Miami Vs Wizards 10/15/13 Preseason

[dangermouse]

Wall looked dominant on defense, Beal looked dominant on offense.

I almost revised my win-loss prediction last night. I think im gonna stick with it, might turn out to be a few less, but really I think Beal and Wall are good enough together that we can make the playoffs on them alone.

[Ruzious]

I am not getting the Vesley love-in. Maybe, I was watching a separate game, but for a starter he had 5 fouls in about 22 mins! Oh, he's also a self-check on offense...nothing better than a 3rd big off the bench. Sorry, I just can't get it out of my head that he was a 6th overall pick.

Yeah, I think expectations have gotten so low for him, that when he's not absolutely awful, there's a little of the old hope rekindled. And compared to Seraphin, he played great! Seraphin has a golden opportunity this year - with Okafor's injury AND Harrington giving them a 3 ball shooter at the 4 really should open things up for him to operate inside 1 on 1 - and yet... he just shows no court awareness on offense.

Beal was on fire, but he also has developed physically. Compare him to last year at this time, and he's a bigger stronger player. Last season, he got physically manhandled by the beard in Houston. This year, I look forward to seeing him hold his own in that matchup.

We got good Harrington and good Ariza, and it was fun to watch. No doubt the stretch 4 change to the offense that Harrington gave them made a huge difference. AH also did a very good job in ball movement - he turned it over a couple of times, but I liked that he was very quick to whip the ball around when he didn't have a shot. He and Ariza worked very well together - almost as interchangable parts. Ariza played better than his stats and was impressive at both ends. If he'd show up like that every game, he'd be a borderline all-star, but he hasn't. Will the AH affect and being in a contract year change that?

[dobrojim]

Beal has also developed his handle. He admitted in the postgame chat that
that had been a weakness for him last year so he worked at improving that.

Great to see he bust out like he did last night. Could have easily had
30 if he had played in the 4th Q.

I thought the W was encouraging in that our decisive run came early
in the 3rd when MIA was still playing LBJ etal. But the usual caveats
about it being preseason certainly apply. That said, in preseason
so far we've played all playoff teams from last year (and likely this
year too) and the 2 losses were in OT and by 1 point so we've been
competitive.

Ariza played very well. Booker played well with the exception
of missing a bunny. Wall and Beal played very well. Ves? Meh.
He wasn't horrible and to me got abused more by the zebras than by MIA.
KSera to me did not appear to be forcing a lot of bad shots although
he wasn't hitting the ones he did take.

Oh, and I continue to like GRjr. For a rook, he is doing fine.
And Harrington was very solid as well.

[DCZards]

Oh, and I continue to like GRjr. For a rook, he is doing fine.
And Harrington was very solid as well.

Yeah, there's a lot to like about Rice jr. He already plays like he belongs. He's still a little rough around the edges skillwise and needs to show consistent effort, but he's got great b'ball instincts. Given that he was taken in the middle of the second round, GR jr. could turn out to be the steal of the draft.

[closg00]

Coach Randy Wittman was already going to have to change his starting lineup on Tuesday against the Miami Heat with Nene back in his native Brazil dealing with a serious personal matter. But instead of just sliding in a player to replace Nene, Wittman decided to go with Kevin Seraphin – and replace Jan Vesely with Trevor Booker.

That was only the beginning of Wittman’s tinkering. With a Heat squad that thrives on small ball, Wittman countered with his only unique lineups, including an odd mix that included Vesely, Trevor Ariza, Glen Rice Jr., Bradley Beal and John Wall.

“I wanted to look at things a little differently,” Wittman said.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wiz ... ver-miami/

[payitforward]

...I could see the Wizards being fun to watch with so many options in Beal, Rice, Webber, Ariza, and Harrington....

I agree, especially about Webber. He could be really good!

[payitforward]

...I thought Book played well. Not sure about him starting at the 4 at 6-7 but he's the best option of a bad bunch.

You "thought" he played well? In 16 minutes he had 5 rebounds, 2 steals, no turnovers, and went 4-5 from the floor. You think that indicates he's undersized? That performance merits being called "best option of a bad bunch"?

You're right that the other bigs are a bad bunch -- no question about that. But Booker has always played at the level of an above-average starter when healthy. That's his only issue, staying healthy. Is he a star? No. But he's a d***d good NBA 4.

[Dat2U]

I liked the way Ves played tonight too, he's carving out a niche as a defense and rebounding guy. Throw out his draft status, he's never going to have the offensive ability to justify himself as a #6 pick. Also accept that he's essentially starting from square one. Lockout, playing for a godawful team, position change from a SF to a PF/C type, total dysfunction with a historically bad start when Wall was injured--all that adds up to his first two years being a waste. No role, no plan for him, no minutes for him, it was just an unfortunate situation. Now he can find himself a role and start from there.

