Wizards lose to Milwaukee: Final wrap, where our offense fails it's test
by Mike Prada on Mar 4, 2010 11:55 AM EST
in Recaps
26 comments
I think we can all agree that the way our offense has performed in the seven games after trading away all our key scorers is nothing short of remarkable. I think we can also agree that it reflects poorly on the guys we traded away, though to which degree is open to question.
But tonight's loss to Milwaukee underscores one thing that's overlooked: the teams we've played recently are not good defensive teams. Here are the defensive efficiency rank of the team's we've played since the trade, with our offensive efficiency for that game in parenthesis.
Minnesota: 27th (113.7)
Denver: 16th (116.3)
Toronto: 30th (113)
Chicago: 6th (108.6)
Memphis: 23rd (105.6)
New York: 26th (105.5)
New Jersey: 28th (96.7)
There's only one above-average defense in that group, and it was the Bulls, who were playing their fifth game in seven nights and did not have a fully healthy Joakim Noah. Worse, our offense was trending downward anyway, even against very bad defensive teams.
The Bucks are technically ranked lower than the Bulls (8th instead of 6th), but they're easily the toughest defensive matchup of the teams we've played. They were on full rest; the Bulls weren't. They rely on turning you over and pressuring the ball like crazy, which is a tough thing to overcome when you don't have a ton of options. I figured this would be a real test to see how much our execution holds up against a team that won't just let you run its offense. We failed that test.
We failed in part because of sloppiness and in part because of a lack of options. Personally, I'd argue the latter caused the former. Did we make a bunch of dumb passes and poor decisions? Of course we did. However, as of right now, the Wizards don't have anyone who can break a defense down off the dribble. If you do, then you can combat Milwaukee's ball pressure, but the Wizards just don't. Randy Foye can't do it, Earl Boykins can't do it, and Andray Blatche certainly can't do it. Without that luxury, the Bucks could afford to pressure the guards as they tried desperately to get Andray Blatche the ball. The guards, I think, eventually got frustrated and folded. The bigs eventually followed suit. It's bad that they folded, but I really am not sure if there was much that could be done to prevent the conditions that led to them folding.
Especially when Mike Miller won't shoot. Last night's game was an example of the Minnesota version of Mike Miller at his very worst. He passed up open jumpers. He drove and made complicated crosscourt passes that caught his teammates off guard. He passed up a wide open layup at one point to give Nick Young -- a guy who isn't exactly the type that needs someone else to feed him shots -- a contested three-pointer from the corner. For the second straight year, Miller has himself caught in a hopeless losing situation. Once again, Miller is responding by doing nothing. Stop it, Mike. Take charge.
Bottom line: when a team does everything they can to prevent Andray Blatche from getting touches, we have no answer except to force it into Blatche anyway. It's a problem that'll only manifest itself this year, but it will manifest itself again when we play a good defense.
Four Factors (Bold=very good | Italics=very bad)
| Team | Pace | Off Eff | eFG% | FT/FG | OREB% | TOr |
| Washington | 95 | 91.6 | 48.1 | 23.4 | 29.3 | 23.2 |
| Milwaukee |
105.3 | 52.5 | 23.8 | 22.3 | 16.8 |
Snap Reaction: That turnover rate is abysmal. The only time we did worse all season was in a November loss in Miami.
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Not to be a jerk or anything
but the repeated references to “we” and “our” were distracting to me. A very good post nonetheless.
It’s interesting to see the change of perception of Mike Miller since the trades. Before the trades, he was the only glimmer of playing the game the right way in a sea of selfishness. Now … well, I don’t know what he is now, but it’s not anything special. Perhaps he is leading the team to play unselfishly, in which case he IS special, but otherwise, he’s just a decent player. If the current ownership is in play come free agent time and they resign him to a substantial deal, the team will be screwed.
funny
i am also wondering if all the mike miller love is still in full effect after the recent stretch of lackluster play.
by DarrellWalkerFan on Mar 4, 2010 12:21 PM EST up reply actions
If I was Flip, I'd
pull Miller every time he passes on an open look…. I don’t mind him handling the ball (especially with Foye in) and initiating the offense, but there’s no reason that he can’t also use more possessions, even if he did initiate them.
Some encouraging signs though, in the first quarter, where Blatche correctly read the doubleteam and found the appropriate open man to pass to, for open looks at 3’s. I don’t see a good reason why Miller/Foye can’t get 5-6 of those a night.
