What does our roster look like next year?

[konkmv]

Sign harry giles

[Jvalin]

People really think Kemba, Tatum, & Simmons would work together well?

Sure. I'd use Simmons as a Point Center. He runs the point on offense, he guards the opposing big man on defense.

Kemba
Brown
Hayward
Tatum
Simmons

Everyone but Simmons can play off the ball. Don't see why it wouldn't work.

Obviously, that lineup isn't realistic cause we'd probably have to trade at least one of Kemba/Brown/Tatum in order to acquire Simmons.

[RPGenerate]

People really think Kemba, Tatum, & Simmons would work together well?

I don't think Simmons can coexist with any scoring point guard like Kemba. Simmons has been adamant about acting as THE ball handler for his team. Would Kemba just accept being an off-ball player whenever Simmons is on the floor? Would Tatum be okay with being the 3rd ball handler on the court? I'm gonna say no to both of those.

[Donoghus]

People really think Kemba, Tatum, & Simmons would work together well?

I don't think Simmons can coexist with any scoring point guard like Kemba. Simmons has been adamant about acting as THE ball handler for his team. Would Kemba just accept being an off-ball player whenever Simmons is on the floor? Would Tatum be okay with being the 3rd ball handler on the court? I'm gonna say no to both of those.

That's exactly my thinking.  I just don't think the pieces would work together well.   

In a talent vacuum, the team is probably better.

However, from a fit/chemistry standpoint, I think it gets worse.

[KGs Knee]

People really think Kemba, Tatum, & Simmons would work together well?

I don't think Simmons can coexist with any scoring point guard like Kemba. Simmons has been adamant about acting as THE ball handler for his team. Would Kemba just accept being an off-ball player whenever Simmons is on the floor? Would Tatum be okay with being the 3rd ball handler on the court? I'm gonna say no to both of those.

Yeah, I'm not sure I see any scenario where Simmons can be anything other than the primary ball handler.  He is a net negative without the ball in his hands, but Tatum is better, so it'd be a backwards move.

[RPGenerate]

People really think Kemba, Tatum, & Simmons would work together well?

I don't think Simmons can coexist with any scoring point guard like Kemba. Simmons has been adamant about acting as THE ball handler for his team. Would Kemba just accept being an off-ball player whenever Simmons is on the floor? Would Tatum be okay with being the 3rd ball handler on the court? I'm gonna say no to both of those.

That's exactly my thinking.  I just don't think the pieces would work together well.   

In a talent vacuum, the team is probably better.

However, from a fit/chemistry standpoint, I think it gets worse.

Yep. Even if you want to concede the point that Simmons is/is going to be a better player than Brown, I think he's a far better fit next Kemba and Tatum than Simmons is.

[Jvalin]

People really think Kemba, Tatum, & Simmons would work together well?

I don't think Simmons can coexist with any scoring point guard like Kemba. Simmons has been adamant about acting as THE ball handler for his team. Would Kemba just accept being an off-ball player whenever Simmons is on the floor? Would Tatum be okay with being the 3rd ball handler on the court? I'm gonna say no to both of those.

It's possible that Kemba would be a net negative if he were constantly playing off the ball. I mean, he's a below average defender. He needs the ball in his hands in order to maximize his effectiveness. Having said that, Kemba can definitely play off the ball. In fact, he was one of our best catch and shoot players this season.

3P% in catch and shoot situations this season:

1. Poirier 50% in 0.1 attempts per game (obviously, it means nothing cause he hardly ever shoots 3s)
2. Wanamaker 48% in 0.8 attempts per game
3. Hayward 42.5% in 3 attempts per game
4. Brown 41.6% in 3.9 attempts per game
5. Kemba 41.1% in 2.6 attempts per game
6. Tatum 38.9% in 2.5 attempts per game
7. Semi 38.5% in 1.5 attempts per game
8. Theis 33.3% in 1.3 attempts per game
9. Smart 31.4% in 4.3 attempts per game
10. Green 30% in 0.5 attempts per game
11. Edwards 28.2% in 1.1 attempts per game
12. Grant 23.3% in 1.2 attempts per game
13. Langford 22.7% in 0.8 attempts per game
14. Kanter 14.3% in 0.1 attempts per game
15. Waters 0% in 0.7 attempts per game
16. Timelord - (no recorded attempts)
17. Tacko - (no recorded attempts)

If we ever trade for Simmons, we can let Kemba run the offense whenever Simmons is getting a rest.

