NBA Chat With Anthony Macri 6/12/12

1. Lucas

   Hey coach, hope your all settled and adjusted in beautiful Jakarta and work is going well. Dan you explain what are the function of a Director of Player development(i.e Adonal Foyle) on an NBA team. I’ve always assumed that was the coaches job scopes… Thanks for your time and have a good one.

   • Anthony Macri

     Happy Tuesday everybody! Finals are here… I’m sure everyone has their favorite spot to watch a game: hope yours is ready for Game 1! Let’s get to your questions…

     Thanks… about as settled as someone can be 10,000 miles from friends and family. But the transition hasn’t been too stressful. The league has its challenges but I am cautiously optimistic! Regarding Director of Player Development, that is a title that many teams use in different ways. Some teams have someone, like Coach Thorpe, who reports to the GM or the Director of Player Personnel, and they are specifically working on both what the player needs long term to be successful (and become a more valuable asset) and what the coach needs for that player to make an impact in the immediate future. Other teams give someone that title, and their goal is to keep the young players out of trouble (essentially to babysit them). It could be anything in between! So I couldn’t tell you what each individual does.

2. Mutang

   Coach, what do you see Utah doing this offseason? Lately, with N.O. saying they want to move #10 and Ariza or Okafor, that sounds like just the deal Utah would want to get their PG. Or Houston wanting to move one of their picks, could also net Utah Marshall. Do you see them going after this? If not what, and who do you see them going after? Or anything at all? Thanks

   • Anthony Macri

     I can’t tell you what they are thinking – I’m not a rumors guy – but I can tell you that if I was Utah I would definitely target Kendall Marshall. I am good friends with Kendall’s personal athletic trainer – great guy and fantastic trainer – and we actually talked about Utah as an option back in the early spring. He thinks it would be a solid fit as well. If they can grab Kendall and find a taker for Devin Harris, it is a no-brainer to me (provided the price isn’t too steep).

3. Quan

   Good day Coach. What do you think about the tactics of the Finals, especially how Thunder will do to shut down Lebron? I think Scott Brooks will have Sefolosha guard Wade just like how he did against Parker.

   • Anthony Macri

     I think guarding LeBron might be an issue. I expect OKC to do a fair amount of sagging, as they did in the San Antonio series, to provide help against LeBron, who should be able to get to a lot of different places on the floor if he’s willing to work against the Thunder. It will all be about team defense against LeBron, while Miami is better equipped to match up one-on-one with Oklahoma City.

4. Juan Pablo

   Hi Coach, How are you? It´s been long since I asked you my last question…
   Here we go…
   1-Is this the most important offseason for Minnesota to turn the team into a contender?
   2-Should Minnesota take Ian Mahinmi as Pekovic back up to provide the much needed defense in the post? Which would be your choice if not?
   3-Is for Minnesota a must to try to sign Courtney Lee and Rudy Fernandez to have the starting SG and also the back up SG and SF?
   4-Which would be your choice as primary back up for PF? Would you draft Royce White to be the long term back up of Kevin Love with Tolliver also sharing minutes?
   5-If you are Kahn, your moves would be? (Move up in the draft – Trade for…)

   • Anthony Macri

     I’m doing well – I will do my best to answer your block of Qs…

     1.) I think every offseason is the most important one. In Minnesota’s case, it seems this might be a pivotal one that sets them up for future success in a way unlike the previous few years.

     2.) I’d have to look at a list to see if there are multiple guys I like to do what you’re saying. I generally don’t like to target one guy as a backup just because that usually leads to paying him too much.

     3.) I like Courtney Lee a great deal there. I think Courtney is a great fit in a lot of places.

     4.) Too many variables to answer that question. I actually would love to get a guy who can do backup work at both the C and PF, and then Tolliver can share minutes with him.

     5.) Thank God I’m not Kahn.

5. Peter

   Hey Coach! I really like the Spurs offense. Are there any sites I can visit or books/videos that I can buy online to learn more about their offense?

   • Anthony Macri

     I have read through and seen this a few times: http://spursmotionoffense.blogspot.com/ – I wouldn’t say it hits everything, but it might give you a running start. Incorporate that with some very standard Dribble Drive Motion principles, and that is San Antonio in a nutshell. Oh, and make sure you have really good players that love to pass.

