ramon under the radar

bayrdbandit · Post #1 » by **bayrdbandit** » Mon Oct 6, 2008 11:57 pm

interesting article here on sportsline regarding three players who are expected to have breakout seasons. one being our very own ramon.

http://www.sportsline.com/nba/story/11012466

Ramon Sessions, Milwaukee: Few teams are as under-the-radar as the Bucks, and to take it a step further, few Bucks are as under-the-radar as Sessions.

Sessions played most of last season for the Tulsa 66ers in the D-League before getting a late season call-up.

Last year, Ramon Sessions was in the D-league before the Bucks called. (Getty Images) What he did after that was more impressive than anything Sessions had done to get there.

Sessions wound up playing 17 games at point guard for the Bucks, and the last seven were borderline jaw-dropping.

On April 14, in a game against the Bulls, Sessions had 20 points and an NBA season-high 24 assists. The 24 assists were also a franchise record. Sessions followed that with a 25-point, 14-assist game in the season finale, finishing off a run in which he averaged 13.1 points, 11.7 assists and 5.7 rebounds.

Sessions was selected late in the second round out of Nevada in 2007. He has size, is heady and is a pass-first point guard. He takes care of the ball, too. But remember, his big scoring nights came in games that had no playoff implications.

The good news for Sessions is that Mo Williams is gone and Luke Ridnour is a Buck. That's a drop-off there, and it should allow Sessions an opportunity to play plenty of minutes.

Tyronn Lue is also going to provide Sessions some competition. But considering Sessions is in his second season and Ridnour and Lue are relatively known commodities, who do you think has first dibs on playing time?

That's right -- Sessions.

...but then those games were meaningless right? anyone could get 20/24 at that time of year right? i mean it happens at the tail end of every year. doesn't it?

steger_3434 · Post #2 » by **steger_3434** » Tue Oct 7, 2008 12:09 am

What really has me excited about Sessions is that in the same game he limited Chris Duhon to 22 points, 15 assists, 3 rebounds, 0 turnovers, 8-9 shooting in a mere 30 minutes.

LUKE23 · Post #3 » by **LUKE23** » Tue Oct 7, 2008 12:11 am

Don't worry bay, the fans that refuse to be positive in any way will come out with all the negatives from all angles on this thread. Posting something like this is blood in the water on this forum.

steger_3434 · Post #4 » by **steger_3434** » Tue Oct 7, 2008 12:16 am

I'm just being real Luke. The guy had some damn impressive offensive games at the end of the season. However, I'll take them with a grain of salt considering the time of the season it was and the numbers opposing gaurds put up against us.

bayrdbandit · Post #5 » by **bayrdbandit** » Tue Oct 7, 2008 12:33 am

steger_3434 wrote:I'm just being real Luke. The guy had some damn impressive offensive games at the end of the season. However, I'll take them with a grain of salt considering the time of the season it was and the numbers opposing gaurds put up against us.

so you're not excited at all? optimistic maybe?

steger_3434 · Post #6 » by **steger_3434** » Tue Oct 7, 2008 12:50 am

bayrdbandit wrote:
steger_3434 wrote:I'm just being real Luke. The guy had some damn impressive offensive games at the end of the season. However, I'll take them with a grain of salt considering the time of the season it was and the numbers opposing gaurds put up against us.

so you're not excited at all? optimistic maybe?

I'm about as down on this team as I ever have been. I even started a thread a few days ago asking others if their in my position. For the first time in many many years I'm not excited about this season. I see a team that is bad AND doesn't have much potential. I'm optimistic for 38 wins and wouldn't be surprised with 32 wins.

raferfenix · Post #7 » by **raferfenix** » Tue Oct 7, 2008 1:41 am

steger_3434 wrote:
bayrdbandit wrote:
steger_3434 wrote:I'm just being real Luke. The guy had some damn impressive offensive games at the end of the season. However, I'll take them with a grain of salt considering the time of the season it was and the numbers opposing gaurds put up against us.

so you're not excited at all? optimistic maybe?

I'm about as down on this team as I ever have been. I even started a thread a few days ago asking others if their in my position. For the first time in many many years I'm not excited about this season. I see a team that is bad AND doesn't have much potential. I'm optimistic for 38 wins and wouldn't be surprised with 32 wins.

