Hypothetical question.....

[ChuckDurn]

I followed (but couldn't watch) today's Summer League game, but it solidified a brewing question in my mind. Folks have seen me comment on it in other threads aimed around "who will be on our final roster"?

So the question is this: if you're filling out the #13 guy on the roster, do you go for the guy who has a better all-around game, or the guy who can't do quite as much but has a couple of big-time skills?

Exhibit A: Kent Bazemore....... goes and performs really well in D-League and puts up a number of stats in Summer League...... but not very efficiently. When he gets time in "the big show", he doesn't do much against the greater talent, other than a periodic defensive play - whereas the Warriors went this off-season and brought Toney Douglas in to be the first guard off the bench to provide defense.

Exhibit B: Ian Clark...... fairly one-dimensional, but an outstanding shooter who's hitting about 50% overall and 45% from 3, after demonstrating he can nail the 3 at a very high percentage in college.

To me, the 13th guy is going to be a role player, and I'm really looking for a guy who offers specific skills such as Clark's shooting ability.

But that's just me. Curious what other people think.....

 

[Reefer]

I followed (but couldn't watch) today's Summer League game, but it solidified a brewing question in my mind. Folks have seen me comment on it in other threads aimed around "who will be on our final roster"?

So the question is this: if you're filling out the #13 guy on the roster, do you go for the guy who has a better all-around game, or the guy who can't do quite as much but has a couple of big-time skills?

Exhibit A: Kent Bazemore....... goes and performs really well in D-League and puts up a number of stats in Summer League...... but not very efficiently. When he gets time in "the big show", he doesn't do much against the greater talent, other than a periodic defensive play - whereas the Warriors went this off-season and brought Toney Douglas in to be the first guard off the bench to provide defense.

Exhibit B: Ian Clark...... fairly one-dimensional, but an outstanding shooter who's hitting about 50% overall and 45% from 3, after demonstrating he can nail the 3 at a very high percentage in college.

To me, the 13th guy is going to be a role player, and I'm really looking for a guy who offers specific skills such as Clark's shooting ability.

But that's just me. Curious what other people think.....

I personally still think that Bazemore could develop into a solid 4th guard, has more potential to contribute in a number of ways then a guy like Clark. Add that to the team and staff loving the guy, I don't see how he won't be on this team come opening night. If I were looking at just player A and player B for THIS team though, I'd probably keep Clark. He's an elite shooter and can play a little D and I agree that having a guy deep on your bench who can provide one elite skill could be more helpful than a guy who can do multiple things mediocrely. We've seen guys like Novak or Korver who provide little else besides shooting, have long careers in this league. Clarks biggest problem is that he doesn't have much size. He could develop into a guy similar to Dougla, but still think he is a long shot. Its probably doubtful they keep both, but I would hope they keep Clark rather than hang on to Machado and maybe he's able to replace Douglas next year.

 

[NBKLee]

When I think of 13th man, I think of La Tax has been to this team for the last several years.


A roster spot where we hope a player could give us good solid stretch of spot minutes.


13th,14th,15th an should be a cheap AAAA player. We shouldn't expect or pay too much for that guy and they should be replaceable.

Bazemore/Clark both fall into that category, but I believe it speaks more to the depth of this team. Depending on how the Nedo shakes out this preaseason, Bazemore could be regulated to this role all year.


Getting back to your original question CD, I'll take anyone who can give us a good 5-7 minute stretch in garbage time in that role. Neither Clark/Bazemore figure to get heavy rotation minutes, and if they do, it means the season is over due to injuries ahead of them in the depth chart.

 

[CitySushi]

I view the 13-14-15 spots as basically a "practice squad". Those guys aren't likely to be able to get much run, unless there are significant injuries to the team. If that's the case, the season is lost anyways so you won't gain much by having the best 13-14-15 guys in the league.

That being said the 13th man on the roster should be the best all-around player that's able to contribute in a tight spot. The reason you want a guy like this is you need someone to duplicate what some of the other players on the roster can. I'm not looking at the 13th guy being a gunner or a defensive specialist, but someone who can fill a few different spots should a guy go down. Versatility is a must for me with the 13th spot.

The 14th spot should be reserved for a guy who has a specific skill set. Someone who is either a defensive specialist, 3 point specialist, playmaking pg, etc. This person can step in for a part time role, but more importantly can help simulate situations in practice that would help out game planning against other teams. The specialist you can also put in specific situations (i.e. 3 point specialist/defensive specialist in a late game/end of quarter situations, etc.) Jackson has shown he values these possessions and would like to have some flexibility with this.

The 15th spot, if the Warriors choose to fill it, should go to a guy they believe has high upside. Really even though Nedovic is technically the 12th man, he's essentially going to be filling this role for the team this year. He's going to need some development and is really going to benefit from the practices and playing in the D-League. If the Warriors wanted to fill this spot, I'd prefer them to go with a young big they can mold into a role player further down the road. Maybe a young big who's extremely raw on offense or a wing with elite athleticism but inconsistent on either side of the ball.

Maybe I'm splitting hairs by differentiating the 13-14-15 spots, but I guess what I'm saying is that the need for a specific specialist is probably only relegated to one of those roster spaces. If you're just going specifically for the 13th spot, I'd want a guy who could step in for a few different guys in case one goes down for some time. Last year that guy was Draymond Green after Rush went down. This year, I think it will be Bazemore.

 

[shaffdogg76]

I would probably want a savvy veteran on a minimum deal as my 13th player. The other roster spots I would leave empty.

It's so unlikely that the 13th man would ever play meaningful minutes that it makes more sense to add an experienced veteran who can be more of a coach than a player. Adding a high bball IQ vet who has the potential to make an impact by sharing his collective bball wisdom with the young guys who actually do play meaningful minutes seems like the best use of the roster spot to me.

 

[CohanHater]

Bazemore's skills are intangibles, Length, Speed, Energy, and a great locker room guy. He can come in when there's a speedy point guard and give him trouble (a la Tony Parker). Just because he's not efficient on the offensive side, doesn't mean that he's not an asset.

I'd like to see him mature and see if he can be a shut down bench guy. If he can work on his mid range jump shot he can be in the league (playing decent minutes) for a long time.