Dort isn’t “good” either his offense is terrible his defense is good he can get away with that on that specific team that will be bounced this round or next.
Frank should be much better than Dort. Frank is a lottery pick and makes $6M.
If it's about production versus contract; Tim Hardaway should also be trash. He was in a much bigger role on the same bad teams and making a lot more money to be his worst self (literally). If you think Dort is trash like Frank, that's cool. I don't agree with either evaluation.
That doesn’t mean better it means a player is in a better situation. For a player to be better they have to actually improve whether it’s a physical transformation or skill increase.
For example players like Victor Oladipo and Giannis those are examples of being better.
There’s nothing dramatically different about a THJ’s game. He plays with Doncic on the number one offense. He physically looks the same and he has the green light to take the same ridiculous deep threes from the wing.
If Allonzo lands on another team and cooks off the bench and that team happens to make the playoffs but Trier is still the same defensive player and is still a black hole isolation player he didn’t improve. He simply went to a better team with more talent fit a role and his weaknesses were hid.
When I say better, I'm talking about impact on the court. A player can get better by improving on skills or they can get better by being moved into a different role or system. Trier, just by virtue of being on a team that can mask his weaknesses, will be a better player. Pair him with a three and D player and Trier will produce more than he did for us without a floor stretcher. He'll be a better player by being more productive. Whether you think Tim Hardaway is exactly the same player today as he was the day that he was traded or not...he's playing better basketball and producing just as much on lower usage and higher efficiency.
Putting players in better roles to maximize their skill sets is on management and on coaching. Whether you think Tim Hardaway is the exact same player or not...management and coaching played a role in why the ball he played for the Knicks was inefficient garbage. I think the flaws in management and coaching that made THJ look like trash and meant Trier didn't have a role also apply to every single player. We don't know what a bunch of these cats really can be, because we haven't seen them in ideal situations.
Trier will lookbetter regardless of skillset in the right situation. THJ looks better right now regardless of whether you think he improved or stayed the same because he's in the right situation. Frank and Knox haven't been in an ideal situation. Neither have Mitch or RJ for that matter, which bodes well for them if management this time around is better.
