The Dwightmare has begun in Atlanta

[Jamaaliver]

...we need to be able to match up with Wall & Beal. They got way too many open looks.

Wait. I thought we were trying to matchup with the Cleveland LeBrons. Are we now trying to build a team to defeat the Wizards?

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[azuresou1]

My quick thoughts about the team, before I get to Dwight:

- The current core as constructed is a mess, and I expected as much PRIOR to the season. Dennis is wildly erratic which is a problem for your point guard; Baze being erratic AND being tasked with ball handling duties just exacerbates that problem. They are erratic at handling the ball, and they're erratic at shooting, and neither is naturally a pass first guy. Starters NEED to be consistent, and in this supposed ball movement offense that's 3 strikes against them.

- Baze's contract has been a mistake since Day 1; classic case of overpaying your own bench guy and hoping he grows.

- Shoulda traded Millsap at the deadline. Barring that, we should let him walk OR sign him to a short term contract as we stealth tank and trade him at the deadline. Didn't we learn from Joe? You never want to overpay your own guy as he's on the downswing of his career, especially when the rest of your team is mediocre (and we're far worse than those early 2010s teams).

- Like THJ as a player but he's probably going to get overpaid by a team like the Nets with cap and no talent. Let him walk. I think he's near his peak, which is as a one-way gunner. That's a luxury piece for contending teams, not a core piece for a mid-level team with cap constraints.

- Prince had a fantastic rookie season and I think he's a core piece going forward, but let's calm it with the Kawhi projections. He basically played like a rotation caliber wing which is very impressive for a rookie but Kawhi was better even then, while also being 2 years younger.

- SOMEONE STRIP BUD OF HIS GM DUTIES HE'S **** AWFUL AT IT

Having said all that, let's talk about Dwight.

In my opinion he had a very good regular season and played exactly to his role. We asked him to defend, rebound, and convert inside looks, and that's what he (mostly) did.

Defense - DRPM 14th among Cs (between Whiteside and Myles Turner), 17th in block %
Rebounding -2nd in ORB%, 4th in DRB%, 4th in TRB%
Offense - 8th in TS%, 13.5 pts on 8.3 FGA/G

He got outplayed in the playoffs. More on that in a second.

He was not a great fit with Schroeder. Regardless of how you dice it when you put him and Dennis on the floor together, they are a net negative. He played 80% of his minutes with Dennis, during which time they averaged -1.8 points per 100 vs. opponent. They basically consistently feed the other team fast break opportunities off of turnovers.

From a non-nerd standpoint, Dwight and Dennis aren't coexisting because the spacing is **** garbage, partly due to skillset and partly due to tendencies. Dwight likes to establish early post position, but Dennis rarely throws entry passes into the post. Dwight's presence there clogs the lane and means Dennis can't freely drive. With the initial option denied, Dennis is an inconsistent shooter who likes to drive away from screens, which really doesn't work if the defender doesn't run into the screen because then both defenders follow him and leave Dwight open in space.

Then let's factor in that we are literally one of the five worst teams in the league at hitting open shots, and the spacing gets even worse. This is a big reason we see so much iso ball.

That said, Dwight plays exactly how an old school center plays. Guys like Whiteside, DeAndre, Gobert... he's not doing anything appreciably all that different from them.

Bottom line - I don't really think it's on Dwight that the offense isn't working. That should be on the PG and especially the coaching to make it work.

[afectar]

Glad I'm not the only one who saw that player don't get the ball to Dwight when he's in perfect position. The games in which he had touches he he had like 14-15pts at half time, but they forget about him often after half time.

[Jamaaliver]

IMO he does not touch the ball enough...it also takes Dwight to want to post up and 'Shaq-demand' the ball

.

...let's talk about Dwight.

We asked him to defend, rebound, and convert inside looks, and that's what he (mostly) did.

I don't really think it's on Dwight that the offense isn't working. That should be on the PG and especially the coaching to make it work.

Glad I'm not the only one who saw that player don't get the ball to Dwight when he's in perfect position. The games in which he had touches he he had like 14-15pts at half time, but they forget about him often after half time.

