I agree with you that MPG averages over the season in today's NBA is pretty meaningless.
Your earlier query about TL/AL management and overall fulfillment of 48 MPG at the 5 is more salient. There are essentially four game-type possibilities:
- TL and Al both active and playing. In this case, I think it's probably something like 28/20 (TL/AL) most games, pending foul trouble. And very little time at the 5 for anyone else. This probably means a DNP for Enes and maybe some cursory 4 minutes for Grant.
- TL active and Al inactive. In this case, maybe TL bumps up to 30-32. Enes and Grant probably split the remaining 16-18 minutes, matchup dependent.
- TL inactive and Al active. In this case, maybe Al bumps up to 26-30 while Enes and Grant split the remaining 18-24 minutes, matchup dependent.
- Both TL and Al inactive (presumably this would only happen in a rare instance due to legit injuries to both, and not to "load management." This is like a bullpen game, where they woudl have to get by squeezing minutes out of Kanter/Grant/Hernangomez/et al.
Hopefully, the load management and rest days that bring us options 2 & 3 will allow us to avoid option 4. My big question is how options 1, 2, & 3 layout over any given stretch of games? For example, do they go 1, 1, 2, 1, 3, repeat? Or something more like 1, 1, 1, 2, 3, repeat. Either of those two would mean that each of AL and TL would sit one game in every five. Is that too many games played? Too many missed?