Why do we play so much better with Goran instead of Bledsoe?

[rsavaj]

through December 21


from a few weeks ago

Yet there are some odd quirks in the pairing of Phoenix’s guards still, primarily on Bledsoe’s side of the aisle. When Dragic is on the floor, Bledsoe’s field-goal percentage plummets from nearly 50 percent on average to 41 percent, while his long range shooting dips from a roughly league-average mark to 30 percent. Bledsoe gets deep into the paint significantly less often, draws fewer fouls per minute, and struggles to convert intermediate shots when paired with Dragic. Phoenix on the whole still does quite well when playing its two lead guards together, though in all these are mildly concerning factors for a player who could be central to the Suns’ future.

Adding another layer of complexity to the situation is that Bledsoe-led lineups without Dragic have been a bit of a mess for the Suns, as they suffer losses on both ends of the floor. Some of that is simply the nature of leaning on players like Gerald Green in Dragic’s stead, though it’s hard to tease out a distinct reason why Phoenix would fare so well with Dragic sans Bledsoe and so poorly under the opposite arrangement

In total, Bledsoe — who may be the face of the franchise going forward — has not yet been successful in leading lineups without Dragic’s aid. At the same time, he’s both more productive (as one would expect) and more efficient (as one likely wouldn’t) with Dragic out of the game, creating a slight disconnect between what is currently best for Bledsoe and what has ultimately worked for the Suns. This isn’t much of an issue when Phoenix is riding high on a five-game winning streak, and is still subject to such incredible noise that it isn’t worth making a fuss about. Dragic has been incredible, Bledsoe is a star in the making very worthy of the public adoration he’s received, and the Suns are a fun, winning team. Yet the basketball relationship between the two bears watching, as it certainly isn’t without its kinks.

http://nba.si.com/2013/12/17/phoenix-su ... damentals/

What's going on?

[Maystack]

Dragic has way more experience, especially with being the leader of a team. Bledsoe is still young, and this is is the first time he's had such a big role. It will take a while for him to get used to the new place he has on a team.

[QuickLikeTheo]

Idk but from my point of view it's better with both on the floor.

[NapoleonII]

Those stats are also suffering from the awkward first 10 games or so, when they literally just took turns controlling the game. Nowadays we're seeing more of a balanced, team-oriented attack.

The cohesion isn't perfect and it's still developing.There was a pass in particular from last night's came against the lakers where Dragic found a cutting Bledsoe that you just didn't see in the beginning.

Playing them both together will force them to develop parts of their game that would have suffered if they were both their teams first and only option. Bledsoe needs to be get better off the ball, develop ala Wade into a cutter. His catch and shoot also needs to improve, I think Horny will push this.

[Calvin Klein]

Bledsoe seems to take worse decisions overall. Bad shots (those 3s...), specially.

[McD for MVP]

I would like to see Bledsoe play with a goal to shoot at least 8 free throws a game.

He could be one of the league leaders in FTA per game if he really wanted to. Would open up a lot of doors for our offense.

[DirtyDez]

Bledsoe seems to take worse decisions overall. Bad shots (those 3s...), specially.

Which is odd because he leads the team in TS%, PER and 2nd to Plumlee in FG%. When his shot selection improves sky is the limit.

[BurningHeart]

Because he's a better player.

[phx#7]

Bledsoe is not as good off the ball and isn't as good in transition. I have no doubt he will continue to get better though, against the Lakers you saw him cutting without the ball more than I can recall in any other game.

[Blackification]

bledsoe still learning and getting used to all the minutes he is getting. Also because dragic is consistently pushing the pace and is familiar with this type of offense and the players in that offense. I would love to see a stat of our defense in these situations though

[Cutter]

I would like to see Bledsoe play with a goal to shoot at least 8 free throws a game.

He could be one of the league leaders in FTA per game if he really wanted to. Would open up a lot of doors for our offense.

Agreed. Also like to see him push the tempo a lot more when bringing the ball up. Horny is always on the sideline yelling at him to run.

[Ring_Wanted]

Dragic, although he can score by himself, looks to set up his teammates constantly (his assists only started to drop when Hornacek made him officially the off guard, after the second defeat to the Kings, I believe).

