Boston game thread?

[JWizmentality]

I'd give anything to get Singleton back here.

[Hoopalotta]

Owens stripped Pierce, had a block, six boards, and is very active at both ends. I think he and Jeffers are better than most of the guys in this draft. I think they bring toughness and composure. They made less mistakes than Wall or McGee tonight.

I would imagine that what we end up with is robust competition in camp with our invites being well received by fringe guys based on the chance of actual opportunity. Doubly so if we don't bring back Evans or a veteran wing like him.

However, the lockout is a wildcard as to who signs overseas.

[Hoopalotta]

I'd give anything to get Singleton back here.

Anything?

[ST21]

Jeffers and Owens are guys to bring back next season.

100% agree on Jeffers. havn't seen enough from Owens though.

Jeffers bring a swagger, toughness and confidence that is undeniable. I love his defense and his work ethic. he busts his ass out there.

wall with another high turnover game though (7) come on man!!! he is having way too many turnovers late in the year. i'm so glad he's scoring more but i would much rather see improvement in the assist to turnover ratio and see him play more under control. last game, 6 to's, tonight 7, there is just no reason for that. he just needs to play smarter. thats the main thing i'll be checking for next season to see if he improves in that category.

Wall actually did better this season than I thought he would. At Kentucky he had a lot of turnovers and I thought John Wall wouldn't be a very good distributor. He's been much better than I thought, but this kind of game is what I expected all along. Fortunately, he's been better most nights.

His problem is he needs to slow down and let the game come to him. Conditioning and strength could be a part of it.

i think wall did well this season too. I hope he trains with Russy and Rose in the summer. if he does that, i think he will come back and be one of the top pg's. his talent is undeniable, its only a matter of will he have the work ethic to become great or not? will he slack off and expect the game to come easy to him because of his talent or will he bust his ass and do everything he possibly can to imrprove his game. i personally think he has that drive to become great. can't wait to see him in year 2.

[nate33]

wall with another high turnover game though (7) come on man!!! he is having way too many turnovers late in the year. i'm so glad he's scoring more but i would much rather see improvement in the assist to turnover ratio and see him play more under control. last game, 6 to's, tonight 7, there is just no reason for that. he just needs to play smarter. thats the main thing i'll be checking for next season to see if he improves in that category.

The biggest cause of Wall's low assists and high turnovers is the absence of Nick Young. Young usually gets Wall 3 or 4 assists a game on simple catch-and-shoots. And Young's floor spacing makes it much easier for Wall to penetrate without running into a bunch of defenders.

Shooting matters. The Wizards only made one 3 all night, and that was Wall's meaningless 3 at the buzzer at the end of the game.

[ST21]

wall with another high turnover game though (7) come on man!!! he is having way too many turnovers late in the year. i'm so glad he's scoring more but i would much rather see improvement in the assist to turnover ratio and see him play more under control. last game, 6 to's, tonight 7, there is just no reason for that. he just needs to play smarter. thats the main thing i'll be checking for next season to see if he improves in that category.

The biggest cause of Wall's low assists and high turnovers is the absence of Nick Young. Young usually gets Wall 3 or 4 assists a game on simple catch-and-shoots. And Young's floor spacing makes it much easier for Wall to penetrate without running into a bunch of defenders.

Shooting matters. The Wizards only made one 3 all night, and that was Wall's meaningless 3 at the buzzer at the end of the game.

i agree with you. but the turnovers are more the issue than the assists. if he was getting 5 dimes with 0 turnovers i'd take that over 10 and 6to or 10 and 7to game. just want to see the rook play more under control. turnovers seem to have been a constant issue for him since game 1 this season. even one of his best performances early in the season against the sixers he had like 29pts 13 assists, 6 boards and 9 TO's. and the turnovers have remained constant throughout the season. i have to say wall is the player i am least worried about going into next year, but because he is so talented and our #1 pick i am also very critical of his game. probably overly critical at times.

those TO's just really bother me.