So each of you guys are of the opinion that Dwight's gripes have merit, that he is indeed being misused/underused.
And we need to make him more of a focal point of the offense...interesting.

You all have given me much to think on this offseason.

(Mike, always good to hear your insights. This was spot on, as usual.)

[afectar]

I believe that him getting touches will result in more fouls being called. Our guys just don't get him the ball when he's deep in the post. So he has to leave the paint and repost, or come out and sets a pick for a guy who cannot shoot well. The fact that Millsap is near the block 80% doesn't help the spacing either, but Millsap has proven he can score from there.

Another thing is there isn't any Center in the east that should cause Dwight problems inside beside Whiteside. Dennis and Dwight could play better together, but the lack of shooting on this team is hurting them both.

[MaceCase]

It's also been proven that Dwight isn't particularly efficient and heavily turnover prone in the post thus why 4 teams now have gone away from that as a primary option. If he settled into a role like Whiteside, Gobert or Deandre all would be well but he's often breaking the O trying to get himself into position, then lackadaisically trying to set screens for others when they've looked away from him, and then griping about it afterwards.

His best offensive series came in game 6 against Washington which also saw him turn the ball over 5 times trying to spam the post. Better shooters on the court would improve the spread pick and roll, not reestablishing Dwight as a dominant post scorer.

[azuresou1]

Let me be clear - I am NOT saying we should be forcefeeding Dwight the ball in the post. Dwight is not efficient when he catches it with distance and then tries to bully his way in - his crab dribble is sloppy and he bobbles the ball alot on his own, much less when defensive pressure comes.

What I AM saying is that if Dwight HAS established deep post positioning, the right basketball play IS to give it to him. Then he can simply muscle-step for a baby hook or layup.

Calderon was really good at finding him, one game I remember 3 straight possessions where Dwight sealed his guy and he was rewarded with 2 buckets and a drawn shooting foul. Then Calderon went out and Dwight didn't see the ball again.

[td00]

...we need to be able to match up with Wall & Beal. They got way too many open looks.

Wait. I thought we were trying to matchup with the Cleveland LeBrons. Are we now trying to build a team to defeat the Wizards?

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Well, you can't get to the LeBrons if you can't beat the Walls. Our record this year vs the Wiz was putrid.

Our backcourt needs a huge influx of talent. Since Dwight has little value in the league, he's got to prove himself as a key player next year, whether Sap returns or not.

[Jamaaliver]

...we need to be able to match up with Wall & Beal. They got way too many open looks.

Wait. I thought we were trying to matchup with the Cleveland LeBrons. Are we now trying to build a team to defeat the Wizards?

Well, you can't get to the LeBrons if you can't beat the Walls.

Ummm...yes. Yes you can.

If we had won 1 fewer game, we'd have played TOR or CLE in the first round.

If WAS had won 2 more games, we'd have played TOR in the first round.

I really like John Wall's Wizards and consider them a team on the rise, but there's no guarantee we'll play them in the playoffs ever again.

NOTE: I'd like for us to get to a point where teams are worried about matching up with us. Has that ever occurred in this 10 year postseason run we've had?

[afectar]

We should not be force feeding Dwight. But when he's one step below the rim someone has to get him the ball. You can make the same case for having bad shooter on the floor shooting...It's almost like a turnover.

[Geaux_Hawks]

Better shooters on the court would improve the spread pick and roll, not reestablishing Dwight as a dominant post scorer.

Calderon was really good at finding him, one game I remember 3 straight possessions where Dwight sealed his guy and he was rewarded with 2 buckets and a drawn shooting foul. Then Calderon went out and Dwight didn't see the ball again.

These two instances is how we need to be using Dwight and more often at that.

I don't think his complaints are completely outlandish. I see his complaints as frustration more than him whining like a big baby. We could have probably had a better team if we used him more.

When Dwight was an offense force in Orlando, he had the spacing to dive to the basket and catch lobs or get easy put backs off of rebounds

I think it was Game 4 where Baze kept finding Dwight for lobs in the first half. In that game, we had some decent spacing with Calderon, Dunleavy, and Ersan. Baze actually hit a deep 3 during that stretch. Dwight had like 14 points in the first half, and probably could have had a huge night, but we went away from him.