PG: Simmons (32 minutes) - Kemba (16)
SG: Kemba (16) - Smart (32)

Unfortunately, Smart wouldn't be a great fit next to Simmons. This is the problem with Simmons: He's a supremely talented player, but we'd have to reshape the whole roster around him. Don't think it would be worth it, unless we can get him on the cheap. But then again, why would Philly settle for such an offer, much less from a rival team?

If we could acquire Simmons for either Kemba or Brown, plus pick(s), I would pull the trigger. If they want Tatum or a combo of Kemba/Brown/Hayward, thanks but no thanks.

[tstorey_97]

Yay, we get to talk about basketball!

Theis in his last ten games-
MPG - 28
PPG - 13.9
Blk - 1
Ast - 1.8
Reb - 8.1
FT% - 89%
3pt - 46%
FG - 62.7%

Where ya gonna get that for subway change?

[Moranis]

People really think Kemba, Tatum, & Simmons would work together well?

I don't think Simmons can coexist with any scoring point guard like Kemba. Simmons has been adamant about acting as THE ball handler for his team. Would Kemba just accept being an off-ball player whenever Simmons is on the floor? Would Tatum be okay with being the 3rd ball handler on the court? I'm gonna say no to both of those.

It's possible that Kemba would be a net negative if he were constantly playing off the ball. I mean, he's a below average defender. He needs the ball in his hands in order to maximize his effectiveness. Having said that, Kemba can definitely play off the ball. In fact, he was one of our best catch and shoot players this season.

3P% in catch and shoot situations this season:

1. Poirier 50% in 0.1 attempts per game (obviously, it means nothing cause he hardly ever shoots 3s)
2. Wanamaker 48% in 0.8 attempts per game
3. Hayward 42.5% in 3 attempts per game
4. Brown 41.6% in 3.9 attempts per game
5. Kemba 41.1% in 2.6 attempts per game
6. Tatum 38.9% in 2.5 attempts per game
7. Semi 38.5% in 1.5 attempts per game
8. Theis 33.3% in 1.3 attempts per game
9. Smart 31.4% in 4.3 attempts per game
10. Green 30% in 0.5 attempts per game
11. Edwards 28.2% in 1.1 attempts per game
12. Grant 23.3% in 1.2 attempts per game
13. Langford 22.7% in 0.8 attempts per game
14. Kanter 14.3% in 0.1 attempts per game
15. Waters 0% in 0.7 attempts per game
16. Timelord - (no recorded attempts)
17. Tacko - (no recorded attempts)

If we ever trade for Simmons, we can let Kemba run the offense whenever Simmons is getting a rest.

PG: Simmons (32 minutes) - Kemba (16)
SG: Kemba (16) - Smart (32)

Unfortunately, Smart wouldn't be a great fit next to Simmons. This is the problem with Simmons: He's a supremely talented player, but we'd have to reshape the whole roster around him. Don't think it would be worth it, unless we can get him on the cheap. But then again, why would Philly settle for such an offer, much less from a rival team?

If we could acquire Simmons for either Kemba or Brown, plus pick(s), I would pull the trigger. If they want Tatum or a combo of Kemba/Brown/Hayward, thanks but no thanks.

I think you play Simmons at PF.  In the scenario posed, the team also gets Richardson.  I think you could make the minutes work out pretty well as Richardson would be a fine starting SG with Kemba, Tatum, Simmons, and Theis (or some other big).  I think that team would be nasty defensively and very difficult to guard with all sorts of match-up problems for opposing teams.

[Somebody]

Simmons can play off the ball tbh. His best asset in his passing game is making passes on the move when the defence is collapsing and his teammates are cutting/weaving, we can put him in those situations by playing him in that rim runner role where he stands in the short corner without the ball and sets picks every possession for Kemba/Smart/Tatum before rolling hard to the rim. His size, athleticism and ballhandling will also serve him well as a rim runner - he can dive better than most bigs in the league with his physical gifts while having the skill to create openings as a roll man/make high leverage passes as the defence collapses when he gets the ball.

