Let's Talk About Jonny Flynn

[funkatron101]

Now, even though we still suck, everytime I come to the board and see a thread where we can discuss a player, it's about how much they suck (Flynn, Ridnour, Telfair, Pek (after 1/3 of a season), Brewer). It really is draining, and makes posting on the forum MUCH LESS ENJOYABLE. If I'm in the minority I'll stop whining, but we've been terrible for quite some time and this season isn't make-or-break, So I really don't understand all the negativity.

I think you hit the nail on the head right there. As drained as you feel over some negative comments on a message board, imagine how drained the fans are who have watched year after year, only to see zero improvement record wise. These are the fans who don't care for the excuse of "but we were close, we just can't finish in the 4th." They want a tangible measuring stick for improvement. They don't see yet another rebuilding effort, just 6-7 years of suck. We had a lot of really sh##y players last season. Most of those guys aren't even in the NBA anymore. For that reason alone, this team should be "better."

Then you probably have another group, who do see the on-court improvement, but are drained from all of the 4th quarter collapses. I gotta admit, I was in a foul mood after last night's game, and my wife suffered for it.

The negativity is a sign of passion. Yep, it's kind of draining to read, but I will take it as they are still passionate fans who just want to see the product improve. They need a way to vent, otherwise they are bound to just give up being fans.

[Breakdown777]

Like I said in the opening post Breakdown, this thread is not meant to throw Flynn under a bus. It's not about negativity. It's about everyone's opinions on why he's struggled, how or whether he will improve, how long it may take, and his future with the team. If people made it into a negative subject I'm sorry.

It's not your fault. No need to apologize. Heck, even if there is some insight as to why someone thinks he's not meeting expectations is fine. Some posters won't even answer the original questions stated in your OP, and instead choose to bash.

[Breakdown777]

Now, even though we still suck, everytime I come to the board and see a thread where we can discuss a player, it's about how much they suck (Flynn, Ridnour, Telfair, Pek (after 1/3 of a season), Brewer). It really is draining, and makes posting on the forum MUCH LESS ENJOYABLE. If I'm in the minority I'll stop whining, but we've been terrible for quite some time and this season isn't make-or-break, So I really don't understand all the negativity.

I think you hit the nail on the head right there. As drained as you feel over some negative comments on a message board, imagine how drained the fans are who have watched year after year, only to see zero improvement record wise. These are the fans who don't care for the excuse of "but we were close, we just can't finish in the 4th." They want a tangible measuring stick for improvement. They don't see yet another rebuilding effort, just 6-7 years of suck. We had a lot of really sh##y players last season. Most of those guys aren't even in the NBA anymore. For that reason alone, this team should be "better."

Then you probably have another group, who do see the on-court improvement, but are drained from all of the 4th quarter collapses. I gotta admit, I was in a foul mood after last night's game, and my wife suffered for it.

The negativity is a sign of passion. Yep, it's kind of draining to read, but I will take it as they are still passionate fans who just want to see the product improve. They need a way to vent, otherwise they are bound to just give up being fans.

Phooey. It's tough when we're actually seeing improvement from last year, yet still so much complaining. If the season ended tomorrow, I'd be happy with our performance this year. We have more talent. We are getting better each week. And anyone who has been around long enough to endure McHale's "quick fixes to remain a bottom seed", should be relieved that we started over and should be wiling to wait for us to completely rebuild.

Too many were expecting OKC-like turnarounds, which doesn't happen too often. Yesterday's game had me proud of this team. Instead of getting Throttled, we stayed with it until the end. I find blaming the refs much more satisfying than throwing the team under the bus.

[shangrila]

I'm all for giving him time I guess but it's tough to see him being here long term now, if he ever was going to be before anyway. Some of it is probably rust, some of it is probably confidence issues, but there's some things I have a real problem with.

His defence is non-existant and, rust or not, it shouldn't he that bad. He doesn't even seem to care on this end of the court. His offence has been equally as bad and the fact that he looks like he understands it less then Ridnour is...amazing. He's definitely regressed this year.

