Dub Nation HQ Comments of the Week & Open Thread

small sample size of great comments

Trade Grab Bag 12. Bradley Beal, Zach Lavine…

Win Now? At what cost?

• Hookshot Holly (7 ♡): 

  In the words of Monta Ellis: "You can’t put two small guys out there and try to play the 1 and the 2 when you’ve got big 2 guards in the league. You just can’t do it."

  According to advanced statistics, and citing a writer from Bullets Forever, Beal is terrible at defense: 

  "KB: Most of the numbers don’t say Beal’s mediocre on defense, they say he’s bad. ESPN’s defensive Real Plus-Minus metric ranks him 111th out of 114 at shooting guard this season. Just looking at simple on/off data, the Wizards are 8.4 points per 100 possessions better defensively when he’s not in the game.

  What little tracking I’ve done this season indicates he gives up drives to the middle, dies on screens, and doesn’t close out consistently. Some of that could be fatigue from carrying such a heavy offensive load, but he’s never been a high-quality defender.

  Whatever the reason, the subpar defensive performance works to somewhat undermine what he provides on offense. What he brings offensively is so good that it outweighs the defensive ineffectiveness, but that ineffectiveness is part of what keeps him in the “very good but not elite” category."

  Putting Curry next to Beal to guard two of the most offensively active positions in the NBA seems like a disaster. I would much rather keep Mr. Dependable (Wiggins) and see what the picks alone can bring in a trade.

Dub Nation HQ Draft Tourney Semifinals: #7 M…

Long 3-and-D wing vs dynamic scorer

• void (5 ♡): 

  Hey ya'll, so I made a thing: https://zealous-ramanujan-12ae5c.netlify.app/vote

  The idea is we all go in there and submit our vote, and then eventually the homepage will be the DNHQ big board based on an averaging of all of our votes. Voting section works now, if anyone actually uses it I'll finish up the home page part. Voting is honor system, so please don't vote for someone else, or try to vote more than once.

GSW Free Agent Targets 3: Frontcourt

A series by Perks from @GSWReddit

• Andre SC (16 ♡): 

  Saw that Tucker made the top tier. Is anyone else thrilled that he got a ring before Harden did? 

• Sleepy Freud (11 ♡): 

  Would you trade Wiggs, Wiseman, and #7 for Beal if the Wiz were game?

  I would not.

• Goofus (9 ♡): 

  The Marquese de Chriss is still my guy.

  Beyond what he already showed he can do in the Warriors system (defense, rim running, passing), he was showing signs of a burgeoning outside shot and has certainly had opportunity to work on that even more. He’s a GREAT fit in GSW’s culture of selflessness and, very importantly, he’s 24 so still has a lot of growth potential and could be a rotation guy for years to come. 

  I want him back in the fold and under team control because I think in another year we’d be lucky to get him with the MLE. 

  I know a lot of people want a big banger, but I’m much more interested in guys with the length and athleticism to challenge guys like Giannis, AD and KD. 

  Yeah, it’s a highlight reel, but check out this top 10 from the previous season 

•  Is there anyone else on this Perk’s list capable of making all these plays at this point in their career?

• Ivan (7 ♡): 

  I like the idea of Millsap in a David West-type, mid-post hub role. Rudy Gay is probably more of a versatile fit in closing line-ups. Would be happy with either. 

  I have an inexplicable aversion to Nicolas Batum, and an explicable aversion to Kelly Olynyk. I think Holmes would be my favorite out of that first batch. 

  It might also be time for us to have The Jeff Green Experience; every fanbase has to take their turn with it and we may be next in line. Look, I don't make the rules. 

• hammystyle (6 ♡): 

  Any of Batum, Porter (from previous list, but I think he's a similar combo forward), or Gay would be a great fit. 

  There's a lot of bigs who would be suitable, but I'll give a quick shout out to Gorgui Dieng. 5-6 years ago he was a decent starter and was extended right in the big money window when the cap spiked. Since then he's been seen as this albatross contract that's been traded around to facilitate other deals.

  Past four years per 36: 15 PPG, 10.5 RPG, 2.4 APG, 1.5 SPG, 1.4 BPG, 49% FG, 36% 3P, 81% FT.

  He's a pretty productive solid backup who does usual big man things like rebound and block shots, but also has the pretty rare big man skills of hitting 3's and passing.

  Maybe there's something missing because no one seems to care about losing him, but he's a pretty interesting guy for a minimum contract.

Patrick Murray, Joe Viray talk Warriors' dra…

Hey, how optimistic are you about Golden State's present circumstances?

• crusty quips (14 ♡): 

  Probably the best non-Warriors winning the title outcome I could have hoped for in these playoffs. No L.A., no Nets, no CP3. Giannis is a classy, humble character and easy to root for. Very happy for Holiday and Middleton as well.

• Goofus (9 ♡): 

  First, let me get some Daniel Hardee ass-kissing out of the way: He does a great job of keeping the conversation moving and getting through the bullet points without feeling like a railroading task-master. He also listens and reacts to what people say (instead of thinking more about what he’s going to say or the next agenda item). This is an under appreciated ability.

• Loonhands (8 ♡): 

  Fun chat! Been on Moody island, but Patrick makes a good case for Davion as backup PG fit.

  Astonishing to me how 0% of the Finals commentary I've heard has mentioned the epic labor and racial justice symbolism of the matchup: one team (Bucks) courageously started the unprecedented 2020 NBA strike for Black lives, vs. the team led by the NBA player's union president (CP3) who broke the strike for nearly nothing. 

  That's the best reason yet to hate CP3. As a rank and file union member, I know that when the union president is the darling of the boss and the big $ press as much as CP3, then they ain't fighting for their union siblings anymore.

  I love watching Ayton, Booker, Crowder, Bridges, Payne play fast and connected on a good night--Suns have a deservedly bright future, props to Monty. But barring a shock, the Bucks are going to earn this chip with vet grit, heart, talent, and justice on their side. And Jrue has earned his honorary Dub for ferociously holding the line on defense against a scab for the ugliest page of the history books.

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