Bledsoe's game is much more focused on his one on one abilities and passing is usually a second option, plus he commits more turnovers and takes more bad shots.

Our other players are not really capable of creating for theselves, with the exception of the Morrii to some extent, so they trend to play better with the guard who integrates them more in the flow of the game. Frye and Plumlee in particular.

Oh, and Bledsoe also trends to slack on D for big chunks of the game, either gambling too much or letting his man do, above all the first weeks of the season.

If those things happen with any regularity, it's no wonder the team looks better with Goran than with Bledsoe. They seem to be at their best together, tho, which was a huge question mark before the season. I was quite sceptical about the fit, but the doubts are certainly gone.

[DRK]

bledsoe still learning and getting used to all the minutes he is getting. Also because dragic is consistently pushing the pace and is familiar with this type of offense and the players in that offense. I would love to see a stat of our defense in these situations though

Exactly. We have to remember that Bledsoe came from 3 years riding the bench behind Chris Paul. He's never played this many minutes before, and has never had the entire focus of the defence on him when he's on the court.

I'ld say he's been doing a fantastic job so far considering what little experience he has.

[le crapaud]

That's the beauty of our team I'd say. There's room for improvement, especially for the DragonBlade duo. But from what I've seen since the beginning of the season I think they are improving tremendously together and they know each other more. In the 5-10 first games it was only one who was really good and the other not so much. But recently, with the streak of wins we've begun to see a solid 1-2 punch tearing down the other team. The key is the consistency. And we are better at controlling games with them on the floor. Bledsoe will get there I'm sure. He already has cut down those silly turnovers and he is impacting more than I ever thought from beyond the arc. I thought he didn't have that range but it helps a lot because he can mix it up with the driving stuff.

[Ring_Wanted]

Maybe what's surprised me the most about Bledsoe has been his midrange shot off the dribble around the free throw line. Looking at his shooting chart the %s don't look that impressive, but it's huge for his game and our offense to be able to stop and pop a shot instead of needing to always charge against the defense.

[DirtyDez]

Maybe what's surprised me the most about Bledsoe has been his midrange shot off the dribble around the free throw line. Looking at his shooting chart the %s don't look that impressive, but it's huge for his game and our offense to be able to stop and pop a shot instead of needing to always charge against the defense.

I don't recall most of his shots being from the paint yet he's shooting 54% on 2pt shots. I think he's money within 10ft but FT-extended must where his charts show the poor percentages. Didn't expect 36% from 3pt range either. Believe it or not that's higher than Goran.

[Ring_Wanted]

He's been killer under the basket (expected), reliable from midrange and average from 3pt which is crazy for him at the volume he's taking shots. Not bad at all from someone who supposedly couldn't shoot.

[Revived]

Paul Coro
Hornacek said Bledsoe (right knee sprain) will be out at least a week. Green will start in his place. #SunsVsBucks

I guess we will find out if this theory of being better with Goran is true or not. Certainly wasn't the case on Thursday. Looks like we will have at least a week to see though.

[LukasBMW]

Paul Coro
Hornacek said Bledsoe (right knee sprain) will be out at least a week. Green will start in his place. #SunsVsBucks

I guess we will find out if this theory of being better with Goran is true or not. Certainly wasn't the case on Thursday. Looks like we will have at least a week to see though.

The last time Bledsoe sat out due to injury, we played fine without him.

I hope that holds true this time around. If it doesn't, his value increased tremendously.

I almost wonder if he HOPES the suns struggle without him.

[NTB]

Paul Coro
Hornacek said Bledsoe (right knee sprain) will be out at least a week. Green will start in his place. #SunsVsBucks

I guess we will find out if this theory of being better with Goran is true or not. Certainly wasn't the case on Thursday. Looks like we will have at least a week to see though.

The last time Bledsoe sat out due to injury, we played fine without him.

I hope that holds true this time around. If it doesn't, his value increased tremendously.

I almost wonder if he HOPES the suns struggle without him.

We lost to Kings 2 times in back-to-back games when we were without Bledsoe.