We're probably still years away from him and Seraphin being fully developed. They were so raw coming in and this was such a poor situation for the past several years, they've come along slow. But if Ves plays good D and rebounds this season, I'm willing to wait on him.

Can't wait til Porter gets back. With all these three point shooters spacing the floor, we've got room for another shot creator to operate from the high post and from mid range. I'm looking forward to seeing him start to unveil his diverse offensive game.

No, No, No! One of my simple mantra's... "Don't waste years trying to develop marginal role players". Why? It's a colossal waste of time and resources. So what if Ves & Seraphin were recent draft picks? It's already a sunken cost, waiting for these guys to develop is silly when you can find better players available off the street. Were talking about two of the worst bigs in the entire NBA... it's okay to give up on them and move on.

[GhostsOfGil]

Beal needs a beard. Or a handlebar mustache.

[payitforward]

I'm finally understanding Ernie's strategy as GM -- he's building a team that can challenge Miami in the Eastern Conference Finals!

[payitforward]

now we just need to build a team that can get there!

[GhostsOfGil]

...I thought Book played well. Not sure about him starting at the 4 at 6-7 but he's the best option of a bad bunch.

You "thought" he played well? In 16 minutes he had 5 rebounds, 2 steals, no turnovers, and went 4-5 from the floor. You think that indicates he's undersized? That performance merits being called "best option of a bad bunch"?

You're right that the other bigs are a bad bunch -- no question about that. But Booker has always played at the level of an above-average starter when healthy. That's his only issue, staying healthy. Is he a star? No. But he's a d***d good NBA 4.

I wouldnt go that far. There were stretches last season where he looked pretty bad, even before his injury. But for the most part I agree. People forget how good he was during his sophomore year. The only real problem I see with him, is his awful PnR defense. I dont think I've ever seen him successfully hedge a screen once.

[payitforward]

That was a fun game to watch. Beal looked great the first half -- and then he came in and blew the doors off the 3d quarter! Wow.

If Booker and Harrington gave us a combined 33 minutes every night to match what they did last night, we'd be a 50 win team. That's obviously not going to happen, but we can see how much difference those 2 guys could make if they stay healthy. In short, they would keep Seraphin and Vesely off the floor.

Webster's shot wasn't falling last night, but he still managed to contribute. Very happy to see how engaged and smart a player he is.

I'd like to see a couple of good games out of Wall. His jump shot looks unchanged to me.

If we had a couple of good young bigs, we'd be a terrific team.

[stevemcqueen1]

I liked the way Ves played tonight too, he's carving out a niche as a defense and rebounding guy. Throw out his draft status, he's never going to have the offensive ability to justify himself as a #6 pick. Also accept that he's essentially starting from square one. Lockout, playing for a godawful team, position change from a SF to a PF/C type, total dysfunction with a historically bad start when Wall was injured--all that adds up to his first two years being a waste. No role, no plan for him, no minutes for him, it was just an unfortunate situation. Now he can find himself a role and start from there.

We're probably still years away from him and Seraphin being fully developed. They were so raw coming in and this was such a poor situation for the past several years, they've come along slow. But if Ves plays good D and rebounds this season, I'm willing to wait on him.

Can't wait til Porter gets back. With all these three point shooters spacing the floor, we've got room for another shot creator to operate from the high post and from mid range. I'm looking forward to seeing him start to unveil his diverse offensive game.

No, No, No! One of my simple mantra's... "Don't waste years trying to develop marginal role players". Why? It's a colossal waste of time and resources. So what if Ves & Seraphin were recent draft picks? It's already a sunken cost, waiting for these guys to develop is silly when you can find better players available off the street. Were talking about two of the worst bigs in the entire NBA... it's okay to give up on them and move on.

Ves is a seven footer that can move and has decent court vision and awareness. If he does develop into a quality defender and rebounder, then he'd be a quality role player, not a marginal one. Paying 4 or 5 million a year for him actually saves us a ton of money compared to going out and getting an equivalent FA.

Seraphin, meh yeah he might be a lost cause. He'll have to earn his next contract this season. Worth pointing out though that he's strong-bodied--if short--big man with soft touch and a jumper. There's a little bit there to work with. I'm thinking he can probably be kept for cheap because he's shown so little, which might make him worth bringing back as a six hard fouls type if the money is right. I would go out and find a better back up C, but there could be a place for Seraphin at the end of the bench on a good roster. Though I'm not sure he wouldn't rather play more minutes for a bad team than accept that role.

[payitforward]

...I thought Book played well. Not sure about him starting at the 4 at 6-7 but he's the best option of a bad bunch.

