Grind City Media’s Lang Whitaker and Kelcey Wright Johnson weigh in on the most pertinent news from around the NBA. What’s lit? What’s lame? Find out each week right here.
From: Lang Whitaker
Date: Monday, August 23, 2021 at 9:55 AM
To: Kelcey Wright Johnson
Subject: IMHO
Well Kelcey, the end of the summer is upon us. Rosters are basically set, rookies are settling in with their new teams, and (for the most part) free agents have found homes. But before we turn our attention to football fulltime, at least for a few weeks, let’s take a glance back on the NBA summer that was, and let’s start with the team side of things.
Give me a team that you think had a great offseason. I’ll begin, and I’ll start us off in Chicago with Da Bulls. I really like what the Bulls have done over the last few months, especially bringing in DeMar DeRozan to play alongside Zach LaVine, giving them two big-time scoring options in the halfcourt. They also snatched up Lonzo Ball and Alex Caruso in free agency, two players who can be successful without needing the ball in their hands, and they still have Nikola Vucevic, who they grabbed at the trade deadline last season. Sprinkle in young players like Coby White and Patrick Williams, and to me this is a team with a lot of upside! They aren’t contenders quite yet, but they have a lot of good pieces in place.
What about you? Which team gets your vote of confidence for their offseason work?
From: Kelcey Wright Johnson
Sent: Wednesday, August 25, 2021 8:42 AM
To: Lang Whitaker
Subject: Re: IMHO
Lang! It’s funny you mention that because on the video portion of IMHO this week, we talked about the teams that didn’t do well last year, who we think will do well this year. For me, I agree that the Bulls are probably #1 in my books. But to force everyone to watch the video, I will pick a team that we didn’t cover.
I think the Knicks had a pretty good off-season; adding Kemba Walker and Evan Fournier, and extending Julius Randle. On top of that, they’ve managed to retain Derrick Rose and Nerlens Noel and picked up two guys I am very intruiged in; Keon Johnson and Kai Jones. And that’s all in addition to guys like Immanuel Quickley and Obi Toppin who played important and meaningful minutes last year’s playoff run. This upcoming season, New York is going to be an interesting mix of young guys (like Johnson, Jones, Barrett, etc) and high-level veteran scorers.
Please keep in mind, as I write this…The Knicks are my third choice as the team with the best off-season moves but I do truly believe in what the Knicks’ front office has done. Do I think they’re a championship team coming out of the East next year? Probably not. But do I think they’ll make it out of the first round next year? Yeah, I do…and I think they’ll probably have home court advantage too (unlike last season).
I want to take a step out of NBA reality for a second and ask you somewhat of a fictitious question that I saw trending on Twitter today – I hope you’ll bare with me.
Who is the best player out of these *combinations*?
First option is Rudy Gobert with Jokic’s offense and playmaking ability. Second is Westbrook with Curry’s shooting. Third option is Harden with Drue’s defense. And last is Tatum with Kawhi’s defense.
I literally CANNOT wait to hear your answer.
From: Lang Whitaker
Date: Wednesday, August 25, 2021 at 9:54 AM
To: Kelcey Wright Johnson
Subject: Re: IMHO
Unlike you, I am not as high on the Knicks. First of all, they were good last season! They finished as a top four team in the East! So, it’s not like they needed to do some huge rebuilding project. But I was surprised they went out in free agency and targeted a guard with a bad recent injury history. And then they signed Evan Fournier who, you know, is fine. Not really a player known for his defense, like most Tom Thibodeau players, but ok, he’s fine.
It all feels eerily similar: The Knicks announce they’re going to rebuild and collect assets, and then they start signing up old veteran players. And they’ll be fine, but not a contending team. And then the process starts all over again.
When I read your question, I immediately thought of the GIF of John C. Reilly looking confused: Wait, what?
Anyway, to me the least impressive of the three combinations was Tatum/Kawhi. Because Kawhi himself isn’t that far off from being a combination of the two. I’d probably put Westbrook/Curry in third, and then Harden/Jrue in second. But to me, the most impressive transformer would be the mix of Gobert and Jokic. It’s such a clear fit of weaknesses and strengths, and when you add in the size of the two, it just seems like a dominant basketball player. The one thing that scares me is that both seem to have moments where they are not completely locked in—flopping, refusing to shoot, etc. Would that be doubled if they were combined?
Kelcey, I read this morning that Jared Dudley was hired by Jason Kidd as an assistant coach on the Dallas Mavericks staff. This seems like such a smart move — Dudley has been around the NBA forever, and has consistently been known as a great teammate. He knows what it takes to get a job in the league, and how to contribute to his team without being on the floor.
But this got me thinking: Name a current player that will make a great coach one day. And it doesn’t have to be a big name: I was thinking of someone like former Grizz guard Garrett Temple, who is a quality person and player, and understands how the NBA works. Who springs to mind for you?
From: Kelcey Wright Johnson
Sent: Wednesday, August 25, 2021 4:25 PM
To: Lang Whitaker
Subject: Re: IMHO
HAHAH! Wow – I’m so happy you rated these for me! I didn’t really think about the Tatum/Kawhi one the way you did but you’re totally right. Those two don’t quite complement each other the way the others do. Kawhi is very much a two-way player, defending well and scoring with ease. I bet he would take those young Tatum knees at this point though…Too soon? Eek!
To answer your question, the first player that popped into my mind who I think would make a great coach after retirement is Chris Paul. He is such a vocal, lead-by-example player and has really been ‘lightly coaching’ Devin Booker and the rest of the young Suns for an entire season. Now, I’m not taking anything from Monty because I think he’s great, but veteran point guards play a massive leadership and teaching role on young and developing teams. On top of that, Paul is smart and well-spoken and has been a huge part of the NBPA for years, given the task of representing all the players. In my opinion he would make a really great coach. He’s similar to someone like Steve Nash, who was a veteran point guard and was a lead-by-example kind of player – which is why I think, in time, he is going to become a very good coach. Heck, same goes for Becky Hammon who is an assistant coach with the Spurs under (arguably) one of the best coaches in NBA history. She played six seasons, was an All-Star point guard every year and is on her way to becoming the first female head coach in the NBA.
I wonder why point guards just make such good coaches…I guess a big part of their basketball identities is communication and leadership which are so crucial translating over to coaching. Point guards are naturally equipped to lead teams.
On the flip, Lang, are there are any players who you think maybe should never become coaches? The first player that came to my mind when I thought about this question was Dennis Rodman, but what do I know.
From: Lang Whitaker
Date: Thursday, August 26, 2021 at 10:11 AM
To: Kelcey Wright Johnson
Subject: Re: IMHO
Well, call me misguided or an idealist, Kelcey, but I kinda feel like you should never say never. Because as weird of a fit as some players might seem to be as coaches, you gotta remember that they’ve literally spent their entire lives soaking up information and coaching from those who came before them. Take for instance my main man Rasheed Wallace, who led the league year after year in technical fouls, and has since successfully transitioned to the coaching side.
So I dunno, I feel like everyone has value, it’s just finding the right situation and fit. I just can’t wait to hear “BALL DON’T LIE” coming from the sidelines this season.