Quote:
Originally Posted by rabbitproof
The upper-tier teams have #8 guys who are pretty good. They have weaknesses, which is why they are #8 players, but JJB's problem may be that his weaknesses are so glaring (height, defense). Going by minutes played, the #8s for Miami/Boston/LA/Orlando are like Joel Anthony, Quisy, Steve Blake and Gortat respectively.
JJB would be the weakest player out of the bunch in my estimation. Like Dallas with Roddy, those #8s are possibly really #9s depending on how/when Mike Miller, Delonte West, Andrew Bynum, etc. play.
If we compare to the 2nd/3rd tier teams, JJB as #8/#9 is fine though.
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Appreciate the response. Two things.
First, I'm still not really convinced that JJB is worse overall than any of those four guys you listed. They all have some pretty glaring weaknesses, even if they're not apparent from just their physical profile (unlike JJB). I find it much more likely that this is just another case of us as Mavs fans being more attuned to JJB's weaknesses than the other guys', because we watch every Mavs game and pay close attention to these things.
I'm not saying I'm convinced that JJB is equal to those guys, but I really just don't know. I think it's a debatable question, which leads me to believe that the immense amount of JJB hate is misplaced. The level of hate here would lead you to believe that he's unquestionably inferior to all of those #8 guys (and others in the league), which I really don't think is true.
Second, I think it's important to note, like you said, that he's probably as good as or better than the #8 guy on 2nd or 3rd tier teams. That means he's better than the #8 on
most NBA teams. That's significant.
On the one hand, I totally get that we're trying to be in that top tier and not just "better than most" of the NBA. So it makes sense to want our #8 guy to be as good or better than the Lakers/Heat/Celtics/etc. But at the same time, even if we assume that he's worse than the #8 on those squads, that doesn't necessarily mean we're in a bad spot relative to those teams. It could just be a function of how the talent is distributed throughout each team's roster. For example, I'd argue that our #5 guy is better (and higher paid) than the Heat's #5 guy.
In short, I think you really have to look at JJB's abilities in the context of where he sits on the roster. I absolutely don't like him starting or playing 25+ mpg. But that's a coaching decision more than a JJB problem. And nobody's ever really sold me on the idea that he's not quite productive for the spot he occupies.