Wizards Vs. Suns Clipboard: Where Lack Of Shooters Hurts Washington
by Mike Prada on Feb 22, 2012 12:02 PM EST
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PrintFor about two years now, I've been beating the drum about how the Washington Wizards have done a woefully inadequate job of surrounding John Wall with three-point shooters. Three-point shooters open up the floor and make it easier for Wall -- a bad perimeter shooter at this stage of his career -- to find players in their spots. Instead, the Wizards really only have a couple players who scare defenses from beyond the arc. The only player shooting even 37 percent from three-point range on the team is Nick Young, and the only other player with even a reputation for being an elite three-point shooter is Rashard Lewis, who is way down at 25 percent this year.
Having good shooters opens up so many possibilities for your offense. By contrast, not having good shooters makes life really difficult for the players who do need space to operate. Let's take a look specifically at several plays where the lack of floor spacing and shooters hurt the Wizards in Phoenix.
(As always, thanks to mySynergySports.com for the clips).
PLAY 1: JAVALE MCGEE ELBOW JUMPER, 9:05 IN FIRST QUARTER
This was a play where McGee actually hit the shot, but it was certainly not the kind of look the Wizards especially wanted. The play involved Young and McGee running a pick and pop with the hopes of creating a decent look for somebody. Here's how the floor spacing looks as Young comes off the screen to his left.
As you can see, Marcin Gortat comes to cut off Young's drive, but look at the weakside. Trevor Booker is not a jump-shooter, and because of that, he's standing on the right wing 16 feet from the basket. That allows Channing Frye to guard both McGee and Booker easily. If Booker had three-point range, like Frye, this would be an easy two-pass rotation for an open three. Instead, the play breaks down and Gortat is able to recover to McGee.
McGee made the shot, but that's a low-percentage attempt.
PLAY 2: TREVOR BOOKER HOOK SHOT, 4:22 LEFT IN FIRST QUARTER
This play should be where the Wizards' guards and their pick and roll partner make their living. Jordan Crawford and Booker (in this case) run a pick and roll, and the pocket bounce pass to Booker is wide open. Booker has a ton of space and really should explode for an easy layup.
The problem? Jan Vesely, who has no shooting ability, is in the way.
There's actually a double-whammy of a problem here. Not only is Vesely right in Booker's lane to dive to the rim, but the man in the weakside corner is Wall, who has no three-point shooting ability. That means that not only is Gortat right there to cut off the dive to the rim, but Nash is also there to rush out on Booker to prevent the open jumper.
The end result is Booker's lane is cut off, forcing him to settle for a wild hook shot that misses.
Vesely's presence means Booker can't throw the pass to Wall in the corner, and Wall's inability to hit that shot anyway allows Nash to jump in and be another pest as Booker tries the hook shot.
PLAY 3: JOHN WALL TURNOVER, 4:58 LEFT IN SECOND QUARTER
This is about as bad of a spacing fail as you'll ever see. Wall gets dinged with the turnover here, but you tell me exactly what he's supposed to do.
You have McGee and Young, the latter of whom should be camped out by the three-point line, standing on top of each other on one side, and you have Lewis, who should be a shooter, sitting at 17 feet instead of in the corner. No point guard is able to create anything with that kind of horrendous spacing.
PLAY 4: TREVOR BOOKER MISSED HOOK SHOT, 4:19 LEFT IN THIRD QUARTER
By now, the Wizards had begun to fall apart thanks to rushed shots and selfish offensive play. On this play, though, bad spacing is what caused a missed shot. This is very similar to Play 2, with Vesely standing on the block and preventing Booker from making a straight drive to the basket.
You could also argue Booker's own inability to hit a perimeter shot hurts here, since he had a pretty open look initially. You'd be right.
PLAY 5: JOHN WALL'S TURNOVER, 3:19 LEFT IN THIRD QUARTER
This was written off as another turnover for Wall, but again, what would you have him do here? As he comes off a pick set by Booker, Kevin Seraphin, for some reason, is right in his lane.
Lots of things are happening here. For one, Wall can't take a shot because Seraphin is in his way. For another, a pass to Booker solves very little because Booker's own inability to shoot a three allows Gortat to cover two people. Finally, Young should probably cut backdoor from the left corner, but he doesn't. That leaves Wall with only one pass, and Grant Hill sees it coming and easily picks it off.
IN SUMMATION...
Having shooters makes everything so much easier for everyone. If the Wizards want to fix their offense, Ernie Grunfeld or whoever is in charge this summer simply has to find many of them.
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I'm curious
What would you attribute this lack of shooters to? It’s hard to imagine EG coming into this season with such a glaring hole (although I think a lot of us, myself included, were saying this before the season started). So what did he think he was going to happen and didn’t? Was it:
1. The lack of development in Wall and Crawford’s jump shot?
2. The rapid decline of Rashard Lewis?
3. The Roger Mason signing?
4. Flip’s system which tends to focus on long 2s, rather than 3s?
Looking at the team, I think part of the problem is that EG is constantly “fighting the last war.” The Arenas-Butler-Jameson teams needs energy and glue guys like Ves and Singleton. The John Wall Wizards need shooters and big men that can set picks, but we drafted energy guys with 3 of our last 5 picks.
Shooting is something that can be improved
Non-hustle players never turn into hustle players. Factor in the need to change the culture here, and EG brought in the right players. It’s just disappointing how little our young guys have improved their outside shooting. Maybe the lost off season hurt us there. Our guys should have been practicing their J’s instead of playing in Israel and in glorified pickup games.
Agreed
Guys like Lewis, Blatche, Mason, and Evans were supposed to fill the gap, but they’ve definitely been disappointing.
With Mason it's his own fault
I don’t know when, but at some point within the last few years he decided it was a good idea to not jump straight up when he shoots. It looks cool to hit a three while falling to the side or something a la Ray Allen coming hard off of a pick, but his accuracy has tanked as a result.
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by pantslessyoda1 on Feb 22, 2012 2:01 PM EST up reply actions
Othyus Jeffers was a great hustle player
should we resign him and teach him to shoot?
We can find hustle players for deep on the bench. If they turn into shooters, great. But focusing on them exclusively? Not wise imho.
You are right but...
in this last draft there were no drop-dead shooters available (OK maybe we should have taken a shot at Marshon Brooks instead of Singleton but at the time everyone was screaming about what a steal Singleton was at 18). So we went for energy and D…
EG may have been slightly delusional here, but his reasoning had to have been that, (1) Nick can shoot the 3, which is true, (2) Lewis can shoot the 3, which alas is no longer true… hard to believe he is only 32 with no lead in his pencil, (3) Mason can shoot the 3, oops, well maybe before 2 PM (4) Crawford can shoot the 3, well sort of, he can shoot from anywhere, right… You see where I am going? Straight into the land of broken dreams, for sure, but I think you can see how in his mind (if not in his heart of hearts) EG could believe that he had a couple of shooters on this squad.
