GT #56: Pistons @ Bullets 7 PM (NBCSW/980 AM) [2/14/22]

[payitforward]

I was on the draft Bey bandwagon. Called him my "sleeper." But I like Deni and think he'll turn out to be as good--if not better--than Bey.

He's already better than Saddiq Bey. Quite a lot better. Despite being almost 2 years younger than Bey.

But, the comparison isn't fair -- at least not from the point of view "smart draft picks," since Bey went #19 -- obviously, with the #9 pick you'd expect to be able to trade down. You'd get multiple picks.

Since players are never chosen in the order of how good they turn out to be, not in the '20 draft or any other draft, you'd probably be able to come away with 3 rookies, & all of them might be better than either Avdija or Bey so far.

Especially if you got the kid who went #52, right?

Deni may be better than Bey now but that doesn’t mean he’ll end up having a better NBA career than Bey. As a Zards fan, I certainly hope he does.

But, as you probably have noticed, I have a real anathema towards judging people’s potential/ability based on the first one or two (or even three) years of their careers.

Both these points are valid, Zards.

Who knows -- maybe Bey takes a leap, & Deni the opposite? For the moment, however, despite being nearly 2 years younger, Deni is quite a bit better.

Bey's big problem is that, to this point, he hasn't been able to score efficiently -- he's posting a .468 TS%. Bigest problem is his 2 pt.% of 43%.

Your 2d point -- that it's too early to make a final judgment on Saddiq Bey (or Deni, or any 2d year player) -- is certainly correct! I didn't mean to give that impression.

Recall, if you please, that I was responding to a post that DID make a final judgment: regretting that we'd picked Deni over either Stewart or Bey. I notice that you didn't reply to that post w/ a critique of its rush to judgment.

[payitforward]

Here we go with the blatant silly homerism.

The next time you post something intelligent & with some genuine supporting arguments, I'll be really happy. You used to do it all the time....

[TGW]

Here we go with the blatant silly homerism.

The next time you post something intelligent & with some genuine supporting arguments, I'll be really happy. You used to do it all the time....

You know why I ignore you pif...you're annoying. You're old, boring, argumentative, and annoying. You can feel free to ignore me now, but do me a favor...don't reply to me. I'm not going to waste my time arguing with some old argumentative grandpa over the internet. Peace out.

[payitforward]

Here we go with the blatant silly homerism.

The next time you post something intelligent & with some genuine supporting arguments, I'll be really happy. You used to do it all the time....

You know why I ignore you pif...you're annoying. You're old, boring, argumentative, and annoying. You can feel free to ignore me now, but do me a favor...don't reply to me. I'm not going to waste my time arguing with some old argumentative grandpa over the internet. Peace out.

Now, that's more like it!

But, you're not all that young, are you? I notice, for example, that you put two spaces after the period at the end of a sentence. People who learned to type in the era of typewriters were taught that practice. But, in a world of proportional fonts, it is unnecessary. Old-fashioned, actually. One space suffices.

Moreover, you certainly don't ignore me! The opposite -- you just had a really good time typing up a vigorous put-down aimed directly at me!

You did a pretty good job too; if I were your teacher I'd give you an above average grade. I think "B" would be about right.

Hmmm... better make that a B-. You might have done a little better grade-wise if you'd come up with variant vocabulary for "ignore," "argue," & "annoy," each of which you use multiple times in a piece of writing which extends to no more than fifty words. One other weak point was to end the post with the same claim that began it -- that you are "not going to" do the very thing you just did -- right after saying you weren't going to do it!

That figure of speech -- in which the writer does a thing by claiming that he's not going to do it -- is called apophasis (ἀπόφασις) or, sometimes, paralipsis (παράλειψις), by the way. It can be powerful -- but its effect is diluted by repetition. One use is enough.

Thanks for biting the hook I fed you. Next, you might turn that brain of yours to some actual analysis of the team, the FO, moves, etc. Look forward to reading some of that!

[badinage]

This is uncalled for, TGW.

It’s one thing to go after people’s ideas, or language even — another to go after THEM. And to call someone “old” — beyond the simple fact that humans are not old, only things are old … beyond that fact it’s insulting, it degrades you, and it degrades the forum.

And look, we’re all argumentative here. All of us. That’s the whole point. I don’t agree with everyone all the time or even most of the time. Or sometimes even some of the time.

PIF may not be to your liking — he’s absolutely an acquired taste — but often acquired tastes are the best tastes; the ones that challenge us, and make us grow. I will say that week to week, I learn from him — and not so much about the way he sees the game or the draft (it’s about the value of the pick and not the player! after 3, it’s effectively a total crapshoot!) but about how to think, and about a myriad of things. And from a message board I get this? Where cranks of all stripes come and vent? And people hide behind an identity? Really? I consider myself lucky.

[dobrojim]

KCP telling Bryant not to argue with the ref.

Then he gets a tech less than a minute later. Do as I say, not as I do.

That was a really really bad play on his part. Whining, not getting back leads to an open
corner 3 then gets the T for a 4 pt sequence.

[dobrojim]

Neto with a couple of huge buckets to close it out. Where are all the haters, now?

Neto has been horrible on the whole this season. Can't defend, can't shoot, and struggles
against aggressive on ball defense. What more do you want from your starting PG?

[payitforward]

This is uncalled for.

It’s one thing to go after people’s ideas, or language even — another to go after THEM. And to call someone “old” — beyond the simple fact that humans are not old, only things are old … beyond that fact it’s insulting, it degrades you, and it degrades the forum.

And look, we’re all argumentative here. All of us. That’s the whole point. I don’t agree with everyone all the time or even most of the time. Or sometimes even some of the time.