Even if the team is that bad, how can you not be optimistic about Sessions' future? Even if you don't think he's going to be a superstar and even if those stats mean much less than the numbers show, how can you be down on him just because of when they happened?

Also----the Knicks and Mike Dantoni targeted Chris Duhon. I'd say his perfomance that game might have gotten their attention to a degree too. Even with as little defense as there was, it says something if a player can control the play so completely like that in ANY game like boht Sessions and Duhon did.

paul · Post #8 » by **paul** » Tue Oct 7, 2008 1:57 am

steger_3434 wrote:I'm just being real Luke. The guy had some damn impressive offensive games at the end of the season. However, I'll take them with a grain of salt considering the time of the season it was and the numbers opposing gaurds put up against us.

No, your not. What you and several others around here are being is negative, to the point of depression. It's become so predictable that you or a couple of others will come in and kill any positive thread that's going, it's actually gotten pretty boring.

As far as the OP goes good find Bandit, I agree Ramon shows a ton of talent and I hope he's in for a big season.

Post #9 » by **ReasonablySober** » Tue Oct 7, 2008 2:36 am

steger_3434 wrote:I'm about as down on this team as I ever have been. I even started a thread a few days ago asking others if their in my position. For the first time in many many years I'm not excited about this season. I see a team that is bad AND doesn't have much potential. I'm optimistic for 38 wins and wouldn't be surprised with 32 wins.

Yup.

At least, since I've been around here, I've always had something to look forward to. Yi, CV, Bogut, Ford, the Big Three...hell, even Tim Thomas.

It's nothing like looking forward to a season with legit 50+ win talent or some young stud future superstar, but I've always been willing to grasp something. Not even I can find something to look forward to this year.

I'll probably watch every game and wind up talking about each of 'em on here, but mostly I'm just waiting for the inevitable blowup.

europa · Post #10 » by **europa** » Tue Oct 7, 2008 2:42 am

I think it's interesting that this forum got all fired up the past two seasons for teams that were clearly doomed to fail and now people are burying this team when it's trying to do things 180 degrees removed from the past two seasons.

Most interesting.

rilamann · Post #11 » by **rilamann** » Tue Oct 7, 2008 2:46 am

europa wrote:I think it's interesting that this forum got all fired up the past two seasons for teams that were clearly doomed to fail and now people are burying this team when it's trying to do things 180 degrees removed from the past two seasons.

Most interesting.

QFT X100000000000.

crkone · Post #12 » by **crkone** » Tue Oct 7, 2008 2:48 am

As Czaban says, some here are being logs instead of fans.

LUKE23 · Post #13 » by **LUKE23** » Tue Oct 7, 2008 2:49 am

europa wrote:I think it's interesting that this forum got all fired up the past two seasons for teams that were clearly doomed to fail and now people are burying this team when it's trying to do things 180 degrees removed from the past two seasons.

Most interesting.

It's mainly because people do not realize that it is not plausible to either:

1. Trade everything you can for a run at the title

or

2. Trade every asset you have and rebuild with young talent/picks

When you had a roster as F'ed up as we had last year. That is the main thing here. People either want a quick fix or a complete scrap, but also ignore the fact that it's really impossible to do either with how our roster was, given how many long term deals we had (Gadz, Simmons, Redd, Mo, Yi, Bell).

worthlessBucks · Post #14 » by **worthlessBucks** » Tue Oct 7, 2008 2:51 am

europa wrote:I think it's interesting that this forum got all fired up the past two seasons for teams that were clearly doomed to fail and now people are burying this team when it's trying to do things 180 degrees removed from the past two seasons.

Most interesting.

I actually don't remember too many of us being fired up at all. There was hope, like DB mentioned, for the the chance that Yi would break out and we'd have something, but I think the vast majority of us, or the smart ones, knew we'd be terrible.

