FNG wrote:Monster- you have a terrific talent for presenting things in the most positive light...I don't know what you do for a living, but I would guess that people that work for you are pretty happy! (I mean that)
BUT- let's provide a little balance when we discuss our 2nd highest paid player. You point out some stats that are true and quite positive. He does score at a high rate...24.5 points per 36 minutes is damn good production. And he does get a lot of assists with his sometimes spectacular passing...7 per 36 minutes. And you didn't mention that he is making his 3-pointers at a high rate for him...almost 39%. That's the good part of Dlo.
But you conveniently left out several stats where he ranks either below average or far below average:
-his assists are fun to watch, but he takes too many chances. Hence, his A:To ratio is not very good compared to Rubio- 2.1 compared to 3.9, a significant difference. Dlo turns the ball over too much and turnovers hurt, because they mean both a lost offensive opportunity and often lead to an easy basket on the other end...they're often 4-point swings.
-while he is a volume scorer, he has never been an efficient scorer. His eFG% of 52.9% this year is better than his poor career average of 50%, but still ranks in the bottom half of the league.
-And then there's his defense. I've pointed out a couple times this year times when he actually looked like he was performing at an average level on defense. But I admit I had my rose-colored glasses on, because I know that turning into Dlo into a guy that doesn't give up points at an alarming rate is vital to this team's success. And the numbers don't lie. His DRPM of -1.97 ranks him 79th out of 91 point guards. That's terrible for a guy making $30 mil.
-And finally there's his consistently horrible on/off numbers. Dlo's -5 remains the worst of the 11 Wolves who have gotten consistent minutes this year. We rip on Jarrett Culver here and he has worked himself out of the rotation, but even a disastrous player like Culver is only 3 points worse than Dlo in on/off. Defense matters guys, and if you don't care about it like Dlo doesn't, you're always going to hurt your team.
So we know what we are going to get with Dlo. A productive but not efficient scorer who will get some assists while not protecting the ball well, but whose really bad defense is going to mean that the Wolves do much better when he is on the bench than when he is on the court. Any one of these four things (very poor defense, only average A:To ratio, below average efficiency in shooting, and consistently poor on/off numbers) might be a reason not to deserve a max contract, but Dlo has four damning stats. There's just no way to sugarcoat it...Rosas made a terrible deal, and I see our ceiling as a .500 ballclub if he can't find someone to take Dlo off our hands. I agree with Doper and others that it's not going to happen, but I would suggest it's not going to happen for the wrong reason...3 GMs jettisoned him before his 25th birthday, and to Cool's point, it's unlikely we will find another sucker.
Sorry to pile on Dlo, but this thread is about who we should keep, and keeping Dlo and paying him over 1/4 of our payroll is going to doom this team to mediocrity. I'm going to continue to cheer for Dlo to turn his career around and become a positive factor for this franchise, but I really hope Rosas can pull a rabbit out of his hat and find a way to move on.
Thanks for the compliment.
I presented a simple reality about Russell that he has value because of his ability on the offensive end. You wanting to balance that out is fine. Note that I mentioned he is getting paid a lot of money...
To me the question with Russell is whether he can improve his game. I still think with the right situation and coaching he cane become a much better basketball player. The last 2 seasons he has played for 3 different coaches. I think there is a chance his offense can become unlocked especially as a playmaker for others. I think he can be a more judicious scorer as well. Defensively there are other scoring guards that got to a place where they didn't suck on that end. To me I think if he can stay healthy Russell COULD improve from where he is right now. A lot of that is on him but I also think some of that is on the Wolves and the coaching staff. There is also a chance he is what he is now, just a flawed offensive player that only helps so much while hurting the defense. Some do not believe Russell will get better. I think there is a chance he can but I'm also not banking on it. I'm still concerned about him staying healthy and that was my biggest concern when we discussed bringing him to the roster and that concern has more data to back it up the last few months.
I do see positives in Russell and have since he was drafted. I also feel quite realistic about him too. Also again I'll mention that Russell isn't signed for a super long time it's 2 more years. If he really does suck (he doesn't but he is overpaid) then we are not far away from being rid of him one way or another.
