Official Pierce & KG Thread

[therealbig3]

Considering that Pierce is a free agent after this season, and there's no benefit to letting him walk, we should sign him to a 2-year deal imo. 2 years/20-24 million.

He's still a really useful player. Great game last night, and he's now averaging (rounding up) 14/5/3 with 57% TS on the season. He's done an admirable job at PF imo, about as well as you could expect, and he's been great offensively since the move.

However, I'd really consider doing what we did last night...starting AK at PF long-term, since he's longer and can actually defend some of the bigger PFs, and he can help us on the glass better.

Deron-Livingston-Pierce-AK-Garnett as a starting 5 would be my choice. Johnson really should be the 6th man (forget the name, forget the contract, forget the AS selection...he's better suited as the leader of the 2nd unit than as a complementary player in the starting lineup). If not Johnson, then Deron or Pierce, but I like the way they play in the starting lineup. Pierce is a better off-ball player than Johnson. Also, although Livingston and Kirilenko don't really have 3pt range, they're ok to have out there because they're excellent passers and they actually move without the ball and cut to the basket. Those are things we didn't have when we had non-shooters like Wallace and Evans out there. Also, Livingston does have a solid midrange jumper as well.

BTW, Pierce is actually having a comparable year to Johnson.

Pierce: 13.5 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 2.7 apg, 2.1 TOpg, 57.1% TS, 106 ORating
Johnson: 15.2 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 2.7 apg, 1.5 TOpg, 54.9% TS, 108 ORating

[Prokorov]

Considering that Pierce is a free agent after this season, and there's no benefit to letting him walk, we should sign him to a 2-year deal imo. 2 years/20-24 million.

He's still a really useful player. Great game last night, and he's now averaging (rounding up) 14/5/3 with 57% TS on the season. He's done an admirable job at PF imo, about as well as you could expect, and he's been great offensively since the move.

However, I'd really consider doing what we did last night...starting AK at PF long-term, since he's longer and can actually defend some of the bigger PFs, and he can help us on the glass better.

Deron-Livingston-Pierce-AK-Garnett as a starting 5 would be my choice. Johnson really should be the 6th man (forget the name, forget the contract, forget the AS selection...he's better suited as the leader of the 2nd unit than as a complementary player in the starting lineup). If not Johnson, then Deron or Pierce, but I like the way they play in the starting lineup. Pierce is a better off-ball player than Johnson. Also, although Livingston and Kirilenko don't really have 3pt range, they're ok to have out there because they're excellent passers and they actually move without the ball and cut to the basket. Those are things we didn't have when we had non-shooters like Wallace and Evans out there. Also, Livingston does have a solid midrange jumper as well.

BTW, Pierce is actually having a comparable year to Johnson.

Pierce: 13.5 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 2.7 apg, 2.1 TOpg, 57.1% TS, 106 ORating
Johnson: 15.2 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 2.7 apg, 1.5 TOpg, 54.9% TS, 108 ORating

id give him 1 year a 12-15M but no way i go 2 years. that would gaurantee we cant get under the luxury tax in 15-16 which is critical as it wouldnt allow us to do sign and trades and we would not be in play for any of the big free agents who get traded prior to hitting Free agency

[therealbig3]

Considering that Pierce is a free agent after this season, and there's no benefit to letting him walk, we should sign him to a 2-year deal imo. 2 years/20-24 million.

He's still a really useful player. Great game last night, and he's now averaging (rounding up) 14/5/3 with 57% TS on the season. He's done an admirable job at PF imo, about as well as you could expect, and he's been great offensively since the move.

However, I'd really consider doing what we did last night...starting AK at PF long-term, since he's longer and can actually defend some of the bigger PFs, and he can help us on the glass better.

Deron-Livingston-Pierce-AK-Garnett as a starting 5 would be my choice. Johnson really should be the 6th man (forget the name, forget the contract, forget the AS selection...he's better suited as the leader of the 2nd unit than as a complementary player in the starting lineup). If not Johnson, then Deron or Pierce, but I like the way they play in the starting lineup. Pierce is a better off-ball player than Johnson. Also, although Livingston and Kirilenko don't really have 3pt range, they're ok to have out there because they're excellent passers and they actually move without the ball and cut to the basket. Those are things we didn't have when we had non-shooters like Wallace and Evans out there. Also, Livingston does have a solid midrange jumper as well.