I want to like him. On paper, he provides a lot of what this team needs. But until he can actually start producing I don't think he's in the long term plans and I honestly wouldn't be surprised if he was moved at the deadline. Not saying I think it should happen, just that it might.

[Grits n Gravy]

he has been really bad so far, give him some more time in practice and give bassy about 5 games to show what he can do.

[CoffeeJanitor]

I said before the season started that it would be at least the Allstar break before we saw Flynn back to normal so I'll stick with that. Being rusty and lacking some explosion is normal after an extended absence so I'm not overly concerned with that.

Defensively, he looks completely lost. He plays about 15 feet off his man and just stands around half the time. He should at least know what the defensive scheme is and what he is supposed to do even if he can't physically do it so I don't really know what to think there. Maybe he just truly does suck as a defender.

Offensively, he seems to be trying way too hard. He needs to slow down a bit and simplify his game. Just bring the ball up the floor like a normal ball player instead of making five unnecessary between-the-legs dribbles. Make a normal pass instead of trying a fancy bounce pass. things like that. Simple is better.

Long-term prognosis: he won't be here.

Completely agree. This stuff really irks me.

If he has value right now, trade him.

[Esohny]

Phooey. It's tough when we're actually seeing improvement from last year, yet still so much complaining. If the season ended tomorrow, I'd be happy with our performance this year. We have more talent. We are getting better each week. And anyone who has been around long enough to endure McHale's "quick fixes to remain a bottom seed", should be relieved that we started over and should be wiling to wait for us to completely rebuild.

Too many were expecting OKC-like turnarounds, which doesn't happen too often. Yesterday's game had me proud of this team. Instead of getting Throttled, we stayed with it until the end. I find blaming the refs much more satisfying than throwing the team under the bus.

Are we getting better each week? It seems like every step forward is followed by a step back.

[Krapinsky]

Phooey. It's tough when we're actually seeing improvement from last year, yet still so much complaining. If the season ended tomorrow, I'd be happy with our performance this year. We have more talent. We are getting better each week. And anyone who has been around long enough to endure McHale's "quick fixes to remain a bottom seed", should be relieved that we started over and should be wiling to wait for us to completely rebuild.

Too many were expecting OKC-like turnarounds, which doesn't happen too often. Yesterday's game had me proud of this team. Instead of getting Throttled, we stayed with it until the end. I find blaming the refs much more satisfying than throwing the team under the bus.

Are we getting better each week? It seems like every step forward is followed by a step back.

If you go back to the beginning of the season you'll see are point differential has been getting smaller and smaller. That's a clear sign that we are steadily improving.

To make the outlook even more postive, we're 7-8 against teams with a record below .500 and 2-18 against teams with a record above .500. We have played more games above teams with records above .500 than anyone in the league except NJ (tie). To compare, the Kings have played five more games against teams with a record below .500 (7-13).

We've also seen narrow losses to a lot of the leagues best teams -- Utah, Los Angeles, San Antonio, and now Boston.

[Calinks]

Phooey. It's tough when we're actually seeing improvement from last year, yet still so much complaining. If the season ended tomorrow, I'd be happy with our performance this year. We have more talent. We are getting better each week. And anyone who has been around long enough to endure McHale's "quick fixes to remain a bottom seed", should be relieved that we started over and should be wiling to wait for us to completely rebuild.

Too many were expecting OKC-like turnarounds, which doesn't happen too often. Yesterday's game had me proud of this team. Instead of getting Throttled, we stayed with it until the end. I find blaming the refs much more satisfying than throwing the team under the bus.

Are we getting better each week? It seems like every step forward is followed by a step back.

If you go back to the beginning of the season you'll see are point differential has been getting smaller and smaller. That's a clear sign that we are steadily improving.

To make the outlook even more postive, we're 7-8 against teams with a record below .500 and 2-18 against teams with a record above .500. We have played more games above teams with records above .500 than anyone in the league except NJ (tie). To compare, the Kings have played five more games against teams with a record below .500 (7-13).

