Casey: "We Have To Participate In The Trend Of Going Small At The End of Games"

[Apollo]

What top Centers have a hard time guarding JV?

Based on JV's advanced stats, everyone has a hard time guarding him. He just doesn't get the play calls; quality or volume.

He was the seventh most utilized player last season on the team. That's ridiculous.

[Matt Damon]

Based on JV's advanced stats, everyone has a hard time guarding him.

If we are playing the same no-center-smallball fourth quarters as last year does that mean we will only get to see 5 minutes a game from Biyombo or what

[Chr1s1anL]

Its funny that JV is changing his game to play more like these guys. Hmm I wonder why his doing that.

[Chr1s1anL]

I also forgot Thon Maker but that's two years away...

[JimiCliff]

Its funny that JV is changing his game to play more like these guys. Hmm I wonder why his doing that.

Because he reads these forums, and he wants to make you happy

[Bandit]

Based on JV's advanced stats, everyone has a hard time guarding him. He just doesn't get the play calls; quality or volume.

He was the seventh most utilized player last season on the team. That's ridiculous.

This is officially my reply to Chr1s1anL...

I honestly have never met anyone so intent on ignoring Statistics based on his hate for a player. This conversation would make Casey blush...

[JWash]

Based on JV's advanced stats, everyone has a hard time guarding him. He just doesn't get the play calls; quality or volume.

He was the seventh most utilized player last season on the team. That's ridiculous.

Bingo.

I'm absolutely confident that JV could put up an efficient 20-10 next season if he got the looks and minutes to do so. His efficiency at his current volume is Harden/Curry-esque. Obviously it would take a hit if he got more touches, but even 20 points on 56-57 TS% is just great basketball.

If you establish JV as a threat, other teams will respond as such, that only makes life easier for the other 14 guys on the team. But yeah let's keep giving him Robin Lopez type usage because we're fucking stupid.

As for not being able to guard his respective position, to be honest our worst starter in that area is actually Lowry. Only 6'0, not particularly fast either. He has a lot of trouble guarding the super-athletic PGs like Westbrook, Wall, even Teague gives him quite a lot of trouble. I suppose we should bench Lowry in the 4th quarter as well?

[Apollo]

If we are playing the same no-center-smallball fourth quarters as last year does that mean we will only get to see 5 minutes a game from Biyombo or what

If the Raptors are playing no center small ball this season they're not making it out of the 1st round. Talent and proper utilization of that talent is what wins games. This team isn't built for small ball. If anything, what Ujiri did suggests he wants to slow it all down to a grinding halt and start a good old fashioned street fight all over the court.

I'm telling you, the best thing the Raptors can do now at this point is slow the game down as much as possible and throw all those shooters out of their rhythm on the other side of the court; exactly what smart teams did to Colangelo's Raptors.

I'm absolutely confident that JV could put up an efficient 20-10 next season if he got the looks and minutes to do so. His efficiency at his current volume is Harden/Curry-esque. Obviously it would take a hit if he got more touches, but even 20 points on 56-57 TS% is just great basketball.

Not to mention all these teams who are discrediting tough, strong, traditional centers will have full on liabilities on their hands in terms of fouls very quickly.

What problem is more difficult to deal with:

A.) A big strong, traditional center who has good post up moves and likes contact.
B.) A big new age center who prefers to play far away from the basket and doesn't like contact.

Which guy has the game that can survive any pace the game dictates? Which guy can survive the game when the officials put their whistles away in the playoffs?

I think you're seeing the game shift because good traditional centers are few and far between and not because they're obsolete. Teams don't want to waste a lineup spot on a guy who can't do much. JV is talented though, he's not filler.

[S.R.]

This is officially my reply to Chr1s1anL...

I honestly have never met anyone so intent on ignoring Statistics based on his hate for a player. This conversation would make Casey blush...

The guy will ask questions and make his points all day. You can directly answer a question or provide a counterpoint and he will ignore it and just say something else. If you keep going long enough he cycles back and says the same things he said in the beginning and proceed to ignore all responses a second time. Ad infinitum.

I think he may be a North Korean spy bot. We all know The Little Man loves his basketball, maybe he's poaching NBA strategy to build a North Korean superteam. Don't feed the commie spy bot, guys.

[Matt Damon]

Bingo.
But yeah let's keep giving him Robin Lopez type usage because we're fucking stupid.

***Casey is fucking stupid

[JWash]

This idea that JV can't be on the court in the 4th quarter because other teams are going small is fucking ridiculous. Let's take an actual look at who every team in the NBA plays at the 5 spot in crunch time when healthy.

Boston: Zeller/Olynyk
Brooklyn: Brook Lopez
New York: Robin Lopez
Philadelphia: Jahlil Okafor

Chicago: Joakim Noah
Cleveland: Timofey Mozgov
Detroit: Andre Drummond
Indiana: Ian Mahinmi (only C on their roster atm)
Milwaukee: Greg Monroe

Atlanta: Al Horford
Charlotte: Al Jefferson
Miami: Hassan Whiteside
Orlando: Nikola Vucevic
Wizards: Marcin Gortat

Dallas: Zaza Pachulia
Houston: Dwight Howard
Memphis: Marc Gasol
New Orleans: Omer Asik
San Antonio: Tim Duncan

Denver: Jusuf Nurkic
Minnesota: Karl Anthony-Towns
Oklahoma City: Enes Kanter/Steven Adams
Portland: Ed Davis
Utah: Rudy Gobert

Golden State: Andrew Bogut
Los Angeles Clippers: DeAndre Jordan
Los Angeles Lakers: Roy Hibbert
Phoenix Suns: Tyson Chandler
Sacramento Kings: DeMarcus Cousins

So which team in the NBA plays a stretch 4 at the 5 spot in crunch time? How is JV not able to guard these players, how does his size prevent him from doing so? The fact of the matter is we downsize for no reason and then get killed because of it, makes no sense whatsoever.

