Powe or Davis, who'll be the first power forward off the bench?

[SShoreFan 2.0]

Jeff's story on Glen Davis combined with the "Leon Powe Needs You" & the "I have a feeling" threads got me thinking: who'll consistently be the first power forward off the bench, Leon or Glen.

Both players had moments of excellence last year (obviously, Leon had his on the biggest stage of them all) and both players had times in which they were buried on the bench.  With Posey and Brown both gone, I ask you, who do you think will get the nod more consistently and why?

I think the obvious answer may be Leon, but Big Baby maybe on the verge of shedding that nickname along with those pounds.  Leon may have an inch and two years worth of experience on Glen, but there's something to be said about 40 "solid" pounds.

It's nearing the end of the 1st quarter, the whistle blows, KG heads to the bench, he slaps five to....

[crownsy]

I think, at least initaly, it will very by who doc thinks has the good matchup for the night, much liek last year.

After the inital 20-30 games, i think Doc will make a choice.

[GaBerkowitz]

I think both of them are going to play a lot, and it will pretty consistent.  Unless O'Bryant comes in, has a very strong camp and solidifies a regular rotation role, I can imagine a lot of Powe/Perkins as well as KG/Davis pairings along the front line.  Doc liked to get KG out of the game first amongst all the starters a lot last year.  I can really see Powe being the first guy off the bench, and then getting Baby in for Perk.  Playing them together would obviously leave us small up front, but then getting KG back in for Powe sometime in the middle of the 2nd quarter.

I'm more interested to see how he handles Giddens, as well as the guard rotation. What kind of minutes Gabe Pruitt gets early on will be interesting to see.

[wdleehi]

Unless Davis comes back to camp in better shape, I see Powe taking that role of first big off the bench.

[jdub1660]

As said above, it's going to vary by the opposing team. If that team has a skilled PF like Dirk or Duncan, then Powe is out first. But if it's a team like Charlotte or Chicago, then I'd see BBD taking on the first PF bench mins. I think the big issue here is that both Powe and Davis proved themselves last year to take on minutes, and it's hard to give one more than the other as their skills are pretty similar. I'm still behind the idea of trading BBD and Scal for a big man and/or SF if possible.

[Who]

At the moment it looks like it will be Leon. Davis will back up Perk and be the second big off the pine. Both will play, Leon will play more.

[Chris]

At the moment it looks like it will be Leon. Davis will back up Perk and be the second big off the pine. Both will play, Leon will play more.

This is pretty much how I feel.  I do think Doc will still play to matchups a bit (although we will see if either player is able to close some of the holes in their games to make that less necessary), but in general, I think Powe will get the first call. 

I will say though, I would be very intrigued to see what weight Davis comes into camp.  If he loses a significant amount, and continues working on his perimeter game, he could concievably see spot minutes at the SF position as well.

[iowa plowboy]

If Garnett is the first to the bench, Davis.  If Perk is, Powe.

[Chris]

If Garnett is the first to the bench, Davis.  If Perk is, Powe.

See, I think it would be the other way around.  Right now Powe is the better offensive player, and Davis is the better defender.  So it makes more sense to put Davis in their alongside Garnett, and Powe with Perkins.  If you put Davis and Perk in there together, you will likely get much less offensive production from the frontline.

[ChampKind]

I think you're overlooking one important player.

[Mr October]

At the moment it looks like it will be Leon. Davis will back up Perk and be the second big off the pine. Both will play, Leon will play more.

Agreed. Except if Davis is backing up Perk, he should get more minutes than Powe. Even then, at the end of the year, we're probably talking:

Davis: 16mpg
Powe: 14mpg

[silvershamrocker]

As a power forward, probably Powe.

[JR Giddens]

Big Baby is like 6'6-6'7

Im surprised he even made the NBA!

[EJPLAYA]

Powe is much more consistent than BBD. I don't want to hear about the 3-4 games that BBD played out of his mind last year. I'll show you 3 times that many from Powe, and a much more consistent effort the rest of them. Powe is dependable and wants it more. BBD should be used to solidify another spot with a trade. Let someone else watch him balloon and slim down his whole career which I think is in his future... Too bad though because he is sure a likeable personality.

[Cman]

At the moment it looks like it will be Leon. Davis will back up Perk and be the second big off the pine. Both will play, Leon will play more.

Barring trades and another big man signing... ditto.

I am excited to see Leon play a bit more this year than last.