BTW, Pierce is actually having a comparable year to Johnson.

Pierce: 13.5 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 2.7 apg, 2.1 TOpg, 57.1% TS, 106 ORating
Johnson: 15.2 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 2.7 apg, 1.5 TOpg, 54.9% TS, 108 ORating

id give him 1 year a 12-15M but no way i go 2 years. that would gaurantee we cant get under the luxury tax in 15-16 which is critical as it wouldnt allow us to do sign and trades and we would not be in play for any of the big free agents who get traded prior to hitting Free agency

You're right, it would be tough to get under the tax if we gave him that deal.

Maybe a 2-year deal without the 2nd year being fully guaranteed? That way, if we had to, we could waive him or buy him out?

I just don't think he'd be willing to sign for 1-year, he'd probably want a longer-term deal...but there's no point in letting a productive player go for nothing, when his salary doesn't do anything for us in 2015. We still need to be competitive so that we don't send a lottery pick to Atlanta that year.

However, I also think it's obvious that we need to trade Lopez whenever we can, and trading him for contracts that would expire after 2015 would help us in terms of the tax, big time.

[exculpatory]

Considering that Pierce is a free agent after this season, and there's no benefit to letting him walk, we should sign him to a 2-year deal imo. 2 years/20-24 million.

He's still a really useful player. Great game last night, and he's now averaging (rounding up) 14/5/3 with 57% TS on the season. He's done an admirable job at PF imo, about as well as you could expect, and he's been great offensively since the move.

However, I'd really consider doing what we did last night...starting AK at PF long-term, since he's longer and can actually defend some of the bigger PFs, and he can help us on the glass better.

Deron-Livingston-Pierce-AK-Garnett as a starting 5 would be my choice. Johnson really should be the 6th man (forget the name, forget the contract, forget the AS selection...he's better suited as the leader of the 2nd unit than as a complementary player in the starting lineup). If not Johnson, then Deron or Pierce, but I like the way they play in the starting lineup. Pierce is a better off-ball player than Johnson. Also, although Livingston and Kirilenko don't really have 3pt range, they're ok to have out there because they're excellent passers and they actually move without the ball and cut to the basket. Those are things we didn't have when we had non-shooters like Wallace and Evans out there. Also, Livingston does have a solid midrange jumper as well.

BTW, Pierce is actually having a comparable year to Johnson.

Pierce: 13.5 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 2.7 apg, 2.1 TOpg, 57.1% TS, 106 ORating
Johnson: 15.2 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 2.7 apg, 1.5 TOpg, 54.9% TS, 108 ORating

Excellent post.

Check this out:

Pierce in 15 games in 11/2013 playing for most of the month (11 out of 15 games) with an UNdiagnosed fracture in his shooting hand:

12.4 ppg on 36.8%/26.8% & 50.4 TS%, 94 ORating, 4.9R, 2.8A, 2.5 TO (abysmal)

Pierce in 34 games in 12/2013, 1/2014 & 2/2014:

14 ppg on 45.6%/39.8% & 60.2 TS%, 109 ORating, 4.6R, 2.7A, 2.0 TO (All Star level)

Pierce for all 49 games:

13.5 ppg on 43%/36% & 57.1 TS%, 106 ORating, 4.7R, 2.7A, 2.1 TO

HENCE:

Excluding 11/2013, Paul has had an EXCELLENT/extremely efficient season & a BETTER season than JJ.

The ONLY reasons that he is not scoring 18+ PPG are because his minutes (~29) are down about 5 minutes per game, his FGAs (~9.8) are down about 4-5 FGAs per game, his USG% (22.5%) is down about 5% - compared with last season in Boston.

At age 36+, he is no longer a Super Star capable of brilliant nights like last night (& like 6 other similar games this season) on a consistent 'game in & game out basis' - but he sure as hell is STILL a very valuable/elite SF.

The Nets would indeed be wise to sign him to a career-finale 2 year deal/20-24 million - perhaps the money could be front-loaded to minimize the impact on the 2015-2016 salary cap? If a deal cannot be worked out, I am telling you guys right now that he will sign the same deal with Doc & the Clippers (their most glaring weakness is the lack of a quality SF).

