2024-25 Season Discussion and Speculation

[sunsbg]

One would expect with Tyus onboard Book will be focusing more on scoring. His a/t ratio is great, but scoring is not despite a few good games. D's been suspect too. Guess who forgot to defend his man and allowed Murray to do a tip in for Kings lead with 4s left in regular time.

[bwgood77]

Yeah, if you had known after 10 games, Book would have an eFG% of 50% on over 17 shots per game, you wouldn't think we were 8-2, but KD was unreal to start, at a 67% TS%...he is over 61% from 2 and 43% from 3. Book getting to the line quite a bit is somewhat saving his overall scoring metrics from being really bad.

Beal has really cooled off from 3 as well.

Tyus has been great though, from 3 and from 2, career bests. Of course that great 3 pt shooting game helped. But if he can keep up those %s, he can take as many shots as he wants. We need Royce and Grayson to be hot from 3 as well.

I'm sure Book will snap out of it at some point. This is nearly his worst 2pt% since he really improved it in year 4, and is his worst 3pt% year ever. He actually only had one year from 3 that was close (and that was the year he had a significant jump in his 2pt%)...year 4 from 46% to 53.6%.

His assists are at an all time high though, and his turnovers at an all time low, which is a plus, since turnovers have always been a pretty big weakness.

The only people turning the ball over more than 2x per game are Nurk and KD (both at least 3). Last year we had 3 people over 2. This year we only have 3 people over 1.5.

[LV-Suns]

One would expect with Tyus onboard Book will be focusing more on scoring. His a/t ratio is great, but scoring is not despite a few good games. D's been suspect too. Guess who forgot to defend his man and allowed Murray to do a tip in for Kings lead with 4s left in regular time.

Shades of the finals when Pat Connaughton kept getting multiple offensive rebounds while Booker ball-watched after a shot.

[lilfishi22]

Yeah, if you had known after 10 games, Book would have an eFG% of 50% on over 17 shots per game, you wouldn't think we were 8-2, but KD was unreal to start, at a 67% TS%...he is over 61% from 2 and 43% from 3. Book getting to the line quite a bit is somewhat saving his overall scoring metrics from being really bad.

Beal has really cooled off from 3 as well.

Tyus has been great though, from 3 and from 2, career bests. Of course that great 3 pt shooting game helped. But if he can keep up those %s, he can take as many shots as he wants. We need Royce and Grayson to be hot from 3 as well.

I'm sure Book will snap out of it at some point. This is nearly his worst 2pt% since he really improved it in year 4, and is his worst 3pt% year ever. He actually only had one year from 3 that was close (and that was the year he had a significant jump in his 2pt%)...year 4 from 46% to 53.6%.

His assists are at an all time high though, and his turnovers at an all time low, which is a plus, since turnovers have always been a pretty big weakness.

The only people turning the ball over more than 2x per game are Nurk and KD (both at least 3). Last year we had 3 people over 2. This year we only have 3 people over 1.5.

I see it as a positive that he's still pretty mid at this point. We've all watched close to a decade of Devin Booker basketball to know this too shall pass and when it does, and when we get KD back....I do expect our offense to look even better

[lilfishi22]

https://sports.yahoo.com/the-nba-has-a-missing-stars-problem-with-injuries-piling-up-faster-than-normal-211809746.html
The list of injured players in the NBA reads like a who's who list of superstars. In all, teams are on pace to have over 1000 games missed by star players this season.

Per injury tracking date from Jeff Stotts of In Street Clothes, games missed are up by 35% compared to the same point in the 2023-24 season. In addition, lost games are up over 16% already compared to the season before that.

It was hoped that the combination of the NBA's Player Participation Policy and a 65-game requirement for postseason awards would see players on the floor more. Instead, absences by star players are tending upwards. The Participation Policy defines a star player as someone who has made an All-Star or All-NBA team in the last three seasons. There are 49 such players this season and they've already combined to miss 83 games, compared to 67 last season.

