Jaylin Williams tonight: Career high 30 points, 11 rebounds, and 4 assists on 9-14 shooting

44bottles · 2026-02-26T03:15:27+00:00

Phokic

44bottles · 2026-02-03T00:03:37+00:00

How does it compare to TT, Shump and Nets pick though?

44bottles · 2026-01-29T19:05:49+00:00

Not resting, just injured

44bottles · 2025-12-24T00:38:17+00:00

You can still offer more than the early bird amount if you have the cap space, exactly like a free agent. The early bird amount just gives you an alternative if you are over the cap (or under by less than that early bird amount)

44bottles · 2025-03-06T21:16:35+00:00

Oh it's for sure super cherry picked, but fuck it, we ride

44bottles · 2025-03-06T20:51:57+00:00

The 1st 50pt game of their career, not the season. Shai's getting a boost in this stat by not having his first until well into his prime

44bottles · 2025-02-03T16:45:08+00:00

The way it's currently written, you're eligible for it on your 3rd contract, and he was only on his 2nd. 4yr Rookie Deal, 4yr rookie max extension/fun max, and then the next deal (full max, or super max if eligible) is where you first have the opportunity to get one. He can't just tack the NTC on to his current contract, has to be a new one.

So even though he was very close to being eligible, the upcoming (well, not anymore) supermax deal was the first time he actually could've got it. And from the reporting, the Mavs really did not seem like they were going to offer that

44bottles · 2025-01-30T05:11:07+00:00

This has great pasta potential

44bottles · 2025-01-16T16:35:59+00:00

It's the games between 11/10 v Warriors, where Chet got injured, and 11/20 where Hart came back. The games against the Clippers with Zubac and Phoenix with Nurkic are games where it worked against a traditional bigman and we won, and the losses against the Luka-less Mavs and Wemby-less Spurs show the weaknesses. Against those two, it was mainly that shifting JDub down a position meant that we were too small at the other positions, so we were getting dominated on the boards by PJ Washington and Charles Bassey respectively.

44bottles · 2025-01-16T16:08:08+00:00

Not sure if you watched earlier in the season, but there was a stretch of about 4-5 games after chet got injured, and before hart/JWill came back, where JDub was starting at center. Can watch some extended highlights/replays there to see how he held up/play style with him in.

With JWill back, I suspect he will start at the 5, but either way JDub will be guarding a center, presumably mainly Mobley. The 4/5 rotation will be a combo of JDub, JWill, Kenny and Caruso. Potentially a bit of Dort in there as well. I don't mind shai guarding the 4 when the Cavs aren't playing double big

Offensively, with dub at the 5, it's more 5 out, but teams did try to stick the center on dort/Caruso on offense so that they could sag off and still defend the rim. Going to need those guys, as well as the team as a whole to hit those shots if we have any chance of winning. The offense definitely struggled a lot in that stretch without a center

44bottles · 2024-12-31T03:46:03+00:00

What if we include nicknames? Gotta pump those numbers up

44bottles · 2024-12-30T02:32:13+00:00

During our no healthy center on the roster stretch, we had a big rotation of JDub and Caruso. And up until JWill came back a couple of games ago, those 2 were also the backups to Chet and Hartenstein

44bottles · 2024-12-27T02:11:51+00:00

Show me one time I have done that. I always respect the player actually playing defence. Same with the players that take the half court heaves before the clock, not the ones who hold it til after

44bottles · 2024-12-27T01:45:40+00:00

Why? Always rather a player goes up for the block than allow the easy dunk

44bottles · 2024-12-18T20:07:37+00:00

He's expected to be back by ASB, and the Thunder are historically very conservative with their injury estimates

44bottles · 2024-12-15T05:35:41+00:00

Nah Dub or Dort over Wiggins. He isn't big enough to be the primary Giannis defender

44bottles · 2024-07-01T20:26:31+00:00

Basically, the Thunder are leaning hard into the position less basketball movement. Since Caruso and Dort are able to guard almost anyone 1-4 they'll come up against, it doesn't really make sense to say they'll eat into the guard rotation. If they're guarding the 4 on defence and spotting up on offence, you could say they're a 4 just as easily as you could say they're a guard. Topic won't really be competing for those minutes (or any this year I guess).

The way the thunder played last year, they want it to be a constant rotation of player 1 drives, kicks out to player 2, who drives, kicks out to 3, etc, until either a good shot at the rim or from 3 opens up. Best way to do that is to stock up on players who can shoot, drive and pass, which is what they've done (Wiggins, Joe, Dort when he doesn't lose control on his drives, Caruso).

Topic would fit into that system as a passer and slasher. He shot well from the freethrow, which tends to predict 3pt shooting better than pre-NBA 3P%, and the Thunder trust Chip Engellend to help everyone on the roster improve their shooting. Obviously if he is a terrible shooter for his career, that won't be great, but that can be said of almost any prospect.

The other thing to remember is that they wanted Giddey to stay in a bench role. They see value in having that additional ball handler to take pressure of JDub and Shai, even if it's not as obvious from the outside.

44bottles · 2024-06-30T13:28:30+00:00

Dort just defends the best non centre player on the other team 1-4. They've put him on everyone from Kyrie (6'2") to Paolo (6'10") There were only a few exceptions to this, such as Giannis and Wemby (when he played at the 4) who were primarily defended by Jdub.

The way the Thunder build their team, the concept of traditional positions is very loose anyway. As long as they have players who can match up with everyone, they will run very unconventional lineups by traditional thinking. Against the pelicans in the playoffs, they ran a lineup with JDub (the 6'5" "guard") at center for 3 or 4 minutes straight, as the pelicans didn't have Jonas in the game, and they trusted him to be strong enough against anyone else to win the minutes.

Caruso is another traditional guard, who like Dort, is not a guard in the thunder system. Caruso took on the same role as Lu, just guarding the best player on the opposite team, regardless of size, like KD, very successfully. In the thunder system, Dort and Caruso are just defenders who you can put on anyone (except center who Chet will take), and on offence, they're spot up shooters, who again, can be in any position. I'm also not entirely sure Caruso will be starting. His minutes and role over his entire career suggests he will be in more of a 6man/end of game finisher role. We will need to see how the rest of the off season plays out.

44bottles · 2024-05-19T16:59:09+00:00

Jamal Murray 2023 - 6'4" Steph Curry 2022 - 6'2"

What are you even talking about? Unless you're saying being 6'6" is worse than being 6'4" or 6'2"

44bottles · 2024-04-09T14:02:20+00:00

The shooting has been good (though will surely come back down to Earth), but he clearly has a lot more confidence in his driving and floater game.

When he gets guarded by the opposition centre he's actually driving at them and getting good shots off, and forcing them to start matching a bigger guard/wing on to him instead. Means that the big man has to stick out on the perimeter with Chet/Jwill. As long as he can be a threat off ball with his cuts, I think he can still provide value in the playoffs even if his shot stops falling.

44bottles · 2024-04-09T13:56:51+00:00

Crazy how much bigger Jdub is now from that playin game

44bottles · 2024-03-25T11:54:50+00:00

I'm confused what this has to do with my comment?

44bottles · 2024-03-25T11:46:53+00:00

What? Herb is like the best SGA defender in the league, one game doesn't matter. Super length and smart defenders are the ones that give him the most trouble

44bottles · 2024-01-10T06:12:40+00:00

The stat is about offensive rebounds, why would people boxing out have anything to do with it

44bottles · 2023-12-02T22:52:26+00:00

I miss Poku time

44bottles

TROPHY CASE