We've also seen narrow losses to a lot of the leagues best teams -- Utah, Los Angeles, San Antonio, and now Boston.

Thanks for the info. I knew our schedule was crazy but this confirms it. What I like about all of this is that we are definitely being thrown into the fire. All of these buildings will help to build the character of our team.

[collin_k41]

I can just remember last year we were consistently getting beat by 15+ points. Talk about demoralizing. Losing close games brings a whole new dimension to demoralizing but at least we're competing.

Back to Jonny, I can't really see why people are calling to trade him NOW. He IS going to improve, and if we're going to trade him anyways we'd be better served by at least waiting for that to happen. Flynn very well could be one of the odd men out come next season if/when Rubio comes over. I feel like the FO would rather have Luke backing up Rubes than Flynn. I guess it all depends on whether Rubio comes next year, and how much Flynn improves as the season progresses. So, if we're going to talk about trading Jonny Flynn it should at least wait until he has concrete value. Also, I'd still like to see at least one 'Cuse Connection aka. alley-oop from Flynn to Wes before we break the two of em' up.

[PHTown]

I'll start with positives:
-Shooting. Flynn can shoot the ball, especially the three and watching him do that gives me a bit of hope for him.
-he has good ball control while dribbling and is fast.

Negatives:
-he is a bonehead. I cannot recall ever being so frustrated at a player for his nonsensical plays(though watching Jarryd Bayless in Portland at times came close). Boneheaded point guards are basically worthless in my eyes.

The problem with Johnny seems to me to be all mental. When healthy he should be perfectly capable of being a solid player, but he seems determined to play like a highschool playground showboat. The problem is I don't see that problem fixing itself 100%. He could eventually become a decent player, but should we ever get to the point of being in the playoffs can you imagine putting critical plays in that guys hands? I'll pass.

I would like to contrast him with Wes Johnson. I love Wes(though I was against the pick originally to be honest) because he plays controlled and thoughtfully. I prefer the lack of aggresiveness that is his major fault because he makes very few mistakes that hurt his team. It shows he values possessions and with time he will be more comfortable and get more aggressive. Flynn clearly does not value possessions which is baffling to me. I don't see the 2 year age difference being sufficient to justify the difference, especially when Flynn has been in the league for a year.

As for trading: I would jump for joy to see Flynn traded. My hope is that people still value him, and are assuming that he is just rusty right now and not just the bone head he is. However, I don't think that is realistic and consequently I don't think he will be traded, or at least not for anything worth more than the hope he might get it a little bit at least to make a decent backup to Ridnour(which says a whole hell of alot about how dissapointed I am with him.)

Final positive note: Man I love Wes. Looking forward to watching him in a couple of years. Love his passing and BBIQ. Add a dribble and watch out.

[eyeteeth]

Back to Jonny, I can't really see why people are calling to trade him NOW. He IS going to improve, and if we're going to trade him anyways we'd be better served by at least waiting for that to happen.

The argument for trading him now is that he might be perceived as being better than he is by many GM's in the league. If we play him extensively and he only improves slightly, then his value will plummet. I am firmly in the "trade him now" camp.

Jonny has always been such a tease. Last year he would occasionally drive to the hoop and make a play with such confidence, you could see the star player waiting to come out. But more often he would drive into traffic and... be a 6' tall 20 year old surrounded by 6'9" men. I was hoping that a year of study would improve his play, but I have not seen it. Even though he was injured, and coming back from an injury is difficult, he should have been paying attention in practice and film sessions the whole time. He should look like he understands his role out there at least a little bit better, but he doesn't. He looks like he is waking up from a dream to realize he really IS playing in the NBA, only it's not fun or easy like it was when he was dreaming. I'm sorry, but I think it's a failing of intellect, and I don't think it will get better any time soon.

[Klomp]

I love the guy, but I too doubt his longterm future here. I think this was put into motion all the way back when we signed Luke.