I still don't see the value of trading for him though, losing Brown and Hayward would hurt our offence more than having Simmons as a garbage man would help our attack, and we're not gaining a ton defensively. And as for those national sites/news outlets like ESPN/Bleacher Report/whatever, none of them should be taken seriously in player analysis when their mainstream "analysts" (they do have some great analysts like Andre Snellings, but those guys don't produce a lot of content) have no idea of how to use statistics to give them a rough idea of a player's abilities, much less have an idea of how good they actually are.

[konkmv]

Take harry giles of not injured

[tstorey_97]

Simmons is a really good player. Watch him play. He is very tough on defense, he plays hard all the time and he uses his size well.

He has no outside shot. We've got that. Thus, he's best with team mates that can "light it up" from outside and his card is "defense."

My point is I don't ever see a trade to bring in Simmons, but, I disagree that his arrival would weaken the Celtics. I suppose Brown would be the trade which brings us to "how many wings of a certain type" does the team need? Simmons is different type of wing and would be workable with this Celtics group of starters.

Simmons is length + defense + hard play + an inside offensive game which is fine if you don't have a 7 foot (center) that you are paying $30M to be "big inside."

I just don't like Philly. My brother used to watch Julius Erving play in Curry Hicks Cage at UMass Amherst...after Dr. J. I don't like Philly and Simmons plays for them.

[Rosco917]

People really think Kemba, Tatum, & Simmons would work together well?

Theoretically it could work. Kemba isn't your prototypical passing PG. Simmons at small forward allows him to thrive with his inside game without the responsibility of point guard duties. He is quite effective in the paint and getting to the rim. It definitely improves team passing, and nothing is lost on defense at all.

Someone would have to go, or possibly if Hayward walks.

[Jvalin]

Luka is a PG on offense, but he guards wings on defense.

Magic was playing PG on offense, but he was mostly a PF on defense.

Likewise, Simmons is a PG on offense and a PF/small-ball Center on defense. If we ever trade for him (highly unlikely), I'd love us to use him as a Point Center (with Tatum being our PF).

Here's what I have in mind:

Philly in: Kemba + Grizzlies pick + Celtics 2020 pick + Bucks pick
Boston in: Ben Simmons

Would even be willing to include Theis/Kanter in the deal. They would have to send us salary filler(s) though in order for the trade to work.

The Sixers are in win-now mode, but they need cheap serviceable players to keep their payroll under control. I bet they could have a use for our picks. Obviously, Kemba would be a great fit next to Embiid. Not to mention, Kemba and Richardson would complement each other perfectly in the backcourt.

C's roster after the trade:

Smart - Wanamaker - Waters
Brown - Langford - Edwards
Hayward - Semi - (Nets pick)
Tatum - Theis - G. Williams
Simmons - Kanter - Timelord

Unlimited defensive potential in the starting lineup! I bet we'd have the best defense in the league.

Would rather sign a free agent PG instead of Waters. It's no big deal either way.

[Hoopvortex]

C's roster after the trade:

Smart - Wanamaker - Waters
Brown - Langford - Edwards
Hayward - Semi - (Nets pick)
Tatum - Theis - G. Williams
Simmons - Kanter - Timelord

Unlimited defensive potential in the starting lineup! I bet we'd have the best defense in the league.

That’s a pretty cool roster. High-octane offense, too. The 4/5 pnr is already a feature of Boston’s attack, but this gives it a new twist.

The Analytics crowd would love the hypermodern ‘five wing’ lineups.

Your plan also solves the problem of the excess draft picks, and you get younger.

Dumping Kemba like this is probably not great for relations with agents and potential free agents. Chemistry/leadership could take a hit by replacing a gregarious connector with a gloomy introvert. After the snafu with Kyrie, I suspect that Danny Ainge would hesitate before pulling the trigger on this one.

Smart would have to guard quicker players more often. You lose some speed.

Good thinking, really interesting idea.