[bwgood77]

Yeah, if you had known after 10 games, Book would have an eFG% of 50% on over 17 shots per game, you wouldn't think we were 8-2, but KD was unreal to start, at a 67% TS%...he is over 61% from 2 and 43% from 3. Book getting to the line quite a bit is somewhat saving his overall scoring metrics from being really bad.

Beal has really cooled off from 3 as well.

Tyus has been great though, from 3 and from 2, career bests. Of course that great 3 pt shooting game helped. But if he can keep up those %s, he can take as many shots as he wants. We need Royce and Grayson to be hot from 3 as well.

I'm sure Book will snap out of it at some point. This is nearly his worst 2pt% since he really improved it in year 4, and is his worst 3pt% year ever. He actually only had one year from 3 that was close (and that was the year he had a significant jump in his 2pt%)...year 4 from 46% to 53.6%.

His assists are at an all time high though, and his turnovers at an all time low, which is a plus, since turnovers have always been a pretty big weakness.

The only people turning the ball over more than 2x per game are Nurk and KD (both at least 3). Last year we had 3 people over 2. This year we only have 3 people over 1.5.

I see it as a positive that he's still pretty mid at this point. We've all watched close to a decade of Devin Booker basketball to know this too shall pass and when it does, and when we get KD back....I do expect our offense to look even better

KD is unlikely to stay as hot as he was though. We also have O'Neale shooting 49%. He will certainly cool off some, and Jones might not keep it up at almost 43%....especially since one hot game skewed that a bit.

On the flip side, aside from Book improving his 3pt shooting, Allen should as well and Beal should get better than the last couple of games too.

[lilfishi22]

Yeah, if you had known after 10 games, Book would have an eFG% of 50% on over 17 shots per game, you wouldn't think we were 8-2, but KD was unreal to start, at a 67% TS%...he is over 61% from 2 and 43% from 3. Book getting to the line quite a bit is somewhat saving his overall scoring metrics from being really bad.

Beal has really cooled off from 3 as well.

Tyus has been great though, from 3 and from 2, career bests. Of course that great 3 pt shooting game helped. But if he can keep up those %s, he can take as many shots as he wants. We need Royce and Grayson to be hot from 3 as well.

I'm sure Book will snap out of it at some point. This is nearly his worst 2pt% since he really improved it in year 4, and is his worst 3pt% year ever. He actually only had one year from 3 that was close (and that was the year he had a significant jump in his 2pt%)...year 4 from 46% to 53.6%.

His assists are at an all time high though, and his turnovers at an all time low, which is a plus, since turnovers have always been a pretty big weakness.

The only people turning the ball over more than 2x per game are Nurk and KD (both at least 3). Last year we had 3 people over 2. This year we only have 3 people over 1.5.

I see it as a positive that he's still pretty mid at this point. We've all watched close to a decade of Devin Booker basketball to know this too shall pass and when it does, and when we get KD back....I do expect our offense to look even better

KD is unlikely to stay as hot as he was though. We also have O'Neale shooting 49%. He will certainly cool off some, and Jones might not keep it up at almost 43%....especially since one hot game skewed that a bit.

On the flip side, aside from Book improving his 3pt shooting, Allen should as well and Beal should get better than the last couple of games too.

Yeah I think the big takeaway for me these past 10 games is that we've played well in stretches and especially in the clutch. But overall, it wasn't like we were blowing teams away, we've put together one singular 40pt quarter so far in 10 games and outside of a one 40pt game from Book, he's looked pretty meh (relatively). So certainly there will be some coming back down to Earth for guys like KD and Royce but we also have Book, Grayson and Beal who could still get much better. Nurk too has been uncharacteristically bad the first 4 games or so and has only just started to look like a capable starting C.

