HiJiNX wrote:-= original quote snipped =-
Where has all this "winning" been? We're two games above .500 and we were beat by a team we were better than in the playoffs last year primarily because we played scared the first four games. Anytime anybody posts an unpopular opinion on this board ppl jump on that poster, when sometimes they are making a good point.
I really don't feel this team needs any more mediocre Euros. If we can find some excellent European talent or some European talent with toughness, that'd be cool, but I think we're relying too much on this European style of basketball. The problem is thus far, European style basketball does not seem to be very effective in an NBA playoff situation...too much jumpshooting.
Mediocre Euros?
Like Calderon?
Delfino. A South American who came came via trade, for almost nothing, and is exceeding expectations.
Bargnani - has been mediocre for a few weeks, but plenty, plenty of upside.
Garbajosa? We miss him.
As for the European style you talk about, ask yourself, is the pick and roll a European staple? Not at all. It's the dominant offensive play in the NBA and we use it as much more than other NBA teams. I don't think our style is European at all. It's a cliche coined by the media to describe our roster, not the tactics we use on the court. The great European coaches disdain NBA strategy as overly reliant on a couple of basic concepts.
Nor do we take as many 3's as a lot of teams. We do shoot a higher percentage.
We don't play too much zone D. Euro teams play a much greater amount of zone.
So exactly what is this European style? Please enlighten us.
We are one of many jump shooting teams in the NBA. We don't have to be, and it's not because of ethnicity that we might take too many jump shots. Jamario Moon, after all, is hardly a Euro yet Delfino will take the ball to the hoop a lot more than Moon.
Of course we could be the Knicks with no Europeans, and two highly paid low post players.
Trouble is, talented teams that work together are better than talented teams with selfish, ego-centric stars who can't share the ball. And jump shooting teams that work hard and play well together can beat a team with a super low post player as the Nets proved tonight against the Magic.