6. ralph lawrence

   Heard the rumors about cavs selecting barnes as their 4th pick, in that case who do you think the kings will select with their 5th pick? thinking davis, robinson and mkg would be gone by that time.. It would leave between drummond or beal.. Im thinking of taking drummond because both would compliment each others game talking about cousins and drummond.. your thoughts?

   • Anthony Macri

     I’m not sold on Drummond especially in a place like Cleveland where things are so fragile, but I think Irving is a great personality and just strikes me as a potential leader, so he might be ok there. I tend to favor Beal because he compliments their young core of Irving and Thompson. It seems like a good problem to have, though.

7. Marlon D.

   Morning Anthony, looking forward to a great NBA finals tonight, I like OKC over MIA in 6 games, do you think Spo will keep Bosh coming off the bench even if healthy to add some scoring punch to his weak bench?

   • Anthony Macri

     I think he’ll leave it up to Bosh, actually. Some guys just find that coming in after the game has started gives them a chance to survey the floor, get a feel for the game, and then they can assert themselves more directly when they enter. I don’t think Bosh is a guy that needs to have the starter tag in order to perform. I also think that he needs to be out there a ton for them to really succeed against OKC, so not starting may mean an entry before the 9 minute mark.

8. Bugsy Mogues

   Hi Anthony, I’d love your opinion on this; to me the Heats’ performance as a TEAM in game 7 was infinitely better than game 6. Sure LBJ’s Game 6 was spectacular but he played much more within the offense in Game 7, rather than the iso play that bores me to tears. As a neutral observer, it was purer, more entertaining. If he/they keep that up, I might just start to enjoy watching their success. Are the Heat and James finally starting to ‘get it’?

   • Anthony Macri

     I love your screen name.

     I think there was a lot of things to like about the way LeBron worked for the ball in the first half of Game 6 especially. He continued his rip through the game in the second half, but it was more iso-based. I think Miami, when they are playing well, plays fair to decent team basketball. Keep in mind that Boston’s defense is one of the best in the league, and forces guys to make individual plays more often. I would not expect the same kind of resistance from OKC.

9. Tim

   Will we actually see old school cross matching where the best players on the opposing teams actually guard each other? Lebron-Durant and Wade-Westbrook, it doesn’t get much better than that.

   • Anthony Macri

     I think both teams will switch a lot (as I said in my ESPN Insider scouting report – shameless plug) but matchups will get accentuated down the stretch of each game. I think LeBron and KD will match-up a fair amount on one another, though I also think we will see some LeBron vs. Westbrook or even Harden depending on who is feeling it in a particular game. I am not sure about Wade and Westbrook. He’ll have to be on either Westbrook or Harden I guess – neither is a great matchup for him.

10. Tasia

    Hey Coach! So a few days ago my friends and I were discussing what football games we were going to and of course my Giants fan friend brings up the Eli situation to my Chargers fan friend and then thankfully the subject change to Kobe and his agent manipulation of getting him to the Lakers. So then I thought what if Anthony Davis has a holdout(least likely because he is very humble) what would New Orleans do and what would you do? Would you take the arm and leg a team will give or make him play out his rookie deal? Yes I know it is least likely he is so nice but the idea just popped in my head.

    • Anthony Macri

      I’m not sure what you’re asking – the rookie wage scale is what it is, there aren’t a lot of options if he expects to play in the NBA. If he doesn’t want to play in New Orleans, and he demands to go elsewhere, I’m not sure how to best handle it. I think you figure that out on a case-by-case basis. Part of me says to move him because I don’t want someone around who doesn’t want to be there, but then I also think the Wolves were right to keep Rubio even if he originally didn’t want to go to Minnesota. I lean toward making him stay because he has a chance to be great, and you don’t just ship off greatness.

11. Paul

    If you were the sixers would you dump Iggy fr a high draft pick keep brand for one more year or would you get rid of Brand and try get impact player thru free agency or trade?

    • Anthony Macri

      Examine all options. Can’t stand still or even make just incremental improvements. They may have taken the Celtics to 7, but they aren’t that good and likely would have been swept by a healthy Chicago. I see what is available for Iggy and if I can move Brand, do it, if not, I see if amnesty-ing him can bring you something in free agency.

12. j garth

    who are the pistons looking at in the draft and what trades might they make this offseason

    • Anthony Macri

      Are they still playing basketball in Detroit?

13. magician0110

    how reliable is Woj’s report that Bower, Lindsey, and unknown are finalists? Because Steve Kyler tweeted, “Any idea who the 3rd finalist is — We were told in Chicago that Penn, Weaver and Lindsey would meet with the family.”

