GT: CHA vs. BOS Saturday, 12/12 7:00 PM EST

[BatumtheGlue]

It's not like only 1 second left. You always have more than one option than just chuck the ball from 40 feet when 6 seconds left on the shoot clock. I'm a big Batum Fan but i think that was a bad decision.

[lin is ok]

I wonder if the starters can fix this slow start habit for the next game. Also just add fuel to that batum fire. Was it an airball on the last shot?

[phillycheese]

Last shot - seemed like Batum made his mind up to shoot no matter what, got a little tunnelled vision. Perhaps coach said to take a shot if it was clean. In my opinion I think that last shot ended up in the right hands but he should have made a better play seeing as Boston sent two guys towards Nic. One last thing - only ONE poster held the opinion of Batum being slightly overrated.

Frankly that last shot was irrelevant. Hornets killed themselves trying to fight back twice in this game. Pretty obvious that when they got to 81-81 they could not make that final push needed. Coach needed to do a better job of reading which group was playing well and adjust accordingly. Hornets were lucky to be within one possession at the very end.

[qiantom]

If anyone says Batum is overrated on here, you are delusional. He has made literally every player on this roster better from Walker to Lamb to Zeller, etc. Overrated my ass. Ridiculous

I don't think Batum is overrated on here, but this statement totally overrates him. Just an overreaction though I assume.

Making teammates better only happens with superstars. Kemba is playing better because of better system, better teammates overall and most importantly himself and not Batum. Batum's existence just means he can focus more on things he is good at and does not need to go out of his ways to do things he is not really good at.


Sent from my iPad using RealGM Forums

I really don't get there is even an argument that "Batum has made literally every player on this roster better", he does. His presence enable the system this team is running. Kemba has been playing on this team, under this coach for two years before this season, we don't see this system before Batum join. There is a reason for that. I don't get you would credit "better system" and even "better teammate" but refuse to credit some to Batum, that's not logical.

I have not read all the posts before, so not sure where this comes from, I could understand people got frustrated with the lose, but we could not possible to get to Batum is overrated due to only one game, and forget about all the past 20 some games.

When did I refuse to give credit to Batum? He is one major reason the new system works this season. I also said I don't think he is overrated. I just don't agree with "making everyone better". To me, that is just not a label you can possibly put on a player of his caliber. He is replaceable, unlike Lebron or Curry.

He is a cog in the new system like Kemba and others. He benefits from playing in the system greatly as well. If he were some superior player, where was that player all those years in Portland? He sure did NOT make Aldridge, Lillard or Matthews better.


Sent from my iPad using RealGM Forums

[lin is ok]

anyway , just saying . I think batum is the best player on the team so far. better than kemba. really deadly when he creates in the flow of the game. not so good off the dribble . go hornets.

[Teddyb]

It's not like only 1 second left. You always have more than one option than just chuck the ball from 40 feet when 6 seconds left on the shoot clock. I'm a big Batum Fan but i think that was a bad decision.

Agreed, it was a terrible shot. Not because he missed but because of location and time on the clock...cold have done better

[BatumtheGlue]

anyway , just saying . I think batum is the best player on the team so far. better than kemba. really deadly when he creates in the flow of the game. not so good off the dribble . go hornets.

He always been a superior catch and shoot shooter but a mediocre off the dribble shooter. You are right he is a pinpoint passer within the ball movement, that's his strength. Imo if he wants to play better he shouldn't creating or shooting off the dribble. He sucks at it.

[Roy Tarpley]

Hornets lose + Kemba having below average game + Lin having above average game (or Lin not playing heavy minutes or Lin not playing at end of game) = people come out of the shadows to post in the thread. It is becoming a very predictable pattern around here.

This pattern will continue, for good reason.

Anytime the Hornets lose, especially in a close game like the Celtics game or the Cavaliers game, you'll have more armchair quarterbacking. Because Kemba is the primary ballhandler/shooter in a close game, his performance will be scrutinized the most. Also, since Lin is one of the few other "creator" options on the team, it is only natural to see him or Batum as an alternative to Kemba.

