JMac

[FNG]

I like the threads we've started evaluating various players we will be counting on this year. But as we talk about the lack of PG depth, I wonder if we are overlooking what Jordan McLaughlin might be able to bring as Finchie begins to give him more minutes at PG. Despite his impressive college stats, I was skeptical as to his ceiling in his first 2 years with the Wolves. I was concerned about his size and his defense. But my opinion turned around on JMac in the second half of last season and throughout the playoffs, and I now view him as a guy who can bring a lot of what some of us were looking for in a game manager like Tyus Jones. Just take a look at JMac's stats after the all-star game last season:

MPG: 18.4
3P%: 47.4
A:TO: 4!
Steals per 36: 2.6


And he showed in the playoffs that he doesn't shrink under the bright lights. He shot 71% from the field (57.1% on threes) and had a remarkable 17 assists against only 2 TOs, along with 5 steals. Small sample size to be sure, but I like guys who step up in big games.

With 3 future HOFs in the starting lineup and a budding potential star in Jaden, doesn't a pass-first, solid-defending guy like JMac deserve at least 20MPG at PG? He seems to fit the bill as to exactly what we need at PG.

A few more stats for JMac in his 3rd season:

-ORtg of 122 and a DRtg of 112 for an impressive net rating of 10
- 7.2 assists and only 1.5 TOs per 36.
-.123 ws/48 (to put that in perspective, our starting PG had .101 ws/48 for the season)

JMac is not the kind of guy who is going to light it up at times like a DLo, but he will facilitate and protect the ball, play reliable pesky defense, and I think, hit the open three (I recognize he's only a 35.2% career 3-point shooter, but his shooting in the second half of last season and the playoffs along with his 40.8 3-point percentage his final 3 years in college gives me a lot of confidence in his 3-point shot).

The more I look at what JMac brings, the less concerned I am about PG depth.

[Q-is-here]

JMac is a game-manager type PG if there ever was one, but almost to an unhealthy extreme. His minutes and usage last year were career lows as a 25-year old. I get that he had a nice second half and playoff series, but you have to wonder how he'd look playing against opposing team starters in a deep playoff series. That is where I'm not so sure his body and skill-set holds up.

[Camden [enjin:6601484]]

I remain a big fan of his, but the issue with Jordan McLaughlin is that he projects to be a reliable point guard off the bench and not a starting option over the course of an 82-game season. The reason for that -- similar to Tyus Jones -- is McLaughlin's inconsistent ability to score the basketball or rather create his own offense, which is an essential skill for a point guard nowadays, in my opinion. He's also an instant mismatch given his smaller physical profile and lack of length. And while he's a pesky defender against ones, especially off the bench, I could see him being abused nightly against the more physical starting backcourts, especially if they hunted him on switches. Well, can't teams just do the same thing against D'Angelo Russell? Perhaps, but at least Russell is 6'4 with a 6'10 wingspan. Size will always be an issue with McLaughlin as it pertains to his ceiling.

Furthermore, this season will be the first where McLaughlin is expected to have a consistent and active role. We think we know what we have in J-Mac, but we need to see it over a full season of play.

[Monster]

JMac is a game-manager type PG if there ever was one, but almost to an unhealthy extreme. His minutes and usage last year were career lows as a 25-year old. I get that he had a nice second half and playoff series, but you have to wonder how he'd look playing against opposing team starters in a deep playoff series. That is where I'm not so sure his body and skill-set holds up.

One thing I will push back about when it comes to McLaughlin being a game manager is that he does have the quickness and ability to drive and make plays for others. Yes he has to pick his spots but when he does he is extremely effective. He does have the ability to create for others and he is good at passing an a variety of positions. Idk how much he will play with Gobert on a regular basis but I could see McLaughlin having fun getting Gobert the ball.

Another reason why McLaughlin is valuable is that he doesn't have to have the ball to be effective. Yes he value goes way down when he isn't making 3's consistently but he also moves well without the basketball makes smart cuts and just seems to know what he is out there to do and what he can and can't do. That's really valuable.

McLaughlin from even his rookie year simply looked like a guy that knew how to play. There was a few weeks in his 2nd season he did legitimately struggle but his contract was not figure out till not much before r e season and he wasn't the only guy to start out poorly that year. Last year he didn't hit shots early but basically did a lot of the stuff he has done as an NBA player. He was ready when called upon and he wasn't always hitting shots but the Wolves played well during that time and according to various stats in the minutes he played.

Now having said all that yes we don't know if he really is a legit backup Pg or maybe a really good one. Maybe he isn't. Personally I think he has a pretty good resume of a guy that's been fairly effective more than he isn't. If his shooting becomes more consistent then he is gonna be a really good player in his role and we may be talking about how much the Wolves will have to pay him to keep him around after his contract expires. Personally I'm just gonna enjoy watching the guy play. It's not just the all-star guys that make me enjoy sports. Sometimes it's the solid guys that relatively few people may even remember in 20 years that make me enjoy the sport.

[Q-is-here]

Monster, I agree that Lil' mac is enjoyable to watch and really knows how to get others involved. But I'm trying to pressure test FNG's thesis about his value and I question how much he could bring in a 6th or 7th game Conference Finals type of situation. By that time, the opposing team is doing everything in its power to exploit matchups. On offense, they will be begging him to try to score. On defense, they will relentlessly switch bait and try to get him matched up against their alpha scorers. Not sure he can play anything other than spot minutes in this scenario.

[Monster]

Monster, I agree that Lil' mac is enjoyable to watch and really knows how to get others involved. But I'm trying to pressure test FNG's thesis about his value and I question how much he could bring in a 6th or 7th game Conference Finals type of situation. By that time, the opposing team is doing everything in its power to exploit matchups. On offense, they will be begging him to try to score. On defense, they will relentlessly switch bait and try to get him matched up against their alpha scorers. Not sure he can play anything other than spot minutes in this scenario.