[hands11]

You may have taken my question the wrong way. I wasn't taking the position that you said anything wrong. I was just commenting on how unique that dunk was. I can't think of another playing in the league that pulls off moves like that. Maybe that is all he will ever be. Someone who can pull off moves that no one else can. I just hope he can continue to add more pieces to his game. If he very put it together, the kid will be something amazing to watch. He has the stuff to make himself a unique talent in this league. Just glad he is young enough that there is still a chance he can do it.

[Illuminaire]

Well, the thing is, if no one on the roster can hit a catch-and-shoot three, the defense can collapse on Wall every time. They can go under every screen. Basically, it's easy mode.

This puts pressure on Wall to create every possession, and that in turn generates turnovers. I want him to cut them down, but I'm glad he's doing even as well as he is given the conditions.

[Illuminaire]

You may have taken my question the wrong way. I wasn't taking the position that you said anything wrong. I was just commenting on how unique that dunk was. I can't think of another playing in the league that pulls off moves like that. Maybe that is all he will ever be. Someone who can pull off moves that no one else can. I just hope he can continue to add more pieces to his game. If he very put it together, the kid will be something amazing to watch. He has the stuff to make himself a unique talent in this league. Just glad he is young enough that there is still a chance he can do it.

Sorry Hands, it's been a trying day. I should have checked to see what you meant before turning the snark on.

I think we're on the same page with McGee, and you're right, he can do things no other player in the league could even try. <nodnod>

[B-easy]

Wall needs to get stronger. His finishes are pretty weak. He needs to jump higher when he is about the layup, not scoop the ball up from way down low. Looking at D-wade footage wouldn't hurt.

[hands11]

Washington played the Celtics pretty evenly. Flip decided to stick with McGee and Wall, but the best unit had Seraphin and Jeffers with Crawford.

Agreed. We needed more beef to battle down low against a team like the Celtics. I do hope Wall cleans up the sloppiness soon too. I know he's a rookie, so I'll be patient. I'm just not sure why he loses focus.

While I ragged on McGee earlier, I think it was Blatche who hurt us most among the bigs. It won't show in his box score, but he was putrid on defense. He appears to be allergic to rotating or giving a hard foul, and when he's in the game other teams know they can drive at will against our other bigs and he won't come over to help.

Flip must go! We’re not going to be a winning team unless we hire a coach that actually cares if his team plays defense. We need a coach like Dough Collins or Thibs that going to get on you and make everybody play their hearts out on D. While Dray just lets guards waltz by him, Flip does nothing and only cares about what the team does on offense.

And I completely agree with you about Dray. I've been one of the only one's defending him this season, but I can't defend him for this. Lately, his defense has been TERRIBLE! He plays OK on-ball defense, but his team defense really sticks. He doesn't rotate well, is a very poor weakside defender (It's like he's scared of going there), doesn't try to cut off the opposing team's guards lane when they get past our guards, and he doesn't try hard enough to seal his man off for defensive rebounds, and usually doesn't crash the boards. He's the mainly reason why we've gotten blown out the last two games! He's basically the equivalent of Bargnani.

Oh God. You are kidding right ?

[hands11]

Wall needs to get stronger. His finishes are pretty weak. He needs to jump higher when he is about the layup, not scoop the ball up from way down low. Looking at D-wade footage wouldn't hurt.

I believe a lot of the way Wall plays is just him trying to get the most of his best advantage. Speed and change of direction.

He hasn't been a great shot so...
He does what he does best. Run Forest Run. That is his advantage and it is why he is always moving so far. As for his leaps. That is in part because he runs 1000 miles an hour and then as he gets to the hoop, he takes long strides and moves around players. That is not going to put him in position to leap high but it does allow him to stretch to the hoop and lay it in.

Crawford is actually the one who has more options to his game and it's why he did so well when he was running the point without Wall on the floor. The Craw is more like Gil in his prime but he plays D and plays off contact better. Give him time to get that 3 ball working and I think the kid would a be amazing. I like the Craw.

Remember, the kid has only played 38 games so far. Dude has been putting up some amazing numbers since Tue 3/8

http://espn.go.com/nba/player/gamelog/_ ... n-crawford

He has a chance to end the year as the teams league ppg scorer.
http://espn.go.com/nba/team/stats/_/nam ... on-wizards

[JWizmentality]

I'd give anything to get Singleton back here.

Anything?