We really need to find a dynamic, consistent shooting PF to add into the starting lineup. TJ Leaf or Markkanen should be our targets in the draft.

[MaceCase]

What I AM saying is that if Dwight HAS established deep post positioning, the right basketball play IS to give it to him. Then he can simply muscle-step for a baby hook or layup.

And I'm saying that there are also many times that he's paving his way into the paint while the ball is on the opposite side of the court or the passer is either being well defended and/or being baited into throwing a turnover. Are there plenty of times when he is in deep position and a teammate is staring him in the face and not passing or just turning their head and looking elsewhere? Of course, but I've also seen too many occasions that Dwight has gotten great seals only to fumble the entry pass because he has stone hands, get dislodged from position, and then forcing up that hook shot that he has zero touch on.

There needs to be better recognition on both sides and that can come with more experience together. Guys need to be aware of him and recognize when to get the ball to him but he also needs to be aware of others and where the ball is rather than just freelancing. He can't just bull his way into the paint and expect an accurate throw past defenders from halfcourt or in other instances players have to find the right passing angle while he's camped in the lane as that leads to either a forced entry pass or him rushing up a shot to avoid a 3 second violation.

But most importantly there needs to be better recognition by Dwight that he's not THE Dwight Howard anymore. He can't just get up and get his hands on anything thrown in his vicinity, he can't even finish with the power he once had. Gortat was getting flatfooted blocks on Dwight even on deep seals when all he was trying to do was put his hands straight up, he drew more shooting fouls this season yet the amount that were And 1s dropped from last season. Is he better than guys that were playing over him? Of course, but his ability is no longer at the level where he is the best option in every circumstance and he needs to recognize that.

[Jamaaliver]

This dude is such an easy target. People just pile on him and the media promotes his negative headlines like crazy:

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NBA's all-time leading scorer ripped Howard's work ethic when talking former big men for the Lakers

"Well, Dwight Howard didn't want to do any work," Kareem told Lakers Nation. "Andrew Bynum did not want to do a lot of work, but Andrew was kind of getting the hang of it. I don't think Andrew was that interested in playing basketball.

"Dwight Howard, I'm not going to say anything about him because I really don't understand what his thing was."

[Jamaaliver]

Ummm...D12 is just

<sigh>

Dwight Howard doesn’t pull punches, fights back on Twitter

The former Hawks star spent his weekend in Atlanta chatting up fans on Twitter.

He answered most questions cordially.

Of course, not all tweets were cheerful and optimistic. As Howard was trolled, he trolled back.

myAJC

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[Jamaaliver]

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Ummm....

[kg01]

Exhibit #12547A for why players cannot be the basis upon which awards are selected. These same dudes gave Ben Simmons ROY votes last season IIRC. He has more player-ROY votes than games played.

[kg01]

In case y'all are still wondering, it's still everyone else's fault ...

http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/20340912/nba-charlotte-hornets-give-dwight-howard-best-last-chance

"It stung me how I started the season, getting a lot of shot attempts, getting the ball -- and by the end of the season, in the fourth I was sitting on the bench. It pissed me off. I knew that I had more to give the game, give myself and the team."

.. have fun, HorCats. Let's reconvene this discussion around this time next year.

[Jamaaliver]

^No kidding, man. The dude makes my head hurt.

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(Full disclosure, I fully supported bringing in D12. Ideally to play beside Horford...I was wrong.)






Also, there's this:

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[jayu70]

Sigh - he still thinks he's Orlando Dwight. What made him that guy has long since evaporated. No longer as quick, powerful, agile and young.
It's always someone else's fault - after so many times - it's YOU - not some imaginary boogy man.

[Spud2nique]

Lol. Dwight is a joke. I gave him the benefit of the doubt when he came to Atlanta even though I kind of already hated his guts. He just lives in a fantasy world as far as how good he is in basketball.

I'm calling it right now, he's a problem in Charlotte by December or he gets hurt by then. He just seems about done, not physically as much as mentally.