If you are this worried about McLaughlin playing a backup role for a playoff team then I'm glad we didn't go all in on Tyus Jones as our starting PG for the next few years.

[Lipoli390]

I think FNG's on to something here. With three all-star caliber players in the starting lineup and a 4th player, McDaniels, possibly becoming a Mika's Bridges caliber wing or better, we don't need more than a game manager at the PG position. In fact, if Edwards is going to play the Dwayne Wade/Kobe/MJ role on this team, then we don't even need a game manager but can instead do well with a Derek Fisher, John Paxon or Steve Kerr. I'll add that JMac is more than a game manager. He's a super quick PG with a ball-on-the-string handle. He has great hops and a nice perimeter shot that I think will get better as he gets more playing time. He also has a tremendous feel for the game, which he combines with his quickness and handle to slice through defenses and create opportunities for teammates.

I understand that other teams will attempt to exploit JMac's size on defense, but there are always mismatches in every game. JMac's size presents a mismatch opportunity, but DLO's lack of quickness presents a potential mismatch weakness as well. I wouldn't mind opposing teams daring JMac to score because I think he's a good shooter and scorer who will get even better with more playing time in my view. With 3 all-stars and a borderline all-star in the staring lineup, it doesn't make sense to worry a lot about JMac's weaknesses. He has strengths and weaknesses, but on this team he should be a distant 5th in the starting line-up's hierarchy.

The good news is that the Wolves have DLO under contract for one more season. Hence, the Wolves will have a nice opportunity to further evaluate JMac before losing the DLO safety net. I think we'll get a much better sense of what JMac can be for this team because he'll likely get more playing time and a more important role with Pat Beverley gone. It will also be interesting to see how Nowell does if he's given more of an opportunity in a lead guard role next season.

[Camden [enjin:6601484]]

The Timberwolves are essentially in win-now mode with their eyes on contending for a championship in the present and near future. There shouldn't be any real discussion about whether or not Jordan McLaughlin can help get them there as a member of the starting five. We actually still need to see if he can become a productive member of the rotation on a nightly basis over the course of a full season. To his credit, I think he can and will, but this team is not contending let alone winning a championship with McLaughlin playing 30-plus minutes a night and matching up with the other starting guards in the league. That much is very clear to me.

Edit: We should be talking about McLaughlin as a first-time consistent option off the bench, which signals tremendous growth from where he was when he entered the league as an undrafted guard struggling to find his footing as an NBA player. His career path in the G-League as a two-way player to earning an NBA contract is one of the few great examples of scouting and player development that this franchise has ever had, sadly enough. What I would hate is for the expectations for McLaughlin to become too much to realistically achieve -- similar to the Scottie Pippen and Paul George comparisons to Jaden McDaniels, for example -- and then we subsequently feel some sort of disappointment concerning him. The bottom line is that J-Mac is a point guard off the bench -- potentially a really good reserve -- and a spot-starter in an emergency, but I would have zero faith in this organization winning anything of significance with him in the starting five. I certainly hope that isn't their plan and I don't think it is.

[Q-is-here]

Monster, I agree that Lil' mac is enjoyable to watch and really knows how to get others involved. But I'm trying to pressure test FNG's thesis about his value and I question how much he could bring in a 6th or 7th game Conference Finals type of situation. By that time, the opposing team is doing everything in its power to exploit matchups. On offense, they will be begging him to try to score. On defense, they will relentlessly switch bait and try to get him matched up against their alpha scorers. Not sure he can play anything other than spot minutes in this scenario.

If you are this worried about McLaughlin playing a backup role for a playoff team then I'm glad we didn't go all in on Tyus Jones as our starting PG for the next few years.

Tyus Jones is a proven starter based on how Memphis performed over a fairly long stretch of games with him at the helm last season. In addition, he is more of a threat to score than J-Mac. He has added a floater and a reliable 3-point shot to his game. And lastly, I think he is a very stout defender that is physically stronger than he looks.

I think the biggest issue I have with Jmac is his age. He's 25, which means what we see is what we're going to get. Just not sure there is much more he can add to his game at this point, although hopefully a more consistent 3-point shot is forthcoming.

[Monster]

Monster, I agree that Lil' mac is enjoyable to watch and really knows how to get others involved. But I'm trying to pressure test FNG's thesis about his value and I question how much he could bring in a 6th or 7th game Conference Finals type of situation. By that time, the opposing team is doing everything in its power to exploit matchups. On offense, they will be begging him to try to score. On defense, they will relentlessly switch bait and try to get him matched up against their alpha scorers. Not sure he can play anything other than spot minutes in this scenario.

If you are this worried about McLaughlin playing a backup role for a playoff team then I'm glad we didn't go all in on Tyus Jones as our starting PG for the next few years.

Tyus Jones is a proven starter based on how Memphis performed over a fairly long stretch of games with him at the helm last season. In addition, he is more of a threat to score than J-Mac. He has added a floater and a reliable 3-point shot to his game. And lastly, I think he is a very stout defender that is physically stronger than he looks.

I think the biggest issue I have with Jmac is his age. He's 25, which means what we see is what we're going to get. Just not sure there is much more he can add to his game at this point, although hopefully a more consistent 3-point shot is forthcoming.

A season ago Tyus Jones shot 32.1% from 3. So now he is reliable from distance? I like Tyus a lot but realistically he isn't proven as a 3 point shooter.

What level of success did the Wolves have this year while McLaughlin was playing his role? What does that prove? I thought were were taking about deep postseason not regular season stuff. At this point as long as Tyus is playing with Ja Morant in the playoffs he has nothing to worry about being targeted on defense. Lol :)