Nets don’t have to tank to miss the playoffs, they’re a sub-500 team right now and outside of the play-in (small sample size, sure). Being so far behind the pack in their conference and without a pick in 2024, it’s not unreasonable to think you can’t entice them with a 2024 lottery pick (again, assuming that’s where we end up). Bridges doesn’t fit any realistic timetable for them to contend within unless they believe they can make a splashy move in free agency, so he’s almost certain to go at some point.

Anyway, the point is that they need a wing and they’re not having much luck finding one in the draft.

Sure, when his value was at his peak and you still had 3+ years on his contract. Doesn’t mean you don’t call on him in the off-season if he’s still there, they’ve missed the playoffs, and you’re sitting on a lottery pick. The Grizzlies have all their own picks and an extra first rounder next year, and their recent track record with these picks hasn’t inspired a lot of confidence, so I’d rather see them overpay for talent if possible.

If it were possible, Mikal Bridges. Let’s say we have a lottery pick in this draft and we’re interested in Bridges in the off-season (assuming he hasn’t moved by then), what does it take to make that happen? Because a Ja, Bane, Bridges, Jaren, Adams (fingers crossed) lineup can make a run at it and is worth a few first round picks and Ziaire.

All this talk of tanking seems to ignore that we need impact players to complement Ja, Jaren, and Des now, not another rookie project. If we end up in the lottery with a decent pick this year then I want it packaged up and shipped out for a legit All-Star level wing so we can make a serious run at it next year.

As far as this year is concerned, I don’t see why they don’t try and make a run. You need to get fans back on board, and that means playing competitive ball. There’s no place for that loser’s mentality on a team that has a winning core.

Stay the course until the deadline and see where you stand. If the play-in is within reach, unload assets for a legit wing that plays both sides of the ball. If there’s a solid center who can set screens and gather boards, you call on him too.

Y’all looking fresh! Dopest shirt ever to celebrate a missed dunk.

I mean, that thread is calling out his passing, and that pass that lead to the Clarkson steal down the stretch was horrendous. I think Gilyard could be a serviceable backup, but he’s not elusive enough or freaky athletic to overcome the height disparity, and that means he has a very small margin for error.

If he had elite handles to go along with his ability to disrupt passing lanes then I’d say he could be a rotation piece, but right now he’s just our best option at a thin position.

Would Ja and Adams be on the court if we’d paid Dillon and kept Tyus? Would Santi have still sprained his ankle in practice?

As a Grizzlies fan, I strongly disagree.

I think they already doing more to integrate him into the offense than they did last year, but it’s going to be a process. He has great instincts and plays smart, but he’s seeing more minutes alongside starters and that means he’s more of a second or third scoring option, which often puts him in the corner. It’s not a bad spot for him because he can hit threes or make baseline cuts.

That’s fair. It’s only a miss with the benefit of hindsight. The need was a wing that could hit threes and Laravia was worth a shot, and Roddy always seemed like he’d be Dillon’s replacement.

I just wonder what the organization ever had planned at the 5, though, because the draft wasn’t long after Jenkins benched Adams in the Minnesota series, so they didn’t seem terribly committed to him in that role.

Roddy’s got game, though I’m not sold on Laravia. I’d like to see Vince Williams, Jr. take a leap this year because his defense looked good in the preseason and he shot 39% on 5+ 3PA his senior year in college. A legit 3-and-D guy would be huge right now.

I wouldn’t say it was a total bust, but we’ll probably be kicking ourselves for missing out on Kessler for years to come, especially with Steve-O hurt.

I’m starting to worry about this Aldama issue. They downplayed it early on, but they’d also repeatedly downplayed Adams’ injury.

Given that they’re recovering from leg injuries, I think BC and Adams would get dominated by Jaren and X, and Kennard is going to have a tough time if he’s playing concussed. I’ll take the healthy team.

I think X was a little gassed on the second night of a B2B after playing a team-high 34 minutes against Denver (and high intensity minutes at that), and I imagine Laravia falls out of the rotation when Kennard and Santi are back.

Ball-handling and play-making are huge issues, and I don’t think Jenkins has a solution for that yet. Z was playing point at the start of the game and his turnover on the first possession was a clear indicator that he’s not an answer there. Not sure who should be handling things until Ja returns, but hopefully Smart can rein it in after logging more minutes with the team.

This take won’t age well. The team is a backup big, a shooter, and a legit PG away from being a legit contender in the West, and all three of those exist on the roster already. They’ve also got plenty of assets to make a move to address needs at the trade deadline.

Tillman has looked great and I feel like he played a similar game against Jokic back in March. He’s always been a pro and I’m hoping we can see his success rub off on some of his Hustle teammates this year

I’d say it’s a good bet. He’s been cooking in the pnr with Ziaire and Bane, and apparently he’s a volume shooter from deep this season. He’ll definitely get the minutes, and won’t be facing as formidable front court as the first couple games.

On defense, Jaren often plays with his back to the rim to put pressure on the ball instead of getting into position to rebound. On offense, he spends more time around the perimeter instead of playing down in the post. He could get more boards if he changed his game, but you’re likely to lose other aspects of what he does well. This is why he plays better alongside a traditional big that can handle the unsexy work of battling in the trenches.

It’s kind of wild how everyone thought Tillman was going to be who holds us back, but he kept our numbers from being embarrassing. The depth behind him and Jaren was another story, though.