Congratulations Caleb McConnell
- Thread starter MadRU
- Start date
Unfortunately he played 2 minutes in the last game. Was hoping to see him get PT with the hopes that maybe just maybe he could have use for OKC Thunder in playoffs as a guy who could play in a situation when there was 1 defensive possession before the end of a quarter.
This is so wonderful to hear. Congratulations to Caleb. I hope that he can at some point still get to play in the NBA. That would be a dream come true.
Is there really a correlation? I think at this point Caleb is what he is and Thunder knows it. There are games he plays more than others depending on the match ups. What he has going for him is that if a situation arises where they are looking to use one of the last roster slots for a guy who can come in for a defensive stop he’s going to beat our most other options. He’s never going to be the choice for offensive fire power.
At this point, he wouldn’t even be where he is in the G league if his elite D wasn’t accknowledged and well recognized. If by this you mean, “maybe” that will translate into spot PT in the league and maybe not, that’s spot on. I’m just saying that in his case, significantly less playing time in certain G league games doesn’t indicate a message of sorts they way it might with other players. In situations where better offensive players (which often entails most others around him at the fringe NBA level +), are good enough defenders to contain the opponent sufficiently he’s going to play less.
The question I have is sort of 2 fold
1. Has he potentially lost a bit of his defense "fast ball"
2. Does the defense he offers just doesn't move the needle in terms of increasing defensive efficiency.
Obviously looking at G League minutes his contribution on defense has to be better than what the offense losses on the court to get minutes whereas having a role on a NBA roster as a 12th man he just needs to be better defensively than what is available on the bench.
1. Has he potentially lost a bit of his defense "fast ball"
2. Does the defense he offers just doesn't move the needle in terms of increasing defensive efficiency.
Obviously looking at G League minutes his contribution on defense has to be better than what the offense losses on the court to get minutes whereas having a role on a NBA roster as a 12th man he just needs to be better defensively than what is available on the bench.
could be overseas for Caleb next year if NBA doesn't seem to be in the cards
I think it’s 2 but sometimes it does move the needle and in a major way. there are certain situations where if a team doesn’t have the right defender to throw out against a specific player the game becomes a match up nightmare. Those are the types of situations where Caleb can really thrive and long as he doesn’t stand out as a liability on offense. That’s not every game though.
Caleb looks to have had the 17th best defensive rating in the G league this year, playing 32 games. Of the guys ahead of him, only two played at least 8 games in the G league.
Great data point. He’s NBA potential is as a niche player. That’s why I said too much stock shouldn’t be put into his PT in any one game. There are situations where a stopper is needed. He has the ability to be that guy.
Love Caleb, but if he is only playing 20 minutes a game this year in G League, he is not a high priority player for them.
Check his stats. It’s not really like that. Some games he plays a ton. It depends on the match up. His value is specific to stopping key players where others fail. There could be a role for him on the end of an NBA roster for this purpose. The 100s of other guys who are more efficient on offense than him may help their G-league teams win more games but being the 10th best scoring option on an NBA roster isn’t as helpful as being a top 3 defender in spot situations.
The NBA is filled with exceptional defenders but who are shooters. There are more 3 and D players than any other category of player in the NBA. Ther is nothing special about Caleb’s defense compared with these other guys who can shoot.
That’s not true. Yes - there are some very good defenders in the NBA, but there aren’t more than 2-3 defenders per NBA roster (on average - and that is being generous) who are more reliable defenders than him. If a team is looking to have a lock down rotation to get a stop, he would fit that role in a lot of places. Not every team prioritizes a spot for this though. That’s the thing. But some may and that’s where he adds value.