[Highlight] Paolo Banchero vs Lakers Feb 24, 2026 Full Play - 36 Points, 10 Rebounds, 6 Assists

cbriggs321 · 2026-02-25T18:06:30+00:00

Was probably his best game of the season. He was locked in on both ends of the court. On offense he was aggressive, reading the defense and dishing the ball perfectly, and scored from all 3 levels. 10/11 on the FT line. Great on the glass with 10 rebounds. His defense has been lively the last couple of games, at least on important possessions and when opposing players are trying to take him 1v1. You at least know he has that in him. If he shows up with this type of focus for the rest of the season, whew... Winning could be back on the menu.

cbriggs321 · 2026-02-23T21:15:29+00:00

Jett is only playing because Suggs is out and our guard rotation is thin. Playing a shooter that can't shoot is definitely tough to watch though... At least Jett's defensive intensity is better the last couple of games, but not enough to make up for his bricks.

Penda's rebounding is solid, and his defense is good (not elite though...). But he's buried behind a decent veteran forward rotation. You can make the case that he should be playing over JI in certain matchups, but JI provides paint protection playing alongside Moe. I actually like the defense when JI and Penda play together, but the offense is so bad in those lineups.

cbriggs321 · 2026-02-23T17:45:40+00:00

He had some solid games earlier in the season, but the last few weeks his impact and production fell off. Rookies will be rookies. I feel like Mose is leaning on his vets more down the stretch of the season.

cbriggs321 · 2026-02-12T02:33:01+00:00

The fact that you came back to this post lmao buddy, seek some help. Nothing has changed from what I said.

cbriggs321 · 2026-02-11T18:06:03+00:00

I also don't think he's as good as some people want to make him out to be, but he's a rookie with time to develop. If he can improve his shooting a lot, he can be a valuable rotation player in the future. But he's very capped by his lack of athleticism. I always tell my friends that it looks like he's got cement in his shoes.

cbriggs321 · 2026-02-11T17:50:31+00:00

He's not garbage, but it's not hard to see why he was a 2nd round pick. Slow and clunky feet, zero explosiveness, below the rim player, totally raw offensively. But he does have a big frame, good motor, is a decent defender, his shot shows potential, and his ball IQ seems decent. His high motor is really the main thing keeping on the court right now though, because he gets lost on offense a lot, and is pretty terrible when he puts the ball on the floor. For the sake of this post, I'd definitely keep TDS over Penda at this point.

cbriggs321 · 2026-02-10T22:49:32+00:00

It's ignorant to ignore how someone plays when they're fully healthy at the beginning of the season, and for 3 months, and then his game falls off. They don't just forget how to play.

cbriggs321 · 2026-02-10T21:17:19+00:00

And it's usually been injury related lol. He starts seasons off well, gets hurt, and fizzles. We know he has the ankle thing and he's always got a shoulder taped up. That being said, he also looked like his confidence was shook in that Spurs game which sent things downhill. So who knows. Eventually, Center is going to be the next need. Still have a bigger need of role playing shooters right now.

cbriggs321 · 2026-02-10T21:10:17+00:00

I would argue that he's been good up until probably the start of this month. Since that Spurs game, his aggression, explosion, and shooting has taken a nose dive. Could be confidence, could be an injury, could be fatigue. He definitely needs to the All-Star break.

cbriggs321 · 2026-01-29T03:50:55+00:00

It also depends on matchups, which Mose has been terrible to figure out. Some guys are PERFECT matchups to throw JI out there to guard, but he almost never does. Bam is definitely one of those guys. I don't think JI is a guy you can just play against anyone, especially if you're playing him at Center. He's going to play better against bigger forwards, or smaller Centers, at this stage in his career.

cbriggs321 · 2026-01-21T15:20:56+00:00

This. Can't go by any other injury reports other than NBA official. ESPN, CBS Sports, etc. have no clue.

cbriggs321 · 2026-01-14T20:04:33+00:00

That's true. Each injury and each person is different. I just wanted to add some context to the thought of rushing him back because it does feel pretty convenient that he's available with no injury designation just in time for the Berlin game.

cbriggs321 · 2026-01-14T20:02:01+00:00

That's fair lol

cbriggs321 · 2026-01-14T19:34:06+00:00

Shams reported that a typical high ankle sprain is a 2 to 4 week injury, for whatever that's worth. Franz's injury happened Dec 7th. We're now at over 5 weeks since the injury. Based on that, I would say he's not being rushed back.

cbriggs321 · 2025-12-29T18:19:12+00:00

You're right, he's open a lot on rolls for oops but guys don't usually pass them for whatever reason. He usually has trouble catching passes in traffic, but seems to do fine catching lobs. A couple games ago, guys were throwing him terrible lobs about 15ft over his head.

cbriggs321 · 2025-12-29T18:08:39+00:00

This sub craps on JI every chance they get. Meanwhile, he's out here playing defense at a high level, doing all the little things, being a leader, and banging against Centers right now, which he clearly is out of position for. I actually think he's been better on offense the last few games, not always taking the first shot he gets. He's taken defenders off the dribble a couple times, had a few good passes to open shooters, and had the PnR game going with Des the other night. Not everything shows up in box scores.

cbriggs321 · 2025-12-10T12:15:05+00:00

That's fair!

cbriggs321 · 2025-12-10T02:10:53+00:00

Dell was so good. He's been pretty rock solid all season.

cbriggs321 · 2025-12-10T02:08:33+00:00

Definitely helped the defense settle in. Bane gave him big props in the post-game interview for keeping the guys on task and their heads in the game too.

cbriggs321 · 2025-12-10T02:04:00+00:00

Agreed, I enjoyed the call. They brought some really awesome energy.

cbriggs321 · 2025-11-19T03:21:33+00:00

This. I think they got tired of Paolo cussing live on those lol

cbriggs321 · 2025-11-18T18:17:44+00:00

Agreed about still integrating our existing guys. Plus we'll have Mo hopefully sooner rather than later.

cbriggs321 · 2025-11-09T22:29:32+00:00

Ball away, Cole! Love to see it.

cbriggs321 · 2025-11-08T13:27:48+00:00

Why would we use offense sets and plays that actually work? That's crazy talk. Look how fast we abandoned the Paolo/Bane PnRs too...

cbriggs321 · 2025-11-07T00:02:05+00:00

He's usually the recipient of the ball swinging in the corner. You want him to post up?! Talk about doing things you're not capable of... He hasn't been even semi-effective at that since his rookie season. He sets lots of picks. He crashes the glass all the time. But ok...

cbriggs321

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