We might not have reached the "make a change right this minute!" stage, but it does feel like the Zion-BI partnership is on a "prove it" countdown. If the starting line-up is still struggling in a couple of month you have to seriously consider changes.
If you're only going to keep one of the stars, I think it has to be Zion. His availability lowers the floor of his potential (not that BI has been a paragon of robustness either), but he can warp defences in a way that's almost unique in the NBA. For a small-market team like New Orleans, I think you have to punt on the higher upside option. In Herb and Trey, NO also has better options to fill Brandon's slot than Zion.
That's not to gloss over the fact that Zion presents team-building challenges. When your power forward is short for his position and isn't a three point shooter (nor would you really want him to a be a high volume sniper), you have to build a roster specifically tailored to take advantage of his strengths and cover for his weaknesses - lots of shooting, lots of rebounding, lots of length, lots of defence.
If you were to put Ingram on the market, the question becomes: who could you realistically acquire that would make the team better? Don't know the answer right now, but if the starting five continues to slog, it will be interesting to speculate.
Zion flat-out crushed by solid PF Aaron Gordon -maybe a,close game if the 2 swapped teams that night. Makes me question if he's really a PF &, if not, then what is he? Can't shoot, can't defend, can't rebound. Plus he's obviously again out of shape, overweight. You are far too kind here!
In fairness, I thought Zion played a very good game vs the Nuggets. He missed some of his normal layups, but the rebounds, assists, lack of turnovers were all there. I can't say the same for the other partner.
Agreed it was maybe Z's best all-around game this season, which makes it esp sad for me that he was so clearly outplayed by Gordon. If Z is not a PF, then what is he?
Already on a 5 game losing streak, after the 10th game of the season.
We might not have reached the "make a change right this minute!" stage, but it does feel like the Zion-BI partnership is on a "prove it" countdown. If the starting line-up is still struggling in a couple of month you have to seriously consider changes.
If you're only going to keep one of the stars, I think it has to be Zion. His availability lowers the floor of his potential (not that BI has been a paragon of robustness either), but he can warp defences in a way that's almost unique in the NBA. For a small-market team like New Orleans, I think you have to punt on the higher upside option. In Herb and Trey, NO also has better options to fill Brandon's slot than Zion.
That's not to gloss over the fact that Zion presents team-building challenges. When your power forward is short for his position and isn't a three point shooter (nor would you really want him to a be a high volume sniper), you have to build a roster specifically tailored to take advantage of his strengths and cover for his weaknesses - lots of shooting, lots of rebounding, lots of length, lots of defence.
If you were to put Ingram on the market, the question becomes: who could you realistically acquire that would make the team better? Don't know the answer right now, but if the starting five continues to slog, it will be interesting to speculate.
Zion flat-out crushed by solid PF Aaron Gordon -maybe a,close game if the 2 swapped teams that night. Makes me question if he's really a PF &, if not, then what is he? Can't shoot, can't defend, can't rebound. Plus he's obviously again out of shape, overweight. You are far too kind here!
In fairness, I thought Zion played a very good game vs the Nuggets. He missed some of his normal layups, but the rebounds, assists, lack of turnovers were all there. I can't say the same for the other partner.
Agreed it was maybe Z's best all-around game this season, which makes it esp sad for me that he was so clearly outplayed by Gordon. If Z is not a PF, then what is he?