Chicken Littles: Sky done fell! Draft Thread 2011

[dobrojim]

I agree in general, but... I think you can win big with a dominant offensive big - like Amare - key word being dominant. That's as long as you have good team defense.

Oh, and any team with Lebron has a shot. Btw, look for Dampier to make a difference for Miami in the playoffs.

True. But a Lebron/Boozer pairing wouldn't be as effective as a Lebron/Smith pairing. The beauty of defensive-minded players is that their talents are generally cumulative. You can add a star scorer to a good defensive team without losing anything. If you add a star scorer to a good offensive team, there are diminishing returns.

While we're on the subject, is there any chance we can trade Blatche for Varejao? It'll help our tank mission because Varajeo is hurt, it'll give Booker more minutes, it gets Blatche's less-than-professional attitude off our roster, and it doesn't hurt us cap wise.

Next year, we'll have a quality defensive big man to tag-team with McGee. That'll force McGee to work harder this offseason if he wants minutes, and it'll take away some of McGee's minutes in general, which could drive down the cost to resign him. It also opens up room for our draft pick, who is likely to be a PF.

I'd be fairly pleased with a frontline of Kanter and Varejao, backed up by Booker and McGee.

When I first read that I nodded in agreement - then just a moment later
I thought, CLE (09-10) was considered a good defensive team, then they added
that guy Dat liked to call the 'great leader of men'. Suddenly their defense
wasn't so great. Boom, they were out of the playoffs and not too much later
lost their franchise player. I'm not sure generalities like this can be relied on.
In the individual specific case, you just don't know. There is always
the question of matchups which can be exploited and/or are exposed
depending of which side of the fence you're looking from.

[nate33]

Perhaps I wasn't clear. I didn't mean to say that you can add a star scorer who is also a defensive sieve and expect to remain a good defensive team. I just mean that a good defensive team has more flexibility to add a star player (who is a modest defender) without destroying team chemistry.

For example, the Lakers are discussing the acquisition of Melo. I don't think he would help them much. I don't think he would help NY that much either. But adding Melo to a team like San Antonio or Chicago would be a significant improvement.

[Ruzious]

I agree in general, but... I think you can win big with a dominant offensive big - like Amare - key word being dominant. That's as long as you have good team defense.

Oh, and any team with Lebron has a shot. Btw, look for Dampier to make a difference for Miami in the playoffs.

True. But a Lebron/Boozer pairing wouldn't be as effective as a Lebron/Smith pairing. The beauty of defensive-minded players is that their talents are generally cumulative. You can add a star scorer to a good defensive team without losing anything. If you add a star scorer to a good offensive team, there are diminishing returns.

While we're on the subject, is there any chance we can trade Blatche for Varejao? It'll help our tank mission because Varajeo is hurt, it'll give Booker more minutes, it gets Blatche's less-than-professional attitude off our roster, and it doesn't hurt us cap wise.

Next year, we'll have a quality defensive big man to tag-team with McGee. That'll force McGee to work harder this offseason if he wants minutes, and it'll take away some of McGee's minutes in general, which could drive down the cost to resign him. It also opens up room for our draft pick, who is likely to be a PF.

I'd be fairly pleased with a frontline of Kanter and Varejao, backed up by Booker and McGee.

Well yeah, I'd definitely prefer Smith over Boozer in any situation. Boozer is over-matched against long bigs, and I was the guy here pushing for Smith (right before I switched to Love when Minny was using him as a 6th man) trades at the very beginning of the season. I'm pretty sure I got shot down by someone... here over basically a Blatche for Smith trade.

I have nowhere near the fascination you have with Sideshow V. He's the kind of player you add when you have everything else and you want an extra roll-player up front. We're anything but that team.

[dobrojim]

Perhaps I wasn't clear. I didn't mean to say that you can add a star scorer who is also a defensive sieve and expect to remain a good defensive team. I just mean that a good defensive team has more flexibility to add a star player (who is a modest defender) without destroying team chemistry.

For example, the Lakers are discussing the acquisition of Melo. I don't think he would help them much. I don't think he would help NY that much either. But adding Melo to a team like San Antonio or Chicago would be a significant improvement.

that makes more sense - the player you're adding can't be too much of an outlier
in the negative direction. And the better the team is offensively to begin with,
the less adding another good weapon will really help.

But again, I think you have to look at the specifics. Deng/Jefferson might be solid
but they don't scare the opp offensively. Melo would. The Lakers/Nix have a dom scorer
/closer already.

[tontoz]

Well yeah, I'd definitely prefer Smith over Boozer in any situation. Boozer is over-matched against long bigs, and I was the guy here pushing for Smith (right before I switched to Love when Minny was using him as a 6th man) trades at the very beginning of the season. I'm pretty sure I got shot down by someone... here over basically a Blatche for Smith trade.