PIF may not be to your liking — he’s absolutely an acquired taste — but often acquired tastes are the best tastes; the ones that challenge us, and make us grow. I will say that week to week, I learn from him — and not so much about the way he sees the game or the draft (it’s about the value of the pick and not the player! after 3, it’s effectively a total crapshoot!) but about how to think, and about a myriad of things. And from a message board I get this? Where cranks of all stripes come and vent? And people hide behind an identity? Really? I consider myself lucky.

Hey there badinage... thanks for the spirited defense! & above all for suggesting that you actually learn something from me, something of significance. I'm flattered.

But, I didn't think TGW exceeded the bounds of good taste, & I wasn't insulted -- as I hope is obvious from my response.

Far from it. TGW was doing something the Brits call "taking the piss," poking at my self-satisfied self-confidence. There has to be an edge to that, otherwise it doesn't work!

One last thing: TGW is also perfectly aware that I can, as it were, "give as good as I get." If he'd thought I would really feel injured, really damaged, by his words... I'm pretty sure he wouldn't have written them.

After all, although he doesn't know his ass from his elbow about basketball, he seems like a perfectly nice guy otherwise.

[dobrojim]

Finished with a Double Double and a career high of 15 boards, impressive. I hope he will continue being agressive and fearless like tonight, taking the ball and create for himself / others, he can do that he's smart and has the physicality to be dangerous. Just keep with this confidence and take your shots. I loved also his passing game, sometimes he brings in flashy passes that wows you and make easy buckets for the team. I bet players love to play around him. His playmaking skills are very promising.

I think the injury last year really set him back and this season, maybe the first half, he was still a rookie. He's shooting around 30% from three-point range and hitting 75% of his free throws. That means he's going in the right direction. I'm glad he's going to get 25-30 mpg over the last 26 games at every position other than probably center. I think there are five things he needs to do in the offseason to get to that next level:

1)Gain 10 pounds of muscle. I know he put on some weight from last season, but this is a tough league. It never hurts to add some strength.
2) Left-hand dribble, left-hand drives. He goes 99% to his right and that's fine for now, but if he faked right, crossed over and went left against bigger players or guys his size, he could get to the rim easier.
3)Stop whining after every call that goes against you. It's not going to help you get more calls with the refs, who probably don't respect you as a young player.
4)Of course, keep working on your three-point shot.
5)ABC: Always Be Confident (or closing).

Gaining weight would make him slower and increase load on his knees and ankles.
His main priority for the rest of season would be IMHO staying healthy until summer, when he can develop his game further.
For now - increase %USG, and play Point Guard/Point Forward as much as possible.
Go easy on defense (what's the point, really?) and lose the keys to the gym.

I'm not sure how possible this is but the biggest concern I have with Deni is I don't see
explosiveness, particularly around the basket. He'll miss bunnies when some explosiveness
would have him dunking. Don't get me wrong, I still like him as a player but if he can get
stronger and quit missing bunnies...he's 21 so hopefully he improve in many ways and
even if he doesn't ever become NBA-level explosive, he can still be a very effective player.

[dobrojim]

[snip}
PIF may not be to your liking — he’s absolutely an acquired taste — but often acquired tastes are the best tastes; the ones that challenge us, and make us grow. I will say that week to week, I learn from him — and not so much about the way he sees the game or the draft (it’s about the value of the pick and not the player! after 3, it’s effectively a total crapshoot!) but about how to think, and about a myriad of things. And from a message board I get this? Where cranks of all stripes come and vent? And people hide behind an identity? Really? I consider myself lucky.

The deepest learning occurs when we are made a little uncomfortable and have our
current beliefs challenged.

[Ruzious]

The next time you post something intelligent & with some genuine supporting arguments, I'll be really happy. You used to do it all the time....

You know why I ignore you pif...you're annoying. You're old, boring, argumentative, and annoying. You can feel free to ignore me now, but do me a favor...don't reply to me. I'm not going to waste my time arguing with some old argumentative grandpa over the internet. Peace out.

Now, that's more like it!

But, you're not all that young, are you? I notice, for example, that you put two spaces after the period at the end of a sentence. People who learned to type in the era of typewriters were taught that practice. But, in a world of proportional fonts, it is unnecessary. Old-fashioned, actually. One space suffices.

Moreover, you certainly don't ignore me! The opposite -- you just had a really good time typing up a vigorous put-down aimed directly at me!

You did a pretty good job too; if I were your teacher I'd give you an above average grade. I think "B" would be about right.

Hmmm... better make that a B-. You might have done a little better grade-wise if you'd come up with variant vocabulary for "ignore," "argue," & "annoy," each of which you use multiple times in a piece of writing which extends to no more than fifty words. One other weak point was to end the post with the same claim that began it -- that you are "not going to" do the very thing you just did -- right after saying you weren't going to do it!

That figure of speech -- in which the writer does a thing by claiming that he's not going to do it -- is called apophasis (ἀπόφασις) or, sometimes, paralipsis (παράλειψις), by the way. It can be powerful -- but its effect is diluted by repetition. One use is enough.

Thanks for biting the hook I fed you. Next, you might turn that brain of yours to some actual analysis of the team, the FO, moves, etc. Look forward to reading some of that!

He had a lot of nerve calling you old.

Actually, he's called me all those things and more multiple times in the Politics thread, so don't feel special, my friend.

[payitforward]

This team has been so very bad for so very long, & it was so badly & so arrogantly mismanaged for so long, that you can hardly blame TGW or anyone for getting sour & even bitter. & for not believing in anything good that might happen.

For that matter, all he did was call me "grandpa." Which is fair enough, since I have 7 grandchildren. But once a person has the pleasure of being a grandfather, it becomes impossible to take it as an insult!