Jared Sullinger and the value of defined roles

[Somebody]

I would like to see us nab an athletic big at some point.  BTW

Mickey and Yabu are pretty athletic

[mgent]

I don't necessarily agree with the premise. I like players being pushed by other talented players. Defined roles can lead to players being more comfortable, but it can also make them more complacent.

Yes and no.

What you're saying is probably true for the majority of players, but then we have guys like Tony Allen and Gerald Green who don't gain anything from the competition and truly play better with the confidence of having a role.

[cousytoheinsohn]

The one who could finish around 58-60% inside, shoot 40-45% on long twos (when the shot was appropriate), and occasionally step outside and hit a reasonable percentage on spot-up threes.

The one who would grab 7-8 boards a game, score 13-14 points, make some good passes, and play solid defense inside, albeit without any notable rim-protecting / shot-blocking skills.

You mean Al Horford?

Well, now that you mention it, and for quite a bit of skrill more.

It is nice having Al around, though, no doubt.

[cousytoheinsohn]

Not trying to be overly negative and kick a man while he's down and I appreciate that he has spoken well of the team since he was not resigned, but I have to say one of my favorite aspects of this team is that Jared Sullinger isn't on it. He was never our worst player,  [heck] on plenty of days he was our best player but in no way do I wish we still had Jared Sullinger on the team.

I've heard it a lot around here and elsewhere particularly when we get killed on the boards that we should have never let Jared go. There were calls to pick him up right before the playoffs after he was waived. He'd solve our rebounding issues. He's got more fight than Kelly. How can we be paying Zeller all that money when Sullinger was so much better?

Well since the first two games of this series I think it's pretty safe to say that the team is back to running like clockwork. With every substitution guys are coming in ready to play, understanding what each of them needs to do for us to be successful. Most importantly no one is looking over their shoulder wondering if they are going to get benched for Sullinger if they miss a couple of shots or mishandle a rebound.

For better or worse  Horford is the man, Kelly is the undisputed first big off the bench, Amir is the guy when we need someone to match size, Jerebko is the Swiss Army knife, Zeller is the brake in case of emergency option and IMO trying to force in a bull in the china shop rebounder with a suspect jumpshot would be addition by subtraction by addition.

We are a better team without Sullinger. There's no worrying about his conditioning. There's no shots of him sulking on the bench with body language basically screaming "why is Kelly in game? I should be playing!". Having Sullinger on the team meant it was always Sullinger versus Olynyk which means guys like Smart had to take sides. Danny chose Olynyk and, right or wrong, the decision shored up the rotation. With Jared out of the equation and what you give up in rebounding you gain in a more cohesive locker room.

What do you think? Did we make the right choice in moving on from Sullinger? Do you still wish we had him as an end of the rotation guy instead of a someone like Mickey? Or are you like me and just happy that he's gone.

Excellent post. As you and others have mentioned, the central dilemma in the end was the Cs didn't have the foggiest about whether Good Sully or Bad Sully would be showing up on any given occasion.

I wouldn't mind having Good Sully at the end of the bench for the peerless rebounding skills but various forms of the end-of-the-bench thing were what always seemed to give rise to Bad Sully who we are happy not to have around.

Great point about the Sully-Olynyk dichotomy in all its not-so-subtle ramifications, yet subtle enough, apparently, that I completely missed them for three years.

[Granath]

Sully's problem is entirely himself. His own father said (about the Cs being interested in him), "I'm not sure that would change anything for him. He has to make up his mind about what’s important But if you’re going to stand in the way of progress, then get out of the way. . . . All I know for sure is that the signs aren’t good. Even if Phoenix kept him, that wouldn’t have made it any better for him. He still has to face himself. As a dad, man, it hurts. But water seeks its own level. It’s up to him.”

The guy disappointingly didn't put in the work to get in shape for even his contract season. Then he only got a one year, $5.6m deal and even then didn't perform. So I agree with the OP. I'm happy he's gone. This team doesn't need a guy sitting on the bench wasting his talent and infecting anyone else with his laziness. If he got his head screwed on straight and decided to be a professional I'd love to have him because he has the God-given talent to be a good player. He's just electing to waste it and that's why he's sitting at home and the phone isn't ringing.

[Ory]

I don't miss the throwing towels on reporters thing.

I'm glad nobody has stepped into that role, we really don't need it filled.