Discussion 2023-2024 NBA RDT Dream Team Discussion: GW23 Weds 10th April 9:00am AEST

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Geelong
Chet has been ahead for most of the season and leads in basically every advanced metric except PER, mostly because he's vastly more efficient as a scorer and is way better at avoiding turnovers.
What advanced metrics are these?

If they're metrics which are predicated on lineups (and quality of teammates) than they're almost worthless in this comparison. Chet plays on a contender, alongside a top-5 player, and Wemby plays on what is an historically bad team. Chet is more efficient and turns the ball over less because he is surrounded by greater players - it's as simple as that. Chet has the luxury of better shot opportunities, less defensive attention, against weaker defenders and less pressure. That doesn't make him better nor does it mean he's been a better performer, in a vacuum; if they both swapped teams, it would be Wemby who was more efficient and turned the ball over less.

I would go as far as to say, OKC would be in prime position to win a title this season if they had Wemby instead. He's that good.

FYI here are some advanced metrics that Wemby not only leads Chet in, but he's already one of the best in the league:

#1 in Defensive eRAPTOR
#3 in Defensive LEBRON
#4 in Defensive EPM
#1 in block per foul% (by an unfathomable margin)
#1 in block recoveries
#2 in defensive stop-percentages out of all big men
99th percentile for reducing shot attempts at rim
Spurs have a 114 DRTG with him on the floor (a mark which would rank his team 12-14th) and a 125 DRTG with him off the floor (a mark which would not only have them as the 30th-ranked team, but the margin between them and the second-worst, would be the same as the second-worst defense and a top-10 one). He essentially transforms what is an historically bad defense into a league-average one.

Even in his rookie season he has an argument for being the best defensive player in the league.
The hollow stats are two-fold. One the team is terrible, they're actually a worse team this year than they were last year when they were actively tanking, he's just had zero impact on winning basketball.
This is objectively false.

He's been arguably the most dominant defender this season. Just because his team isn't winning games doesn't mean he isn't have "winning" impact. It's just so happens that his team is horrifically bad, is going through the process of rebuilding and experimenting, and doesn't have the talent to compete.
That's not entirely him but getting stats for a non-competitive team in blowouts just isn't the same as getting them in genuine contests.
They're actually a competitive team when he's on the floor, so it's not as if the Spurs are being swept out to sea whilst he's playing and he's racking up stats whilst the team isn't even in the contest. They're -5 with him on the floor and -12 whilst he's off it. Your argument would only make sense in this context if whilst he was on the floor he wasn't affecting the game, when we know that isn't the case.

No greater example of this than in his last game, coming up against Chet and OKC where he looked like the best player on the floor.
The main part though is how inefficient he is. He's scoring a lot because he shoots a lot, his assists are mostly just because he has the ball a lot and are cancelled out by how much he turns it over. Hollow stats are still better than no stats and I genuinely think he's been really good, much better than I'd expected, but that doesn't change the nature of what or how he's doing it.
He was only inefficient for the first two months of the season, and that was largely due to Pop mistakingly using Sochan as the main PG (when he barely has a playmaking bone in his whole body), limiting Wemby's stints (instead of playing him for extensive periods so he can get into rhythm) and experimentation with different lineups. Once Tre was put back into the starting lineup, and he was allowed to play for longer periods, over the last two months he's been notably more efficient on offense.

First two months of the season - 53 TS%
Last two months of the season - 60 TS%

To take it a step further, in the last two months the Spurs actually have a positive net-rating with Wemby on the floor, contrary to your belief that he's only getting his stats in blowouts.
 
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Hawthorn
Curry 2/13, scores, finishes on -5 pts, can’t wait to get rid of him, held him for 1 week too long
 
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Hawthorn
Trading Curry, Bridges and Mitchell out this week

My Ins whatever I can afford

Curry and Mitchell are big let downs this week, didn’t crack 100 pts between them for the whole week
 
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