    • Anthony Macri

      I have no clue… Steve has great sources, though, he hears a lot of things!

14. Beau

    Setting need aside, which of the major players said to be available this offseason would you want to build a team around? Iguodala, Gay, Gasol, Lowry, et cetera?

    • Anthony Macri

      Gasol can be a difference maker and take a good team to a championship level pretty quickly. Rudy Gay or Iguodala is like the next level guy who can be effective but probably not your centerpiece to build around. Lowry is one half step below that.

15. Josh

    Hi Coach! Ok – if you’re Cavs mgmt and at the 4th pick, you have Harrison Barnes and Micheal Kidd-Gilchrist available, who do you pick? Thanks!

    • Anthony Macri

      I am still super-high on Barnes. I think he can be really, really good – much better than some were giving him credit for in the spring. I like MKG but something about him just makes me wonder if he’s really as good as advertised, and I don’t think he’s necessarily a great fit in Cleveland.

16. Joel

    Hi Coach! What do the Celtics do with Jeff Green? Theoretically – does a Celtics squad with a healthy Jeff Green, Avery Bradely and Chris Wilcox get pas the Heat and maybe steal a championship?

    • Anthony Macri

      That is a great question. If you mean this HEAT team that didn’t have Bosh at full strength, they could definitely get past them. However I don’t know that they’d get past the HEAT at full strength. And I don’t believe Boston with all those guys could beat either OKC or San Antonio if they had made it to the Finals.

17. bobby joe

    If you’re new orleans do u trade the #1 pick for the already established pau gasol? Maybe throw in okafor to offset salary…?

    • Anthony Macri

      Nah. Pau is great but New Orleans isn’t going to win any championships snatching him. Build for the long haul with super cheap talent (rookie wage scale!).

18. chad

    Hey Anthony, What’s the deal with the Raps? Heard that there now talking to Sac town about Evans??

    • Anthony Macri

      Have to turn over every single rock in Toronto. Haven’t heard the rumor, not a big Evans guy.

19. Tasos

    Hi Anthony from Greece,

    Lakers:Iguodala+Thadeus Young+15th PHI pick
    NO:Gasol
    PHI:Okafor+Ariza+10th NO pick
    the salaries are good.can be done?? thanks

    • Anthony Macri

      I don’t like it for Philly – they are getting two eh starters to add to their current collection of eh starters and the 10th pick? Why would they do that as part of any kind of significant positive change, except to make some feel better about getting rid of Iguodala?

20. Eddie

    Hey Coach,

    What’s your take on a player like Kendall Marshall? Can he improve his on-ball defense over time? Also, where do you think his best fit would be?

    • Anthony Macri

      I love how he sees the floor and I think he can be a starter long term in the league. Not too worried about his on-ball defense provided he lands in the right situation. Very few players can matchup with the quicker, skilled guards around the league anyway. I think he is best suited for a place that opens the floor and the players get up and down a lot, especially on the wings.

21. badax33

    HI Anthony

    Just wondering where you see the Celtics going now. Personnally, I’d like to see them bring back KG and Ray, at lower salaries, maybe sign another big plus the 2 1st rounders. Seems to me this team certainly would be competitive and I really don’t see any FAs that are true SS, except DWill and I can’t see them signing him. Commemts

    • Anthony Macri

      I wonder where they go as well. Despite their success this year, I tend to think they are better off retooling the roster as much as possible. KG should probably stick around unless someone offers over his value. I think Ray is close to done and I’m not sure how much of a paycut he would / could take. I am not sure if being competitive is enough, or if they want to be a championship contender.

22. magician0110

    Do you think Jason Richardson can improve as a player? Last season was the worst season for him. Any ideas how he can get better?

    • Anthony Macri

      I’m not sure how much better he can individually, but a better situation could serve to bring out the best in him. He has a few good, productive years left in the right situation. See: Jackson, Stephen.

      Alright folks, that about does it for me. Enjoy Game 1 of the Finals! Good luck to both teams and follow me on Twitter as I’ll be live-tweeting thoughts and observations throughout the games (@anthonylmacri).

23. Rory

    Hey Coach!!!

    Have you heard any updates on who the Raptors might be targeting through the draft with the 8th overall pick and free agency?

    Thank you,

    • Anthony Macri

      No real rumors … lots of needs, though. Seems like a lot of volatility in the draft by the time you get to picks 8, 9 and 10.