Barbosa's bad defense...

shamelessblazer · Post #1 » by **shamelessblazer** » Thu Jun 5, 2008 2:02 am

So I would really like to see the guy playing for Portland honestly. Our GM has said he wants more speed, athleticism, and shooting in the backcourt and I think he can provide that. His weakness seems to be that he isn't a PG, but we have Roy run all of our half-court sets anyways. The other thing is that our big cap room strategy for 09 wouldn't really be compromised with Barbosa on the roster, assuming we trade away some other talent (Outlaw-Blake) making him a much less risky acquisition than Hinrich, Billups, or other players Portland fans are after.

In my mind he could play PG on defense, catch outlet passes and scream down the court with Webster and Aldridge (could be as deadly as Amare on the break if utilized with his speed and athleticism) and if nothing easy is there pull back and hand it to Roy (who's coming down the court with Oden on the secondary break) then become a shooting threat/player to move off the ball and find holes off of double teams on Roy, Aldridge, or Oden.

This seems to fit perfectly to me (and some of the more intelligent blazer fans) the only question is his defense. Our PG defense last year was less than mediocre (though Blake is okay, Jack was terrible), and we were really lacking speed to keep up with the little guys. I know Barbosa has a bad rep on defense but does part of the reason for that have to do with him having to defend bigger SG's often with Nash running the show? It seems to reason but I didn't catch too many suns games this year so I don't really know.

nba_addict · Post #2 » by **nba_addict** » Thu Jun 5, 2008 3:28 am

Other than Paul and Parker (Deron and Harris to certain extent) Barbosa is an average defender at the very least for the rest of the point guards in the leauge.

garrick · Post #3 » by **garrick** » Thu Jun 5, 2008 3:32 am

Barbosa has the tools to be a decent defender because he has long arms, good speed, quickness but it's all a matter of him working on it and improving. He won't have the strength to guard players in the post but I don't see why he can't be at least a decent defender on the perimeter.

chrice · Post #4 » by **chrice** » Thu Jun 5, 2008 7:04 am

Barbosa has good straight ahead speed, but his lateral and backpedaling speed aren't proportionate. He's built more for the offensive end to say the least. I'd say his footwork and defensive technique are his achilles heel. Also factor in that he doesn't exactly have a wide frame or strength to prevent guys from going through or around him, so he's going to struggle at the 1 & 2.

shamelessblazer · Post #5 » by **shamelessblazer** » Thu Jun 5, 2008 3:32 pm

chrice wrote:I'd say his footwork and defensive technique are his achilles heel.

That Nate can teach him with a strong emphasis.

chrice wrote:Also factor in that he doesn't exactly have a wide frame or strength to prevent guys from going through or around him, so he's going to struggle at the 1 & 2.

wide frame or strength against SG's? He seems decent sized for a PG...

Cash · Post #6 » by **Cash** » Thu Jun 5, 2008 4:15 pm

Yeah, against SG's. Barbosa could still struggle against really big, physical PG's like Billups, but by and large, he has the physical tools to defend anyone at the 1. He hasn't used those tools to very good effect thus far, but coaching can correct a lot of his problems. I think he'd be a perfect fit for the Blazers, especially with Oden protecting the paint, allowing LB to gamble a bit more on the perimeter. Since the Suns have had bad to horrible interior D throughout Barbosa's career, his mistakes tend to get magnified.

thamadkant · Post #7 » by **thamadkant** » Thu Jun 5, 2008 4:38 pm

Barbosa has such a long wingspan and quick feet.... and obviously very fast, and athletic to boot.

He suffers "D'Antonititis"... Amare MIGHT be suffering it too...

It basically limits your thinking about playing defense and a strong craving to be at the offensive end of the basketball court.

Hopefully the new HC can discipline and cure this ailment and both players recover and save the Suns 2008-2009 season.

And I would really like to trade up using Barbosa, assuming it will land the Suns one of the combo guards or a swingman.

Cash · Post #8 » by **Cash** » Thu Jun 5, 2008 10:43 pm

Barbosa's already one of the best combo guards in the NBA. Why trade up to get another one?

chrice · Post #9 » by **chrice** » Thu Jun 5, 2008 11:59 pm

shamelessblazer wrote:-= original quote snipped =-

wide frame or strength against SG's? He seems decent sized for a PG...

I wasn't even referring to him defending SG's. He can guard guys with average athleticism, but he struggles against quick and/ or strong point guards...which is not a good thing in the west, where you have guys like Kidd/Davis/Parker/Paul/Williams. He does have a good height and weight for a point guard, but he is narrow in build and doesn't have a low center of gravity to prevent being backed up. If you watch him you'll know what I mean. I think he'd be a good fit on the Blazers with Roy. If McMillan can do the same thing with Jerome James, then he could be at least a decent defender. But his body type and lateral speed can prevent him from staying in front of his opponent.