Josh Robbins of The Athletic takes a look at the Wizards‘ projected depth chart and rotation, predicting that former Nuggets Monte Morris and Will Barton will join Bradley Beal, Kyle Kuzma, and Kristaps Porzingis in the starting five to open the season.
Assuming Wizards head coach Wes Unseld Jr. decides to roll with a 10-man rotation to open the season, Robbins projects Delon Wright, Deni Avdija, Rui Hachimura, and Daniel Gafford to be part of the second unit, with either Corey Kispert or Johnny Davis slotting into the second backcourt spot.
Here’s more from around the Southeast:
- Longtime Hornets forward Marvin Williams has rejoined the franchise in a basketball operations role, tweets Rod Boone of The Charlotte Observer. In his new position, Williams will assist with player programs and with player development off the court, according to Boone.
- Khobi Price of The Orlando Sentinel spoke to Dr. David Lee, a local orthopedic foot and ankle surgeon, to get a sense of how long it might take Magic point guard Markelle Fultz to return from a fractured toe. Lee estimated that Fultz could potentially return to Orlando’s lineup in about four to eight weeks, which would be anywhere from mid-October to mid-November. However, the team hasn’t provided a specific recovery timeline.
- Hawks head coach Nate McMillan liked what he saw from newly added guard Vit Krejci in the 22-year-old’s first practice with the team on Thursday. “He knows how to play,” McMillan said, per Lauren L. Williams of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Twitter link). “I think he has a high basketball IQ. We put him right out there. It was good to see him be available to play and practice with our guys today. So that was exciting.”
- Although Kyle Korver is technically part of the Hawks‘ front office and not the coaching staff, he has been working with players – including Clint Capela and Jalen Johnson – on their shooting during training camp, as Williams writes in a full story for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (subscription required). “I’ve worked with him quite a few times actually,” Johnson said on Wednesday. “Kyle has helped me make a few adjustments in my shot. You know, having him around has helped a lot. He’s been helping a lot of these guys, giving them pointers and things they can work on, so it’s good.”
Hype to see how Jalen & Vit play this preseason for the Hawks. Both are versatile forwards that can make plays & score from anywhere on the court. Both guys gotta stay locked in defensively to get/stay in the reg season rotation tho. I feel like they (Landry/Schlenk/Nate) have a level of trust in Jalen or else they wouldn’t have moved Harkless
I honestly think Wes Unseld Jr. should have his rotation like this.
Starters
SF Rui Hachimura
PF Kyle Kuzma
C Kristaps Porzingis
SG Bradley Beal
PG Monte Morris
Bench
SG Will Barton
SF Deni Avdija
PG Delon Wright
C Daniel Gafford
SG Corey Kispert
SG Johnny Davis need to spend his rookie season in the G League working on his game.
Rui is a 4, Kuzma more of a 3
Today’s basketball is positionless just put your best five on the court and go for it. And fans put way too much emphasis on a starting five, what really matters is who finishes the game. Tommy already stated that Wright we’ll finish games and obviously Beal, KP, and Kuz will be on the court at the end of the game. The last player will be determine by match-ups and who’s playing well that particular game.
And as far as Josh article goes there’s no way Rui gets only 16 minutes. He’s a legit three level scorer, he was top 2/3 on the team, at finishing at the rim, 3-point percentage and mid-range percentage, with a TS% around 50%. No team in the league is sitting that level of offense on the bench for 32 minutes a game. Not to mention he’s in a contract year
You’re right, Barton isn’t really a starter anymore.
Sankara, who do you see as the backup for John Collins? At this point, I don’t see anyone..
JJ/OO