Where are the Whitneys, Leglers and Prices of today, one wonders… to say nothing of the remarkable Tracy Murray. Surely there must be some players of this calibre lurking in the D League, or toiling away in Lithuania or Spain… Steve Novak, a known and proven bomber, had been relegated to the D League until the Knicks and Jeremy Lin breathed new life into him. Matt Bonner still chucks em in from downtown, and Ryan Anderson is a revelation. You are right, Mike, we don’t got one of those and the absence is glaring.
Whether EG is here for the long or short term, he needs to find a bombs away guy (or two in case one of them is off) to spread the floor a bit for Mr Wall before the roof really caves in on this season… God lord even the under-talented Cavs teams that surrounded LeBron in his youth at Gibson and Jones to hit the kick-out and open the floor for crab-dribbles.
Aaargh.
Where is Cartier Martin??
Is there any doubt that he could contribute 15 productive minutes per night on this team?
Bullets fan stuck in CO.
Marshon is a mini Nick Young so there was no reason to draft him...
I think Singleton was the right pick and I’m not ready to declare him to be a bust. But he’s not ready yet to play major minutes. I like Ves, but he’s not a 6th pick not for a team with all our needs and that is the problem. We should have drafted Kawhi Leonard.
I hope Ernie goes out and gets a Ray Allen or even Paul Pierce. I’m wondering if Boston is going to blow up their team since they aren’t contenders anymore and are currently the 8th seed in the conference, anyone of those two would help the team and really help Wall.
At least statistically, Brooks is far more complete than Nick.
He gets assists, steals, even some blocks and offensive boards.
I think we really whiffed on not taking Brooks or Faried 18th. I went to the Nuggets game on Monday and Faried was like the Tazmanian Devil with a soft 12-foot jumper. Ferocious rebounder and he really frustrated Kevin Love with his D.
Bullets fan stuck in CO.
Marshon is averaging 14pts/2assts/4rebs as a rookie....that's pretty damn good
and more assists and rebounds than Nick has averaged at any point in his career i think
You are joking right? NY will not be in Washington in two months
..then what?
by les boulez bomber on Feb 22, 2012 2:06 PM EST up reply actions
and we will be right back in the lottery
the comment made earlier was why draft a Marshon Brooks bec we have NY. And my comment was bec NY has a short shelf life with us. So that is a pretty darn good reason to draft another SG.
And your solution is to just keep replacing the talent that leaves? So next year we can get a center? I mean everyone knows we can replace a guy that leaves through the draft. Am I missing some other point?
by les boulez bomber on Feb 22, 2012 2:51 PM EST up reply actions
I hope you are right about Singleton...
From what I sense, he has bust written all over him. His game is so far removed from the package we allegedly were getting I think (as someone else has said) he has been body snatched
Even with those defensive picks our defense really hasn't improved, our hustle definitely has though...
Vesley tries hard but fouls waaayyy too much, he needs to stay at the 4 defensively he can’t guard centers and Singleton has gotten murdered by a lot of people…isn’t defense supposed to be one of the things that carried over to the NBA or is that just rebounding?
All rookies are poor defenders
Adjusting to the NBA game is difficult, but if someone has great physical tools (like singleton and vesely) and great defensive effort (like singleton and vesely) they often become shutdown defenders
johns assist numbers
would skyrocket if anyone on this team could shoot the basketball. He would be close to averaging a double double per game… time to get some bona fide shooters this offseason
"Through your existence, become wealthy, knowledge is king"- Nasir Jones
"When you play for the Wizards, [Gilbert Arenas] is like Michael Jackson. He's playin with a lot of Tito Jacksons." - Charles Barkley
He'd also probably finish better around the basket
Since it would be harder for guys to help on him when they’re coming from the three point line instead of the elbow. Then again, I’m not sure that there’s that much evidence to support this.
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by pantslessyoda1 on Feb 22, 2012 2:02 PM EST up reply actions
Take Harrison Barnes then John Jenkins
From NBAdraft.net:
With his Commodores having dropped three of four games, Jenkins raised his marksmanship to new levels of proficiency. In comfortable road victories at Mississippi and at Georgia, the junior guard cashed in on 13/16 field goal attempts, 10/12 three-pointers and 18/21 free throws. Those 21 FT’s matched his total from the prior six games combined. He scored 54 points for an astounding 3.4 points per shot attempt. Jenkins leads the nation in treys made (3.9 per game) while still holding firm at 13th in percentage (45.9). In a word: money.
The good news is that...
….McGee is starting to develop a low-post game and the Wizards have a good shot at getting Barnes.
The bad news is that they are going to lose Young. So they will need a replacement at the 2 and a brute who can score at the 4.
The current management team has shown no indication of being able to pull that off.
getting shooters means finding players who will push Vesely and Singleton down the bench
early returns on EG’s 2nd draft under the new Plan are a FAIL.
the error of choosing Singleton looms larger and larger...
You don’t need to spend a sixth pick on a one-dimensional shooter but that is exactly what EG should have looked for at 18 or in FA-hood (did he get a bonus from the Commish for giving contracts to not one but two players union stiffs?).
Markieff Morris is kinda struggling now but still shooting 41% from 3PT (he's hit 31 3s)
Vesely is shooting 0% from 10ft+ and 11% from 3-9ft….one thing EG absolutely cannot do (which you alluded to above) is go forward on the assumption that any of these guys is going to develop a legit nba stroke. I mean maybe they will, but we cant pin next season’s perfroamce on Vesely’s jumpshot or Singleton’s 3PT prowess unless those guys show real progress this season. And maybe they will, but so far nada
Hang on hang on
Singleton was a great pick at the time. There was widespread rejoicing here that we managed to get him and David Aldridge was ridiculously high on him. He can hit the three, he just needs more practice at it, especially at NBA speed. I still like the pick and think Singleton is going to be a great piece down the road. Just as soon as he gets back from his extended vacation to Slumps-ville.
Singleton was a good pick
Good defender who can hit the three a little bit already, and probably better later as he focuses on that more. He’ll be a great 7th man, or perhaps even 5th man in a couple years. Buck hates him for some reason, so I expect everyone here to start hating him too. Biased play calling strikes again…
I just hope he focuses on being as good as he can be on his three-pointers
If he focuses and develops that shot, he increases his value tremendously. I worry he thinks he’s capable of doing more and will step out of his lane — he mentioned that one of his goals after being drafted was showing off his all-around game. That worried me a bit.
I think his defense will come – he played inside in college, doing it on the perimeter is an adjustment.
