Man, how good would Jamal Murray be for this team? Not going to happen, but good call cc!
I actually think Murray would be a bad fit on the Celtics. Last thing we need is a high-usage, score-first guard who'd be taking shots away from the Jays. Imo, we'd be better off with a low-usage, pass-first ball handler. Ideally, an oversized guard, cause Tatum and Brown excel at switching ball screens on defense. For instance, someone in the mold of Haliburton (pipe dream), Satoransky or Delon Wright. Simmons ticks all the boxes as well, but I'd rather use him as Point Center.
Oh, I definitely think we are at our best with a high usage scoring PG. That is what Danny was trying to do for years and we are seeing the drop off the last two years with Kemba's decline last season and a non-All-Star talent there this season. And even still, we are riding Schroder as much as possible. Bring in Murray, then figure out if you need to deal Jaylen if it's not working out. I feel the same way about Beal. And I'd obviously be ecstatic with Steph, Trae, or Luka (lol).
Sure, it would be great to get a true pass first PG, but even then I just don't think the desired effect will be there. It's not like Nash, Stockton, or Kidd are available.
Agreed that Danny envisioned this team with a score-first PG running the show. Two points on this:
- The Jays were very young at the time. Kyrie was our 1st option. Kemba was our second option in 2019 behind only Tatum.
- What were the results with a dominant score-first PG? We were better off without Kyrie in the playoffs. Kemba never really clicked with the Jays apart from the first half of the 2019/20 season. Brown was our 3rd option at the time. Obviously, Kemba wasn't the same player after the 2020 All-Star game because of his injury.
And even still, we are riding Schroder as much as possible.
Not true. When both Tatum and Brown are available, Schroder comes off the bench. Why? Probably because he's taking shots away from the Jays. Schroder's best games were during Brown's absence due to his injury.
The way I see it, we cannot have 3 alphas in the starting lineup. There won't be enough shots for everybody and we'll end up a dysfunctional team. Let's assume we somehow land Murray. Chances are we'd have to use Brown off the ball in the half court. He'd probably be our best option in the open court. From Brown's perspective, would he be happy in a 3+D role in the half court? From Brad's perspective, would it be worth it to pay a close-to-max contract for a 3+D player? I mean, we wouldn't be maximizing his skill set anymore.
Don't get me wrong, if we could acquire Murray on the cheap, I'd do it and I'd figure out the supporting cast later. Just saying that I don't think he'd be a nice fit on the Celtics. Btw, I'm very low on Murray's BBIQ. He's excellent at creating his own shot. Not so much at creating shots for his teammates. It ain't a problem on the Nuggets cause he's playing alongside an elite court general in Jokic. One of our biggest issues is ball movement. I reckon the situation would have been even worse with Murray running the point.