On balance, I think we have more upside than normalisation

[Mulhollanddrive]

Dunn back up to 39% from 3 (15 of 38)

[Saberestar]

Read on Twitter

[sunsbg]

Kings game is almost a guaranteed loss, just let Beal heal before his body breaks down completely.

[Saberestar]

Kings game is almost a guaranteed loss, just let Beal heal before his body breaks down completely.

Come on, we lost in OT against them a couple of days ago. It's a winnable game.

[sunsbg]

Kings game is almost a guaranteed loss, just let Beal heal before his body breaks down completely.

Come on, we lost in OT against them a couple of days ago. It's a winnable game.

B2b away game against a good team that's coming from a loss. Already put a bet. I hope you are right.

[ImNotMcDiSwear]

Beal being successfully integrated into this team is one of the biggest positive developments for us early in the season - KD showing he's still a mf is, to me, the biggest positive so far. Ryan & Oso being playable has been huge as well. Not to mention Royce's hot start. If you include coaching, coaching. I'm relieved we are where we are in the W/L column.

OTOH, Book looks slow. It's not just his shot. His legs look heavy. I suspect he's nursing a leg injury. OTOOH, he's cut down a lot on turnovers, but averaging more assists. Relatedly, Tyus's TOV% has jumped from 8.8% in WAS to 12.3% (A/TO is down to 5 from 7 last season). Tyus has really taken a lot of the ballhandling pressure off of Book, who is now getting the ball mostly where he should - in scoring position. Tyus has also been forced to make more plays - he's a quality scorer, so this makes sense.

Another slight negative early on has been Nurk's inconsistency, especially given his reputation as a liability in the playoffs. Relatedly, I'm disappointed Bol has not found his way into the rotation yet. Plumlee's been downright magical relative to our last two backup C's, Eubanks and Londale.

Obviously it's a good start, but facing Utah without Markkanen and Kessler was a prime opportunity to get our first blowout - and even without KD, something I would expect on occasion from a top team.

I'd love to see Bol Bol get an opportunity tonight on the second night of a back-to-back. A win tonight would be big.

[Saberestar]

Beal being successfully integrated into this team is one of the biggest positive developments for us early in the season - KD showing he's still a mf is, to me, the biggest positive so far. Ryan & Oso being playable has been huge as well. Not to mention Royce's hot start. If you include coaching, coaching. I'm relieved we are where we are in the W/L column.

OTOH, Book looks slow. It's not just his shot. His legs look heavy. I suspect he's nursing a leg injury. OTOOH, he's cut down a lot on turnovers, but averaging more assists. Relatedly, Tyus's TOV% has jumped from 8.8% in WAS to 12.3% (A/TO is down to 5 from 7 last season). Tyus has really taken a lot of the ballhandling pressure off of Book, who is now getting the ball mostly where he should - in scoring position. Tyus has also been forced to make more plays - he's a quality scorer, so this makes sense.

Another slight negative early on has been Nurk's inconsistency, especially given his reputation as a liability in the playoffs. Relatedly, I'm disappointed Bol has not found his way into the rotation yet. Plumlee's been downright magical relative to our last two backup C's, Eubanks and Londale.

Obviously it's a good start, but facing Utah without Markkanen and Kessler was a prime opportunity to get our first blowout - and even without KD, something I would expect on occasion from a top team.

I'd love to see Bol Bol get an opportunity tonight on the second night of a back-to-back. A win tonight would be big.

Markannen played yesterday.

[bwgood77]

Kings game is almost a guaranteed loss, just let Beal heal before his body breaks down completely.

Come on, we lost in OT against them a couple of days ago. It's a winnable game.

Also, Booker and Beal were 3-10 from 3, Allen was 3-11, Dunn and Nurkic 0-3, so our 3 pt shooting was uncharacteristically bad, and DeRozan and then Fox were uncharacteristically on fire down the stretch.

This team seems pretty resilient.

