SI's opposing scout take on our Hawks

[High 5]

+/- is a lame stat. Especially for 1 game.

[killbuckner]

Any stat is lame after 1 game if you use it wrong. +/- just gives information like any other stat you choose to look at. Over one game I'll say +/- is more representative than shooting percentage or even points scored for instance.

[High 5]

And I'll say you're insane.

[killbuckner]

you want to judge a player by only points scored you will have just as skewed a view as if you look at only +/-. You look at only shooting percentage its even worse. Don't know why you have a tough time seeing that.

[JoshB914]

All I'm saying is that as bad as Bibby was, we were at our best on the floor with him. I know it is one game but it is something to take into consideration. When Acie was on the floor we didn't score points. Hopefully that is not a sign of things to come.

[High 5]

Since I said that? I just said points scored and FG% are much more important than +/-. You honestly believe Bibby played as well as Josh? You honestly believe Bibby had a better game than everyone else? Of course, now I remember you were the one that tried to argue Lue was an awesome PG because he had a positive +/-. So basically I'm not wasting my time with this argument again...stick to contracts, please.

[JoshB914]

I don't think anyone is saying that Bibby played as well as Josh, I don't think anyone is even saying he played well. But the fact is that the guy missed 11 shots and we still outscore the Magic by 23 points when he is in the game.

I'm not hear to crown Bibby. He didn't play well last night. But his mere presence on the floor clearly gave the team a boost, and I'll take that over the alternative (Acie dribbling in circles and jacking up an awful shot) last night.

[killbuckner]

Actually the argument was about Acie and whether his poor +/- early in the season was something to worry about or not. And the way the season played out I think its clear that people would have been far better served not ignoring information that conflicted with what they wanted to believe. His poor +/- compared to the other hawks PG's was absolutely a bad sign.

[LL Cool Scott]

The jury's still out on Acie. He showed me nothing last year and nothing again last night. All the chatter about him is positive, but it hasn't translated onto the court yet.

As for Bibby - he's invaluable. Even when his shot is not falling. He's a coach on the floor, he gets our offense going, and other teams must respect his game which opens things up for everyone else. He's the type of player that makes everyone else around him better. Just listen to the actual players and coaches on our team. They rave about him and how much better he makes our team. Especially Joe Johnson and Mike Woodson - they basically credit Bibby with transforming the team and making us a playoff team. Good enough for me.

[conleyorbust]

The jury's still out on Acie. He showed me nothing last year and nothing again last night. All the chatter about him is positive, but it hasn't translated onto the court yet.

As for Bibby - he's invaluable. Even when his shot is not falling. He's a coach on the floor, he gets our offense going, and other teams must respect his game which opens things up for everyone else. He's the type of player that makes everyone else around him better. Just listen to the actual players and coaches on our team. They rave about him and how much better he makes our team. Especially Joe Johnson and Mike Woodson - they basically credit Bibby with transforming the team and making us a playoff team. Good enough for me.

Agreed, thats why I don't love all the "swing Bibby at the deadline for a center" talk. It would have to be a damn good center to make up for losing Bibby.

As far as Acie, he had his moments last night but basically he looked like a backup point guard. He still hasn't gotten used to the speed of the game and he looked scared to take the 3. He tries on defense though and he did knock down a couple of nice looking midrange jumpers off the bounce.

At his best, I still don't want him running the team. Bibby isn't Steve Nash, thats for sure, but he does do a solid job of pushing the pace and drawing the D and he isn't a ball-stopper in the half-court. He doesn't break guys down and creat shots like that but he doesn't pound the rock looking for his own shot either. He's a guy I never liked in Sacto but I've really come to appreciate more since he got here which is the opposite of what I figured would happen.

[JoshB914]

^^^ I would be thrilled if Acie looked like a backup PG. He didn't even look like he belonged on the floor last night.

[HoopsGuru25]

^^^ I would be thrilled if Acie looked like a backup PG. He didn't even look like he belonged on the floor last night.

You don't think you're over exaggerating a little?

[JoshB914]

Not at all. Acie couldn't even get us into our offensive sets because he was so tentative. He hit two shots with a hand in his face at the end of the shot clock because he couldn't get rid of the ball. He was lost on defense as well. I will give him credit on the boards, but that's about it.

[HoopsGuru25]

Not at all. Acie couldn't even get us into our offensive sets because he was so tentative. He hit two shots with a hand in his face at the end of the shot clock because he couldn't get rid of the ball. He was lost on defense as well. I will give him credit on the boards, but that's about it.

It was basically a Royal Ivey like performance. He didn't play well but nothing he did stood out to me so much that he looked like he was a liability out there. I agree with you that Law does not do a good job controlling the offense.....however I don't think he looked lost on defense and neither of his shots were desperation shots. Both his made baskets came off pick and rolls and there was more than 10 seconds left on the clock for 1 of them IIRC. He played below average to mediocre...not a positive sign but it's not like he did anything to blow the game.

[JoshB914]

In my opinion, Royal Ivey is not a 2nd string caliber PG.

Hopefully Acie can pick it up over the next few games and gain some confidence.

[conleyorbust]

Well he didn't look like star, thats for sure, he didn't look like a starter either... but there are only so many good pgs in the league and Acie certainly looked like a backup quality player, especially in the second half. He hit some nice shots, he didn't throw the ball away, didn't pound the rock as much as he has in the past... He wasn't dynamic in any way, but he wasn't trash.