Why is Kapono not getting enough play time?

[hksazn]

The Morning After The Night Before

So, I asked Sam after shootaround when, and why, he decides to play zone defence every now and then.

His answer:

"It

[hksazn]

gg BC

[Kordic27]

I'm not a Kapono hater or supporter or anything, but I did find it interesting to see that he was a +19 for yesterdays game.

I mean, I know you factor in starters/bench and lineups he was playing with, but 19 does seem like a lot no?

[Spragga]

I wish Kapono would chuck as many 3's as Delfino is allowed to. Even if his percentages went down I wouldnt b mad.

[Kosta]

Well, not saying Kapono is going to be a complete dud. But at least we know that when Colangelo makes a mistake he usually corrects it (Fred Jones).

[theonlyeastcoastrapsfan]

I'm not a Kapono hater or supporter or anything, but I did find it interesting to see that he was a +19 for yesterdays game.

I mean, I know you factor in starters/bench and lineups he was playing with, but 19 does seem like a lot no?

Of any of the players who are hurting from our style of play it's kapono. his shot is a weapon, but he's used no differently than any other player. There is no consistent effort to use him to spread the floor or to get him open looks. It seems to be Sam's preference not to change things. That doesn't work very well for Kapono. He could be an effective shooter, but he can't create on his own. I think everyone knew that going in.

[AfricanSensation]

We should offer Kapono and Hump to Cleveland for Varejao and pray they say yes...

[raptorscam]

I think he'll stick around and will become a bigger part of the team in a year or two when they have a more balanced lineup.

[theonlyeastcoastrapsfan]

And from that article Bargs didn't play due to missing few rebounds that he could of had and failure to go after the ball at one point.

[Yuri Vaultin]

I wouldn't object to trading him back to Miami and somehow getting Dorel Wright - the kid has some hops and rebounds... Just a thought.


The one thing that Kapono does is keep defences spread out and honest. He is always a scoring threat - so even if he just opens the floor for the other players to operate it's still a nice luxury to have.

[mintsa]

The game in Indy by Kapono shows what he can do .........but as of late he's been struggling really bad.

[JD225]

I'm holding out hope that Bryan trades Kapono next year. If we ever plan to play Andrea 30+ minutes a game (which seems like something you would expect from a number 1 pick), Kapono will never leave the bench.

What I found really strange was when Bryan said on the fan that the team needs toughness but history shows that teams tend to overpay for that energy guy who can't stay on the floor to finish the game because he can't hit free throws. Why? Well because Kapono for the next four years will do exactly the same thing except as a shooter. We overpaid for him, he can't stay on the floor to finish games because of his defense and to top it all off we already have some of the better shooters in the league.

To Kapono's credit he did win us that Indiana game by himself and has shot the ball well enough for that conrtact. He is just usless here. We need a wing that can get to the line and defend. Either make some adjustments as far as getting a real bigman and run some plays for Kapono or trade him.

[TheMainEvent]

Why are people STILL knocking on Kapono? Did you guys not know who he was when we signed him? If you were opposed to the signing when it first happened, then fine. But I think it's about time to stop complaining and just live with it.

He was never a good rebounder. He was never a good defender. He was never great at creating his own shot.

He was, and still is, a great spot shooter. When he's open, he's still knocking them down. I only saw Kap get one open look yesterday, and he drained the 3. The problem is that we dont create shots for Kapono... the only person I've seen regularly look to get Kapono some open shots is Delfino.

[bychai]

When Parker shot went in the bench seemed... well, sorta ho hum glum (especially compared to the mayhem that ensued after Mo Pete's Hail Mary last year).

Exactly what I was thinking.

[Rhettmatic]

Kapono is really frustrating. After watching him play terrible defence and stand around on offence, he finally gets his chance to redeem himself with a semi-open, potentially game-tying three... and he puts it on the floor then turns it over.

Ugh.

[Turnpikebandit]

I still think it's glaringly obvious that Kapono is struggling the most since Ford went down.

There's no ball distributor on the second unit. Kapono doesn't need a lot of time to get off his shot, but he still needs someone to get him the ball in rhythm.

That said, his turnover in the fourth last night was god awful.

[MikeM]

Why are people STILL knocking on Kapono? Did you guys not know who he was when we signed him? If you were opposed to the signing when it first happened, then fine. But I think it's about time to stop complaining and just live with it.

He was never a good rebounder. He was never a good defender. He was never great at creating his own shot.

He was, and still is, a great spot shooter. When he's open, he's still knocking them down. I only saw Kap get one open look yesterday, and he drained the 3. The problem is that we dont create shots for Kapono... the only person I've seen regularly look to get Kapono some open shots is Delfino.

Everyone read this! I would pay $6M a year for one of the best 3 point shooters in league history because I would do that knowing I would run plays for him to get him open.

That little flare screen at the top of the arc is money, especially against a zone. Have Kapono pass it to his left and go around a screen from the top of the arc to the elbow. The Wizards did this last year when they were healthy to perfection.

[Xenophon]

I think that TJ is the one suffering most from losing TJ. Since Kapono's shot is so quick, it relies a lot on having the ball in the proper position when he recieves it. I think this has a much better chance of happening with an inside to outside pass. Passes from Jose generally go around the perimeter, where TJ is the master of the drive and kick. When TJ comes back, I think that TJ/Kapono/Humphries are going to make a deadly second unit.

[bling_singh]

For pure shooters more than anyone else it's harder to develop a rhythm when you're used sporadically. Even then how bad is his shooting? Is he shooting as poorly as an average person in the league? I remember his 3pt% being 2nd highest in the league....did he fall to 3rd? or even fourth!??!!1

His problem is when he tries to do too much with the ball. Is that his fault or how the floor is spread at the time? When a defender rushes to to block your 3, you know you've got his respect. He should pass or shoot, not drive. That's it. If there's no one there to pass to that's not his fault. The defender usually doubling up on Bosh is the one that runs out to stop Kapono....thus there is no open passing lane into the paint, everyone else is covered.....even then, it doesn't look like he gets the ball with enough time to put up a quality shot half the time. No spacing, no open pass...the only option left is to drive and catch the defender off guard. I've noticed that the Raps just tend to stand and watch once Kapono gets the ball.....admire his awesome release in practice, you've been with the guy since late October.

As mentioned above they need to run more plays for the guy. He's as close to can't miss as you get in this league.

[peteyjones13]

Well, not saying Kapono is going to be a complete dud. But at least we know that when Colangelo makes a mistake he usually corrects it (Fred Jones).

meh you cant equate Fred Jones with Kapono. JK just hasn't got so many minutes. And he's still shooting a great 3 point percentage when he does. He needs to take some minutes away from the wildly inconsistent Carlos Delfino.