I also really like the way Plumlee is playing, probably better than a usual Nurkic game, and Oso is pretty solid, though he had a couple of easy misses last night.

We could lose to the Kings, but we could also definitely win. The biggest mismatch is C. We were playing really small last night against a pretty big team.

But if we have a 3rd loss, no big deal, to be 8-3 with Book not his normal self and KD missing a few games, as well as Beal for a couple is still solid overall.

[bwgood77]

Beal being successfully integrated into this team is one of the biggest positive developments for us early in the season - KD showing he's still a mf is, to me, the biggest positive so far. Ryan & Oso being playable has been huge as well. Not to mention Royce's hot start. If you include coaching, coaching. I'm relieved we are where we are in the W/L column.

OTOH, Book looks slow. It's not just his shot. His legs look heavy. I suspect he's nursing a leg injury. OTOOH, he's cut down a lot on turnovers, but averaging more assists. Relatedly, Tyus's TOV% has jumped from 8.8% in WAS to 12.3% (A/TO is down to 5 from 7 last season). Tyus has really taken a lot of the ballhandling pressure off of Book, who is now getting the ball mostly where he should - in scoring position. Tyus has also been forced to make more plays - he's a quality scorer, so this makes sense.

Another slight negative early on has been Nurk's inconsistency, especially given his reputation as a liability in the playoffs. Relatedly, I'm disappointed Bol has not found his way into the rotation yet. Plumlee's been downright magical relative to our last two backup C's, Eubanks and Londale.

Obviously it's a good start, but facing Utah without Markkanen and Kessler was a prime opportunity to get our first blowout - and even without KD, something I would expect on occasion from a top team.

I'd love to see Bol Bol get an opportunity tonight on the second night of a back-to-back. A win tonight would be big.

Markannen played yesterday.

And Collins and Filipowski were both awesome-combined they were 19-30 from the field and 5-10 from 3 for 47 pts...and Markannen had 17 on 7-13 shooting. 40% from 3....they were still big. Kessler kind of regressed his 2nd year and basically is a shot blocker, but the rest of their frontcourt is more versatile, especially scoring. Last year Kessler averaged 8 pts and 7 reb a game.

[King4Day]

Wild to see how both Philly and NY added new high usage starters and are struggling in a similar way that we did last season.
Philly has been injured but still, 2-8 is 2-8.
Chemistry and reps are a real thing.

I think OKC will benefit the most from losing Chet and Hartenstein early. They may lose some games without them but when healthy, they will be the team to beat in the west for sure.
Boston already showed this last year with KP missing so much time.
Learning to win without key players.

Suns have a chance to do it too now, but we still need more reps.

[King4Day]

As for Beal, I think the Kings game is winnable regardless, but Beal may be better suited to skip this one and get the extra rest to let it heal. Don't make it worse.

[bwgood77]

I think Plumlee is looking really good. Finally a good game from Book. And Beal. But a very nice hot stretch from Book. He should be confident going into tonight. I hope Beal is able to play.

Plumdog Millionaire was such an underrated signing.

He isn't on his prime but he is yet a pretty athletic C. And his best skill other than size/rebounding is his high basketball IQ for a C. Smart player, good ball handler and passer and doesn't commit many mistakes.

It's refreshing to watch a backup C with his basketball IQ after seeing Javale McGee, Biyombo, Landale (was OK but not good) and **** Eubanks.

I know it's only one or two games, but I like him better starting than Nurkic. Plumlee had 15, 14, 2 ast, 1 blk, 0 turnovers and shot 67% from the field.

His FG% for the season is over 67% while Nurkic's is 44%. That's a big difference, and 44% is putrid for a C.

[lilfishi22]

Dunn back up to 39% from 3 (15 of 38)

If you told me in the offseason he would even be close to 35%, I'd walk away laughing. To be at 39% right now on almost 4 attempts a game is damn near unheard of in terms for shot development in the kind of time period we're talking about.