Trade Schroder and J Rich Now

[footey]

I get the rationale for signing Schroder and trading for J Rich this past off season. And frankly each has performed well for us. Schroder is our 3rd leading scorer, and Josh has rediscovered his 3 point shot and played pretty well on both sides of the ball.

But....

It has absolutely killed any opportunity to develop Romeo, Nesmith and Pritchard this season.  Ime as a first year coach of course is going to go with the guys who can help the team the most. And yes, on paper, statistically, the two vets have out played the 3 kids (22, 22 and 23 in age). 

And where has that gotten this team?  To a .500 record.  No better than last year's team. The one spearheaded by Tristan Thompson and Jeff Teague, LOL.  No better.  And despite the astronomical growth of Rob Williams this season. 

So what is the point of keeping them?  I see none.  It hasn't helped the development of Jayson or Jaylen.  Neither of them has improved as a playmaker.  Tatum has regressed.  The team is still stuck in isolation ball.  And killing the development of its younger players in the process.

Trade them for whatever you can get.  I would expect little in return. Maybe the Cavs, who could use a good scoring guy off the bench, would be interested in Schroder.  Maybe Utah would take J Rich off our hands.  Don't take players back, just picks, even if they are only 2nd round picks (which is likely).  The point is: (i) force Ime to play the younger guys more minutes, and (ii) we are an average or below average with them in our lineup, so what have we got to lose? Frankly, even if it means we regress further, the silver lining is a better draft pick to take or use in a trade.

Trading them will not be sufficient to change the ball dominant style that Ime has implemented this season; in fairness, it is a continuation of last year's offense. It is ugly to watch.    3 players dominate the ball 90% of the time.   It is another reason the development of guys like Romeo, Aaron and Payton have been stifled.  That's on the coach to not just talk the talk but walk the walk.  How? If isolation plays continuously occur, bench the responsible players.   When we occasionally play the right way (e.g. vs Phoenix) we are a good team and capable of beating any other team (except maybe full strength BKLN). 

Look at how the successful teams are doing it. Memphis is the latest example.  They move the ball. Their point guard, who is going to be first or 2nd team all NBA, is not a ball hog.  Unlike Jayson and Jaylen, he is generous with his teammates.  And those guys are not much different than our three young guys.  Incorporate them into our team building.  Work plays to include them in a meaningful way. Stop sticking them in the corner, it only encourages stagnation and passivity. Be creative!!!  They are  talented guys, and incredibly young with room to grow into decent contributors. 

Think long term!  Have a plan.  This is not working.

[liam]

TP

Well said.

[Vermont Green]

I don't have a problem with trading either Schroeder or Richardson but the reason you would trade them is to get better players or players that fit better, fill needs better.  You don't trade them so some young players who aren't as good can play more.  That rationale makes no sense to me.

[droopdog7]

Generally speaking, not taking players in return is big benefit that isn't always possible.  In other words, we may  need to take players back.

As it is, the team is going nowhere fast, so trading guys to let the kids play may be a wise choice.  The downside is that we'll suck even more, the Jays could continue to lose faith in the franchise, and the kids may prove once and for all why they haven't been playing.  I guess its a good thing to know but I'm sure the coaches already have a good idea on that front now.  Another plus is moving a few spots up in the lottery.

Either way, make no mistake, this team is on the treadmill with no obvious way off.

[Celtics2021]

Trade Schröder, sure.  But Richardson is under contract and could be a useful player next year.  It’d be pretty surprising if Nesmith or Langford offered as much next season as Richardson, to be honest.  Langford or Nesmith could easily get sufficient minutes this year if Tatum and Brown weren’t run into the ground most night.

[footey]

I don't have a problem with trading either Schroeder or Richardson but the reason you would trade them is to get better players or players that fit better, fill needs better.  You don't trade them so some young players who aren't as good can play more.  That rationale makes no sense to me.

