Certain bench players don't seem to go together very well.

[MVP]

When the playoffs roll around, our rotation is going to consist of the starters + 1 backup pg, 1 backup wing and 1 backup big. So if House is going to play, he is going to have to be the backup pg and a Pruitt/House backcourt isn't going to work when it matters. The backup wing is going to have to be able to guard guys like Joe Johnson, Dwyane Wade, Kobe Bryant, Lebron James, etc. and neither Pruitt or House can do that.

I also think that when Scal comes back, the bench is going to look better. Part of the problem of the 2nd unit right now is that we have only 2 shooters on the floor with House and Pierce/Ray. TA and Powe don't really have any range and Baby is unreliable right now. Putting Scal (or a guy like Joe Smith if we can get him) will improve the spacing and make the 2nd unit function better.

[zerophase]

I def agree with set 1 and set 2. House and Allen, no one controls the point. Baby and Power, way to undersized. But I don't really like baby with anyone else or powe with anyone else better... if we really had to go all bench, the combo of the two is okay... scal would actually be better if he keeps shooting at an average percentage.

[BballTim]

Co-sign with the gist of what wdleehi said.  I'd also add "Tony Allen + anybody".  I don't want TA on the floor, unless we're up or down by 30 points.  He can take a seat next to POB.

  I disagree with this. If we can find time on the floor for House, Davis, Powe and Pruitt then we can play Tony. He does as good a job as the rest of them.

[winsomme]

Co-sign with the gist of what wdleehi said.  I'd also add "Tony Allen + anybody".  I don't want TA on the floor, unless we're up or down by 30 points.  He can take a seat next to POB.

  I disagree with this. If we can find time on the floor for House, Davis, Powe and Pruitt then we can play Tony. He does as good a job as the rest of them.

you ask 15 people and you are probably going to get 15 different answers about which bench-starter combos are the best/worst.

my two cents on TA is that i like him out there more with Paul than Ray....

when we have Eddie, Ray and TA out there together TA seems to get in trouble with over-dribbling.....when Paul is in there, TA is moving off the ball more.

honestly, at this point, i'm not sure what the right/best combo is...

[billysan]

I like the idea of having Tony Allen available as a back up to guard the better SG's like Kobe and Wade. He does a good job if that is all we ask. When we expect him to be a ball handler and play PG or SF then we should expect to be disappointed.

The simple fact is, Tony is very valuable in a limited role. He just is not very versatile.

I view Leon Powe in much the same way. He is valuable in the low post in certain matchups only.

[CoachBo]

Co-sign with the gist of what wdleehi said.  I'd also add "Tony Allen + anybody".  I don't want TA on the floor, unless we're up or down by 30 points.  He can take a seat next to POB.

+1

Unless there's a scorer absolutely torching everyone else we're running out there, I don't want to see Tony the Turnover on the floor. Ever.

[Change]

I would love to see Gabe/House combo more, but with Doc stubborn mind that won't happen especially on the road. Its similar to BBD/Powe situation where at first I thought noway BBD should be getting more time than Powe, but i was wrong. I'm hoping to be wrong again with TA being more - than +. For this team to be successful Doc shouldn't shy away from Gabe so he build some confidence.

[BudweiserCeltic]

Yet Tony has been quite a major factor in 2 of our last 3 wins... and we needed it. The one where he wasn't a factor (maybe a negative) he simply had a poor shooting night because of bad decisions overall, but no turnovers.

[ManUp]

Co-sign with the gist of what wdleehi said.  I'd also add "Tony Allen + anybody".  I don't want TA on the floor, unless we're up or down by 30 points.  He can take a seat next to POB.

This.

Tony returns and suddenly our bench stinks again? Coincidence? I think not.

No more spacing, no more ball movement, no more consistent defense.

Truth is he was not missed, on the court.

[arctic 3.0]

as many have said before an allen/house back court is a bad combo.

for it to work house would need to become a much better ball handler or tony would need to develop a consistent outside shot.

however their faults don't mean they are useless to the team.
allen is an energetic defender, who we need to help contain the leagues more explosive wings. house is a dead eye shooter who can help space the offense and who can put a game away off the bench.

neither is effective though when teams put pressure on house and clog the lane on allen.

doc could solve the spacing problem by playing pruit with allen, when allen's man to man d is needed. or pruit and house when we need more outside shooting.

gabe has the ball handling skills to beat the pressure D and the outside shot to keep teams from sagging of him. he compliments both allen and house and could free either to do what they do best.

[cordobes]

It has nothing to do with the mix(es). It's just the quality of the players. They're just not very good. Eventually, that unfortunate fact is translated to the production of the units on the floor. Anyway, there's no magic potion.

[housecall]

Co-sign with the gist of what wdleehi said.  I'd also add "Tony Allen + anybody".  I don't want TA on the floor, unless we're up or down by 30 points.  He can take a seat next to POB.

+1

Unless there's a scorer absolutely torching everyone else we're running out there, I don't want to see Tony the Turnover on the floor. Ever.

+2,i have tried to find the good in TA's play but he always does something to make me dislike him more.In the Spurs game,he did a few good things at first but when he let almost 39yr.old Finley fly by him and beat him several times off the dribble,i give up.

[MBz]

I don't mind Eddie House playing the point as long as Pierce/Ray Allen is in there.  After he makes the first pass, he turns into a scoring threat anyways.  It's like Stephen Curry on Davidson.  He's a sniper, but they have him playing the point.  After the first pass though, he's got screens to run around and get his shots.  I actually wouldn't mind Doc throwing in some plays that Davidson runs for Curry for Eddie House on occasion.

[Michael Anthony]

When the playoffs roll around, our rotation is going to consist of the starters + 1 backup pg, 1 backup wing and 1 backup big. So if House is going to play, he is going to have to be the backup pg and a Pruitt/House backcourt isn't going to work when it matters. The backup wing is going to have to be able to guard guys like Joe Johnson, Dwyane Wade, Kobe Bryant, Lebron James, etc. and neither Pruitt or House can do that.

I also think that when Scal comes back, the bench is going to look better. Part of the problem of the 2nd unit right now is that we have only 2 shooters on the floor with House and Pierce/Ray. TA and Powe don't really have any range and Baby is unreliable right now. Putting Scal (or a guy like Joe Smith if we can get him) will improve the spacing and make the 2nd unit function better.

I could not disagree more with your assesment of Pruitt's role in the playoff's. Eastern conference contenders are full of undersized shooting guards. Iverson, Lee, West and Green all start. Pruitt is an ideal matchup against these players.

[gar]

Co-sign with the gist of what wdleehi said.  I'd also add "Tony Allen + anybody".  I don't want TA on the floor, unless we're up or down by 30 points.  He can take a seat next to POB.

Couldn't agree more. One of the hardest parts of watching the loss on Sunday was watching the offense come to a grinding halt every time TA touched the ball. Don't be fooled by the 11 points, this is one time where the -15 (+/-) actually tells the story.