Seattle fans tell me about Luke...

carmelbrownqueen · Post #1 » by **carmelbrownqueen** » Thu Aug 14, 2008 6:23 pm

Hello Seattle fans-

I'm a Milwaukee Bucks fan, and I thought I would ask your impressions of Luke Ridnour. I recall watching him play when Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis were on the team, and thinking he was a good passer but that's all I recall about his game.

If you wouldn't mind could you give me your scouting report on him? We know he isn't a good defender, but neither is Mo Williams so not much is lost there.

Could you talk about all aspects of his game.. and more specifically stuff like: competitiveness, strengths, weaknesses, offense, is he defense as bad as advertised, and everything else in between. Again thanks so much for your input.

Post #2 » by **Sweezo** » Thu Aug 14, 2008 9:57 pm

As a lifelong Luke Ridnour fan who watched play every home game in college at Mac Court and cheered wildly at the Sonics draft party when he was selected and the rest of the crowd booed...

He stinks.

It may be a simple issue of confidence, but he never really clicked as the PG I expected him to be. At times he seemed hesitant to run the offense, and as a scorer he just seemed inconsistent. Despite my current feelings about the NBA, I am hopeful that he will be able to revitalize his career in Milwaukee.

Ex-hippie · Post #3 » by **Ex-hippie** » Thu Aug 14, 2008 10:44 pm

Ridnour is a horrible offensive player, and that's his strong suit. He does more to hurt his team on the floor than any other player I can think of. He's like the Yuniesky Betancourt of basketball. I was hoping Oklahoma City would keep him and give him at least 32 minutes per game. I am deliberately not paying attention to the NBA anymore, so I don't know much about the trade (something about Mo Williams, that's all I know), but Ridnour must have fallen into the category of "salary burden the Bucks had to accept to make it work" rather than "integral part of the trade." If Milwaukee is smart they'll stash him on the bench for a year or a year and a half, until he realizes his greatest value: as an expiring contract.

EDIT: Okay, I went and looked it up, and from the perspective of this non-fan: you guys got shafted. Sorry to say that and I hope it all works out better for you, but that's my view. Of course, I could be totally wrong, as the NBA fades into the dim recesses of my memory. (I was a big fan back when the NBA didn't suck.)

carmelbrownqueen · Post #4 » by **carmelbrownqueen** » Fri Aug 15, 2008 2:56 am

Mo Williams isn't a point guard and he doesn't play like a point guard. He's great at setting up Mo for open shots but disinterested in setting up his teammates. Offensively he's a guy that you want taking a shot for you but he just isn't the guy the Bucks needed running the team.

OzThunder · Post #5 » by **OzThunder** » Fri Aug 15, 2008 5:32 am

Luke had half a season (2006) where he played really solidly and made me look like a fool when i told my friends that he'd average 12 and 7 in 2006/2007....then he really seemed to lose all confidence and it just got worse from there.

Ex-hippie · Post #6 » by **Ex-hippie** » Fri Aug 15, 2008 10:09 pm

carmelbrownqueen wrote:Mo Williams isn't a point guard and he doesn't play like a point guard. He's great at setting up Mo for open shots but disinterested in setting up his teammates. Offensively he's a guy that you want taking a shot for you but he just isn't the guy the Bucks needed running the team.

I totally see the point of moving Williams for a true point guard. I just think he's worth someone who's better than Ridnour. I've been one of Ridnour's harshest critics on this board for a while now. People have made a lot of excuses for him, even blaming Ray Allen for getting under his skin (do you, as a Bucks fan, think of Allen as someone who can undermine a teammate? Me neither.), then blaming inconsistent playing time and just about everything else. But what really gets me is this is supposed to be a point guard, the guy who leads the team into battle and glues all the pieces together, who inspires and leads. 2007-08 should have been a season when he really stepped into the role of veteran leader, but instead he continued to regress. The only conclusion I can draw is that Ridnour is mentally weak, in addition to being physically weak. And that's just something I can't respect.

colombianbrew · Post #7 » by **colombianbrew** » Sun Aug 17, 2008 3:39 am

If he's mentally weak then he will struggle under Skiles if not cry

Sonics3408 · Post #8 » by **Sonics3408** » Sun Aug 17, 2008 9:39 am

I think this is a the best possible thing that could happen for Ridnour's career.

