Amundson's Game

[Visigoth]

Warriors fan here. We noticed that you guys waived Amundson, and our FO has been gracious enough to show an interest in him. I for one have not seen him play besides a few spot minutes in a couple of games - he seemed fairly impressive.

I have a few questions if some of you won't mind answering:

1) How is he on defense? Our recent acquisition of D. Lee, the uncertainty of Biedrins & the injury of Udoh have made our front court incredibly vulnerable. Lou is obviously a high energy guy, but is a good defender? Or rather, will he be a liability on our already putrid defense?

2) Does he have any upside? Obviously he's only ever gotten spot minutes, but do you guys see him as becoming a solid rotation player? We're lacking in depth right now, and having a solid #6-8 would be great for us.

3) How will he fit in a run and gun offense? The Gentry offense seems like a slightly more defensive-oriented mold of Nellieball, so do you guys think Amundson would fit in well in our system?

Many thanks for your responses!

[MaryvalesFinest]

If he got over 30 minutes per game he could probably put up 10-10 and 2 blocks which are good numbers. If he gets the usual 12-18 minutes per night he brings the energy, hustle, etc. He's also a surprisingly athletic player.

[Qwigglez]

Always puts in the effort. Undersized for a PF but he makes up for it in his athleticism. Has worked on his jumpshot going from extremely terrible to just pretty terrible (lol).

[Qwigglez]

Oh, his defense is great for weak side help. He's an above average defender.
Not much upside, but you know he'll always give 110% effort. Even when the team is struggling.
He'll fit in perfectly. He can go up for alley-oops, finish on the break, he just doesn't have a jumper so it makes him slightly predictable going to the basket.

[Calvin Klein]

Yeah. I can only add that he is not a good FT shooter. It looks really awkward.

[WTFsunsFTW]

Fan favorite, he will get cheers and LOUUUUUUUUUUs in phoenix until he retires.

[Sun Scorched]

Lou was a solid rotation player in PHX, he would look incredible with steady minutes in GS.

Think Hustle.

To Mary's point, Lou's Per 36 numbers have him at 11.4 ppg, 10.7 rpg, & 2.3 bpg. Four of those rebounds are on the offensive glass.

I love the guy. Truth is I'm happy with how our offseason ended up, minus letting Lou walk.

[harshey1388]

i wish all the best for Lou but i feel like the bigger the contract the worse Lou is gonna play. i hope i am wrong but its just a gut feeling.

still hoping he stays with the suns but its looking HIGHLY unlikely.

[KJ7]

He's a fantastic role player. One of the few players in the league who comes off the bench and just leaves it all on the floor. He'll run and hustle until he has nothing left.

He gets backed down by larger opponents but he'll do his best to challenge every shot (sometimes gets him into foul trouble). He has a 15 foot jumper but you wouldn't really want to see it more than 3 or 4 times a game.

He times his jump very well. This makes him an exceptional rebounder and he does put a body on to box out as well. He's one of the best rebounders we've had here in terms of technique possibly since Barkley.

He shouldve got more mins here I felt but was unlucky we'll trying to get youngsters in Lopez/Clark going at different stages throughout the season. If he finds the right coach who appreciates what he does and is in the right situation he'll be good for 20-25mpg.

Our loss is someone elses gain for sure ...

[Purple Palace]

I honestly think is he probably the most liked Suns player aside from Nash. What bad could you say about Lou aside from his FT shooting? Great player, definitely will miss his energy off the bench.

[DaDragicShow]

I'm going to miss him. This dude puts everything on the court when he comes in and never complains. Wish him the best of luck anywhere he goes and will still cheer for him. Damn, we overpaid warrick and frye and didn't have enough to sign Amundson.

[Qwigglez]

Honestly I'd rather the Suns gave Hakim's contract to Lou, but for half the salary, lol. I have a feeling Warrick isn't a good locker room guy, but I hope I am wrong.

[nashrambler13]

Spot minutes? I don't think so. He was a rotation player this year.

[plonden]

The best part about Lou is how he got under opposing players' skin as the hustle guy. Pau Gasol and Zach Randolph both immediately come to mind...

[lilfishi22]

His fundamentals as a defender isn't great but does make up for it with athleticism, instincts and hustle/energy. His weak side help is quite good even though he is undersized for the 4 but leave him out in the open and he will be a defensive liability if team defense is not top notch. Our team defense was quite a spectacle with our defensive rotations which means Lou never guarded one guy for any significant period time.

But like plonden said, the best part of Lou's game is his hustle. Guys in the NBA get very frustrated when they are confronted by a guy who is clearly less talented and undersized but still hold their ground because of the hustle and energy they bring. Lou BRINGS IT, every night. Give him 2mpg in a 4 game stretch and he'll still bring the same intensity as if you give him 25mpg in a 10 game stretch. He's also a great locker room guy and he knows his role so he won't complain about minutes. I think he's a rotation guy on most teams and only teams who are already very deep will find it hard not to play him.

Honestly I'd rather the Suns gave Hakim's contract to Lou, but for half the salary, lol. I have a feeling Warrick isn't a good locker room guy, but I hope I am wrong.

+1.

The fact that I don't think Warrick is a game changer or adds any sort of new dimension to our system, makes me think that the money would've been better spent on Lou, who does give this team a new identity when he's on the court with our 2nd unit. Not saying Warrick won't add anything to our team, I just think we already had a good thing going with Lou.

I dunno how Warrick is as a locker room guy but I've never heard anything bad about him. I just hope he adds as much to the locker room as he does on the court.