Ok, so I really like Fultz. I have been critical of his shooting and his overall fit. I am now convinced of this.
Fultz is a great facilitator and a decent scorer. He is creative, changes speed well and finishes at the rim really well. However, with him, the offense tends to be:
- Option 1: He makes a play for Paolo or Franz either by a drive and dish or a screen and an awesome pass.
- Option 2: He takes it and drives to the rim.
There is a lot of effectiveness in Option 1. However, it’s not necessarily flexible and can lead to thing bogging down and just becoming a bit awkward.
The key to all of this awkwardness is Black. I for one would never have dreamed that placing a guy who doesn’t really shoot for a guy that absolutely can’t shoot would be a good thing. The cool thing about Black is he just has that facilitator mindset. Scoring is never a consideration for him like it is for Fultz.
Necessity is the mother of invention. When Fultz is on the floor, he is the PG and general. Without him, it opens up a lot of things. You have plays where almost every guy in the starting lineup (save Goga) brings the ball up. Suggs plays exceptionally well off-ball and since Black isn’t looking for a shot, ball movement is almost a necessity. Suggs is cutting and screening with wreckless abandon to make sure the defense is always guessing. He has also taken over both as a safety valve scorer and team leader. Our overall team assist numbers are actually better this year!
Now, I’m not really saying that this can’t continue with Fultz on the floor. What I am saying is that with Black playing it seems to have unlocked Suggs.
I would not be surprised if Fultz is the center of trade talks even more than WCJ.
Black is basically playing like a role player, which is what we need with Paolo, Franz, and Suggs all on the floor.
His team and individual defence is really on point for a rookie. He isn’t very good at dribbling or shooting, but his job on offence is basically to connect play where possible, and otherwise just get out of the way. It’s stupidly simple, but effective.
Truthfully the answer to the the Fultz vs AB debate this season is: neither. Until Black develops further, our closing backcourt will be Cole and Jalen.
Fultz might be better overall than AB, but that means little given he’s always injured. Moreover he’s in a contract year, and with all the young guys we have to pay in the next few years, he ain’t getting $17m/year again. If it doesn’t sign on cheap, then he’ll be traded or walk in the summer.