Jaylen probably is still our 2nd best player but am I crazy to think he's our "4th most important piece" when it comes to Banner 18. Personally I think White and Porzingis are more vital than Jaylen in that regard. White's a silent assassin, does it all on both ends. Usually consistent as well and not making horrible decisions often. Porzingis when healthy of course is a unicorn for a reason and he makes a major impact on the floor. Kind of think White and Porzingis are our wild cards for this upcoming postseason. The Jays will need to perform and step up too, but the other two seem vital. Having a big man that can score at ease and shoot the 3 will also be another element we haven't really had in recent years since Timelord was limited on that end.
Agreed. I worry more when D White is missing than Jaylen. Ditto for Porzingis.
Probably Jrue as well. But D White in particular. I get nervous when he isn't around. He has a huge effect on settling the team down and making them play team ball. Jrue too to a lesser degree.
Porzinigis is more about individual talent than leadership. Better contrast / team balance with Porzingis' skill-set next to Tatum than Jaylen offers.
I agree with this but would look at it a little differently. Yes, Porzinigis' value is amplified because the role of the skilled big is so difficult to fill. Having a big with that kind of skill on the floor changes everything. His value or importance is also amplified due to the lack of big depth. When Porzingis is out, we play Kornet more. If Brown is out, we play Hauser more.
As to White and Holiday, I agree that they are both right there with Brown and Porzingis, which is amazing. Losing any one of these 2-5 players would hurt the team (Horford is important too), of course, but I would rank them this way:
Porzingis
Brown
White
Holiday
I feel that we would miss Brown a little more than either White or Holiday. Brown is a guy that can put up 30 for you, can be your #1 guy when Tatum is out. He can do that while also providing all the intangibles (defense, rebounding, toughness, etc.). Holiday and White provide more ballhandling than Brown, which is important, but not as important as the ability to be an alternate primary scorer. White and Holiday can get their +/- 15 pts/gm, do it efficiently, provide all the other things, but they do it as secondary scorers, which is very different than being a primary scorer.