns, but that stuff comes with egos around success and the expectation to win as I see it. Who knows what the issues may be in that area moving forward? I don't think anyone can say at this point whether we have great chemistry developing. If there is it certainly hasn't translated to wins. They have had no real pressure to win yet, and therefore none of them have been truly tested. I am all for amassing maximum talent and letting the cream rise to the top.

1) I dig your last sentence. Makes sense to me.
2) As for your first sentence... I don't think a trade like this would humble Okafor or any young guy.

It's definitely hard to argue against that last sentence. We're all convinced Towns will be a star, but big questions remain about LaVine and Wiggins improving that far. Okafor is only 20 and had very efficient numbers for a rookie big after Philly acquired a half decent PG in Ish Smith. Keep in mind that he was on Philly with few other scoring threats and was the focus of opposing defenses. The NBA draft is the ultimate gamble like i mentioned in another post. If we had the #1 or #2 pick in this draft I'd sit and draft Simmons or Ingram who project to be certain contributors. After that there is a lot of uncertainty. You're gaining a sure-fire NBA player in Okafor who definitely could go on to be an all-star. That could be the best option to ensure we come out with a positive from this draft pick.

PorkChop wrote:I'm surprised people are interested in Okafor on here. Everyone seems to always be searching for two way players, which he isn't close to being.
I'll keep the fifth and get some perimeter help. Find a defensive big via free agency.

We could trade for Okafor and still look at a defensive big in free agency and likely perimeter help with these proposed trades. If these deals are reality it is really whether or not Okafor has more value then what we are picking at 5. I'd say he is substantially more than what we are looking at.

crazysauce wrote:So do you appease tyus and grab okafor or do you appease towns and grab russell?

This is actually a real hard decision. I like the idea of okafor and towns. I also dont think okafor is as bad at defense as he is credited for. His post game is crazy good as i remember him destroying towns this last season.

Russells snitch thing i think is overblown. Okafor was better last year than him but i think russell was in a tough spot with the hand he was dealt (kobe, young, clarkson) Russell did really well i thought towards the end of the season.

I would like to know how russell did defensively and projects. My mind says okafor is the better deal and my heart says russell.

I think both will be better than who we get at 5. The draft always has way too much hype with it. For the cousins and leonards there are too many flynns, wes johnsons, and derrick williams. I take either russell or okafor both over the 5 pick

If we are looking to appease players...(just kidding around)

Why not grab Wiggins Canadian Pal Murray. And as a bonus we know he loves the cold and hockey. How can we pass up that package?!?!?

As for Towns maybe he wants his mentee at UK Skal.

I also heard that Rudez has a dog that's cousins with Bender's family's dog. Pet relations!

crazysauce wrote:So do you appease tyus and grab okafor or do you appease towns and grab russell?

This is actually a real hard decision. I like the idea of okafor and towns. I also dont think okafor is as bad at defense as he is credited for. His post game is crazy good as i remember him destroying towns this last season.

Russells snitch thing i think is overblown. Okafor was better last year than him but i think russell was in a tough spot with the hand he was dealt (kobe, young, clarkson) Russell did really well i thought towards the end of the season.

I would like to know how russell did defensively and projects. My mind says okafor is the better deal and my heart says russell.

I think both will be better than who we get at 5. The draft always has way too much hype with it. For the cousins and leonards there are too many flynns, wes johnsons, and derrick williams. I take either russell or okafor both over the 5 pick

No where on the list of reasons to trade for Okafor is appeasing Tyus Jones one of them. The reason you do it is because it gives you a low-post presence and oak tree of a body to go bang against the big boys and save KAT some of the wear and tear. If I thought it was a good deal, that's how I'd justify it. The Tyus Jones connection would be nice, but not really a factor.

Go with your heart in this case....

Is Okafor a worse defender then Murray projects to be? I think he can be an average defender in this league just because of his size, strength, and rebounding.

My vote for Russell makes it a three way tie.

To tell you the truth I'm going into this draft almost carefree, if we get Okafor awesome; Russell? Sounds good; oh we are going to take (insert prospects name here)? Alright!

Of the three options presented I would lean more towards Russell. The more guards we have that can handle the ball and be either a capable shooter, capable defender, or a facilitator, the happier I'll be. I would love for Russell to be the 3rd guard or maybe even the starting 2 (he has good size). Okafor would be nice on offense but I think that we need to focus on perimeter shooting and defense, something Okafor does not provide.

If Russell could be acquired for #5+ Payne+ Rudez then I would pull the trigger no hesitation. If we had to give up either Bazz or Dieng to get it done I would have my reservations. Zach and 5? No F'N way.

bleedspeed177 wrote:Is Okafor a worse defender then Murray projects to be? I think he can be an average defender in this league just because of his size, strength, and rebounding.

There are some articles out there that suggest he is less terrible than is widely suggested. This article is somewhat interesting plus you can see how Bjelica ranks amoung some rookies as a defender as well as Towns.

http://www.basketballinsiders.com/nba-pm-the-truth-about-rookie-defense/

bleedspeed177 wrote:Is Okafor a worse defender then Murray projects to be? I think he can be an average defender in this league just because of his size, strength, and rebounding.

Apples and oranges....A weak big man defender is much more damaging to an overall team defense than a weak wing defender. Although defense is a legit question mark with Murray. Can you imagine a Tyus Jones, Jamal Murray, Shabazz Muhammed perimeter trio off the bench? That is pretty awful defensively. Heck, insert Buddy Hield instead of Murray. Still terrible. Now insert Kris Dunn playing in Tyus's spot with Courtney Lee at backup SG. Or Tyus at PG and Dunn at SG with Shabazz....seems a bit more balanced between offense and defense.