Somehow, we’re just about two weeks away from training camps opening up. I’m buzzing, and not for any adult beverage-related reasons! This offseason was stupendously entertaining, give or take the Aspiration scandal, and I can’t wait to irresponsibly judge brand-new squads based on a couple of games (I’ll split an infinitive if I want, okay?).
I’ve been poring over depth charts, trying to figure out how all the pieces fit. You stare at the same things long enough, and your brain gets a little kooky. So here are five lineups that probably wouldn’t work… but that I’d kick the tires on anyway.
Charlotte Hornets
Coby White/Brandon Miller/Kon Knueppel/Royce O’Neale/Naz Reid
Do you think there are too many three-pointers in the game today? Boy, do I have the lineup not for you.
Charlotte might have the deepest mob of mad bombers in the league. Just for fun, I want to see what happens if they max out the 2K shooting sliders.
Coby White is a career 37% shooter on high volume, and he might be the worst marksman on the court. Kon Knueppel put up the greatest rookie shooting season we’ve ever seen. Brandon Miller nailed 38% from deep on more than eight audacious attempts per game. Naz Reid has hit 38% himself over his last three seasons on excellent volume for a real big man, and Royce O’Neale has cracked 40% two years in a row (on mostly wide-open shots, but that’s okay!).
No, this group wouldn’t have much defense or paint penetration, and they might never get a rebound again. But this is the kind of five-out attack that forces offensive-minded coaches to change their sheets. Bring an umbrella; the forecast shows rain.
Or, maybe this fivesome would be a disaster! In a post-LaMelo world, the Hornets and coach Charles Lee have license — nay, have an imperative — to try anything and everything. Experimentation is key to future success with a young, talented team.
San Antonio Spurs
De’Aaron Fox/Steph Castle/Dylan Harper/Julian Champagnie/Victor Wembanyama
The De’Aaron Fox trade and subsequent max extension haven’t gone exactly according to plan. Sure, San Antonio didn’t know they were months away from drafting his inevitable replacement, the resplendent Dylan Harper, when they moved for Fox, but now they find themselves with a slightly awkward three-headed chimera in the backcourt.
Steph Castle and Dylan Harper are works in progress as primary ballhandlers and jump shooters, but both bring an immense amount of rim pressure, defense, and skill. Fox is the best “traditional” point guard of the three (for now), but plenty of people (myself included, at times) already want the Spurs to move on from him so Harper and Castle can spread their wings.
Pump the brakes, me. San Antonio won’t do anything rash. They were in the NBA Finals, after all, and could be even better this year. Coach Mitch Johnson did a fantastic job of staggering the three during the regular season, but I do want to see a few tweaks. For one thing, Harper needs more time as the actual ballhandler running pick-and-roll with Wembanyama.
For another, what happens if you play all three guys together?
Every two-man combination of the guards worked to varying degrees. Fox and Harper on, Castle off: +6.9 net rating. Fox and Castle on, Harper off: +11.0; Castle plus Harper, Fox off: +14.0.
But the trio only played 54 possessions all together last season, not nearly enough to prove viability one way or another.