Never draft a defensive specialist
Because you can’t defend from the bench.
by ReturnofBillyJOe on Feb 22, 2012 3:06 PM EST up reply actions
First off this article is amazing and it sums up the wizards issues....
When we are shooting well i.e the Portland game, we can definitely win games, when we don’t we fall off at the end of games.
Like Michael Lee’s article, we win when Nick Young is shooting well and when he doesn’t, we don’t have any other players on the team that are threats from the outside. When you throw out a lineup of Wall, Young, Singleton, Booker, and McGee, you only have one player in the lineup that can shoot threes consistently and that’s Young so when he’s off we really don’t have any three point shooters, compared to a Phoenix team that throws out Nash, Dudley, Frye, and maybe even Hill out as capable three point shooters. This spaces the floor and allows Nash to find the right player due to all the space. The threat of a shooter is just as important and we don’t have enough threats.
Roger Mason and Rashard were supposed to be good 3pt shooters, but Roger Mason played all of 26 games last year… for the Knicks… That isn’t a viable solution to your 3pt woes, even for the vet minimum. And Rashard is a dinosaur and can’t shoot 3s anymore. Therefore Mr. Grunfeld hasn’t addressed the issue at all, not in the draft or free agency.
Bottom line is having 3pt shooters solves many issues on this offense, it allows John Wall to drive more and finish because of the space, or drive and dish and make the defense pay. So that should definitely be our number one priority next summer, a shooter at any position, even a 4 like Brandon Bass who can hit that short jumper with ease would be great.
Also Ves and Singleton aren’t NBA starters right now and shouldn’t be guaranteed playing time. Just because they are draft picks doesn’t mean that they should have playing time. They both foul way too much and just aren’t ready on the offensive end, this should’ve been the year where they would sit and learn the game more but we have no other options. They can be good players down the line, but simply aren’t ready yet.
Oh and Blatche should be a 3pt shooter like Frye, he has good form and could probably shoot threes. If he’s going to camp out 2 feet behind the 3pt line he might as well shoot threes instead.
All good points
It reminds me of how much Philly’s offense improved when Jodie Meeks – who as an all-around player isn’t that special, but at least he can hit 40 percent of his threes and get the shot off quickly enough to score more than 10 or 12 points per 40 minutes – came in. It was almost Lin-like in that the guy on his own wasn’t that incredible, but he fit the players around him perfectly.
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by pantslessyoda1 on Feb 22, 2012 2:04 PM EST up reply actions
Do you mean the same Jodie Meeks who was selected 9 picks after Washington picked Jermaine Taylor and sold his rights to Houston?
Funny thing is that even though I think we were trying to make a playoff run with vets, Meeks could have helped us then
We really haven’t had a dead eye three point shooter since Roger Mason Jr. or D Steve in 2008, and they were more good than great.
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by pantslessyoda1 on Mar 1, 2012 3:08 PM EST up reply actions
YES...SHOOTERS...THAT IS WHAT WE NEED BECAUSE THE ORLANDO MAGIC HAVE PROVEN DEADLY SHOOTERS WINS CHAMPIONSHIPS
Shooters are important so it is not like you are way off base, but you are severly over-rating their impact on this team, and underrating the shooters we do have on this team! Planning to shoot 40+% from three to win 16 games in the playoffs is what teams that are too dumb to score in the front court try to do. And quite candidly, if Orlando can not win a championship with DH, and that team is stacked with shooters, then WAS isnt going to do so with JW.
Mack shoots 41% from 3. Pretty darn good. Young shoots better than 37% once you exclude his fade away contested let me chuck it towards the basket because I dont pass bad shots. We had Alonzo Gee, another upper thirty percent SF on the roster. EG let Gee go and decided to fill the position with two guys who can not shoot- at all! But NY can play the three most nights, and it is whitman’s fault for not running a lineup that has Mack and NY, the two best 3pt shooters on the team, playing together to open things up like you said.
This team will get better shooters, especially at SF. But you are sorely mistaken why this team keeps losing…it has no front court. We are getting killed every game, despite individual highlights here and there.
ps- Play one is a very solid play. It is basically a free throw, and even JVM can hit that shot about 50% in a game.
ps2- I wish someone would really hold the fire to EG and ask him what role he projected JV to play with our #6 pick, and how long EG believes it will take JV to learn to shoot?
by les boulez bomber on Feb 22, 2012 2:02 PM EST reply actions
that is exactly my point.
the closer you are to the basket, the higher percentage of making a shot
I know you get an extra point for the 3. but NO TEAM has ever beaten the basic math and won a championship…you have to do it 16 times in the playoffs.
You can get hot, like we did in Portland and go on a mini-streak, but there are too many games in the playoffs to go all the way
by les boulez bomber on Feb 22, 2012 2:10 PM EST up reply actions
Yeah- they are a GREAT shooting team. And Dirk carried them making two pointers primarily. And they also had a 100mm dollar payroll.
So maybe I should note the asterisk…no team has ever done it (*without being 50% over the cap)
by les boulez bomber on Feb 22, 2012 2:12 PM EST up reply actions
You're also missing the point
That having guys who can shoot makes it easier for everyone else to get good looks closer to the basket.
There’s the Spurs too.
No I get that
And I noted that shooting is important. You do need guys who can knock down open shots at a decent clip. But average is fine. They dont need to be snipers. And to another sub point of mine, we DONT even play the shooters we have together. Both NY and Mack should shoot 40% on open threes right now. They are here. They get no play together with JW
Where I disagree with you is the next step for the Wizzards is in the front court, not adding shooters on the perimeter.
You stick a double double type of guy in the front court, he can score, rebound, defend, and pass to open shooters. It is SO much more important than adding a shooter in developing this team.
The next step is in the front court for this team, not complementing it with better shooters.
by les boulez bomber on Feb 22, 2012 2:18 PM EST up reply actions
Where I disagree with you is the next step for the Wizzards is in the front court, not adding shooters on the perimeter.
Who said anything about THE next step
I dont know how to make the fancy box, but you concluded with
Having shooters makes everything so much easier for everyone. If the Wizards want to fix their offense, Ernie Grunfeld or whoever is in charge this summer simply has to find many of them.
And my point is if you want to fix this offense, you will do so with a better front court long before you do it with better shooters. There are a couple other comments around this comments that further clarify my points
You are right about our shooting woes. But I think the problem is over rated. The front court is the problem with this team- the top problem. #2 and #3 being the lack of scoring from the SF position and not having guys that play team ball
by les boulez bomber on Feb 22, 2012 2:29 PM EST up reply actions
Well I don't agree then
You could stock this team with five Shaqs in their primes and they’d all just get in each other’s way.
of course.
But that is not even a serious consideration. They’d probably win just as many games as five Ray Allens
So let me ask you, what is up with the Celtics then. Why are they basically a .500 team. They have Allen and Pierce- who are both lights out shooters, a good defense, a solid point guard, and KG…and they are a 0.500 team.