Again Golden State does not play small ball regularly. Their most played lineup is Curry-Klay-Barnes-Green-Bogut. They changed it in the finals and the finals only for 3 games because Bogut was playing like garbage, not out-rebounding the Cavs bigs, so it made sense to put their best players on the floor instead (i.e. get Iguodala out there).

[S.R.]

If the Raptors are playing no center small ball this season they're not making it out of the 1st round. Talent and proper utilization of that talent is what wins games. This team isn't built for small ball. If anything, what Ujiri did suggests he wants to slow it all down to a grinding halt and start a good old fashioned street fight all over the court.

I'm telling you, the best thing the Raptors can do now at this point is slow the game down as much as possible and throw all those shooters out of their rhythm on the other side of the court; exactly what smart teams did to Colangelo's Raptors.

We don't even have to go all the way back to BC - Washington put on that clinic for the Raptors last year. Wall/Gortat P'n'R's destroyed the Raptors. Their guards played defense. Two seven footers (Gortat/Nene) played 30mpg and 25mpg to JV's 26mpg. And when Washington wanted to go small? They shifted Pierce to the 4 and kept Gortat or Nene at the 5. You know if Casey coached that team he would have had Dejuan Blair, Drew Gooden, or Kris Humphries at the 5. I mean, you can't expect Gortat to defend the perimeter, right?

Still smdh about how badly the Raps got outplayed and outcoached by a team that wasn't even all that good...

[RandomGuy]

So what happens when they fill out and get experience. How does JV guard his position?

Hey, you remind me this chat bot, you should ask her these questions...
https://www.eviebot.com/en/

[S.R.]

This idea that JV can't be on the court in the 4th quarter because other teams are going small is fucking ridiculous. Let's take an actual look at who every team in the NBA plays at the 5 spot in crunch time when healthy.

Boston: Zeller/Olynyk
Brooklyn: Brook Lopez
New York: Robin Lopez
Philadelphia: Jahlil Okafor

Chicago: Joakim Noah
Cleveland: Timofey Mozgov
Detroit: Andre Drummond
Indiana: Ian Mahinmi (only C on their roster atm)
Milwaukee: Greg Monroe

Atlanta: Al Horford
Charlotte: Al Jefferson
Miami: Hassan Whiteside
Orlando: Nikola Vucevic
Wizards: Marcin Gortat

Dallas: Zaza Pachulia
Houston: Dwight Howard
Memphis: Marc Gasol
New Orleans: Omer Asik
San Antonio: Tim Duncan

Denver: Jusuf Nurkic
Minnesota: Karl Anthony-Towns
Oklahoma City: Enes Kanter/Steven Adams
Portland: Ed Davis
Utah: Rudy Gobert

Golden State: Andrew Bogut
Los Angeles Clippers: DeAndre Jordan
Los Angeles Lakers: Roy Hibbert
Phoenix Suns: Tyson Chandler
Sacramento Kings: DeMarcus Cousins

So which team in the NBA plays a stretch 4 at the 5 spot in crunch time? How is JV not able to guard these players, how does his size prevent him from doing so? The fact of the matter is we downsize for no reason and then get killed because of it, makes no sense whatsoever.

Again Golden State does not play small ball regularly. Their most played lineup is Curry-Klay-Barnes-Green-Bogut. They changed it in the finals and the finals only for 3 games because Bogut was playing like garbage, not out-rebounding the Cavs bigs, so it made sense to put their best players on the floor instead (i.e. get Iguodala out there).

Also for GSW it was a strategy to deal with Lebron James. They'd rather have Igoudala on James and keep Curry/Klay/Barnes/Green on the floor with him, even though it allowed Mozgov to go into beast mode for most of the series. Timofey Mozgov is not going to win the NBA Finals for you, but Lebron James will. That was GSW's focus. At no point did Steve Kerr think during the NBA Finals "Well, the trend in the NBA is certainly to go small. I think we will start sitting Andrew Bogut and playing a positionless wing player instead because we certainly don't want to fall behind the trend."

[JWash]

We don't even have to go all the way back to BC - Washington put on that clinic for the Raptors last year. Wall/Gortat P'n'R's destroyed the Raptors. Their guards played defense. Two seven footers (Gortat/Nene) played 30mpg and 25mpg to JV's 26mpg. And when Washington wanted to go small? They shifted Pierce to the 4 and kept Gortat or Nene at the 5. You know if Casey coached that team he would have had Dejuan Blair, Drew Gooden, or Kris Humphries at the 5. I mean, you can't expect Gortat to defend the perimeter, right?

Still smdh about how badly the Raps got outplayed and outcoached by a team that wasn't even all that good...

Great post, but I particularly want to highlight the bold.

When teams want to go small, they shift a small forward to the power forward spot to provide more spacing. This is common for teams that don't have a stretch 4 or skilled 4. They do not remove their center and replace them with a power forward. That is not small-ball that is Casey-ball.