The lack of bench depth is becoming a major talking point, particularly after a game where one player logged 47 minutes.
The situation has naturally pushed the Jared McCain discourse back to the surface.
Limited Bench Options Highlight Trade Deadline Miss
One player is averaging 7.1 PPG in these playoffs, playing 22.4 minutes per game. With injuries and foul trouble, the team has had to turn to unconventional options to fill minutes.
There’s nobody to turn to, and that’s naturally pushed the Jared McCain discourse back to the surface.
The team can’t go 10 deep in the conference semifinals.
McCain’s Playoff Performance and Potential Impact
McCain is averaging 5.3 minutes and 3 points per game during these playoffs. He played 15 minutes in Game 1 against one team but only logged 21 minutes in three games against another.
The current team isn’t the same as McCain’s current team. McCain would be getting minutes.
One player played 47 high-usage minutes and couldn’t buy a bucket. Another played 43 minutes and two others played 40 each. The coach didn’t bring a guard or a wing off the bench besides one player.
Even one player, if he had managed to stay healthy, could have spelled another player for two minutes at some point.
Missed Opportunity to Bolster the Roster
The team has a chance to get out of the second round for the first time since one president’s early years in office. And yet they have little depth because they decided to punt at the trade deadline, and do nothing to improve the team.
Say what you will about McCain – maybe he’s the guy, maybe not. Maybe he would be too much of a defensive liability to play against one team, but if not him, you needed another body, and the team doesn’t have that.
Coaches always trim their rotations in the second round, but the team are slimmer than a Hollywood celebrity on Ozempic.
It’s frustrating because here the team are once again, with a chance to get out of the second round. And yet they have little depth because they decided to punt at the trade deadline, and do nothing to improve the team.