Or what about OKC with Durant, Westbrook, and Harden and they cant make it out of the west. are we going to do better than those three? no way…and they cant do it (though they should get there this year, the difference will be the front court scoring of Ibaka. They have no shot against the heat without Ibaka scoring.
Whether you agree with me or not is your preference. But I am telling you, relying on shooting your way up the standings and playing for championships is the hard way to go about things. You need an all star in the front court and the back court to have a chance. And we have our back court prospect already. the next step is front court
by les boulez bomber on Feb 22, 2012 2:44 PM EST up reply actions
So let me ask you, what is up with the Celtics then. Why are they basically a .500 team. They have Allen and Pierce- who are both lights out shooters, a good defense, a solid point guard, and KG…and they are a 0.500 team.
Injuries, Rondo can’t shoot, they can’t rebound, their centers provide nothing, KG’s washed up.
Or what about OKC with Durant, Westbrook, and Harden and they cant make it out of the west. are we going to do better than those three? no way…and they cant do it (though they should get there this year, the difference will be the front court scoring of Ibaka. They have no shot against the heat without Ibaka scoring.
First of all, you’re assuming the Thunder don’t win.
Second of all, Harden and Durant are great shooters.
Third of all, Ibaka’s a really good midrange shooter.
Fourth of all, you’re already demonstrating circular logic by saying if the Thunder do win, it must be because of a factor that proves your point.
The celtics sound like us…injuries, our pg is not a great shooter, no front court scoring…so to your point I guess, two hall of fame shooters can get you to 0.500…which sounds about right…the same impact Shaq had his first year
I mean, I think we agree. Certainly I said you need guys who can hit open shots and front court scoring. It is not an either/or situation. You have not acknowledged it explicitly, but I assume you agree. The Lakers are a good example of a team with inside scoring and need shooters.
Am I mistaken? Do you really believe you can shoot your way to a championship?
If not, the only real question is what is the order to proceed. And aside from being harder to find, upgrading the front court will translate into a more meaningful impact because of the obvious fact, they impact the game in more areas
Regarding your countdown,
1- Yes, the Heat should win this year. They are the best team in the league. Of course, anything can happen. But they stand atop the majority of power rankings for a reason, and it is not a real stretch to think the best team will win. Do you believe differently?
2- H and D are great shooters. That is why I used them as an example of a team with great shooters and still can not win it. Do you think WAS will bring in better shooters than that duo? How are we going to do better than them.
3- Ibaka- to my point…the next step for that team is for Ibaka to become a full blown offensive threat. He looks improved offensively to me this year. And he is the reason why Harden will probably be the one to go to keep that core together (although you can make a case for westbook to be that guy).
4- I dont know about circular logic, but name me one team that won a championship that did not have an all star in the front court? I think it is a fact supported by nearly every championship roster construction in my forty years of following the NBA. If it is circular logic, then that is by chance. The NBA is a big man’s game and always will be because that is where the scarcity value is and always will lie. It is a fact, an undeniable law of physics. There will always be fewer taller people that can play basketball because there will always be fewer tall people!
by les boulez bomber on Feb 22, 2012 3:13 PM EST up reply actions
Yes, but the two we have down can have a big impact for us
by les boulez bomber on Feb 22, 2012 3:37 PM EST up reply actions
Or you can compare it to good/decent teams
like the Knicks and Heat who have both been without their stars for a while.
The artist formerly known as ledellforlife.
I am not sure your point. I think we have been healthy. The players who are injured could help our dreadful team.
The Heat have had two superstars nearly all season. And the NYK are better without their stars and with Jeremy Lin…obviously
by les boulez bomber on Feb 22, 2012 4:55 PM EST up reply actions
You mean their spacing got better when they stopped
going iso on 90% of their plays?
Color me surprised.
My point is that the Wizards are exceptionally healthier than they were last year, and they are perhaps performing at a lesser level.
The artist formerly known as ledellforlife.
I spend most of my time breathing through paper bags
after reading comments like these…
by Bullet Nation in Exile on Feb 22, 2012 5:13 PM EST up reply actions
HAHA YES!
I agree with both those statements.
I feel JW’s shooting is the guerrilla in the room. Because he does not have a great shot. He is not a strong leader. If nothing else, it would give him the confidence to step up and be more vocal.
Nothing on him, but it is hard to know deep down you are the leader when you miss a lot. It is a big reason this team plays so much ISO ball.
Having said that, I think his shooting is better than his start this year. I think he was in his head a lot on his shooting. And I think he he is shooting better now and hitting shots amped his confidence and led to better play all around. And I think it is a problem he will solve.
What I am not doing is dismissing how hard and negatively it has impacted the whole team.
Generally, we have been a healthy team for sure.
by les boulez bomber on Feb 22, 2012 5:15 PM EST up reply actions
Bottom line, if JW shot like Kyrie Irving, we would have a record like Cleveland
And things would not seem so dismal. And we wouldnt be saying that poor shooting by the other players is the cause of being 7-22…because we wouldnt be 7-22 or whatever we are now =)
by les boulez bomber on Feb 22, 2012 5:19 PM EST up reply actions
You're arguing a zillion things
Obviously, you need great talent everywhere to win a title, but this is simply about not having the worst offense in the league and maximizing the development of the young players on the roster. Comparisons to other teams and winning championships and what order to do this all in and all that … it’s distracting from the main issue:
1. The Wizards’ best player is the fastest point guard in the league who is a poor shooter. To maximize his ability, he needs space to operate. Space to operate is provided by shooters that the defense can’t help off. Wall has demonstrated that he’s fully capable of finding those guys for open shots.
2. The only player on the Wizards who can consistently hit a spot-up three is Nick Young, and he doesn’t do it enough because he searches for his own shot.
3. No matter how much player movement, high-IQ players, etc the Wizards have, they will always have issues running a half-court offense with this roster because of the lack of floor spacing.
4. The NBA is not what the NBA was 10 years ago or even five years ago. The rule changes place a premium on spacing and deep shooting. Arguing anything beyond recent history does nothing for me.
Ergo, the lack of shooting is a huge problem. It especially frustrates me because while finding an all-star frontcourt player is usually very difficult and comes down to luck, finding shooters really shouldn’t be very hard.
by Mike Prada on Feb 22, 2012 3:20 PM EST up reply actions 1 recs
The game of basketball is inter-related. One thing affects another. It just seems like a lot, but things dont change in a vacuum
Here are the two most relevant points in a nutshell to keep on track:
1- The Wizards are not as bad a shooting team as their
percentages indicate.
