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Pippen said he was speaking in broad terms about small backcourts and players who don't think in the game. He blamed me for applying it to the Bulls.

bullzman23 wrote:

Pippen said he was speaking in broad terms about small backcourts and players who don't think in the game. He blamed me for applying it to the Bulls.

So I guess he never said it directly about Hinrich and Gordon.

The Bulls came into 2007-08 swimming in the accolades of having swept Miami and dreaming about dollars, not floor burns. I commented on their lack of passion late in the exhibition season. Skiles sought me out and said he saw the same thing. He was worried more than ever about his team.

Looking back, I can see now he was beginning to doubt them. He apparently was telling management the same thing. And with my usual keen insight, I never put it together. Of course.

coldfish wrote: Who quoted Skiles on the Noah shut up comment?

ATRAIN53 wrote:Call your buddy Paxson and ask to fill out an application for an assistant job and then prove you deserve a shot at the head coaching job.

ATRAIN53 wrote:
Pax: "OK, just give me 1.8 seconds to think about it and i'll call you back"

DuckIII wrote:Weren't those direct quotes written down by Smith?

"In general" Tyrus Thomas is great from the neck down.

"In general" Ben Gordon is selfishly shooting for a contract.

"In general" Hinrich comprises a midget backcourt you can't win with.

Scottie, I love you. But stand by your comments or shut your cake hole bro.

By the way, LOL at Sam Smith saying Paxson needs to pull off a "big trade" for the Bulls to get the 6th seed in the playoffs.

Gregnice33 wrote:-= original quote snipped =-


I don't have the time to go back and reread the original comments, but if someone is bored you will see the comments just don't make sense, in terms of flow and transition (and I don't think it's b/c Pip is stupid, he's actually pretty expressive, for NBA player). Can someone give it a look?

On Tyrus Thomas:
"He can be a defender and a shot blocker. You don't want him taking those ill-advised shots, jumping and trying to pass the ball. He dribbles better with his left hand than his right. He must have broken his arm when he was a kid. He shouldn't be dribbling. He should be a fetcher. Like Ben Wallace, [Joakim] Noah, go get the ball. They don't have enough athletes. I could see why they went for someone like Thomas. He's athletic, but he doesn't know how to play the game. He's great from the neck down. What can he do? Have him do that."



On Ben Wallace:
"I'd say I need more effort from him. I need positive numbers in rebounds, deflections, charges. He's not playing with four All-Stars anymore. He plays defense every night or Tyrus Thomas is out there playing. You don't pay a rebounder $15 million. OK, they did. He doesn't know the game like Dennis Rodman did. Dennis knew how and why he got rebounds. So you keep on him or he doesn't play."


On Ben Gordon:
"It's his shot selection. You take those bad shots, you're sitting down. He's out there shooting for a contract. Offensively, they can be as good as last year. But their shot selection is horrible. [Luol] Deng also is playing for a contract. There's no flow to their game. Gordon has to make plays. If there's two, three guys running at him, he still wants to make a shot. Those shots are out of position, your teammates don't expect them, you are not in position to rebound and get back. Taking bad shots is a sign of a lack of respect for your teammates. You think I'm going to run back if I know B.J. Armstrong is jacking it up? My shot is just as good as his. That's what players think."


On Kirk Hinrich:
"He just needs direction. He's guarding Kobe, Tracy McGrady, the best players. He's not that talented. Let him run the offense. But you can't have midgets running your backcourt. Little guards always put you in a vulnerable position. You've got to send help. It puts too much pressure on the defense. I'd tell Kirk to try to control the game, don't force shots, but late in the game be ready. Early, I'd have him off the ball."


On Luol Deng:
"He's solid. But he doesn't have enough speed. He plays more upright, so it's tough for him to go out and guard smaller guys. I think Deng is on the verge of being a star. But all that money talk added pressure. Now he's trying to show 28, 29 teams what he's about instead of going out and playing. When the reality is maybe one or two would be looking at him."


On Andres Nocioni:
"I'd sit down with him and say, 'Show me you're a winner and play like it. Not with those crazy antics. Make your hustle work in a positive way.' He's turning into Rasheed Wallace with the kinds of things he does on floor. It makes the officials turn on the whole team. And you stop getting calls. Don't shoot those ill-advised shots. Don't look to get bailed out by the refs."

MrSparkle wrote:Pippen's analysis is spot-on. It's straight-forward, I don't see why people get so offended for other players. Gordon has pride, so it's good that he came back at him. What would ass-padding have done for Gordon? He doesn't need to hear that he's got it going on, the guy has been up-and-down every year. I am impressed with his skill-set and am glad he's tearing it up off the bench, but he's obviously not on the level of Wade.