Serpo wrote:I know Swift can hit jump shots but where he faked it seemed out of his range , Thomas made a rookie/sophomore mistake and badly payed the price .
Problem is if he's drawing some defenders he only creates space for an jump shot and we suck at shooting . We get tons of open looks but hardly hit .
Serpo on the first point Swift swished 2 from just about the same distance in that game...
and on the second point, when a player draws defenders in the paint he can create driving lanes and easy shot opportunities for teammates. Relying solely on perimeter shots around a post up player is a very "Van Gundy-ish" mindset... that's what Jeff Van Gundy tried to do with Yao Ming.
Stromile showed in his time with Houston that slashers and guys who can finish at the rim are great complements to post up players because when Yao got swarmed defenses were often not able to react and cover Swift.
This isn't the best example of what I'm talking about, as it's more of a broken play, but check this out:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=baubSMap0uY
Yao is posting up in the paint, right in the middle of the paint. Because of Yao's presence, Swift doesn't get blocked out. More than enough space for Stromile to finish the play with a vengeance. Drawing defenders in the paint doesn't mean that there won't be opportunities for other players to score in the paint. Players like Jefferson, Carter, and Harris are all quick and explosive enough to punish defenses severely for being out of position.
Ironically, that was a game the Rockets won, after they had fallen behind with Juwan in the game. Swift came in a little early in that game and they won it. (it was in sac, and i was there woo hoo!)