Paul Millsap: Can He Play SF When Hawks Go Big?

With Paul Millsap re-signing with the Atlanta Hawks during free agency to a 3-year, $58 Million deal, Atlanta will continue to have a strong team in the Eastern Conference entering 2015-16. Paul has had his two best years as a pro playing power forward for the Atlanta Hawks, earning two consecutive All-Star selections and leading his team to two playoff berths.

But with the trade HC Mike Budenholzer and GM Wes Wilcox made with the San Antonio Spurs to acquire C Tiago Splitter, perhaps some Hawks players will have to change positions with certain lineups out on the floor. C Al Horford should make a relatively easy transition to PF given that he played it in some lineups last year with C Pero Antic and PF/C Mike Muscala on the floor. Horford also shined at the University of Florida playing PF for back-to-back National Championship teams in 2006-07. His center: Chicago Bulls’ Joakim Noah.

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Splitter started for the Spurs the last few seasons in the San Antonio front court alongside arguably the best power forward to ever play in the NBA: The Big Fundamental, Tim Duncan. Tiago is a true center that can either start or come of the bench as a primary rotational big for Coach Bud. Budenholzer, a long-time top assistant in the Spurs organization, must feel excited to get a former player of Tiago Splitter’s caliber on his Atlanta Hawks roster.

While the Atlanta Hawks acquired Splitter and re-signed Paul Millsap, DeMarre Carroll‘s departure to the Toronto Raptors leaves a glaring hole at the 3 in the Hawks lineup. Many think that Thabo Sefolosha can reclaim his role as a starter in 2015-16 after being a sixth man type of player in 2014-15. Sefolosha did start on the wing for the Oklahoma City Thunder for several seasons. With Sefolosha’s questionable offense game, will Paul Millsap have to play significant minutes at SF this season, especially when the Hawks go big with Horford and Splitter?

I do get the feeling that there will come a time in every game when Millsap will have to play the three for the Atlanta Hawks. Ideally it would be in situations where Atlanta wants to physically dominate the opposition and slow down the game’s pace when its perimeter shooters are resting on the bench.

Offensively, I see little to no drop off in Paul Millsap’s game should he have to play small forward. He’s very much an outstanding all-around offensive player for the Hawks. Paul can make all the shots from anywhere on the court, can handle the basketball as well as most SF’s and can distribute the rock with the best forwards in the game.

However, I’m not certain that Millsap can have the lateral quickness needed to guard the most explosive players out on the wing. At the 3, you often find yourself guarding not just fellow small forwards, but also adept shooting guards and even the occasional point guard. Though he gave it his all defensively against LeBron James in the Eastern Conference Finals, I think that Thabo Sefolosha might have been a better defensive matchup for King James if he was able to play.

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It would take some adjusting on Paul Millsap’s part to become an adept, occasional wing defender but I believe that his knowledge of Coach Bud’s defensive system should only bolster his efforts on defense as a small forward. Offensively, Millsap might actually have a size advantage over some smaller wing players. There aren’t many players that have slowed down Paul Millsap’s offensive production the last two seasons. Look for Paul to overpower some of the league’s lanky threes this year.

In a copycat league where everyone wants to go small with stretch fours and even stretch fives, the Atlanta Hawks could be ahead of the curve by going big with a Millsap-Horford-Splitter 3-4-5 this winter. It could be the next great niche in the game or it could become a quagmire like the Josh Smith–Greg Monroe–André Drummond 3-4-5 of the 2013-14 Detroit Pistons. With Millsap, Horford, and Splitter’s basketball intelligence, I think Coach Bud and his bigs find many ways to make it work in 2015-16.

Next: Paul Millsap Re-Signs 3 Year, $58 Million Deal

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