A- This team, and its primary shooters especially, take too many bad shots. NY is a perfect example, he can make better then 37% of his open threes. He takes too many contested threes and turn around fade away threes.
B- This team does not maximize its ability to field shooters. If it did, NY would get burn at the three and Mack would be the second guard on the floor.
2- This shooting problem is OVERRATED. The Wizards have played 32 games. They have made 141 of 472, or 30% of their threes. It amounts to 14 attempts per game. If they shot 50% better, and is there even a TEAM in the NBA that can average 45% from 3- which I think not- but assuming we could, it amounts to six additional points per game. In a more realistic assumption, we are missing out on about three points per game from average. They are giving up 25% more three pointers a game, period. SO perimeter defense is as equal a problem as perimeter offense. In reality, we give up a 6 point edge on the perimeter, 3 from both offense and defense.
You are stone cold right about it not being difficult to find shooters. We had two; we let one go.
by les boulez bomber on Feb 22, 2012 4:03 PM EST up reply actions
that's incorrect on many levels
one of which being that hitting a few more shots “only” results in 3pts more per game. As Mike terrifically illustrated in this post, having players who can legitimately make those shots opens up the offense all around- it is NOT just a matter of ‘if we shot 10% better we would score 3 more pts’
If you ignore the facts, you are right
There are only three ways to score more points: take more shots, hit more shots, or some combination of the two
You can not shit points. And what one team is doing is a fact. So you cant really argue that.
And if a perimeter scoring team, one loaded with high percentage shooters is the way to go, I give you your Orlando Magic.
So you may not agree with me. But you can not support why because the teams closest to what you are implying HAVE NOT WON- EVER!!!
by les boulez bomber on Feb 22, 2012 4:29 PM EST up reply actions
YOU ARE WRONG MIKE ON THE CORE PROBLEM...SORRY
If you were right on the core problem, then your solutions would be right. But it is off, and hence my comments.
The core problem with what you are discussing is not that the Wizards lack shooters.
The core problem is that John Wall doesnt shoot well enough. PERIOD. If John Wall shot well enough, many of these problems become addressed:
The offense would flow better:
there would be better spacing for a couple reasons:
They have to cheat on JW. He will draw defenders creating better, more open looks than they currently get which they will make at a higher percentage.
There will be a lot less “hero” ball. If JW could shoot better, he would have better control of the team on the court. And these clowns would not take it upon themselves to do it on their own
This team’s on court leadership takes a HUGE hit because the best player, the PG running the offense, can not shoot well enough.
That will change. He will learn to shoot well enough. He is a better shooter than the 22% he shot to start the season. And not by accident, we won more games. But once he can make his shot consistently, he can look those guys in the eye and say follow me. Dont play hero ball. I will get mine and get you your open looks. Make your shots.
He cant do that now. And that is the best way to get spacing to open up this offense. NY can shoot. We know that for a fact. The problem is not enough shooters on the court, though of course, we need more. The complete vacuum at SF and whenever JV is on the court really hurts.
But if you want to point to one thing you can do to improve shooting percentages, and hence, “open up the offense,” the best, most important, #1 thing that can occur is JW learning to shoot at a GOOD clip. I dont care who you stack on this team. They can not make the impact he can.
by les boulez bomber on Feb 22, 2012 4:21 PM EST up reply actions
five Shaqs in their primes
Even a brain dead monkey could design a defense to beat that team….
“When Shaq 1 gets the ball, foul him…. When Shaq 2 gets the ball, foul him…..”
I used to have super powers until my psychiatrist took them away.
On the other hand...
I shutter to even think about a team made up of 5 Ray Allen s
How do you defend that?
Ray Allen 2 sets screen for Ray Allen 3 – while Ray Allen 4 sets screen for Ray Allen 5. Ray Allen 1, comes over the timeline looking for Ray Allen 2 or 5 to be open, if not he shoots = AND SCORES!
Or -
pick-and-pop with Ray Allen and Ray Allen – Ray Allen sets screen, then fades to an open spot… while Ray Allen comes off screen looking to score… If he’s defended, Ray Allen passes to Ray Allen for the open look… HE SCORES!
I used to have super powers until my psychiatrist took them away.
See I think they would expend the 24 sec each time
because they would run the screen into infinity
The artist formerly known as ledellforlife.
Of course....
I meant no disrespect to any brain dead monkeys out there… and if I offended any brain dead monkeys, I sincerely apologize.
I used to have super powers until my psychiatrist took them away.
That, or the full court press
Team Shaq would look like LSU in the National Championship.
Bullets Forever: Waiting for the Fat Lady to sing since 2006. | @jakewhitacre
by Jake Whitacre on Feb 22, 2012 4:10 PM EST up reply actions
Boston, San Antonio, and Dallas all won with a lot of three point shooting
The Lakers and the Heat are the only teams to win them recently without much in the way of three point shooting, and they had either Shaq or two skilled seven footers on the floor at all times. Spacing is really important in basketball, even when the Celtics weren’t playing two 40 percent shooters, they always had at least three guys who had very accurate jumpers on the floor.
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by pantslessyoda1 on Feb 22, 2012 2:11 PM EST up reply actions
Define alot
Because I believe we have a different number. Why, because all of those teams had an all star that can score in the front court. In fact, every champion I can ever think of had an all star that could score in the paint.
So if you can get 50 points or so in the paint and 50 or so on the perimeter, then yeah, you can win. And you named a bunch of teams that could do that.
But we can not get 50 points in the paint, we are like 35 points or so. So we need about 65 points outside…and my point is that we are not going to get that type of production in the NBA through the playoffs to win a championship.
And that is why I am stressing that shooting is an over rated problem for this team. The problem lies in the front court.
by les boulez bomber on Feb 22, 2012 2:23 PM EST up reply actions
Boston, San Antonio, and Dallas
All have frontcourt players that are great jumpshooters. KG can shoot the 16-23 ft jump shot very well, so does Dirk of course. Tim Duncan so i see your point there, but even he shoots well. Look at Miami, their big guy is mostly a shooter also in Bosh, and he allows them to SPACE THE FLOOR…. You don’t see Lebron and Wade ever having difficulty driving because they have threats on the outside with Chalmers, Miller, and Bosh who can all shoot open jumpers. And Lebron and Wade can shoot also.
Very few teams average 50 points from their bigs, not even L.A or even Memphis, thats a lot to ask… You really need like 30-40 pts per game and you’ll be fine and McGee, Booker, and even Blatche when healthy can easily give you that.
Nobody has recently won a Championship the "old" way
with a bruising, back-to-the-basket big man pounding the opponent in the Post.
Since the rule changes – and the propensity of the Officials to call every flop a charge – low post play has gone the way of the dinosaur.
The League rewards fast, quick perimeter play… Making it more and more difficult to keep Point Guards out of the lane…. causing defenses to compress… leaving open shooters at the 3-point line. THAT is the model for the new NBA….