I take this position for two reasons: I'm realistic that you are not going to get much back for either J Rich or Schroder. To expect that you are going to get a player who is a better fit or for a first round pick is fools gold IMO. Second, I think we just don't know yet what the guys like Pritchard, Nesmith and Romeo are capable of producing in an environment where they are given a lot of minutes and in which a system is redesigned to give them significantly more usage. It is not enough just to give them minutes. 

[Moranis]

There are plenty of minutes available for the young guys, they just haven't been very good.  I mean Langford is playing 18 mpg, how many more minutes do you think he should be playing?  Pritchard is playing less minutes this year, but he has also been A LOT worse than he was as a rookie.  Nesmith, also A LOT worse than as a rookie. 

At some point, it isn't about playing time, role, etc. It is about them just not being good enough and giving them big minutes, may very well only expose that more, and then you don't have players that might actually help the team the rest of the year, and in the case of Richardson, next year (or as a salary to trade over the summer).

There is however 1 guy on the team whose time has come, and that guy is Smart.  He needs to be traded.  His inability to stop shooting the ball and to stop turning it over at the worst possible times should spell his downfall.  Trade Smart for whatever you can get, and that will help the team more than just about any other trade.

[BruceBanner18]

I think this only applies to Pritchard. After dealing with his broken nose, he finally gets some run end Dec and puts up stout numbers over 5 games - 30 mpg 15/3/4 43% 3pt on 7.5 shots. Exactly what we need, right? He has a clunker against the clippers and back to inconsistent minutes.

As far as Nesmith, he needs to shoot better than 23% from 3 to see the floor that's not on ime. I'm glad we have Richardson.

[slamtheking]

I don't have a problem with trading either Schroeder or Richardson but the reason you would trade them is to get better players or players that fit better, fill needs better.  You don't trade them so some young players who aren't as good can play more.  That rationale makes no sense to me.

this.  a thousand times this.  TP

[gouki88]

Keep Richardson, he's been really quite solid. Shooting the ball much better than most anticipated.

Schroder I would ship off somewhere though.

[liam]

I think this only applies to Pritchard. After dealing with his broken nose, he finally gets some run end Dec and puts up stout numbers over 5 games - 30 mpg 15/3/4 43% 3pt on 7.5 shots. Exactly what we need, right? He has a clunker against the clippers and back to inconsistent minutes.

As far as Nesmith, he needs to shoot better than 23% from 3 to see the floor that's not on ime. I'm glad we have Richardson.

Was the Clippers clunker after playing 40 minutes the night before?

[Cman]

There is however 1 guy on the team whose time has come, and that guy is Smart.  He needs to be traded.  His inability to stop shooting the ball and to stop turning it over at the worst possible times should spell his downfall.  Trade Smart for whatever you can get, and that will help the team more than just about any other trade.

I'm fine with trading Smart, as much as I love his "grit"
The issue is that no one will take him, given his contract.

[showtime]

There is however 1 guy on the team whose time has come, and that guy is Smart.  He needs to be traded.  His inability to stop shooting the ball and to stop turning it over at the worst possible times should spell his downfall.  Trade Smart for whatever you can get, and that will help the team more than just about any other trade.

I'm fine with trading Smart, as much as I love his "grit"
The issue is that no one will take him, given his contract.

Agree with both!

[Neurotic Guy]

There is however 1 guy on the team whose time has come, and that guy is Smart.  He needs to be traded.  His inability to stop shooting the ball and to stop turning it over at the worst possible times should spell his downfall.  Trade Smart for whatever you can get, and that will help the team more than just about any other trade.

I'm fine with trading Smart, as much as I love his "grit"
The issue is that no one will take him, given his contract.

I agree with trading Smart, but I would think he has value.  I cringe far less when he drives and feeds or shoots in the lane.  Sadly, his shooting %s this year are pretty close to Tatum's.  Sad that Tatum has regressed to Smart-level shooting.

[Who]

Smart has no future on a team that has Rob Williams at center. We cannot carry two such limited scorers & jump-shooters in the starting lineup. It puts too much pressure on the other three guys.