You "thought" he played well? In 16 minutes he had 5 rebounds, 2 steals, no turnovers, and went 4-5 from the floor. You think that indicates he's undersized? That performance merits being called "best option of a bad bunch"?

You're right that the other bigs are a bad bunch -- no question about that. But Booker has always played at the level of an above-average starter when healthy. That's his only issue, staying healthy. Is he a star? No. But he's a d***d good NBA 4.

I wouldnt go that far. There were stretches last season where he looked pretty bad, even before his injury. But for the most part I agree. People forget how good he was during his sophomore year. The only real problem I see with him, is his awful PnR defense. I dont think I've ever seen him successfully hedge a screen once.

He was injured all last year. And he was just about as good as a rookie as he was his 2d year. In fact, his numbers didn't fall off much last year either.

You can find flaws in his game, but overall he produces at a pretty high level. People are very high on Taj Gibson, but in fact year on year Booker has out-produced Gibson. His PER is a little lower (PER over-values scoring at any level of efficiency) than Gibson's but his WS40 is higher. He's also 2.5 years younger than Gibson, btw.

All Trevor needs to do is stay healthy.

[GhostsOfGil]

And defend. His defense isn't a hole. It's a glaring weakness.

[closg00]

I liked the way Ves played tonight too, he's carving out a niche as a defense and rebounding guy. Throw out his draft status, he's never going to have the offensive ability to justify himself as a #6 pick. Also accept that he's essentially starting from square one. Lockout, playing for a godawful team, position change from a SF to a PF/C type, total dysfunction with a historically bad start when Wall was injured--all that adds up to his first two years being a waste. No role, no plan for him, no minutes for him, it was just an unfortunate situation. Now he can find himself a role and start from there.

We're probably still years away from him and Seraphin being fully developed. They were so raw coming in and this was such a poor situation for the past several years, they've come along slow. But if Ves plays good D and rebounds this season, I'm willing to wait on him.

Can't wait til Porter gets back. With all these three point shooters spacing the floor, we've got room for another shot creator to operate from the high post and from mid range. I'm looking forward to seeing him start to unveil his diverse offensive game.

No, No, No! One of my simple mantra's... "Don't waste years trying to develop marginal role players". Why? It's a colossal waste of time and resources. So what if Ves & Seraphin were recent draft picks? It's already a sunken cost, waiting for these guys to develop is silly when you can find better players available off the street. Were talking about two of the worst bigs in the entire NBA... it's okay to give up on them and move on.

+1 People on the board need to ask themselves, are Jan & Kevin worth keeping on the payroll, Jan at the cost of $4 million. No-way, you can find someone for $1-2 million who can do what he is doing AND give you better scoring down-low.

[Dat2U]

You "thought" he played well? In 16 minutes he had 5 rebounds, 2 steals, no turnovers, and went 4-5 from the floor. You think that indicates he's undersized? That performance merits being called "best option of a bad bunch"?

You're right that the other bigs are a bad bunch -- no question about that. But Booker has always played at the level of an above-average starter when healthy. That's his only issue, staying healthy. Is he a star? No. But he's a d***d good NBA 4.

I wouldnt go that far. There were stretches last season where he looked pretty bad, even before his injury. But for the most part I agree. People forget how good he was during his sophomore year. The only real problem I see with him, is his awful PnR defense. I dont think I've ever seen him successfully hedge a screen once.

He was injured all last year. And he was just about as good as a rookie as he was his 2d year. In fact, his numbers didn't fall off much last year either.

You can find flaws in his game, but overall he produces at a pretty high level. People are very high on Taj Gibson, but in fact year on year Booker has out-produced Gibson. His PER is a little lower (PER over-values scoring at any level of efficiency) than Gibson's but his WS40 is higher. He's also 2.5 years younger than Gibson, btw.

All Trevor needs to do is stay healthy.

He needs to do more than that. Like defending the P&R. Gibson's value is mainly on the defensive end, where Booker doesn't measure up. Also a reliable mid-range jumper would be nice.

[nate33]

I missed the first 2.5 quarters. Can anyone tell me how Beal played? He obviously scored a lot with good efficiency, but was he taking anyone off the bounce? Or was it mostly just catch-and-shoot and finishing on the break?

[GhostsOfGil]

I missed the first 2.5 quarters. Can anyone tell me how Beal played? He obviously scored a lot with good efficiency, but was he taking anyone off the bounce? Or was it mostly just catch-and-shoot and finishing on the break?

He did it all. He took his man off the dribble, finished on the break, drew contact, hit contested shots at the buzzer, passed out of the PnR, and had a picture perfect escape dribble on Dwade. A+ game.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r9LHkbS0SbQ