For the record Boozer has struggled against Smith. Over the last two years he is averaging less than 10 ppg against the Hawks. Smith clowned Milsap earlier this year too.

[nate33]

You got me there, Ruzious. I was a fool to reject your Blatche for Smith proposal.

I'm so disappointed in Blatche this year. I just don't understand how a guy that averaged 22 points with a .530 TS% as the #1 option last year could suck so bad this year. How does he shoot so much worse despite the lower usage rate?

[Ruzious]

That's a classy comment nate. I wish I could understand what happened to Blatche. I thought he'd be at least respectable. Maybe if he comes to camp in top shape next season, and the coaches work with him to simplify his offensive approach, he can be productive. He has the ability to be a good 2-way big, and there aren't a lot of those types running around in the NBA. Maybe he's one of those players that just can't play when he's not 100%. Maybe... Ok, I'm running out of maybes.

[fishercob]

That's a classy comment nate. I wish I could understand what happened to Blatche. I thought he'd be at least respectable. Maybe if he comes to camp in top shape next season, and the coaches work with him to simplify his offensive approach, he can be productive. He has the ability to be a good 2-way big, and there aren't a lot of those types running around in the NBA. Maybe he's one of those players that just can't play when he's not 100%. Maybe... Ok, I'm running out of maybes.

My fear is that there will be no camp next season -- and that whenever the dust settles from the lockout, Blatche will show up fat, soft and crappier than he is now.

[Nivek]

I think some of what happened with Blatche is that many of us just didn't look closely enough at what he was actually doing last season. A lot of us were so pleased that someone in a Wizards uniform -- a YOUNG guy -- was putting up gaudy scoring numbers that we just didn't pay attention to overall efficiency numbers, turnovers, the rebounding numbers, etc. This year, he's definitely playing worse, but even when he was "good" last season, he wasn't really all THAT good if you know what I mean. Even when he was posting those big scoring numbers, he was still inefficient. He was just shooting a lot. Unfortunately, he still hasn't learned the concept of a good shot.

I'm marginally encouraged to see him passing out of double-teams the past few games. He's still thrown up enough bad shots in those games that I feel the need to include "marginally."

[DMVleGeND]

Blatche hasn't been the same this year because of his physique. This season, he's looked fat, rusty, out of shape, slow, has no lift, and has looked very unsure of himself, and you have to take this stuff into account because he isn't a physical player. He was working really hard before the injury, trying to add weight to his frame (muscle), but instead, he added fat.

People were underestimating the injury. Most of the comments I was hearing during the offseason was "Well he's not going to miss any games. No big deal.", but it was more then that. Because of the injury, he couldn't work out, and couldn't work on is game. Now, the player he is now is what he has become. I promise you guys he isn't this bad. He's a gifted offensive player and I honestly think that he could be a 2nd or 3rd option on a good team (let the hate begin).

Most of his game is involved with beating people off the dribble, but since he's so slow now, he can't get passed anybody except the slowest people. And he was never a good defender, but I don't think he was ever this bad. It's affecting him on defense too. A lot of his defensive woes have to do with effort, but even when he's trying, he really struggles to stay in front of his man because of his decreased quickness. A prime example of this is when he was guarding Josh Smith last game. That's why I thought should've switched McGee on him and switched Dray on to one of the slower centers the Hawks had. And because he has no lift, he can't block shots like he used to.

I really think that after this offseason, if he gets in shape, gets stronger, and work on his game, that he can be posting all-star numbers. If we trade him, we will pay and I think it could be a Chris Webber 2.0. Not saying that he's as good as Webber, but we would be trading away a talented big that will probably blossom with his next team, just like we did with Webber, Ben, and Rasheed.

[DaRealHibachi]

Andray Blatche is overrated...









Yeah, I said it...

[JAR69]

For CCJ: http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/columns/story?columnist=oneil_dana&id=6101092

Seems like a great kid, good head on his shoulders. I'd be happy to have him if we could acquire a mid-to-low first.

[Nivek]

Blatche hasn't been the same this year because of his physique. This season, he's looked fat, rusty, out of shape, slow, has no lift, and has looked very unsure of himself, and you have to take this stuff into account because he isn't a physical player. He was working really hard before the injury, trying to add weight to his frame (muscle), but instead, he added fat.

People were underestimating the injury. Most of the comments I was hearing during the offseason was "Well he's not going to miss any games. No big deal.", but it was more then that. Because of the injury, he couldn't work out, and couldn't work on is game. Now, the player he is now is what he has become. I promise you guys he isn't this bad. He's a gifted offensive player and I honestly think that he could be a 2nd or 3rd option on a good team (let the hate begin).