IMHO, he is capable of being successful on a team that runs. I'm not sure what the Bucks plan is for next year, but he needs the coach's support and confidence. Skiles and Ridnour might be a good fit, given Skiles' history as a player. A fresh start *might* be enough to get him out of his current rut, if you can call it that.

I wouldn't be shocked if Ridnour had a small breakout career year in the NBA this year or next. That said, I wouldn't be shocked totally if his confidence sputters on the Bucks and ends up riding the bench either.

wiff · Post #9 » by **wiff** » Sun Aug 17, 2008 3:41 pm

Ridnour is tough,

like toilet paper.

Sonics3408 · Post #10 » by **Sonics3408** » Mon Aug 18, 2008 11:18 am

^ I was hoping for a better punch line...

Post #11 » by **Sweezo** » Mon Aug 18, 2008 4:49 pm

No kidding. That punchline was about as weak as...Luke Ridnour.

jenn_gp · Post #12 » by **jenn_gp** » Mon Aug 18, 2008 5:47 pm

Is he at least as tough as Charmin, or is he like the knock off Wal-Mart brand TP?

Ex-hippie · Post #13 » by **Ex-hippie** » Mon Aug 18, 2008 6:22 pm

At least Wiff didn't post one of his pictures...

BenjaminH · Post #14 » by **BenjaminH** » Mon Aug 18, 2008 6:39 pm

I actually paused for about 30 seconds waiting for a picture to load in the blank area, desperately trying to figure out what was wrong with my Internet connection.

wiff · Post #15 » by **wiff** » Tue Aug 19, 2008 1:34 pm

Jesus, tough crowd.

I'm rusty, and out of practice, sue me.

Post #16 » by **Sweezo** » Tue Aug 19, 2008 10:41 pm

Be careful...everything even remotely tied to the Sonics seems to generate a lawsuit nowadays...

jenn_gp · Post #17 » by **jenn_gp** » Wed Aug 20, 2008 5:27 pm

^Then I'll tell you what, we have a pretty good claim against LarBrd/Saul.

Can we sue his ass?

Saul2 · Post #18 » by **Saul2** » Wed Aug 20, 2008 5:39 pm

Jen?

Anyways. My take on Ridnour is that he is a rich man's Dan Dickau and poor man's Kirk Hinrich. For a while, a lot of people seemed to think he was the next John Stockton.

jenn_gp · Post #19 » by **jenn_gp** » Wed Aug 20, 2008 5:49 pm

Saul2 wrote:Anyways. My take on Ridnour is that he is a rich man's Dan Dickau and poor man's Kirk Hinrich. For a while, a lot of people seemed to think he was the next John Stockton.

Congratulations, this is what a meaningful comment looks like. You have added something to the discussion. I'd like to see more of this from you if you're going to continue to post here Saul.

Saul2 · Post #20 » by **Saul2** » Wed Aug 20, 2008 5:58 pm

jenn_gp wrote:
Saul2 wrote:Anyways. My take on Ridnour is that he is a rich man's Dan Dickau and poor man's Kirk Hinrich. For a while, a lot of people seemed to think he was the next John Stockton.

Congratulations, this is what a meaningful comment looks like. You have added something to the discussion. I'd like to see more of this from you if you're going to continue to post here Saul.

Jenn... female? Have we ever dated? I'm wondering if you know me or something and have a reason to have all this hostile sarcasm. Jennifer Sullivan? I use to date a Jennifer Sullivan. It ended poorly.

Edit: The above was just a joke. I think people here are a little on edge. Didn't mean for that to be offending.