I used to have super powers until my psychiatrist took them away.
Right...and that is why the Orlando Magic have won exactly ZERO championships
Of course the game has opened up. But there has not been one team ever constructed in the history of the NBA that has won that way.
So I guess you are saying be patient…lol I have heard that one before
Seriously, though, shooters are not that hard to find. Most teams can field shooters. It takes more than shooters to win it. They are not rare enough. To make a difference, to offset those poor shooting nights, you need another trick up your sleeve.
You act like I am saying shooters are not important. I am saying they are plentiful enough not to be a major problem. It is not what holds a team back from winning it all. There are plenty of shooters scattered across this league.
There is no scarcity value to shooters. If I had to sum it up in one point, that is it. The Heat are the Heat because of the big three, not because of Cole, Chalmers, and Miller
Get it? I dont care who you replace our guys with unless you come up with some dream team that cant fit under the cap. Realistically though, adding a couple better shooters does not move the needle on this team like adding front court talent. BECAUSE it is easy to add shooters- which is why I dont complain about the shooting.
by les boulez bomber on Feb 22, 2012 4:40 PM EST up reply actions
The heat have the best shooting percentage in the leage
and the best 3pt shooting percentage in the league at 40%, they are definitely a good shooting team and the big three can all make shots. Also 3pt shooting isn’t the only problem its general shooting, McGee isn’t a threat at shooting, neither is Booker (yet), or Ves, or Seraphin, or Rashard, and like you pointed our John Wall isn’t a great shooter yet… but he isn’t even close to the biggest problem.
But yea, the best team in the league right now are also the best team at shooting.
Are you saying the biggest problem on our team is the shooting by non-John Wall players?
It is a problem for sure. It is not the biggest problem for sure.
The #1 problem for sure is JW’s shooting. But that will correct itself without adding additional players. When JW learns to shoot better, everyone will get better looks, and their shooting percentage will increase from that alone. So his improvement improves everybody. Adding three new shooters to this roster only masks the real problem.
The #1 problem that needs players added to this roster lies in the front court- defense, rebounding, and scoring. We are getting crushed there.
We have a good shooter on the court most of the game. His name is NY. Only one guy can shoot the ball at a time. If it were simply a matter of adding better shooters, we would be a more competitive team than we are currently.
by les boulez bomber on Feb 22, 2012 5:03 PM EST up reply actions
i've been following all of this
and i would second that we need a stud, all-star pf. i.e. plug in kevin love or pau gasol and this team changes significantly. also, i’m not sure the bulls had a stud pf when they won their last 3 titles. they had rodman, who was the best defender and rebounder, but had no offense. at all. but they had jordan, the best ever, and pippen, who i would say is a top 20 all time player. and they had luke longley. imagine that squad with a legit center? probably 5 losses, tops.
Jefferson is a stud 4
he trashed the entire Wiz front line without breaking sweat. Maybe the Wiz should try to sign him. He is only 26. I don’t think its a slam dunk Utah will re-sign him. They may want to move Kanter in next season and be gone with Jeffersons contract. Same with Devin Harris for that matter. Lets take Harris and Jefferson off their hands.
by hambonejackson on Feb 22, 2012 8:57 PM EST up reply actions
good idea
they definitely wont be able to keep all that talent
by les boulez bomber on Feb 23, 2012 12:12 AM EST up reply actions
Mack shoots 35.7% from 3, and 41.8% from the field. Not terrible but I wouldn't worry about him too much on defense.
Alonzo Gee went 0 for 2 from 3 pointers last year with us… so I guess he didn’t have a shot then, we also had a logjam at SF so thats why we let him go. A bad decision but understandable. And our front court doesn’t get killed every night, our SFs get killed every night. McGee and Booker have actually played well recently, and considering we are missing 2 frontcourt players that figured to get minutes last night, the front court is doing okay.
Your Orlando reference is valid, but they atleast went to an NBA championship and has lost because they don’t have any playmakers to get the ball to their shooters. Jameer Nelson is not on John Wall’s level as a passer or a playmaker, he does shoot better though. Point is they have shooters but their point guard position is lacking. But they won 52 games and were dominant during the regular season but went cold in the playoffs, it happens.
And like people pointed out below, Dallas won because of shooting so it can be done, and of course because Dirk went HAM.
And i agree i like Ves but he’s a pick that would be good at 18 not at 6.
Gee is looking pretty good in Cleveland
Man could we use him this year.
by ReturnofBillyJOe on Feb 22, 2012 3:08 PM EST up reply actions
Your argument is he missed his only two shots? Do you really think that is a sample size worth mentioning? Gee went for something like 17 points, 11 rebounds, and 1 for 3 from three last game.
I think an average shooter can make 35% of his open threes. A good shooter hits 40-45%. Unless you are planning on taking a lot of threes, then the difference is not enough points to move the needle in the W column.
If you are planning on loading up a team with a lot of three point specialists, I will point you in the direction of the ORlando Magic, who have tried that model for years without winning it.
by les boulez bomber on Feb 22, 2012 3:36 PM EST up reply actions
No i'm basing my argument on that he played 11 games and only took 2 3pt shots
Not that he missed them, even if he went 1/2 or 2/2, shooting two 3pt shots in 11 games means you aren’t a shooter. He probably improved his 3pt shot, but you can’t say he was a three point shooter while he was here. Shelvin Mack is an okay 3pt shooter, but my point is he doesn’t shoot it enough to make teams respect that, even if he is making 36% of them. He is shooting less than 1 per game, so thats my point.
And you keep throwing out the extreme, we aren’t asking for a boatload of shooters, but right now we have 1 legit 3pt shooter who plays regularly. All I’m asking for is 2 or 3, look at the bulls, they have shooters that surround rose so the floor is spaced with Deng (39%), Rip when he’s healthy (31%, but is still a threat), Korver (41%), and even they are still looking for more shooters.
We have a good young, center in McGee and Booker is holding his own, we need shooters and a SF more than anything right now.
Yes, they dont shoot enough.
If you make one change to this team, improve the front court. We are getting killed there- every game. And it is the basis from everything since they pull down the majority of the rebounds.
Of course, we can make more than one change, and yes, we need to add shooters. DEFINITELY.
But you only get so many low lottery picks, and that low lottery pick is the biggest impact this team can realistically make right now because we are likely not interested in signing a big FA nor would one likely come.
by les boulez bomber on Feb 22, 2012 4:45 PM EST up reply actions
Dwight Howard couldn't win with Lewis at SF
That’s well documented. And he certainly couldn’t win with Lewis at SF and Crawford at SG. The problem is SF-SG positions ie shooting.
by ReturnofBillyJOe on Feb 22, 2012 4:52 PM EST up reply actions
DH couldnt win without Lewis! He couldnt win with a full roster of shooters
I am not sure your point. We need better shooters at SG and SF, and better perimeter defense.