We All Invest in This Team
Hence the "we and “our”. Our interest in watching raises television revenue for the Wizards, while our ticket purchases help fund the player’s salaries. Considering how much time and money we invest in this team, I think it’s appropriate to say “we” and “our”.
As for Miller, I guess that will depend on what a “substantial deal” is. I think with Gil back to break down defenses off the dribble, which Prada alluded to above, a guy like Miller becomes much more valuable. He is and always was a really good role player. On the right team, he might even be considered a great role player, oxy moron aside. But he definitely isn’t a star or even a first option, and everyone kind of expects him to be now.
Still, if he can be had for slightly more than the MLE, I still think we should resign him. If he wants/gets more, then we should let him walk.
"It's OK for the Bullets to trade baskets, as long as they can score on their end." -- Words of wisdom from Phil Chenier
I dunno if I'm
alone here, but I’m getting kind of tired of Boykins. He is limited as it is, but when the other team has a guy who is small enough to neutralize his shiftiness, then we’re in trouble. Only the Bucks did one better, since Jennings not only neutralized Earls quickness, but was actually quicker than him. If a guy can stay with Boykins step for step, then EB is essentially worthless. At this point, I would much rather see Livingston get a little more PT, just to see if we can uncover his (seemingly) lost talents. I seem to remember the guy being pretty damn good early on with the Clippers.
And I also think that we need a guy who can go one on one. I was holding out hope for Nick Young, but I’ve all but lost complete faith in him.
Lastly, we still need another big body who is at least a little more than worthless as an offensive option. I’m sick of seeing Oberto get the ball down low with space around him, then kick it back out.
Yep
Boykins looked horrible last night. He took bad shots, he took too many shots, he wasted too much time on the shot clock, and he gave the ball away on more than one occasion. I too would like to see another guy get more burn, even though I’m not sure about Livingston.
Oberto also looks washed up. He doesn’t even attempt any offensive moves in isolation any more. He now relies on put-backs and cuts to get all of his points. I wasn’t expecting his post game to completely disappear this season. Dwayne Jones anyone?
"It's OK for the Bullets to trade baskets, as long as they can score on their end." -- Words of wisdom from Phil Chenier
Ditto
Boykins was a great change of pace for like 2 games. Once teams adjusted to him being on the court, he became a liability. Much better to let the rest of this season be in opportunity for Livingston to knock off the rust and see if he’s still got something going on.
Didn't catch the game. Watching my TERPS BEAT DUKE
Whats the scoop…Did Singleton play?
“Especially when Mike Miller won’t shoot. Last night’s game was an example of the Minnesota version of Mike Miller at his very worst. He passed up open jumpers. He drove and made complicated crosscourt passes that caught his teammates off guard.”
Why is he doing this? He can’t create off the dribble.
HE IS A SPOT UP SHOOTER AND SPOT UP PASSER. NOTHING MORE NOTHING LESS.
Actually he's very good at creating off the dribble for a non PG
He’s a much better shooter than he is a facilitator though, so I feel your pain, but his ability to penetrate and finish/dish complements Foye nicely, since Foye doesn’t have PG instincts.
Problem is, he’s facilitating and creating for a subpar cast of players. He looked much better playing the same way earlier in the season, when he had better players around him.
The Pistons Model
We are suffering from lack of options, yes. But I hope we settle for incremental improvements mostly via draft over two or three years. I am concerned about an impatient front office landing us Ben Gordon, Charlie V aka second-tier FA’s on close for first-tier money. Didn’t help them, won’t help us. A return to a roster that takes us from the depths to several years with a second-round exit peak would dishearten at least one Wizards fan.
by morethesamewiz on Mar 4, 2010 2:00 PM EST via mobile reply actions
Thats exactly what happened this summer
We overvalued our roster and made a shortsighted decision that a team with 19 wins from the year before could add Gil, Mike Miller, and Foye and compete for the conference title.
It forced us to dump our talent for less than it was worth and waste another half of a season thinking we were a contender. I’m hoping that we try the incremental approach taken by the Thunder or the Hawks over the last few years.
isn't Miller a glue guy?
