Giannis at the point!

[Shaffty]

[tweet]https://twitter.com/Bucks/status/521724965255536640[/tweet]

Two great things GIannis at PG and Giannis and Jabari

[Badgerlander]

i get a different image in my head when i think about two great things

[Balls2TheWalls]

I was reading it with a smile on my face, and then I saw it say Ersan and I started projectile vomiting.

[paulpressey25]

Remember, Brandon Knight is injured and won't make the trip to Cleveland for the game tomorrow.

[theFireBlanket]

Remember, Brandon Knight is injured and won't make the trip to Cleveland for the game tomorrow.

I was just thinking that this is probably happening due to Brandon's injury. However this is great news considering Gianni's play in the 4th quarter against Chicago.

http://www.jsonline.com/sports/bucks/bu ... 63731.html

"We're a team that we really don't have a go-to guy yet," Dudley said. "So for us, we have to be a great screen-setting team. We have to be a team that knows the offense and knows how to execute and swing the ball.

"It was tough once (Brandon) Knight got hurt and Giannis was trying to play (point guard). We hadn't done that yet. We were out there just freestyling."

They may have been improvising (collectively responding to a new PG) as Dudley is saying but it looked incredibly better than what Knight was doing in the first half.

eta: [tweet]https://twitter.com/Bucks/status/521728079115206656[/tweet]

[Badgerlander]

No Kyie makes Giannis' life easier as well, so the matchup stellation has been waiting for

[Willie Colon]

Guess we won't be needing this anymore.

http://www.grapheine.com/bombaytv/agenc ... 74fac.html

[raferfenix]

This is exciting! Even with Knight's injury, Giannis wouldn't be starting if Kidd were only considering him playing PG to be a gimmick.

Posted this Kidd quote in the other thread but it bears repeating:

"I thought Giannis did a great job for us running the point, running the show, finding guys and also being able to find his shot," Kidd said, "with the minutes he played at the point, he did a lot of good things for us."

[step3profit]

i get a different image in my head when i think about two great things

chocolate and peanut butter?

[BobbyLight]

I'm hoping to see him do this against a really great guard, doesn't sound like that's going to happen quite yet.

That said, he did about as well as you'd want a 19 year old, near 7 footer playing PG for the first time in the NBA could do. I'm still not sure him at the actual 1 spot will ever be more than sideshow (I think eventually he just becomes the standard point forward with an actual PG on the floor), but it's nice to see how well he can do in a real game, not in theory.

I like Jason Kidd. While others are flipping their lid that they haven't seen the exact lineup they wanted, I am happy he's finding out what he has with his team by playing different combinations and letting a player play a new position. It's refreshing to see a coach do things that aren't the norm. He may end up being a horrible coach in the long run, but I like what he's done, so far.

[BobbyLight]

i get a different image in my head when i think about two great things

chocolate and peanut butter?

Nutella and peanut butter toast for breakfast. Have it, thank me later.

[ampd]

Why zaza?

These lineups are horrible. Is he picking names out of a hat?

Just hope this ends when the season starts

[BobbyLight]

Why zaza?

These lineups are horrible. Is he picking names out of a hat?

Just hope this ends when the season starts

Pretty sure Kidd plans to have a different starting line up and sit out random players every game during the regular season, so you might want to start to worry, as hard as you can.

[theFireBlanket]

Why zaza?

These lineups are horrible. Is he picking names out of a hat?

Sanders is out and Zaza has been in lineups with Giannis since training camp, probably because they've got great chemistry with one another. Ersan gets the start both out of favor from Kidd and I presume as an attempt to boost his confidence.

Aschburner ran an article about Giannis playing PG for that quarter this weekend, yesterday:

http://hangtime.blogs.nba.com/2014/10/1 ... 2_33434167

Antetokounmpo today isn’t the point guard – or the anything – he might become with more experience. But he’s getting a taste and giving a glimpse. Several Bulls players noticed a hike in Antetokounmpo’s confidence.

“I haven’t seen a small guard take the ball from him or give him too much pressure,” Bucks center Larry Sanders said. “He’ll start going more north and south than east and west, and we’ll start taking advantage of his size.

“It’s the ultimate weapon to me. He can post up and bang and exploit mismatches. … He expands our lineup, especially defensively.”

[Treebeard]

What's the update on Wolters?

I'm assuming if Giannis starts, Marshall plays alot. Who comes through door #3 at point: OJ, Bayless, Wolters?

[theFireBlanket]

What's the update on Wolters?

I'm assuming if Giannis starts, Marshall plays alot. Who comes through door #3 at point: OJ, Bayless, Wolters?

Whoops, assumed Wolters was in the Bucks' tweet. Bayless might get the nod but Wolters deserves that spot, imo. OJ probably backs up Khris, Dudley - Jabari.
[tweet]https://twitter.com/Bucks/status/521723141945446401[/tweet]
[tweet]https://twitter.com/AndrewGruman/status/521725393045164032[/tweet]
[tweet]https://twitter.com/AndrewGruman/status/521725393045164032[/tweet]

[raferfenix]

Seems like Giannis is gaining some confidence at the 1 too:

“I feel like if I handle the ball it gives me the opportunity to go around the bigs and go to the basket,” the second-year teenager from Greece said afterward. “Not only that, but I tried to make my teammates better. That’s what I was thinking.”

http://hangtime.blogs.nba.com/2014/10/1 ... 2_33434167

[Badgerlander]

[theFireBlanket]

Seems like Giannis is gaining some confidence at the 1 too:

“I feel like if I handle the ball it gives me the opportunity to go around the bigs and go to the basket,” the second-year teenager from Greece said afterward. “Not only that, but I tried to make my teammates better. That’s what I was thinking.”

http://hangtime.blogs.nba.com/2014/10/1 ... 2_33434167

In my opinion he's downplaying his desire to play the point to avoid conflict with what his teammates (Knight, maybe even Marshall) & coach might want of him. He came into the league last year saying that he was a point guard. This summer he made the point to tell Kidd that he felt his biggest asset was handling the ball and that he was most comfortable while doing so.

And when Kidd originally pronounced that he was going to run him at the point, Giannis seemed more openly excited about the prospect. Since that time Jason himself has played it safe by almost retracting the statement, electing to say that maybe Giannis isn't a point guard but that he can handle the ball at a high level. That was prior to any games being played.

eta: top WT article, http://basketball.realgm.com/wiretap/23 ... -Next-Game

[JayMKE]

I want to see Giannis be more assertive with the ball, he's a decent passer with decent vision but I don't want to see him deferring when he should be taking advantage of the insane match up he presents for the opposing team. We need him to find his inner alpha.