It is not the biggest need on the team. Better front court play will give us better defense, better scoring, more rebounds, more transition baskets. It just impacts the game so much more than an improved shooting percentage
by les boulez bomber on Feb 22, 2012 5:07 PM EST up reply actions
My point is
They’re average in the front court and d-league level at SF and SG. Incremental improvement will deliver a bigger payoff at SF and SG than at PF and C.
by ReturnofBillyJOe on Feb 22, 2012 5:40 PM EST up reply actions
I dont think a D league SG is averaging 17 points a game and shoots as well as Nick. But I get your point.
I disagree with your conclusion, which is cool. It’s ok to have differing opinions
All I can say is that it is the coach’s decision not to play Mack at off guard and NY at SF. JW, NY, and SM can play against most perimeter teams. And Mack and NY can hit at an above average clip.
The problem is JW shooting more than the others. You really dont have to guard a guy who hits 30% from outside. And that pulls defenders to the other shooters. So their open looks are not always so open. They get closed on quickly- often
We will probably only get one major addition- I think it needs to be a front court prospect for a variety of reasons. But you are certainly free to run your fantasy wizards team any way you wish ;-)
by les boulez bomber on Feb 22, 2012 7:16 PM EST up reply actions
We are 21st in DRB, and 12 in ORB
Not great numbers but we are dead last in 3pt shooting, that is a big problem. We are definitely not getting killed by the opposing front court every game, the Jazz game we did but that happens, we have actually fared well even without 2 of our big men.
We really are getting killed.
How many more games do you think we win if we make this dramatic improvement in three point shooting?
I mean, the game of basketball does have many factors that influence others. Nothing impacts the game like a dominant front court. Why? because it is easy to find at least average players for the perimeter. There are so many to choose from!
by les boulez bomber on Feb 22, 2012 5:11 PM EST up reply actions
Mathematically
a 33% shooter from 3-point range scores as much as a 50% shooter from 2…..
So – give me a bunch of 3-point shooters that shoot 33% or better…. and if I can hold your team of 2-point shooters under 50%, I’ll win every time.
I used to have super powers until my psychiatrist took them away.
Yes that is exactly right in theory. And no one saw the subprime crises coming lol. But that is not reality. If it were, the highest scorers in the league would be predominately 3 point shooters
And of course, that is not the case for a variety of reasons.
Of course, in reality, teams have tried to win with three ball. No one ever has. But you would be the first
by les boulez bomber on Feb 22, 2012 4:51 PM EST up reply actions
I whole-heartedly agree with this article, we need shooters, but
We need a stud big-man from this draft. That should be out number one priority. What we then need, is for EG to get up off his ass and get us a mid-lottery pick, which will then go on a shooter. Send Young to LA for a pick. The rest of the season will be horrendous I know, but it will be worth it in the future. Plus, maybe sticking Crawford back into the starting lineup will force him to come out of his slump.
Young will be an unrestricted Free Agent at the end of this season....
LA will NOT trade a pick for him now, when they can just wait and offer him a contract this Summer.
I used to have super powers until my psychiatrist took them away.
This is completely hypothetical and will NEVER happen...
But as a fan or gm idc, if Jerry Buss came to you and said “we are going to sign Gilbert but he wants Nick Young with him right now, so we are offering the one and only Metta World Peace, for Nick Young, straight up” would you do it???
Yes...and move MWP for anything you can get for him
and then you created something out of what appeared to be nothing…something for NY two months before he is an UFA
by les boulez bomber on Feb 22, 2012 4:52 PM EST up reply actions
Of course... I was thinking of a different LA team...
The Lakers might not want Young (although they could certainly use him), but the Clippers , after losing out on JR Smith, and probably having NO chance at obtaining Eric Gordon will look at alternatives….
OJ Mayo may be an option for them – but he’s a RESTRICTED Free Agent and Memphis can match….
Young is the better shooter and better individual defender than Mayo, although he lags behind in almost every other category (Assists, rebounding, shot creation, team defense, etc…) – but I think that he’d be a perfect fit in the Clippers starting line up. Playing next to Chris Paul, Nick wouldn’t be required to do ANY playmaking. and that’s a good thing, because he can’t. With DeAndre Jordan, Blake Griffin and Caron Butler, Nick wouldn’t be needed to rebound much… which is good, because he doesn’t.
But what he WOULD bring the Clippers is one more pure knock-down shooter to go along with Caron Butler (who has really changed his game from his time in Washington)… Chris Paul will have a field day throwing alley oops all night long to Jordan and Griffin…. and when the defense collapses, Chris will just get MORE assists with passes to wide open 3-point shooters Young and Butler.
As for the Lakers – Why would the Wizards accept that trade? So they can take on the corpse of the artist formerly known as Ron Artest for the next two years at $7.5 Million per year? He doesn’t rebound… He’s lost a step (or three) on defense. His true shooting percentage this year is 39.2% (and I didn’t think anyone could be worse than Jordan Crawford)… and I don’t really see any veteran “leadership” or locker room benefit to obtaining him….
The last time the Wizards took on that much salary, they got back a #18 pick and a player in Kirk Hinrich that could actually, you know,…. still play …..
I used to have super powers until my psychiatrist took them away.
Meh.
Many of the problems you point out could have been solved by more active ball and player movement. As you point out, if Young had made a move to the basket in the last one it would have given Wall somewhere to go. Wall standing still out by the three point line isn’t helping anything — he should be looking for Booker to set a screen for him to cut towards the basket.
Shooting is one way to address spacing issues, but you could also just play smart Princeton-style basketball.
If Wall cuts backdoor in clips 2 and 4
Frye and Gortat cut him off because they’re playing a one-man zone because they don’t have to worry about Vesely because Vesely isn’t an offensive threat.
So basically
You have to take a (potentially) soft and (potentially) mentally weak Harrison Barnes over one helluva competitor, and a leader in Kidd-Gilchrist, because MKG can’t shoot.
That’s a serious dilemma for me.
I'm a Wizards fan. We've been trying to tell you about Lebron for years. Hated the man before it was cool.