[Paradise]

I was hard on him earlier in the season because of his lackadaisical play and his body language but he looks engaged now. Pierce at PF is simply a perfect fit for him at this stage of his career.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OyA_dQ0LiOs[/youtube]

[exculpatory]

I was hard on him earlier in the season because of his lackadaisical play and his body language but he looks engaged now. Pierce at PF is simply a perfect fit for him at this stage of his career.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OyA_dQ0LiOs[/youtube]

Maybe part of the time at PF. Hard for him to play certain monster PFs.

Look at the numbers I posted for December, Jan & Feb - 14 on 46%/40%/TS 60%/109 ORating (rounding off) playing 5 less minutes a game & shooting 5 less FGAs per game compared with 2012-2013. That is freaking awesome stuff.

[Prokorov]

[tweet]https://twitter.com/MazzESPN/status/418774220316102656[/tweet]

He shot 46% in jumpers last season.

I'm not exactly sure what a defined role has to do with his struggles to consistently shoot open shots.

A lot of basketball players are creatures of habit.

You know how players often have sweet spots on the floor?

Well part of the reason why it's a sweet spot is because the player has established pattern and rhythm of executing from that spot.

Older players especially thrive off routines since their decreased mobility inhibits them from attacking the rim or getting to their spots faster.

For example Shane batter is an exceptional corner 3pts shooter partly because he was always a decent shooter from there and partly because the Heat have implemented a system where that's the only shot he's supposed to take.

So you take a guy who was pretty good at corner 3s and have him practice only that, he'll get comfortable doing that and almost nothing else.

Now when you watch the Heat play, if Batter can't get to his spot or doesn't receive passes at the times he expects he looks like a D-league player. But if you just get him to the corner, he becomes an elite marksman.

That's why these guys shoot hundreds and thousands of shots in off-season workouts. They try to establish a repetitive move and shot that they become comfortable with. If a player doesn't feel comfortable, his shooting percentage will definitely take a hit.

Sent from my SPH-L710 using Tapatalk

thats all well and good, but garnetts sweet spart are the elbows and top of the key.... and those are the only shots he takes for us, and he bricks tons of them

[exculpatory]

I was hard on him earlier in the season because of his lackadaisical play and his body language but he looks engaged now. Pierce at PF is simply a perfect fit for him at this stage of his career.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OyA_dQ0LiOs[/youtube]

Paradise, can you post Paul's sweet, vintage Js from the Denver game? Thanks!
18 on 7-12 & 2-5, 6Rs in only 22 super efficient minutes.

[Albanian Damien]

[tweet]https://twitter.com/MazzESPN/status/418774220316102656[/tweet]

He shot 46% in jumpers last season.

I'm not exactly sure what a defined role has to do with his struggles to consistently shoot open shots.

A lot of basketball players are creatures of habit.

You know how players often have sweet spots on the floor?

Well part of the reason why it's a sweet spot is because the player has established pattern and rhythm of executing from that spot.

Older players especially thrive off routines since their decreased mobility inhibits them from attacking the rim or getting to their spots faster.

For example Shane batter is an exceptional corner 3pts shooter partly because he was always a decent shooter from there and partly because the Heat have implemented a system where that's the only shot he's supposed to take.

So you take a guy who was pretty good at corner 3s and have him practice only that, he'll get comfortable doing that and almost nothing else.

Now when you watch the Heat play, if Batter can't get to his spot or doesn't receive passes at the times he expects he looks like a D-league player. But if you just get him to the corner, he becomes an elite marksman.

That's why these guys shoot hundreds and thousands of shots in off-season workouts. They try to establish a repetitive move and shot that they become comfortable with. If a player doesn't feel comfortable, his shooting percentage will definitely take a hit.

Sent from my SPH-L710 using Tapatalk

thats all well and good, but garnetts sweet spart are the elbows and top of the key.... and those are the only shots he takes for us, and he bricks tons of them

Honestly bro you've brought up this stat a bunch of times to downplay what KG can do... and I'm just now looking at it.. It was a stat from January 2nd... Are you serious? He's shot 58% in Januray and 57% in February.. I'll put money if that open jumpshot % isnt substantially higher by now..Idk how you can say he bricks tons of them.

