The OFFICIALish Training Camp Thread.

[CTMagicUK 1,491]

Did Bennett play SF or PF?

 

Not sure about the rest of the game but when he had his hot streak in the 4th he played PF because I distinctly remember him battling Nicholson in the post and forcing an offensive foul and then hitting a turn around over him.

[Johnny Castaway 31]

the replay came on nba tv

 

did it? damn ... I just saw this, obviously missed it ... again ... but thanks a bunch, anyways ... much obliged!

[Mauro Pedrosa 1,033]

Not sure about the rest of the game but when he had his hot streak in the 4th he played PF because I distinctly remember him battling Nicholson in the post and forcing an offensive foul and then hitting a turn around over him.

Oh, awesome thanks

[KandiKane 136]

Biggest thought on last nights game. Victor Oladipo is a great player, he is not however a point guard. This is the old "playing Kevin Durant at SG" trick.

 

Also, Harkless looks a lot more comfortable shooting FT's. Even if his outside shot isn't much better his work on his shooting motion appears to have helped him in this regard.

 

I agree. I think when Oladipo is on the court as a PG, really it will just be a two guard front. He does look awesome though, very clutch, more than happy with him having the ball in his hands for the last shot.

 

Hakless looks way more confident at the FT line. He is 10-10 in preseason and even took the Technical FT last night. His form though is still so so ugly.

 

Bennett looked lost 3 quarters of the game on offense, then exploded in that 4th. His shot looks awesome. His defense was pretty good as well, very strong player and his quickness laterally actually impressed me as well. I hope they play him at SF a fair bit as well as PF. Affalo played pretty decent last night, hit some good shots. Much prefer him as not a first option. Jameer hitting threes in peoples face!

[KandiKane 136]

Did Bennett play SF or PF?

 

Barely played SF if any at all. Cavs were shorthanded with bigs though. Matched up on Nicholson all of the last quarter. Nicholson's Defense was not bad, Bennett's Offense was just flawless.

[CTMagicUK 1,491]

Yea, I have no problem with Dipo taking reps at the 1 this year (and Harkless at the 2 for that matter) but I just don't see it being a full time conversion, I'd be surprised if next season he doesn't play predominantly the 2.

[30Assists 342]

Yea, I have no problem with Dipo taking reps at the 1 this year (and Harkless at the 2 for that matter) but I just don't see it being a full time conversion, I'd be surprised if next season he doesn't play predominantly the 2.

Yeah: Dipo's a 2, no question, but in a throwaway year where we want to have a bad record, why not bolster his passing and game-awareness skills?

[ML6 520]

I like we're already certain about Oladipo's position. Then again, he does have two preseason games and a summer league under his belt, so I guess we can draw pretty solid conclusions.

[CTMagicUK 1,491]

I like we're already certain about Oladipo's position. Then again, he does have two preseason games and a summer league under his belt, so I guess we can draw pretty solid conclusions.

 

If a player looks like a SG, plays like a SG, has the skill set of a SG and actually spent 3 years playing college basketball at SG why wouldn't I assume that his best NBA position would be SG?

[ML6 520]

If a player looks like a SG, plays like a SG, has the skill set of a SG and actually spent 3 years playing college basketball at SG why wouldn't I assume that his best NBA position would be SG?

 

Maybe because he hasn't had the opportunity, as you mentioned, to ever showcase his potential to run PG? That would be one pretty strong reason. Unless you want to pigeonhole him because you've seen him play one way, so that must be the best way!

 

Also, what does a SG "look like"? He's 6'4" so he must be a shooting guard? He kinda resembles Dwyane Wade so he must be a shooting guard? Help me out here.

[Fultz4thewin 2,464]

It would be interesting if oladipo developed into a legitimate starting point guard or at least the point guard with the second unit. He's definitely looked better than some of the point guards we've seen here.

 

He reminds me a lot of keyon dooling right now. That's pretty good for a rookie.

[CTMagicUK 1,491]

Maybe because he hasn't had the opportunity, as you mentioned, to ever showcase his potential to run PG? That would be one pretty strong reason. Unless you want to pigeonhole him because you've seen him play one way, so that must be the best way!

 

Also, what does a SG "look like"? He's 6'4" so he must be a shooting guard? He kinda resembles Dwyane Wade so he must be a shooting guard? Help me out here.

 

The "look like" comment was mainly because if he was 5'11 then he wouldn't be able to play SG in the NBA and I wouldn't assume he was an NBA SG and thus moving him to PG would make perfect sense, likewise if he were 6'11 I wouldn't assume he was a SG and moving him to a front court position would make sense.

 

Just because somebody hasn't had the opportunity to play PG doesn't mean that they can play PG at a high level if given that opportunity. I've seen him be an incredibly successful SG in college so I think it's more likely that he can continue his success at that position rather than learning a new position.

 

I fully support Victor playing PG this year so that he can improve his handling and his ability to read the game. I even support the idea of Victor playing a little PG in the future after this year in certain situations. But I also believe that he will have the most success in this league if he spends the majority of his time at SG.