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by returnofswagger on Feb 22, 2012 3:29 PM EST via Android app reply actions
MKG is probably my mid lottery horse, too :/
by Bullet Nation in Exile on Feb 22, 2012 3:30 PM EST up reply actions
But it's not like Mike is saying Beal/Lamb or bust
by Bullet Nation in Exile on Feb 22, 2012 3:31 PM EST up reply actions
MKG won't last until the mid rounds
and he can shoot. He is not a pure shooter, but how many pure shooters ever come out of Caliparis system? MKG is more like a Kidd type guard. Beal can score. I can’t remember which team I watched Florida go against, but Beal was unconscious in that game. He was the star and he won’t get out of the lottery.
by hambonejackson on Feb 22, 2012 4:02 PM EST up reply actions
You're right professor
I guess I won’t get that A+. Mid lottery. Thank you. I can go back to getting drunk because its aloha Friday.
by hambonejackson on Feb 22, 2012 5:36 PM EST up reply actions
Aaaand, thank you for reminding me
I live in the desert…boooo
by Bullet Nation in Exile on Feb 23, 2012 3:55 PM EST up reply actions
Barnes doesn't seem soft or mentally weak at all to me..
I worry that he won’t ever be an all-star and he’ll turn out like Evan turner, which is not what we need at that spot.
It’ll be interesting though to see how we draft, if we go bpa or draft for a need, whether it is SG, SF, PF, or C. That’s why we have to resign McGee because we have too many needs and despite his mistakes he’s a good center and has shown that he can be dominant. and i don’t see us drafting a PF since we have, Booker, Ves, and Seraphin, even though we need a PF. It’ll be interesting to see what we do in the draft.
Barnes - mentally weak?
Clutch shooter at the end of games = check
Clutch shooter in the tournament = check
Wants the ball with the game on the line = check
Exactly how do you come to the conclusion that Harrison Barnes is (potentially) mentally weak?
I used to have super powers until my psychiatrist took them away.
What I don't like about Barnes
is how i think he can be so much better a player than he is. He can disappear in games and then when he does reappear, he has a tendency to take forced shots. I would like to see a more complete game and for him to be more generally more aggressive. Barnes is the reason MKG can look so good because MKG is every where. So there is something mental there. But if you really want shooting, I would look at Beal.
by hambonejackson on Feb 22, 2012 4:16 PM EST up reply actions
I think you're talking about Perry Jones..
I watched the duke game, and Barnes started out badly, but then heated up in the second half and made some nice shots and was pretty aggressive. He’s a good scorer but who knows if he’ll be able to do that in the NBA
I like Beal too but he has disappeared in games more than Barnes, but he’s good just not a top 6 pick imo.
What I like about Barnes...
is his ability to step up his game when it really counts – whether it’s at the end of a close game, or in Tournament play – he wants the ball…. and he makes big shot after big shot….
So, yeah… Maybe he disappears (or I’d prefer to call it “deferring” ) in the middle of a game – but give me Harrison Barnes to take the final shot to win a game, or to start for my team in the Playoffs, rather than MKG.
I used to have super powers until my psychiatrist took them away.
tendency to take forced shots.
And by the way – I’ve watched a ton of UNC games… and Harrison Barnes is the most “in control” player I’ve seen all year… Rarely did I see him take a forced shot or a “bad” shot (other than at the end of the shot clock). So I don’t know where that comes from.
I used to have super powers until my psychiatrist took them away.
I watched a few games
and he will take some heat check shots. They just were not necessary shots to take. My biggest gripe about Barnes is him going top 5 and the Wiz have a bigger problem in the paint. Have a top 5 pick and i am not drafting a shooter. Give me a rebounder and big man defender. Take the shooter next. I also see the Wiz are no longer winning the draft. Now its Charlotte.
by hambonejackson on Feb 22, 2012 4:40 PM EST up reply actions
Well
I’m assuming the Wizards will be picking 5th… or 6th (you know, the place where the High and Almighty Commissioner David Stern will make sure they land)….
At 5th, the best big man (Anthony Davis) will be gone… The next best (Thomas Robinson) will be gone as well…. Andre Drummond is a bust waiting to happen….
That leaves the Wizards with a choice between Jared Sullinger and Harrison Barnes…
In my mind – they can’t go wrong in either case.
I used to have super powers until my psychiatrist took them away.
and Drummond might not come out
perry jones might be in the mix too
it will be interesting to see if we can keep JVM.
this rebuild will take a long time if EG gets extended
by les boulez bomber on Feb 22, 2012 7:23 PM EST up reply actions
Moultrie is interesting
I’ve been looking at him. He is not stud Anthony Davis, but he is not far beneath him. He got off to a slow start, but he looks like one of those players who can come on once they are in the NBA. He is extremely athletic. Yeah! And seems strong for his build. Some of these players start maturing, as he is 21-22 this year, and they get in to the NBA and they really come on. I think he is the kind of player to sit down and talk with to get to know. If i got a sense of him emerging, I would draft him ahead of Sullinger.
by hambonejackson on Feb 22, 2012 8:23 PM EST up reply actions
Who does he play for and will they make the NCAA tourney
the tourney is a great barometer. solid players step up and play big more often than not
by les boulez bomber on Feb 23, 2012 12:13 AM EST up reply actions
I chose bad wording
I realized after. But I think he has it in him to disappear and make no impact for stretches.
And really what I planned on getting at, he’s a soft player. When he’s not hitting those threes he’s taking tough shots inside the arc. I want a multi faceted guy that can be a legit number two option against Lebron. I think Barnes is a role player, if not a good one.
I'm a Wizards fan. We've been trying to tell you about Lebron for years. Hated the man before it was cool.
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by returnofswagger on Feb 22, 2012 5:55 PM EST via Android app up reply actions
And just for the record....
I love Michael Kidd-Gilchrist as a player. He’s intense. Focused. Energetic. A great slasher. Can create his own shot… and create for others. Great in transition. Great rebounder. Good defender. Has all the intangibles (High basketball IQ, good work ethic, tough, etc…) . But he cannot shoot…
On the other hand, Harrison Barnes is a smooth, consistent shooter with NBA 3-point range (43%). Perimeter defense is good. Good rebounder (not great). He’s shown that as the intensity and pressure increases, his game elevates proportionately. He has shown he can hit big shot after big shot, at the end of games, and in the pressure cooker called the NCAA Tournament.
So yeah- while I think that MKG may eventually be the better overall player and can be compared to Gerald Wallace – Harrison Barnes probably fits the Wizards situation better – being a knock down shooter and scorer to pair next to Wall.
I used to have super powers until my psychiatrist took them away.
It's a good debate especially as applies to this team
I want the more complete player. Plus, shooters can be made(MKG himself?) and found…
I’m right there with you though… they’re both going to be good. But pick your poison.
I'm a Wizards fan. We've been trying to tell you about Lebron for years. Hated the man before it was cool.
Follow @Dylan___V
by returnofswagger on Feb 22, 2012 6:15 PM EST via Android app up reply actions
I think EG if he is still here will fall in love with Harrison Barnes
He has made a career with this franchise creating his own problems and then solving them only to leave another gaping whole which needs his “expertise” to solve
by les boulez bomber on Feb 22, 2012 7:25 PM EST up reply actions
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