First off, hello to all. I’m new, came over with the Thornton trade. Being from Tallahassee, I would say that I’m a Thornton fan, having watched him progress from the time he was an athetically gifted but admittedly clueless freshman, to a minor diety (hey, you wreck Duke at Cameron in the ACC and you GET major props) as a senior. I would say that, except see… usually I tend to like smart ballplayers, you know, guys who know what it’s about and get their thing done while making their teammates better. Think Paul, DWilliams, Kevin Love, those kind of guys. That doesn’t exactly describe Al’s game so far ahem but, he’s FSU, I’m FSU… so whaddayagonnado? Anyway, I’m hoping that the change of scenery and maybe some different/better coaching will help his game. I will say that he’s a hella athelete and has been known to work hard on his game, he certainly did in college, so I’m holding out here for a successful run with the Wizards. One thing, the guy came late in relative life to basketball, so believe it or not his learning curve is probably still in effect to some degree. I’m hoping anyway.
As to Miller. What I’ve seen of him through the years I’ve liked. He’s unselfish, scores well, shoots the three, snags boards and moves the ball around when he’s supposed. Usually. The few games I’ve watched though there seem to be some “are we on the same page” questions concerning his teammates. jdgreger mentioned “passes that caught his teammates offguard”. Huh? It’s just that I’m not so sure that all of those were his fault. I know I’m new here so feel free to correct me, but sometimes the Wizards offense seems a bit… disjointed. Might be tough for a system player like Miller to thrive in a setting where teammates are possibly not where they’re supposed to be? I don’t know, could be a snap judgement, but the Wizards look like they’d be a different team with better leadership at the point. Lotsa talent, slightly less direction than is needed. Put a guy like Billups out there running things and Miller might look more like the facilitator he could be.
Welcome
I agree with a lot of your points. Al Thornton has been playing great basketball since he arrived in Washington, despite his disappearing act last night. But lots of our guys played poorly last night, so I won’t hold it against him. As for Miller, I think people are overreacting to his play in particular from last night’s game. Against the T-Wolves two weeks ago, he went 5 for 5 from the arc and people were saying how great he was. I think he’ll come through with some more big games for us before the season is through.
"It's OK for the Bullets to trade baskets, as long as they can score on their end." -- Words of wisdom from Phil Chenier
I think what most people complain about when they talk about Miller
is that he’s shooting 55% from the field (and almost 55% from three)…yet he takes less than 7 shots a game. Last night, against Milwaukee, he took only 3 shots.
He’s the ONE guy on the Wizards that you wouldn’t mind if he put up a couple of quick shots (especially 3’s), just to see if he’s hot…. (heat checks)… Instead, he passes up wide open shots to pass to his teammates. Last night, he refused a layup so he could pass and have Nick Young (1-8 last night) throw up a contested jumper.
Normally, you’d praise a guy for being so unselfish, but last night he went 1-2 from the 3-point line (50%) and his shooting percentage WENT DOWN….
Since the trade that sent Jamison to Cleveland – just when you expect the Wizards need more guys to step up their scoring – Miller has taken FEWER shots per game. At some point, someone has to point out that his “unselfishness” is hurting the team.
Bullets Forever - where "Dagger ! " happens......
I didn't catch the game, but Miller put up Deshawn Stevenson stats
3 points from your starting shooting guard aint gonna cut it.
What About 2 Points From Your Starting Small Forward?
Let’s face it, just about every Wizard had a bad game last night.
"It's OK for the Bullets to trade baskets, as long as they can score on their end." -- Words of wisdom from Phil Chenier
PASS
Thornton, starter, Miller starter, gets a pass for having a bad game, but not nick, how unfair, but nothing in life is fair.
straight talk
by Mae.jude@yahoo.com on Mar 4, 2010 3:37 PM EST reply actions
I don't see where Miller is getting a pass...
Maybe thornton, but its his first bad game as a Wiz so its understandable. Nick gets no more passes.
He also gives no more passes
HEY-O!
You know you'll get devoured by Cheaney, Wallace, and Juwan Howard.
And its a shame because
Nick may be the type of player for whom the cart must come before the horse. In other words he may need the coach’s confidence before he can have confidence in himself, and he may need a consistent role in order to provide consistent production. As opposed to inspiring his coach’s confidence, and eraning a consistent role…
Anyway all that means is that he needs to be on a team where he doesn’t have to compete for his spot. He needs to go to a team with a hole at the 2/3 Which, based on the way the team is currently constructed, is not here. The roster moves made this offseason will shed a lot of light on how the Wiz brass feels about Nick. If they let any two of Foye, Miller and Howard walk, then I’ll view it as them carving out a spot for Nick.
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