So . . . here's my Nellie review on what has to be considered his best coaching performance of the season:
Sleepy51 wrote:Back on the topic of basketball . . . Nellie just about lost me last night. I've very unhappy with the rotations right now, and I'm furious about how Beans is being underutilized.
Dre was NOT underutilized last night. The guy is a franchise big, and when used like on he performs like one. Now we just need Nellie to remember to use him like that more than twice a month. Beans should be given 30+ or 5 fouls every night. He needs to be involved just like last night.
Sleepy51 wrote:So I'm thinking about what would I want to see to consider this season successful, and believe in Nellie for another season:
The big thing: winning cures all. We get the playoff spot in an incrediblly tough west, with this very limited roster (depth wise) and win in the 1st round and I'd have a hard time complaining about the coaching job. Last night was a tough matchup against a team playing fantastic ball at home. Fine, write off the loss, and try some stuff out . . . but we can't do that more than a couple of times and stay in the playoff hunt.
Last night looked a lot less like "tinkering" and a lot more like giving our guys the best chance to win by playing the best players.
Sleepy51 wrote:Webb has to be fit in better. He's an obstacle to the pick and roll, and compromises our quirky defensive philosophy. Nellie has to come up with a better way to fit him in than pounding a square peg into a round hole. His bulk, passing and 15 footer can help, but Webber being a success here will come down to more than the other guys moving better around him. We need systemic changes for it to work, that means more/better coaching.
Webb did fit in better last night. Starting him next to Dre was a very different vibe than starting him next to anyone else +1 for LF. Dre can do the things Web can't, and the fact that Webb loosened up and made some dfensive plays seemed to really get other guys going and supportive of him in the lineup. Webb stepping up and being a + in a game like that will go a long way toward smoothing out the chemistry issues. That changes the whole dynamic of starting him. I'm still a little wary, but I'll take my lumps happily if things trend this way for a few consistent games.
P.S. Al totally bought in to being supersub last night. I have never in my basketball watching days seen a guy with Al's skill and physical tools adopt and execute the role of energy/hustle player like he did last night. Skilled guys just don't do what he did, they are too proud, or too used to pacing themselvee to spend all night diving on the floor, and biting and clawing like a walk-on. Al can do anything asked of him. He is an absolute keeper.
Sleepy51 wrote:Wright has to play. Assuming Pete isn't deal today, the bench has to be lengthened by more effective use of what we've got (and benching starters doesn't count.) Right now, Barnes is our whole bench - as far as some degree of consitency and positive contribution. Pete is AWOL, Bukie has been neutered, Cro is comming back from injury, CJ is a nothing, but there sits Wright, lenght, talent, energy and good court sense . . . just languishing in the phantom zone.
Wright playing is still important to me. One good game doesn't sell me on Pietrus as a fixture, but what a contribution from him last night. But, on a night where Pete does bring it like that he belongs on the floor. Barnes and Pete are rarely both having good nights at the same time, it would still be nice to see Wright getting a check-in for whichever one of them decides to be the scrub on a given night.
No CJ made me very happy.
Sleepy51 wrote:At this point, I feel like Nellie's handling has made our bench worse than it was at the start of the season. I feel like we're 6 deep now, with Webb as a possible 7th if handled better. Bukie should not have gotten worse as the season progressed, and Pete should have been fit in, or dealt if he's become obstinate.
Little thing, but even though everybody hated Dre getting pulled with timeouts, I appreciated Nellie going to Bukie for the FT period. He needs some confidence moments like that, he needs the coach to look his way once in a while with positive expectations. The guy was making a solid contribution early on, despite his defensive weakness. I think that was a good sign for Nellie to let him on the floor in moments that mattered last night.
Sleepy51 wrote:This next 2 weeks will probably end up being the whole ball of wax unless someone else stumbles badly. I think there's a lot less room for error than those who have yet to find fault with Nellie's stewardship contend. A couple of posters keep saying to lay off the HOF coach until there's a real failure to complain about. I'm not cheering for failure so that I can be right, and I'd rather Nellie prove me totally wrong and make everything he's trying work perfectly, but the clock is SOOO ticking right now.
+1 for Nellie. He needs to do it 18 more times to lock up the playoff spot and prove all us "haters" wrong, but that was a well coached game. I would have to welcome another 82 games coached that way next season.
about CPUs... can you do that? Could there be a place I could upload some game footage on to?
