1st Big: Healthy Hansbrough or Patterson?

[Bendit]

Do they? Why can't you have both?

Edit: I suppose we need to get an actual back up centre...

A couple of reasons I had in mind....a) for a couple of years I envision MU to stay under the cap to maintain flexibility or have some "loose change" for at least a second tier f/a he felt to be a good fit. b) TH signed here because it afforded him a team where he would not only get minutes but possibly even a starter's role. He may have to of course lower his expectations re that but we dont know this...besides he might get something else back in a trade like that bkup centre you mentioned.

[Stahmenah_Vybz]

Both guys obviously bring two completely different packages to the table ... if you had to choose one as your 1st Big off the Bench.. who would it be?

Patterson has proven himself more.

[caccia]

I make no secret of being a big fan of Tyler Hansbrough. I like rooting for the unappreciated guy with great capabilities, who has been successful at every level. He is really misused in Toronto, just as he was in Indiana. At the same time, I have been impressed with the play of Patrick Patterson. Reading the analysis of Patterson's play on Raptors Republic, I come up with these reasons for Hansbrough to be the first big off the bench.

1) The rap on the Raptors for years has been that they are soft. When Tyler came aboard, that all changed. He showed the guys how it is done.

2) The Raptors are a young team that has to learn how to bring it for 48 minutes. Tyler has shown how to go all out, all the time. Now they are getting it! The bad quarters are fewer now and the fourth quarters much stronger, regardless of whether the team is ahead or behind.

3) Toronto succeeds first with defence. Tyler is better at rebounding, especially in offensive rebounding. He is just behind Valanciunas in 36 minute stats at 10.3. Patterson is at 6.8. Tyler protects the rim better and is faster on his feet. He can move laterally with most guards, which is why he can trap at the perimeter, disrupting the opponent's flow, provided the other big rotates. He is strong enough to keep most big men from the basket--with the notable exception of Kevin Love. Watch how often Hansbrough's man misses.

3) Patterson's offence has been very good, while Hansbrough's shooting has suffered. He needs at least 19 minutes to really be successful on offence. Still, he ranks among the top 10 in the NBA in 1.065 free throw attempts per shot. The next nearest Raptor is Landry Fields at .386. This is a very valuable trait to have: your power forward goes to the line, where he shoots .727 (down in recent weeks with the injuries), and the other team's bigs get in foul trouble.

4) The intangibles: getting the opponents riled up or off stride, keeping balls alive, bringing the intensity on both ends of the court. It's hard to find those things in the NBA, where players tend to pace themselves over 82 games.

[white men can't jump]

Patterson has proven himself more.

I feel like this should be extended with....In Casey's jumpshot-heavy offence.

[Joey]

I feel like this should be extended with....In Casey's jumpshot-heavy offence.

Exactly what I was going to say.
Not sure where PeePee has proven himself more valuable than Hans except as a jump shooter.

Where as TH has proven himself more in Casey's energy-heavy defense.

So I suppose its a matter of which is, and has been, more important to our success.
Defense of Offense?

ADD Though I suppose the other point could be made that PeePee has taken the bulk of the minutes in our latest successful run; but that's more due to THs injury.
Would PeePee be playing these minutes if TH were fully healthy ..we really have no idea.

[white men can't jump]

Exactly what I was going to say.
Not sure where PeePee has proven himself more valuable than Hans except as a jump shooter.

Where as TH has proven himself more in Casey's energy-heavy defense.

So I suppose its a matter of which is, and has been, more important to our success.
Defense of Offense?

ADD Though I suppose the other point could be made that PeePee has taken the bulk of the minutes in our latest successful run; but that's more due to THs injury.
Would PeePee be playing these minutes if TH were fully healthy ..we really have no idea.

I think he would. Casey may be a defensive coach, but so far it seems to me like the skill he values the most is actually shooting. This may be because of our lack of a reliable go-to threat to get points in the paint, be it a big or a slashing wing....but I think Casey really values shooters...which also makes sense given his last stop was in Dallas and their system relied a lot on perimeter scoring.

[drunkmunky]

In Casey's 9 man rotation they are both equally important. Patterson on offense and Hansbrough on Defense.

[mike, prague]

Why can't this be a multi-select poll? Don't we all want Acy back?

[CGarbs]

I voted for 2Pat for a couple of reasons:

1) If Amir got injured I would feel comfortable with 2Pat playing starters minutes but would be terrified if Hansborough did.

2) 2Pat has the athleticism to score off of the offensive rebounds he gets compared to TH who at best turns those offensive boards into free throws.

All that said, I think TH is a great bench player that has a place on this team and hope we keep both moving forward. However, if we don't find a way to keep 2Pat for next year I would be a bit disappointed whereas if we lost TH it would be more of a "meh" thing for me.

Lastly, I don't understand the Quincy love! I mean for what he is I think he's awesome, I just think his ceiling as a pro(in terms of being a productive player) is a 9-12 off the bench guy(defs not a rotation player).

[mike, prague]

I voted for 2Pat for a couple of reasons:
Lastly, I don't understand the Quincy love! I mean for what he is I think he's awesome, I just think his ceiling as a pro(in terms of being a productive player) is a 9-12 off the bench guy(defs not a rotation player).

Not, sure which potential Quincy love your talking about... but if you're talking about mine. Then I just meant that he is a great energy guy and seems like he could be a big part of the team spirit. Acy is currently a great guy to backup your backups at the 4 and maybe 3. Though it's nice seeing him get bigger minutes in Sac-town.

If you meant love by joey_hesketh then he was being sarcastic, or suggesting that both 2Pat and Hans both play like geese.

[mike, prague]

Pretty sure you got a typo here buddy. Pretty sure you want "bigger" At least I assume/hope.

Lol. Honest mistake, fixed thx.

[white men can't jump]

Lol. Honest mistake, fixed thx.

No prob. Deleted my post too to fully erase it

[Red and White]

Obviously depends on matchups, but I am feeling Patrick Patterson will be more useful on a night-to-night basis. Not to mention, the dude is only 24 years old, only a few years older than Ross. I think that is something a lot of people don't realize about him because he plays like a veteran would.

With that being said, I do love Hansbrough (he is the type of guy you hate to play against, but love when he is on your side) and what he brings to the table. Sometimes, you just need a guy out there to be a pest, and that is what he does.

The Raptors have a fantastic 4-man big rotation, with JV, Amir, Patterson, and Tyler. The front court is deep, balanced, and relatively consistent.

[Red and White]

Also, Quincy for life.

[bryan colangelo]

If I had to pick one, I'd pick Patterson, but personally I think we need both in order to contend.

Amir and Jonas are great — they're athletic, two-way players — but not dominant, intimidating post players. We would likely need more than one specialist off the bench if those two are our long-term starters.

Tyler is a great 'pest', and is useful for drawing fouls and just throwing opposing post players off their game. I think his presence was instrumental in getting the Indiana bigs in foul trouble for our win, while his absence was felt in our game versus Miami, where our opponent's 'pest' (Anderson) was allowed to go unchecked and stifle our offense for 6-7 minutes.

Patterson is good overall defensively and drawing slower, bigger post players away from the basket on offense.