I definitely didn't see it coming, but Grant hasn't just maintained last years success from three (.372 on 129), but built substantially on it. He's still well over .400 for the season on 120 attempts, and is indeed that stretch 4. I don't have a strong opinion (beyond general skepticism I suppose) of the various defensive metrics, but
at least DRTG doesn't see him as much burden or advantage, which generally aligns with these lyin' eyes.
W/r/t being skinny, I'm not sure I can draw the exact correlation between how I've perceived his fitness and his performance, but its hard to ignore. I know some big fellas (like my brother) that live pretty healthy but can end up 300lbs just walking past a Krispy Kreme. It may well be a challenge his whole career, but if he can stay Dine Lord then both he and the Cs look to have something real. I also personally draw great schadenfreude from the wtf look that presents on the player who runs into his pick in
just the right way.
I just worry about Grant's true 3 point %. Maybe he really is a .400+ shooter, but 120 isn't much of a sample. Still, since the beginning of the 19/20 playoffs, he is 111/270, .411.
He's 3/17 from 3 his last 5, including his 2/5 last night. SSS, but he was due for some regression. Problem with Grant is when he's not hitting 3s, he's not really contributing. There was one game where he played bully ball against the Suns. You can see his
Game Log. When his 3 is falling, he's contributing in other areas of the game as well. When it's not, he's not doing anything. I know there's been some people suggesting he should start, but I don't think that's a good idea. I think he's fine as the 8th man in the rotation and getting 20-25 minutes a game but his success largely depends on the other teams lineup.
JRich is the guy they should be starting. He's been a starter pretty much his entire career and is currently having a career year shooting the ball. He's also in the prime of his career and can pass the ball a little. I've been a fan of his all season and that the only thing holding him back from being the C's 3rd best player is Ime, but I digress.
And in the "you wouldn't know it" department: Tatum's last 13 games, .450/.376/.855, 26.6 points, 7.8 rebounds, 4.0 assists, 1.2 steals, 0.8 blocks, 3.0 TO. He's been shooting better of late, around his career norms. He was just so bad the first 23 it's going to take awhile to lift up his season numbers barring a hot streak.
Jaylen's last 13 (his return, not all overlapping with Tatum's) .458/.363/.778, 26.8 points, 7.4 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.2 steals, 0.5 blocks, 4.0 TO.
The C's could live with the Jays averaging 7.5 APG, the 7.0 TO is definitely problematic. Last year, the duo averaged 7.7 APG and 5.4 TO. This year, they are currently at 6.7 APG and 5.9 TO.
Smart's last 23 games: .419/.327/.831, 12.9 points, 5.6 assists, 4.2 rebounds, 1.7 steals.
If one wanted to be optimistic, there is some stuff to work with here. Replacing Al with JRich would open the up the floor for everyone. Having Al on the 2nd unit would help the bench, and keep both him and TL fresh for the end of games if necessary. GWill looks to be a decent shooter. Smart is Marcus Smart. I don't think DS is a great fit but others seem to think he is. He's a good fit as a bench player replacing one of the Jays, providing there's some shooting.
Hard to be optimistic about RL and AN. PP was playing well prior to injury and provides a need. Even more so than GWill, if his shot isn't falling, he isn't providing any value. I kind of want the team to go into "2022/23" mode but I can also see them deciding to add a player this year (and hopefully next) and trying to compete in the playoffs. Playing RL and AN could just as easily hurt their value, and it probably has.
To end the ramble, Maine might actually be fun to watch if they had a lineup of Hauser/Nesmith/Thomas. 3 ball indeed.