Okay, that last one was really fun, so lets try another one, but this time with Nikola Jokic as our core player. Jokic provides an interesting challenge, especially when compared to Luka. He has to be our full time 5, so we have less lineup flexibility than we would with Luka as our core guy. He also plays a very different kind of role on offense. Instead of a perimeter initiator who creates with the ball in his hands by driving past players, Jokic is a sort of hybrid of the high post hub passing of a Gasol type, low post playmaking of a Chris Webber, and three level scoring of every great scoring modern perimeter player. And he might be the best post scorer since Duncan. While Jokic also touches the ball a lot on offense, unlike Luka, a lot of his touches are temporary. He handles the ball, passes it, moves somewhere and gets it back while there is motion elsewhere. This has some benefits as we can play him more easily next to a ball dominant player. But it also poses some challenges, as we need players who are more clever than guys we can slot next to Luka, who can just sit in the corner and catch and shoot 3s.
The other big challenge with Jokic is on defense. He is a strong 1v1 post defender and a better team defender than his reputation suggests. However, he is ground bound and not a major rim deterrent. There are two ways we can cover for this problem. The first is to build a lineup like the current Chicago Bulls that features long guards who are excellent running around screens, swarm the passing lanes, and basically stop the offense before it gets started. The other option is to get a weakside rim protector who can provide rim deterrence while playing a different role on offense. This would let Jokic play drop and have secondary protection from our other big man. Ideally, we would do both of these things, but the kinds of guards we need to replicate the Chicago strategy are extremely expensive. Conversely, weakside rim protectors who are not true bigs are also rare, but more cheaply available than guards. Ideally, we would be able to have both options available and that will constitute our first three picks for this draft.
Let’s start with the guard spot. What we want is a defensively versatile guard who is good at running around screens, is a solid to plus 1v1 defender against perimeter creating guards, and can provide some off-ball defensive value as well. Any offensive skills, particularly shooting, are a big bonus. The most obvious candidates for this choice, Pat Bev, Marcus Smart, and Lonzo, are pretty expensive ($13m+). There are two affordable options as well: GPII ($8.3m) and Alex Caruso ($9m). Both have different roles on offense: GPII as a power guard who cuts and runs in transition while Caruso is a secondary playmaker who provides some floor spacing. I am going to take both.
Next, lets look at weakside rim protectors. We want a player here who can take pressure off of Jokic as rim deterrent while also providing something of value on offense. If I could get any historical player for this, I want prime Ibaka. Two guys stand out as options in the current NBA who fill this role: Christian Wood and Chris Boucher. I opt for Boucher since he is a bit cheaper, a better overall defensive player, comparable shooter, and more useful without the ball on defense.
We now have a defensive backbone to play around Jokic that is built with players who also play complimentary roles on offense. But what do we do when Jokic is sitting on the bench? I want a player here who can take over as a scoring option and playmaker when Jokic sits and be a strong secondary threat when Jokic is on the floor. We again grab the great bargain we paired with Luka in TJ Warren for this role.
We now have enough players for a five man lineup. Our defense is pretty solid with two strong perimeter defenders up top with Caruso/GPII and Boucher as a rim protector. Before addressing the offense, I am going to grab two more players that let us double down on the strong defense we are building around Jokic. The first player is Jarred Vanderbilt who we covered in the Luka discussion. The second is De’Anthony Melton. Melton is a super interesting guard who does all the little things well – strong defense, decent spacing, secondary creation. And he can do it all without worrying about touches. I was hard pressed to choose between him and Seth for the previous build, but I think he is a better fit as a connector with Jokic while the Luka team badly needed the spacing provided by Seth. While Seth’s spacing would not hurt at all on this team either, the offense I envision would be better enhanced by Melton
We now have seven players for our team. 5 lean strongly to defense while the other two are our primary offensive creators. With the remaining three spots we have to fill a few remaining holes. One, we need more floor spacing. Two, we need one more option to play at the wing. Third, we need someone to fill in the center while Jokic is on the bench and can potentially play next to him as well. Boucher could potentially cover this last one.
The next player I am going to grab is a big wing who provides floor spacing, some defense, and is also a decent connector on offense: Otto Porter Jr. OPJ gives us one more body to throw at the big wings while providing a ton of value on offense.
While I would love to grab Robert Williams III again, I do not think we would have enough minutes for him to play with our team construction here, and am not sure he would be able to play next to Jokic. Instead, as our third big we want someone who can play the 5 for limited stretches against most matchups, provide some defensive and offensive value, while also slotting next to Jokic in situational lineups. I take Mo Bamba as a 3nD 4/5 option.
For the final spot in our rotation, we take the best plug and play wing available with the remaining cap space we have: Kenrich Williams. He provides yet another connector, mediocre spacing, and a decent defensive option as well. You may ask, why not take DiVincenzo again or Pat Connaughton? The reasoning is primarily that Kenrich provides a bigger body while DDV would be stuck playing limited minutes as the 4th guard.
Team
Nikola Jokic - $33,047,804
Alex Caruso - $9,030,000
Gary Payton II - $8,300,000
Chris Boucher - $12,690,000
TJ Warren - $1,836,090
Jarred Vanderbilt - $4,374,000
De’Anthony Melton - $8,250,000
Otto Porter Jr - $6,000,000
Mo Bamba - $10,300,000
Kenrich Williams - $2,000,000
Total - $95.83 Million
Lineup
PG – Caruso
SG – GPII/Melton
SF – Warren/OPJ/Kenrich
PF – Boucher/Vandy
C – Jokic/Bamba
This team is built around a strong defense anchored by strong defense at the point of attack (Caruso, GPII, Melton, Vandy) and secondary rim protection (Boucher/Vandy/Bamba). Jokic would play in a drop with at least one other shot blocker on the floor with him at all times. The lineup is somewhat vulnerable to larger play making wings, but our remedy to that is having multiple long defensive options to cover them.
The offense is primarily built around the unique talent of Jokic as a primary initiator. We surround him with smart cutters and guys who keep the ball moving while we get floor spacing from our wings and guards. We can run a strong 2 man game with Warren and Jokic, similar to what we see with Jokic and Barton or MPJ. When Jokic is on the bench, it’s the TJ Warren show as a solo creator surrounded by strong defenders.
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