Finally, we are at the center position. Dwight Howard could possibly be out to start the season, and a bevy of players would have to step up if that were to happen. However, let’s look at the depth chart should Howard be healthy for the whole season:
- Dwight Howard
- Pau Gasol
- Jordan Hill
- Robert Sacre
Again, as soon as Howard is off the floor and Gasol isn’t, I would expect Gasol to slide over to the center position as he’s so comfortable doing. Similarly, if Howard is to miss any time, Gasol would seamlessly take over at that position.
If Jordan Hill shows the consistency he flashed last season, however, Mike Brown would likely try to find him some minutes. In that case, I wouldn’t be surprised if he went with a four-man rotation on the front line comprised of Howard, Gasol, Hill, and Jamison.
The only problem with that, however, is that Jamison wouldn’t exactly get enough minutes–that is, unless he were to split minutes at the power forward and small forward positions; which would leave Ebanks out in the cold.
If I had to guess, I would say that Jordan Hill would likely find himself playing limited minutes if everyone is healthy.
However, perhaps Mike Brown would sacrifice the production he could get from Gasol at the center position and let Hill solely take over those backup responsibilities in the name of keeping Gasol as fresh as possible.
Gasol, to be fair, played the second-most amount of total minutes of any NBA player last season, so he definitely deserves all the rest he can get.
As for Robert Sacre (7’0″ and 260 lbs), who averaged 11.6 points and 6.3 rebounds last season at Gonzaga, as a rookie, I doubt he’ll see any action on the floor unless it comes sparingly while Howard is still recovering from back surgery.
Final Thought – Mike Brown will have a “good problem” at the center position, because whatever he decides to do at this position will have an effect on the rest of the rotation.
Next Page: The Final Buzzer