Keys To The Wolf Den: Role Players or Starters?

In many of my articles, I've used this exact description's below to describe the many caliber's of players in the NBA.

1. Megastars: Extremely rare in the NBA game.  One of a kind, a man among boys.  A player completely above the competition, a player that prides themselves in being the absolute best in any way, shape or form.  A record breaker, a face of the NBA, and the complete player.  They are the ticket sellers, the ones that hype up the crowd, the buzzer beaters, the ones that everyone aspires to be like.  They are megastars because of the simple fact of their team always has a good chance of winning games due to this player being there.  Examples: LeBron James, Chris Paul, Kevin Garnett, Dwyane Wade, Dwight Howard, Tim Duncan, and Kobe Bryant .
   
2. Franchise Players: Players in this category can be considered megastars in some aspects.  The franchise player is considered the go-to guy on the team if there's no megastars.  There are maybe 10 of them. They excel in almost every stat and category. Examples: Brandon Roy, Gilbert Arenas, Steve Nash, Deron Williams, Carmelo Anthony, Tony Parker, Rajon Rondo, Dirk Nowitzki, etc.
3. All-Stars: The main difference between All-Stars and franchise players (and I stress this a lot), is that an All-Star does not win games as much as franchise players.  An All-Star-caliber player can be with a team for six years, yet they never win more than 35 games each season.  Franchise players and megastars always puts their team in positions to win almost all the time.  All franchise players could be considered All-Stars, but not All-Stars are franchise players.  Examples: Al Jefferson, Kevin Martin, Danny Granger, Kevin Durant, Carlos Boozer, Pau Gasol, LaMarcus Aldridge, Joe Johnson, Vince Carter, Rashard Lewis, Hedo Turkoglu, Chris Bosh , Amare Stoudemire, etc.
4. Starters: A solid all-around player, a player needed for more specifics than a role player, whether it be scoring in small amounts of minutes, leadership, defense or other intangibles.  Starters are not All-Stars in the respect that they are just good players, and will always have a future in the NBA, but as far as making the All-Star cut, they probably will never make it. Nevertheless, their value to NBA teams should  always be respected. Examples: Ron Artest, Trevor Ariza, Mo Williams, Jamal Crawford, Richard Jefferson, Jason Richardson, Emeka Okafor, etc.
5. Role Players: Some role players are starters, but most are not.  Some are used for their specific strengths in tight situations.  A respected player who develops in other areas to eventually become starter.  Even as to go as far as a Role Player that can start, so a starter that plays a role. Examples:  Shane Battier, Chris Anderson, , Ryan Hollins, Shannon Brown, Eddie House etc.
6. Bench Warmers: Speaks for itself.  For my purposes, this classification won't be important.

There's much to debate, but when people say role player, I'm not exactly sure what they mean anymore.

The exact name "Role Player", does not necessarily mean "bad player with few talents", but it merely means that a player is going to play a "role" on a team.

People value "Starters", because they are supposed to have talent or other qualifications that exceeds that of a role player...

Starters against the Los Angeles Lakers:

PG-Flynn

SG-Brewer

SF-Gomes

PF-Love

C-Jefferson

One would suggest that the Wolves only have ONE quality NBA starter, and that would be Al Jefferson.

Al Jefferson Over the Last Five Games: 15 PPG 12 RPG 1 BPG

Very decent, a step down from last season's numbers, but a step up for a player that has been averaging 15 PPG and eight RPG.

Jonny Flynn is a rookie, yet Corey Brewer, Ryan Gomes and Kevin Love are all up for evaluation.

From the outside looking in, Al Jefferson is the only quality starter, but from the inside looking in, Kevin Love is a quality starter as well as Ryan Gomes.

Wolves fan's would probably praise me for arguing that Kevin Love and Ryan Gomes are quality starters, and any other fan otherwise would jump down my throat quicker than a "Matrix mechanical bug".

While Kevin Love is more likely to be agreed upon, let's look at Ryan Gomes over his last six games:

• 27 points, three rebounds, two assists, two steals, one block, shooting 12-18 from the field, and 2-4 from the three-point line.
• 20 points, five rebounds, two assists, one steal, shooting 8-13 from the field and 2-3 from the three-point line.
• 15 points, seven rebounds, two assists, two steals, shooting 6-17 from the field and 1-3 from the three-point line.
• 23 points, five rebounds, five assists, one steal, shooting 9-10 from the field.
• 16 points, three rebounds, one block, shooting 6-12 from the field and 1-4 from the three-point line.
• 21 points, six rebounds, one assist, two steals, shooting 10-16 from the field and 1-1 from the three-point line.

Average over last six games: 20 PPG 5 RPG 2 APG 1 SPG, shooting 59 percent from the field and 46 percent from the three-point line.

Apparently, Ryan Gomes has been giving the Wolves very efficient numbers and stuffing the stat sheet. Despite this recent play, is "Ryan Gomes a role player, or is he a starter playing a role" ?

If you want to place role players on the bench, I'm afraid I have to concur. There are MANY role player's that start for their respective teams. Please Consider:

1. Derek Fisher-PG-Los Angeles Lakers
2. Ryan Anderson-PF-Orlando Magic
3. Kendrick Perkins-C-Boston Celtics

Notice that I listed good teams? So does it truly matter that a role player starts? Does that make them bench players? Because each player does not possess overly great skills, they cannot play a role as a starter?

Many Wolves fan's say that Ryan Gomes is not part of the future, as in he's not a quality player, yet the numbers say otherwise. Ryan Gome's versatility on the 3-point line, inside post play, and defense would suggest he's a quality player, but I guess it's a case of "no flash no frills".

Kevin Love's stats: 15 PPG 10 RPG 2 APG

What makes Kevin Love a starter? There are numerous anti-Wolves fan's that would call Kevin Love a role player, because he "merely hustles".

Those number's don't come by hustling, and as a PF, those numbers are among the top in the league.

Shall we even consider the 5-8 three-point shooting in his first four games? Or his 21.75-plus rating? Or even an ability to play within a triangle offense?

What else is remarkable is that Love is capable of better, and is simply put "not getting enough minutes and is out of rhythm and shape".

Clearly, Kevin Love and Ryan Gomes should be kept, as they are quality players.

Thanks For Reading!