Hey Stan..how about starting Pietrus?

UCFknight84 · Post #1 » by **UCFknight84** » Sat Apr 25, 2009 8:11 am

Hedo has been playing awful so far, 28 percent from the field. I think its a big mix of fatigue/confidence/ankle thats holding him back

so how about rebuilding his confidence by running ship of our 6th man? He used to flourish under that role, him playing good against hte 2nd unit would boost his confidence while giving him less minutes to rest the ankle.

Hedo on Iguodala is a big matchup problem for us, Hedo is just too slow for Iggy. I think it's time for SVG to make a move and adjust the lineup to matchup to the 76ers athleticism.

but will he agree to losing his starting spot for the sake of the team? could the mere suggestion damper our chances of resigning him, taking it as direspect? possibly but its worth a try, this could be our year

Post #2 » by **FFBlitzace** » Sat Apr 25, 2009 8:17 am

You know things are bad when we want Pietrus to play more.

Put this in the "Beating a Dead Horse" column, as well as the "Captain Obvious" column, but since Philly seems to consider Hedo such a threat (I don't know whether to tell them the truth or let them keep thinking that), we'd be much better if Hedo would just forget about his offense and look to move the ball and get shots for people whenever Philly sends guys at him.

Cammo101 · Post #3 » by **Cammo101** » Sat Apr 25, 2009 8:59 am

That kind of knee jerk reaction reeks of, what would Shaq call it? PANIC.

The Magic need to stay the course. The playoffs are not the time for lineup tinkering.

ADRajX · Post #4 » by **ADRajX** » Sat Apr 25, 2009 9:02 am

It's not going to help much

We don't have any confidence at all... Hedo and Rashard are playing like crap... Pietrus hasn't been the same since his wrist fracture injury... the only people on our team that are playing loose and free are Howard and Lee; and Alston is trying the best he can, but at 34, there's only so much he can do.

If anything, we need more bench production, we need to give JJ some burn, we need Gortat out there with Howard, when Lewis needs to rest... We need AJ out there with both Hedo and Rashard on the court (and not just 1 of them)... we need a change in the rotation to spark us offensively and defensively; the bench needs to get us going.

We all know they can play better than this; it has just been a nightmare series so far.

Post #5 » by **SOUL** » Sat Apr 25, 2009 9:03 am

I think Stan's plan is for Hedo to shoot/play his way out of it, which obviously isnt working.

N4U|Redux · Post #6 » by **N4U|Redux** » Sat Apr 25, 2009 9:22 am

Benching Hedo would boost his confidence "by running ship of our 6th man" ????? rofl

As mentioned, lineup tinkering is pretty much out of the question at this point.

However, I don't necessarily see a reason that Peaches shouldn't see more minutes defending Iggy if he's capable of slowing him down more. Benching and reduced minutes are different approaches though, I'd much rather see thet latter.

Post #7 » by **craig01** » Sat Apr 25, 2009 11:40 am

UCFknight84 wrote:Hedo has been playing awful so far, 28 percent from the field. I think its a big mix of fatigue/confidence/ankle thats holding him back

so how about rebuilding his confidence by running ship of our 6th man? He used to flourish under that role, him playing good against hte 2nd unit would boost his confidence while giving him less minutes to rest the ankle.

It's not fatigue or lack of confidence.

It's his ankle.

He favors it when driving to the rim offensively and CAN NOT move laterally on either end, leaving him unable to create space for jumpers and forcing him to reach on defense.

Until his ankle regains some strength Hedo is a liability on both ends of the floor.

SVG needs to limit his minutes so that they are tied to his productivity.

taruky1 · Post #8 » by **taruky1** » Sat Apr 25, 2009 1:48 pm

There are a number of things that happen when you play on a bad sprain. It's pretty obvious to me that he is having difficulty pushing off on drives and on jumpers. He has pretty much abandoned all pull up jumpers, and like it or not, that is a threat in his arsenal that makes him tougher to defend. When you play on a bum ankle you are compensating some what in the way you run and move, which can be fatiguing. Finally, cover a guy like Iguodala who is shooting out of his mind and you've got what you see. I don't think anyone can legitimately blame his effort on the defensive end.

magicman123 · Post #9 » by **magicman123** » Sat Apr 25, 2009 4:07 pm

can his ankle be really that bad playing 40min a night? maybe he should jump off the other foot for a layup

AdamTheGreek · Post #10 » by **AdamTheGreek** » Sat Apr 25, 2009 4:13 pm

THEN HEDO NEEDS TO SIT THE **** OUT!!!

Or start Peaches and have Hedo play 20 off the bench, problem solved.

realfung · Post #11 » by **realfung** » Sat Apr 25, 2009 4:35 pm

It is not a big deal.
Just shoot more threes

Post #12 » by **craig01** » Sat Apr 25, 2009 4:42 pm

magicman123 wrote:can his ankle be really that bad playing 40min a night? maybe he should jump off the other foot for a layup

It ain't that easy.

trebone · Post #13 » by **trebone** » Sat Apr 25, 2009 7:23 pm

why not if he plays better d on iggy, you cant really care about the players feelings if he is not getting it done on the floor you have to do whats best for the "TEAM"

EasternMagic · Post #14 » by **EasternMagic** » Sat Apr 25, 2009 7:51 pm

Whenever Pietrus came in last night we started playing better he hit some big shots played better D, I don't know if I would give him the start, but as soon as Hedo starts screwing up, give Pietrus the big minutes

AgEnT50 · Post #15 » by **AgEnT50** » Sat Apr 25, 2009 10:12 pm

I really can't stand Pietrus at times. . .but if playing him more & Turk less is what we have to do...then do it! I feel as if he plays better "D" on Iggy anyway! We have to do something to slow these guys down.

Edit: I still think Turk should start, but Stan should "slack off" on his mins if he sees that he's playing like garbage

A little O/T. . .What the hell is Gortat doing this series?

He looks absolutely horrible too!! He's not getting rebounds. . and everytime Iggy or Thad drives the line he fouls em'

Last Guardian · Post #16 » by **Last Guardian** » Sat Apr 25, 2009 10:57 pm

Don't see the point. Turk is pure garbage but Pietrus is basically the same....a dumb chucker.

Post #17 » by **Bensational** » Sun Apr 26, 2009 12:16 am

someone said it before, but Stan needs to stop Hedo from trying to do so much (mostly bad driving) and just focus on using his passing to get others involved more. Lewis should take a lot more shots. Dwight should take the same amount he did last night. Lee should take more shots. Hedo, at 2-12 and only 3 FT appearances, should NOT be taking so many shots.

that is Stan's problem - he needs to reign the guy in and put him in his place, and make him realise he still has skills to help the team, even if he's not being "the man".

but it's also a good idea to get him more rest and let Peaches defend Iggy if he's able to slow him down.

what sucks is Hedo's ankle isn't gonna be gettin any rest in what looks like it will be a long and drawn out series. this will most likely be the Hedo we have for the entire playoffs, so get used to it.