I'm pretty excited for the potential haul that Jefferson can get us when the time comes.

europa · Post #15 » by **europa** » Tue Oct 7, 2008 2:51 am

I agree Luke. I've posted before that I think the biggest problem is a lot of people underestimated just how messed up this team was in terms of talent, tradeable "assets" and horrible contracts. The best hope was to remove as many bad elements as possible and start over. That's what Hammond is doing. It isn't pretty but I feel confident it won't be as ugly as the last two seasons have been.

steger_3434 · Post #16 » by **steger_3434** » Tue Oct 7, 2008 2:52 am

LUKE23 wrote:
europa wrote:I think it's interesting that this forum got all fired up the past two seasons for teams that were clearly doomed to fail and now people are burying this team when it's trying to do things 180 degrees removed from the past two seasons.

Most interesting.

It's mainly because people do not realize that it is not plausible to either:

1. Trade everything you can for a run at the title

or

2. Trade every asset you have and rebuild with young talent/picks

When you had a roster as F'ed up as we had last year. That is the main thing here. People either want a quick fix or a complete scrap, but also ignore the fact that it's really impossible to do either with how our roster was, given how many long term deals we had (Gadz, Simmons, Redd, Mo, Yi, Bell).

Well said, Luke. I have faith in our GM. Besides the JA pick, I've agreed on most things he's done. I also know that it's going to take more than a year to fix this mess. Because of that I don't think an awful team from last year can miraculously compete for a legit playoff spot. Next year my expectations will no doubt be higher.

europa · Post #17 » by **europa** » Tue Oct 7, 2008 2:54 am

MFScho wrote:
europa wrote:I think it's interesting that this forum got all fired up the past two seasons for teams that were clearly doomed to fail and now people are burying this team when it's trying to do things 180 degrees removed from the past two seasons.

Most interesting.

I actually don't remember too many of us being fired up at all. There was hope, like DB mentioned, for the the chance that Yi would break out and we'd have something, but I think the vast majority of us, or the smart ones, knew we'd be terrible.

Fair enough.

I just remember feeling like the minority on this board the past two seasons because I really disliked those teams and believed they were doomed to fail. I don't begrudge people their feelings of negativity or pessimism or whatever you want to call it. I guess it's like I said before - the Bucks were such a mess that there was no fix likely to occur that was going to magically transform this team into a winner overnight. It's a process and we're seeing the start of that process now.

El Duderino · Post #18 » by **El Duderino** » Tue Oct 7, 2008 3:07 am

I can't remember the last time i was really excited about a Bucks team actually being really good since the year after we went to the ECF. I guess i was pretty excited after the offseason when we brought in Simmons/Magloire, that's it. I mainly only watch because i'm a Bucks fan.

Last year i was only excited to see Yi play. This year i have low expectations also given our miserable bench and PF situation, but am a bit curious to see if Skiles can get some of the Bucks softies to stop being pillows. If it weren't for Skiles, i'd have an all time low interest level.

midranger · Post #19 » by **midranger** » Tue Oct 7, 2008 3:29 am

I predicted last year's team would win 35 games. I was wrong. It sucked, I find it hard to believe to think that people didn't see that in the preseason last year. Bogut's "improved form" blinded a few people despite the fact he was missing shots at the same rate.

I'll predict the same this year.

I will say this though, as big of a mess this team was at the start of the summer, Harris actually left it in better shape than when he found it. We don't owe anyone 1st round picks, we had/have a couple young potential players, that could be traded for players the caliber of Jefferson. The fact that Harris made the playoffs a couple times was a win given the smut he inherited. However, that's not what anyone wanted, nor wants in the future. A part time playoff team that never has a shot of being truly relevant at all. That's where this team is heading again. Sadly.

Post #20 » by **ReasonablySober** » Tue Oct 7, 2008 3:39 am

The problem I have with this year's team is that the talent on the team in key positions is mostly maxed out. Redd and RJ aren't getting any better, and they're without a doubt our best players. In terms of the future, is there are worse 1a and 1b in the league? This team's ceiling is .500 and that's if they're very lucky. At least a team like OK City can point to Durant, Green and Westbrook and see that better days are ahead. What are the Bucks looking forward to? Bogut turning into Duncan? Sessions becoming Magic Johnson?

I think most teams want to either have one of two things, either core that can contend right now or a young group of talent that can win games in a few years. The Bucks have neither. They're right in the middle, just like they've been for the last half-dozen seasons.

They got the right kind of personnel man, hired the right kind of coach, brought in the right kind of players and got rid of the wrong kind. Lets see if this leads to wins or if that's all complete bull. My money is on the latter.