this can't be correct

[kingly222]

From last nights box scores I saw that LBJ scored 34pts on 30 shots, Brandon Roy 23pts on 23 shots, Lamarcus Aldridge 21pts on 20shots , Josh Howard 18pts on 19 shots, even OJ 13pts on 11 shots.

Maybe we can trade for one of these guys since I'm positive their fans don't want a player who takes as many shots has he scores, on their team regardless of everything else that player brings to the table.

Lets get on the phone and see what we can do.

[mnWI]

[Worm Guts]

This thread is a huge overreaction but since you brought it up, among the top 20 scorers Al is 19th in points per shot. It's an area he needs improve in.

[Devilzsidewalk]

My expectations for Jefferson are beyond the level of any of those players you mentioned besides Lebron (for now)

He's a beast, but he can be even better and I'd hope Jefferson holds himself to a higher standard then Milwaukee era Vin Baker.

He's a good player - one of the best - but you don't win championships with Vin Bakers, you win championships with ultra beasts that will kill anyone 1 on 1 and hit the open man on the double, and put up the steel gate in the paint with a "do not disturb" sign on defense. Now let the Jefferson dynasty begin.

[Krapinsky]

EVEN OJAY!?!?!?

NO WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYYY!!!!!!!!!

[C.lupus]

He needs to pick up a couple cagey-vet moves to draw fouls on his opponent. He's getting to the line about 4.8 times per game. Duncan and Olajuwon got (get) about 7 per game. If he can get a couple more foul shots each game, it will help a lot.

This may sound like nitpicking but, I'm with Devilz. I'd rather see Big Al shoot for the Duncan/Dream stratosphere and see where he ends up.

[Vega06]

It's inefficient when they do it too. Not to mention that all the players you listed are perimeter players. With the way Al plays he could easily be getting to the line 7 times a game. Part of it is absolutely no respect from the refs, but Al rarely tries to draw contact from his man even though he gets them up in the air 4 times a game. I truely believe he will be a top scorer in this league when he makes that next step in his offensive game.

[4ho5ive]

If Big Al had the Dream Shake *shudders*

[deeney0]

By far the biggest reason Al's PPS is so low is because of free throws. Among the top 20 scorers, Al is also second from the bottom in free throws made. I'm not as concerned about how big a percentage of the Wolves offense Al is nearly as much as I'm concerned about how infrequently he gets to the line. He's shooting 75% from there, too, so he's got to get there more. Everyone who scores more ppg than Al takes at least 6 free throws a game (Durant 6.3, Dirk 6.8, all others over 7). Al takes less than 5. Dwight takes almost 11. For Al to take the next step offensively, it's as much about getting to the line as it is about passing.

[B Calrissian]

Maybe we can trade for one of these guys since I'm positive their fans don't want a player who takes as many shots has he scores, on their team regardless of everything else that player brings to the table.

Except for all those guys bring more to their team than Al (minus LMA).

Tell Al for me that a shot is still only worth two points no matter how many defenders are on him.

[GopherIt!]

I usually need about twenty shots just to win at horse
and that's only five points in the end...

[Devilzsidewalk]

I only need 1 shot, but in my scoring a 720 dunk counts as 5 points

[casey]

From last nights box scores I saw that LBJ scored 34pts on 30 shots, Brandon Roy 23pts on 23 shots, Lamarcus Aldridge 21pts on 20shots , Josh Howard 18pts on 19 shots, even OJ 13pts on 11 shots.

Maybe we can trade for one of these guys since I'm positive their fans don't want a player who takes as many shots has he scores, on their team regardless of everything else that player brings to the table.

Lets get on the phone and see what we can do.

Are you implying that Al brings anything else to the team other than scoring? Because he doesn't.

[Devilzsidewalk]

he's a good rebounder too. And his defense and outside shooting - while still a work in progress - are noticeably better from last year

[GopherIt!]

I only need 1 shot, but in my scoring a 720 dunk counts as 5 points

that sounds like Tony Hawk Pro Basketball...I have that one too...Colecovision

[TheFranchise21]

You're not very good at taking/handling criticism, which makes me wonder how you take criticism about yourself.

Be cool man, we're all more emotional than normal right after a game. It's like the moment right after you're finished with pie... you say stuff you shouldn't have said or didn't necessarily mean.

We all love Big Al, we just expect a lot from him.

[TMo519]

Al's defense has improved, though you wouldn't have known it from last night. But everyone has those nights. If it becomes a trend, then you have a problem. He just struggled, that's all. The "trade Al" type comments were a bit much, but whatever, to each his own.

[macswell]

I completely agree with kingly here. We all know Al is never going to be KG and yes we do have high expectations for him but everyone is overreacting. Why would anyone want to deal the one guy who has been worth a damn on this team the last 2 years up until the last couple weeks?

Al definitely does need to work on his passing and defense but he should not be at the top of the list of problems on this team. Let's see how things go when he gets some legit talent surrounding him, if he still doesn't improve at that point then the criticism will be much more warranted.

[deeney0]

I think it's safe to say Al has improved from last year. I think his defense has improved, but it really is hard to judge because of the bipolar D the rest of the team plays. Taking a purely statistical viewpoint, Al's blocks and assists are up marginally from last year, but I expected them to be up more. I'm O.K. with the rebounds being lower because the team is rebounding better around him than they were last year (possible exception of games Ratliff played in.) FG% is down a bit, which sucks, I don't have a good explanation for that.

I know I mentioned it once in this thread already, but it bears repeating - FTA is far and away where the offensive improvement needs to come. Assists are second, perhaps even a distant second. There has been no FTA improvement from last year. 4.8 won't cut it. The nifty moves are sweet, but sometimes you've just got to plow into the defender - Al doesn't do that enough. That's how DHo punishes people. Al gets compared to Hakeem with his footwork, but Dream spent his entire career making more FTs than Al attempts. I think the effects of Al adding 2 attempts per game would be shocking.

[macswell]

We need some of that punishment on our team! Sometimes guys like Love, Al, and Foye have an opportunity to flush it down hard or draw contact and they either throw something soft up or avoid the defender. I find myself yelling at the TV telling them to put it down hard.

Not only does it help get them to the line but it sends a message. It tells the defense they're not afraid to attack and it has a trickle down effect on the rest of the team.