The Official Kyle Kuzma Thread

[long suffrin' boulez fan]

This season has been awful so far, so potentially one silver lining is maybe Kuzma is turning the corner and going to make the haters (like me) eat crow. He has had 3 good games, and if he were shooting at his career averages for 3 pointers, he would be looking well worth the money the Wizards are spending.

If he can keep hitting the 2pa at the % that he currently is, and maybe shoot 2 to 4 fewer 3PA per game, and get his 3P% up to his career norms or even better, he might begin to look like the player he believes himself to be.

I really liked how he played in the first half yesterday. He wasn't just hunting shots, but rather kept the ball moving and got himself into good match ups. We've all always said that if he can improve his efficiency, he'd be a plus player.

[DCZards]

I get the vibe that Kuz is trying hard to play the right way and to be an on court leader and example. In doing so, he’s providing a contrast to the shot jacker that Poole has been thus far.

[gambitx777]

Kuz has been such a breath of fresh air it's his team. And he's more of a leader than Brad ever was

Sent from my SM-G991U1 using RealGM mobile app

[nate33]

This season has been awful so far, so potentially one silver lining is maybe Kuzma is turning the corner and going to make the haters (like me) eat crow. He has had 3 good games, and if he were shooting at his career averages for 3 pointers, he would be looking well worth the money the Wizards are spending.

If he can keep hitting the 2pa at the % that he currently is, and maybe shoot 2 to 4 fewer 3PA per game, and get his 3P% up to his career norms or even better, he might begin to look like the player he believes himself to be.

The most encouraging part is that his turnovers are way down. It looks like Kuzma is deferring to Tyus Jones as the initiator of the offense and focusing on doing what he does best as a finisher rather than trying to set people up with difficult passes. Shooting percentages tend to regress to the mean over time, but this drop in turnover rate might be sustainable.

I really think the combo of Kuzma and Avdija at forward can be the foundation of a solid two-way roster. And Tyus Jones has been solid at point guard The problem is the total absence of interior defense from the center position, and the absolutely catastrophic play from Poole. Poole has been the 2nd worst player in the entire league (behind Scoot Henderson) going by WS/48.

Basically, give this team an All-NBA caliber SG and a high quality defensive center, and it would be a pretty solid roster. If this team had, say, prime Anthony Edwards at SG and Miles Turner at starting center, it could win 50. (This assumes that we get 70 more games of Deni where he looks like he has so far this season.)

[payitforward]

I get the vibe that Kuz is trying hard to play the right way and to be an on court leader and example. In doing so, he’s providing a contrast to the shot jacker that Poole has been thus far.

Agree with your first sentence.

However, Kuz is taking more shots than Poole!

Edit: Kuz is playing his axe off so far. His 3 pt.. % is way down, but otherwise he's just killing it. His 2 pt. % is .627 (!), his FT% is .833. His rebounding is up, he's taking way more shots than last year -- but his turnovers are basically nil!

Despite the 3-point troubles, Kuz is posting a .559 TS% so far -- WAY above anything he's ever done in 6 previous seasons. If his production stays at this level but his 3-point % returns to his career average... watch out!

Now Zards... I'm trying to recall... who was it who predicted a breakout season for Kyle Kuzma...? Oh yeah... t'was I!

[DCZards]

I get the vibe that Kuz is trying hard to play the right way and to be an on court leader and example. In doing so, he’s providing a contrast to the shot jacker that Poole has been thus far.

Agree with your first sentence.

However, Kuz is taking more shots than Poole!

Edit: Kuz is playing his axe off so far. His 3 pt.. % is way down, but otherwise he's just killing it. His 2 pt. % is .627 (!), his FT% is .833. His rebounding is up, he's taking way more shots than last year -- but his turnovers are basically nil!

Despite the 3-point troubles, Kuz is posting a .559 TS% so far -- WAY above anything he's ever done in 6 previous seasons. If his production stays at this level but his 3-point % returns to his career average... watch out!

Now Zards... I'm trying to recall... who was it who predicted a breakout season for Kyle Kuzma...? Oh yeah... t'was I!

The distinction I’m making between Kuz and Poole when I say “shot jacker” is not the number of shots…it’s the type of shots. Kuz is taking better, smarter shots than Poole. Therein lies the difference.

Kuz has a eFG% of .532 while Poole’s eFG% is .438.

Actually, PIF, you're a little late to the party with your "breakout" prediction. Some of us here, including myself, have consistently said that Kuz will be a much better player when he learns to take better, smarter shots. That seems to be happening...hopefully it continues.

[payitforward]

Oh no question about it. Poole's shooting like crap.

But, as you know, I'm reluctant to move from judgment of performance to judgment of the person. That's why "...jacking" caught my attention.

I'm not altogether convinced that he's taking different shots from what he's used to taking. They just aren't going in.

In Poole's case, one problem is that he was greeted with excessive expectations: the board's initial reactions were over the top. This kid has only played 100 minutes; let's give him some time....

[pcbothwel]

Yup... Keep Kuz for the next 3 years unless someone offers a premium asset. He will be making 11% of the cap in year 4 of his deal, which is equivalent to guys like Hueter, Rui, and Levert this year... He could be one of the best contracts in the NBA sooner than later.

[DCZards]

Oh no question about it. Poole's shooting like crap.

But, as you know, I'm reluctant to move from judgment of performance to judgment of the person. That's why "...jacking" caught my attention.