Most of his game is involved with beating people off the dribble, but since he's so slow now, he can't get passed anybody except the slowest people. And he was never a good defender, but I don't think he was ever this bad. It's affecting him on defense too. A lot of his defensive woes have to do with effort, but even when he's trying, he really struggles to stay in front of his man because of his decreased quickness. A prime example of this is when he was guarding Josh Smith last game. That's why I thought should've switched McGee on him and switched Dray on to one of the slower centers the Hawks had. And because he has no lift, he can't block shots like he used to.

I really think that after this offseason, if he gets in shape, gets stronger, and work on his game, that he can be posting all-star numbers. If we trade him, we will pay and I think it could be a Chris Webber 2.0. Not saying that he's as good as Webber, but we would be trading away a talented big that will probably blossom with his next team, just like we did with Webber, Ben, and Rasheed.

I posted this basic response in some other thread awhile back. It's a totally unfair comparison, but it's a useful illustration.

In his second season, Michael Jordan broke his foot. About 6 months later, he returned to action, averaging 22.7 points per game -- in 25 minutes of playing time. In the playoffs that year, he had his monster 63-point game against the Celtics. In 3 games against Boston (which went on to win the title that season), Jordan averaged 43.7 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 5.7 assists. That was 6-7 months after breaking a bone in his foot. 6-7 months of not being able to work out, not being able to work on his game.

We're now more than 7 months since Blatche hurt his foot, but "out of shape" "wasn't able to work out or work on his game" are still excuses for his poor play.

And it's worth pointing out again that even when Blatche was posting those nice scoring and decent rebounding numbers last season, he was still doing it with significantly subpar efficiency. The guy needs more than to just get in shape. He needs new shot-selection software. He needs to fundamentally change how he thinks the game. He needs to learn how to use his skills to get good shots. It's theoretically possible, but I suspect we'll be having this same conversation for as long he's in the NBA. At least until he gets too old for people to stop thinking he's just about to "get it."

[LyricalRico]

The guy needs more than to just get in shape. He needs new shot-selection software. He needs to fundamentally change how he thinks the game. He needs to learn how to use his skills to get good shots. It's theoretically possible, but I suspect we'll be having this same conversation for as long he's in the NBA. At least until he gets too old for people to stop thinking he's just about to "get it."

[tontoz]

And it's worth pointing out again that even when Blatche was posting those nice scoring and decent rebounding numbers last season, he was still doing it with significantly subpar efficiency. The guy needs more than to just get in shape. He needs new shot-selection software. He needs to fundamentally change how he thinks the game. He needs to learn how to use his skills to get good shots. It's theoretically possible, but I suspect we'll be having this same conversation for as long he's in the NBA. At least until he gets too old for people to stop thinking he's just about to "get it."

+1

Some people never get it and I think Blatche is one of them.

[kirubel94]

I always liked Harrison Barnes but the way he played at the start of the year was not very good, so i overlooked him but since hitting that game winner against MIA he kind of has turned it on. He has a very smooth offensive game, very good rebounder for a SF, good shooter potential to be really good, he can create his own shot, Overall he can be a great addition to this team.

[Ruzious]

For CCJ: http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/columns/story?columnist=oneil_dana&id=6101092

Seems like a great kid, good head on his shoulders. I'd be happy to have him if we could acquire a mid-to-low first.

Not just for CCJ. Thanks for posting it. I'll definitely root for him - no matter what team he's on.

[Chocolate City Jordanaire]

For CCJ: http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/columns/story?columnist=oneil_dana&id=6101092

Seems like a great kid, good head on his shoulders. I'd be happy to have him if we could acquire a mid-to-low first.

Not just for CCJ. Thanks for posting it. I'll definitely root for him - no matter what team he's on.

Mean streets (Newark, not DC Tiny), mom and mom's wife ... lupus .. that's a movie if this kid becomes an impact player.

Thanks for posting this, Ruz.

[JAR69]

For CCJ: http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/columns/story?columnist=oneil_dana&id=6101092

Seems like a great kid, good head on his shoulders. I'd be happy to have him if we could acquire a mid-to-low first.

Not just for CCJ. Thanks for posting it. I'll definitely root for him - no matter what team he's on.

I didn't mean to leave anyone out, but I thought I recalled CCJ being especially keen on Faried.

[Ruzious]

For CCJ: http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/columns/story?columnist=oneil_dana&id=6101092

Seems like a great kid, good head on his shoulders. I'd be happy to have him if we could acquire a mid-to-low first.

Not just for CCJ. Thanks for posting it. I'll definitely root for him - no matter what team he's on.

Mean streets (Newark, not DC Tiny), mom and mom's wife ... lupus .. that's a movie if this kid becomes an impact player.

Thanks for posting this, Ruz.

JAR deserves the credit. I could definitely see a movie in the mold of "The Blind Side". They just need an actress that has the oomph Sandra Bullock has. Halle Berry step on down. CCJ, we need to go to Hollywood and talk to a producer. Get Barely to write the screenplay.