This is sort of a "water is wet" statement. The "people come out of the shadows" reference is a bit negative (like they're illegal immigrants or something), as well as the "predictable pattern" remark, especially from a mod, but I give fatlever the benefit of the doubt because he's been great as far as I can tell. I've said before, however, that it seems like a double standard to censor Lin fans or limit their remarks somehow but then make snarky comments of your own about them.

If the policy of the forum is to tolerate the snark and sarcasm against a group of fans, then there should be similar tolerance for Lin fans to freely express their opinions, within reason, and especially when it's meant in support of the team.

The Hornets are a good team now so there are going to be MANY instances where the games are close, Kemba or Batum go into hero mode at the end, and we'll lose some of those games. I expect the pattern of people coming out of the "shadows" to continue.

[BlackOutBuzz]

Welp, on that note, might be time to just lock this one up.

Sent from my SM-N920V using Tapatalk

[Snidely FC]

Really disappointing loss because it just seemed like shots that have been consistently falling were not falling. Marvin in particular epitomized the night. 0-6 from 3: the way he's been shooting this season I was genuinely surprised to see every one of his shots falling off the front of the rim. Wide open shots. We lost on a purple patch of 3s by them. Live by the 3 die by the 3.Shoot the way we have this season coming into the game, and that would have been a double digit win. I am hoping this was b2b tired legs and not a reversion to the mean.

[ChokeFasncists]

anyway , just saying . I think batum is the best player on the team so far. better than kemba. really deadly when he creates in the flow of the game. not so good off the dribble . go hornets.

He always been a superior catch and shoot shooter but a mediocre off the dribble shooter. You are right he is a pinpoint passer within the ball movement, that's his strength. Imo if he wants to play better he shouldn't creating or shooting off the dribble. He sucks at it.

Ha, well, he's trying to/successful sometimes to draw fouls doing that.

With 3 point difference, obviously Hornets are looking for 3s, I thought the best would be to let Kemba or Lin to drive in and look for n1, but that's harder than a catch and shoot 3

Heck yeah! A well coached team isn't gonna foul a 2 pointer when up 3~

I am crazy Lin fan, let me add fuel to the fire.

Your images didn't work, did you preview? Fail.

Welp, on that note, might be time to just lock this one up.

Not a big fan......

[bws94]

Remember Robert Horry? It's Batum or Kemba's play to make but I don't agree it is necessarily their shot to take. Daniels, yes, that Daniels sitting on the bench, hit a huge 3 in the PLAYOFFS for a game winner assisted by Lin, yes that Lin on the court, a few seasons ago when both were Rockets. The team leaders have the ball in their hands and try to make the best play and if their shot is the best, take it. That wasn't the case. Batum is a solid player but that shot was beyond his range. A 50 yard field goal kicker usually doesn't make the 55 yard field goals.

[ChokeFasncists]

It's not like only 1 second left. You always have more than one option than just chuck the ball from 40 feet when 6 seconds left on the shoot clock. I'm a big Batum Fan but i think that was a bad decision.

Yes, he's not perfect. His main two attributes IMO are 1. Point forward, complimenting Kemba who's more of an SG, that's very important for this team. 2. Marksmanship, also huge for the offense.

[bws94]

It's not like only 1 second left. You always have more than one option than just chuck the ball from 40 feet when 6 seconds left on the shoot clock. I'm a big Batum Fan but i think that was a bad decision.

Yes, he's not perfect. His main two attributes IMO are 1. Point forward, complimenting Kemba who's more of an SG, that's very important for this team. 2. Marksmanship, also huge for the offense.

How is Kemba an SG? I think Kemba's ability to penetrate and handle the rock makes him at least a combo guard. His height is definitely PG but also that he's an alpha ball handler. And he has a lot of assists this season. Even if they aren't the Rubio or Rondo type, they are still assists.