I'm not altogether convinced that he's taking different shots from what he's used to taking. They just aren't going in.

In Poole's case, one problem is that he was greeted with excessive expectations: the board's initial reactions were over the top. This kid has only played 100 minutes; let's give him some time....

Trust me…I’m with you on Poole. He’s been made to feel from Day One that this is his team—and told that he could end up leading the NBA in scoring.

I expect Poole’s decision making and shooting to improve once the initial glare of being (and acting like) “the man” subsides somewhat.

[payitforward]

Exactly as I would have expected from a hip individual such as yourself, Zards....

;>

[DCZards]

Exactly as I would have expected from a hip individual such as yourself, Zards....

;>

Feeling particularly hip today, PIF. Last night, I attended a solo performance of one of the all-time great jazz pianist -- Kenny Barron!

[payitforward]

Exactly as I would have expected from a hip individual such as yourself, Zards....

;>

Feeling particularly hip today, PIF. Last night, I attended a solo performance of one of the all-time great jazz pianist -- Kenny Barron!

Lucky you, young fella!
KB is *really old* -- born about 9 months after me!

[FAH1223]

I get the vibe that Kuz is trying hard to play the right way and to be an on court leader and example. In doing so, he’s providing a contrast to the shot jacker that Poole has been thus far.

Agree with your first sentence.

However, Kuz is taking more shots than Poole!

Edit: Kuz is playing his axe off so far. His 3 pt.. % is way down, but otherwise he's just killing it. His 2 pt. % is .627 (!), his FT% is .833. His rebounding is up, he's taking way more shots than last year -- but his turnovers are basically nil!

Despite the 3-point troubles, Kuz is posting a .559 TS% so far -- WAY above anything he's ever done in 6 previous seasons. If his production stays at this level but his 3-point % returns to his career average... watch out!

Now Zards... I'm trying to recall... who was it who predicted a breakout season for Kyle Kuzma...? Oh yeah... t'was I!

I think Kuz read Kevin Broom over the summer

[penbeast0]

Kuzma hasn't been that much more efficient than usual, especially considering small sample size. His 2 point shot has been money, his 3 pointer has been drawing flies, overall he's averaging .559 which is still well below league average .568. And, every year of his career but one he's been between .540 and .549. He's still Kyle Kuzma and he still shouldn't think he's Steph Curry. What he has done well this year is cut turnovers so far, with his turnover % roughly half his career average while his assist % is at a career high. I'd love to see that sustained, maybe he'd actually be the player Nate thinks he can be.

On the other hand, he's leading the team in minutes and we are dead last in the league in team defense rating despite Avdija having a good year (5 games, 1 steal, 2 blocks, fwiw). I'd like to see some effort from our team leader on that end.

[smoothSeph]

Kuz is shooting a lot but I think context matters. I was watching the game yesterday when he was on the court with Davis and Coulibaly and they looked so afraid to go get the ball. For Coulibaly it's expected, he's still getting adjusted. But it took 3 straight Kuz 3s and a timeout by Wes for Davis to finally start being aggressive.

[DCZards]

Kuz is currently the 5th rated SF in PER. Behind Tatum, LeBron, DeRozan and Scottie Barnes…and ahead of Butler, Leonard and Mikal Bridges.

Deni is 7th on that list.

[dckingsfan]

Code: Select all

Player        OnCourt   On-Off
Kyle Kuzma     -19.8     -25.5

[nate33]

Kuz is currently the 5th rated SF in PER. Behind Tatum, LeBron, DeRozan and Scottie Barnes…and ahead of Butler, Leonard and Mikal Bridges.

Deni is 7th on that list.

As I said earlier, I think Kuz and Deni could be a pretty solid tandem at forward - but in a more complementary role. They would do well as the 3rd and 4th best guys in the rotation. (This assume Deni can sustain this play, of course.) They're not guys who can bend a defense, but they have the versatility to exploit holes created by other defense benders, whether that's with shooting, slashing, or making the extra pass. And on defense, they have the versatility to switch 1 through 5 and provide a lot of different looks, while also doing their job on the defensive glass.

[nate33]

Code: Select all

Player        OnCourt   On-Off
Kyle Kuzma     -19.8     -25.5

The on/off isn't really telling the story. The "on" part is accurate. Our starting 5 definitely stinks and is getting blown out of games by the opposition's starters. But the "off" part is misleading because our garbage time scrubs are outplaying other garbage time scrubs Our scrubs are trying desperately to make an impression while the other side is just trying to milk the clock and close out the game without injuries. Kuzma never has the benefit of playing with the garbage time squad against other garbage time squads.

If Anthony Gill was the starter and Kuzma was our 3rd string PF, I'm sure his on/off numbers would look just as fabulous as Gill's

[dckingsfan]

Kuz is currently the 5th rated SF in PER. Behind Tatum, LeBron, DeRozan and Scottie Barnes…and ahead of Butler, Leonard and Mikal Bridges.

Deni is 7th on that list.

As I said earlier, I think Kuz and Deni could be a pretty solid tandem at forward - but in a more complementary role. They would do well as the 3rd and 4th best guys in the rotation. (This assume Deni can sustain this play, of course.) They're not guys who can bend a defense, but they have the versatility to exploit holes created by other defense benders, whether that's with shooting, slashing, or making the extra pass. And on defense, they have the versatility to switch 1 through 5 and provide a lot of different looks, while also doing their job on the defensive glass.

I think that Kuz would need to significantly step up his defense to do so... my 1/2 cent.