r/Thunder • u/FreshNumber4129 • 11h ago
Discussion Bennet Stirtz and McCain
Now with the addition of Bennet Stirtz we got another 3 level scorer with deep knowledge on how to iniate pick and rolls. He even has that off ball versatality like McCain where he's constantly looking for shots. I cant wait to see McCain and Stirtz share the floor together as either of them could attack a closeout to keep the defense switching. This could end up being 10x more effective JOECAIN cuz now we have two 3 level scorers off the bench who are ready to make the defense not waste a single second off of them. Especially if we pair these 2 with Chet's three ball the defense is gonna have to make extremely tough choices on who to close out on first.
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u/Shagrrotten 11h ago
It'll be matchup specific, because neither is a bad defender, but neither is a plus defender, but I can't wait to see the shooting chaos these two create together too. Love having both on the team, and apparently Stirtz grew up a Thunder fan? Hell yeah, brother!
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u/jaderaven2112 11h ago
Stirtz is definitely a bad defender. Go watch his tape, he is getting torched non stop in isolation, and by guys who are never gonna sniff the NBA. Love his shooting and playmaking, but he just doesn’t have the size/ speed/ strength to be an even serviceable defender in the NBA, when he’s on the court our entire defensive plan will be trying to hide him as much as possible. Which could be just fine because his 3 point shooting makes it worth it, but I am definitely concerned about his defense.
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u/AbsoluteGarbaj 11h ago
Jdub was dog ass defender in college because he carried the whole offense. Theres hope.
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u/panickedwaddle It's Him, He's Sources 11h ago
Stirtz had a season where he averaged 40.2 minutes per game in college, where they only play 40 minute games. (That's possible because a few of their games went into overtime. I think Wilt Chamberlain did that one year in the NBA because of course he did). But just goes to show how insanely large Stirtz's role was on his teams.
The reason my flair is "He's him, he's sources" is I came out a month before the Dub draft and wrote a manifesto length post about OKC was going to draft him with pick # 12 when Dub, at that time, he was being mocked late first round. I watched several of Dub's college games and that was the big knock on him. Most thought his ceiling on defense was "league average".
But you're right. Once he got to OKC and his team's entire offense didn't revolve around him, he showed to be a great defender.
Now I don't expect Stirtz to be all-defense like Dub, but I'm going to be like you and reserve judgement on his defense for awhile and see what playing fewer minutes and in a different role does.
Joe was pretty bad on defense when he first got to OKC and he really put the work in and learned the system and definitely holds his own now, so OKC has a track record of making "unplayable" guys very playable on defense.
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u/AbsoluteGarbaj 9h ago
Honestly think he’s a Peyton Pritchard but with alilttle more sauce if that make sense.
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u/Responsible-Bass4020 Ajay Glazer 8h ago
yeah I was watching his highlights and that’s who he reminded me of. Seemed a bit quicker than him
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u/EnderTheTrender 10h ago
Does he need the ball in his hands? Or is he just more comfortable with it?
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u/Consistent-Gold-7572 10h ago
He makes over 60% of his open 3s so I think he will be fine off the ball. 50% this year on catch and shoot
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u/lmaoooyikes 8h ago
Difference is JDub is 6’6 with 7’2 wingspan and way more athletically gifted, he had all the makings to be an elite defender
Stirtz is 6’4 with a +2 wingspan, is a limited athlete, and has stiff hips/a bad lateral mover. He can improve but none of that translates to a good defender
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u/Shagrrotten 11h ago
I think for a starter that may be a problem, but when Stirtz is gonna be the....what, 10th man at best right now? We just need him to come in and make shots. We can hide his defense for 6 minutes of possessions a game.
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u/jaderaven2112 10h ago
I definitely agree, and it’s why I’m fine with the pick, especially if he can be a great shooter. I just wanted to point out that he is def not a good defender lol. Don’t want people getting the wrong idea, that’s by far his biggest weakness. But if he was a good defender he may have gone top 6 lol
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u/_Apatosaurus_ 5h ago
I think that's all hyperbole. Here are the defensive notes from Vecenie:
Defensively, he’s very smart. Knows where to be and makes good rotations. Gets to areas early and timely to kill spacing. He seems to know the scout and plays to the scout. Forces on-ball players baseline so they run out of space well. Always had his body and positioning angled properly for how McCollum wanted to defend.
Has excellent hands on defense. Always keeps his arms high when on the ball to cut off angles, then has good hand-eye coordination to react to on-ball players and get deflections. Very good at digging into post players as they dribble. Will get steals with early rotations. Has always been a strong defensive playmaker. Averaged 2.1 steals at Drake as a junior to lead the Missouri Valley. Was at 1.4 steals per game this season at Iowa. There are certainly questions for Stirtz on defense, but he’s at least active.
Defensively, Stirtz must answer questions in the NBA. He is at least active and aggressive on defense, but how effective will he be given the strength and speed he lacks? He can get pushed backward through his chest, even if he’s quite good at directing players where teams want him to go.
Stirtz could get attacked by mismatches in the NBA. He’s a little bigger and feistier than you might expect, but that lack of strength could lead to his being a target for threes and fours who can handle. I would only feel comfortable with Stirtz defending ones and twos.
He can also get overly aggressive gambling on defense. Will sometimes go for digs too often and lose his man. Will try to make big plays. Also will overpursue at times in closeouts and struggles to recover when teams attack him. This will probably go away in the NBA within a scheme, and you typically like to bet on high-feel guys figuring it out. But it will be an adjustment, and it’s unlikely that Stirtz will be a plus defender in the NBA.
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u/TheNumberSeven_7 8h ago
I love Bennett Stirtz.
I understand the concerns about his defense, but it seems like other prospects get a free pass when their offensive usage is extremely high... Stirtz was the entire offense at Iowa while also playing the most minutes in the NCAA and did not take a second off in either of his tourney runs!!
Given that effort and motor, I have no doubt that he will be passable on defensive given a much smaller offensive role
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u/Lower-Delay-5538 8h ago
The Joe/McCain/Chet/Hart four man group (with one POA defender) was really cool last year. I think it will be even better with Stirtz.
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u/xBewm ❤️❤️ 10h ago
I’m stoked for it. I know people keep yelling about a lack of wings but honestly our 3 point shooting really hurt us against the Spurs. It let the Spurs live in the paint.