[fatlever]

A few final thoughts before we close the thread later today

- The more replays I see of the final shot, the more I am baffled by every aspect of the play and the decision to take the shot. I wish we knew what Clifford said to them in the huddle. I think Batum just panicked a little bit and had his mind made up. He was in the act of shooting before he caught the ball, so he never had any thoughts of looking for an alternate shooter like Lin who was open. But the game was lost long before that play.

- Batum is the best player on the team and I don't think it is even close. He makes everyone around him better. I don't even think this topic is worthy of a debate, but hey, this is an Internet forum, so feel free to argue otherwise.

- As for my comments last night I'll say this (wall of text alert)... I'm not interested in singling out every ridiculous comment made on this board. That would be a waste of everyone's time. We all say some things from time to time that are just baffling, whether it be overly negative, overly positive, homerish, biased or whatever. However, if you want the board to take your opinions seriously, then it would help that you post during the good times as well as the bad times and try to be as partisan as possible when discussing the players. Every player has a few posters that are very biased towards them. The issue with Lin is that the numbers are magnified by 100. When the pro PJ poster makes a biased comment its just one comment and everyone moves on and it doesn't derail the thread. But with Lin its not just one comment its dozens due to the volume of his fans and it can go on for pages and it turns the game threads into a Lin discussion rather than a game thread. What I have always asked of the new Lin fans is just try and put Lin in perspective in the context of the overall team, especially in the game threads. This is, after all, a Hornets team forum and the game threads exist for us to discuss the team as a whole and not single out one player and their impact (or lack thereof). Obviously, I am generalizing because there are some fantastic Lin posters that have been posting here. So I am asking all the Lin fans to take all of this into consideration before coming into the game threads to start jumping on the coach and other players etc... It can be very difficult for the rest of us to read thru that stuff. This isn't us trying to censor opinions, because nobody is technically breaking any forum rules, just more just a matter of awareness and consideration for the overall benefit of the board. This is not a Lin specific forum. There are several places where anyone can go to discuss Lin under a microscope. It may be a bit of a double-standard for us to ask Lin fans to behave differently than the rest, but really there has to be a bit of a double-standard due to the overwhelming popularity of Lin and the sheer number of his fans. So, guys, don't just lurk in the shadows (which is what I meant obviously and how anyone could interpret that as a comment about immigrants??? is beyond me), but engage in the team discussion thru the good and bad. Don't just show up when you want to complain about something related to your guy. Your posts will be more well received. Lets all work towards making this a great place for Hornets fans and Lin fans and fans of any of our other players to come and rationally discuss the team. It takes everyone working towards the same goal for that to happen.

[fatlever]

It's not like only 1 second left. You always have more than one option than just chuck the ball from 40 feet when 6 seconds left on the shoot clock. I'm a big Batum Fan but i think that was a bad decision.

Yes, he's not perfect. His main two attributes IMO are 1. Point forward, complimenting Kemba who's more of an SG, that's very important for this team. 2. Marksmanship, also huge for the offense.

How is Kemba an SG? I think Kemba's ability to penetrate and handle the rock makes him at least a combo guard. His height is definitely PG but also that he's an alpha ball handler. And he has a lot of assists this season. Even if they aren't the Rubio or Rondo type, they are still assists.

I think Kemba is really hard to define positionally, but is that really a bad thing these days? The concept of what is a point guard, a power forward, a center, these things are changing. Positions really only matter on defense in terms of who you can guard. In the half court, Batum operates as the creator and that is a good thing for Kemba, because creating offense for others is not his strength. He's not selfish, he just doesn't see the floor the same way the great passers in the game do. It is not by coincidence that the team has played better when Kemba has had a 2nd facilitator with him - McRoberts and now Batum. It is also not a coincidence that the team tried to sign Haywood, Lance and traded for Batum. Having someone like Batum, allows Kemba to do what he does best, which is create havoc on the defense