[NyCeEvO]

[tweet]https://twitter.com/rodboone/status/441660829633892352[/tweet]

[Prokorov]

[tweet]https://twitter.com/rodboone/status/441660829633892352[/tweet]

not concerned... boston doesnt have size and i like the minutes and floor balance plumlee is giving us right now. let KG rest until he is 110%

[NyCeEvO]

What did I tell you about Paul freakin' Pierce!

Everyone was complaining about his slow start. I told ya'll to be patient because he'd come around.

[Palmeirense]

PP is the mvp of this team, amazing what he is doing lately at his age.

[exculpatory]

What did I tell you about Paul freakin' Pierce!

Everyone was complaining about his slow start. I told ya'll to be patient because he'd come around.

You really mean - "What did Exculpatory post every other day in 11/2013 & 12/2013 about Paul freakin' Pierce?"

Paul as of 3/13/14 & 58 games:

Pierce in 15 games in 11/2013 playing for most of the month (11 out of 15 games) with an UNdiagnosed fracture in his shooting hand:
12.4 ppg on 36.8%/26.8% & 50.4 TS%, 94 ORating, 4.9R, 2.8A, 0.9 steals, 2.5 TO (abysmal)

Pierce in 43 games in 12/2013, 1/2014, 2/2014 & 3/2014:
13.9 ppg on 46.3%/40.4% & 61.2 TS%, 108 ORating, 4.7R, 2.5A, 1.3 steals, 2.1 TO (ELITE level)

Pierce in 32 games in CY 2014 - since he switched to PF:
14.3 ppg on 46.5%/39.1% & 61.3 TS%, 111 Orating, 4.5R, 2.3A, 1.4 steals, 2.0 TO (ELITE level)

Pierce in 12 games in 2/2014 playing ONLY 26.3 minutes per game!!!
14.3 ppg on 49.6%/40.4% & 64.3!!! TS%, 118!! ORating, 4.7R, 1.4A, 1.1 steals, 1.2 TO (All Star level)

Pierce for all 58 games:
13.5 ppg on 43.7%/37% & 58.2 TS%, 104 ORating, 4.8R, 2.6A, 1.2 steals, 2.2 TO, PER 16.4 (EXCELLENT season merging ELITE numbers since 12/1/13 with 11/2013 'fracture'-impaired numbers.)

HENCE:

Excluding 11/2013 playing with a freaking fracture (when the 'usual basketball savants' incorrectly wrote him off YET again), Paul has had an EXCELLENT/extremely efficient season.

The ONLY reasons that he is not scoring 18-19 PPG are because his minutes are down about 5 minutes per game, his FGAs are down about 5 FGAs per game, & his USG% is down about 5% - compared with last season in Boston.

At age 36+, he is no longer a Super Star capable of absolutely brilliant nights like last night VS the Heat (he has scored 18-33 points in 14/58 games this season) on a consistent 'game in & game out basis' - but he sure as hell is STILL a very VERY valuable/elite SF.

Sent from my iPad

[NyCeEvO]

What did I tell you about Paul freakin' Pierce!

Everyone was complaining about his slow start. I told ya'll to be patient because he'd come around.

You really mean - "What did Exculpatory post every other day in 11/2013 & 12/2013 about Paul freakin' Pierce?

Yes, this what I meant!



Paul Pierce is such a beast.

[Prokorov]

PP is the mvp of this team, amazing what he is doing lately at his age.

Yup. what pierce and thornton have given us lately have been huge.

also deron playing with a ton more effort/energy

[MGrand15]

Exculpatory can give you the exact dates but Pierce has been awesome since he came back from that injury early and told Kidd to play him in the 4th quarter of a blowout so he can get his rhythm.

He's been even better since he started playing the 4. Pick and pops are PERFECT for Pierce. Above the break 3s are his specialty. He doesn't need to straight up create/shake his defender. The PnP has them slightly off balance cause they're running at him. All he needs to do is pump fake and drive or just drive if they run at him too aggressively. Makes his job so much easier.

[MrDollarBills]

Pierce has been a godsend. It's good to see actual leadership on a Nets team, haven't had this type of gritty play and alpha dogsmanship since Kidd's playing days here.

[FirstBallotKG]

From The Daily News

Role player? Paul Pierce now Nets big shot
As the Nets (33-30) ascend in the standings without an injured Kevin Garnett, it is Pierce who has emerged as not only an emotional leader, but also as the star on the court in the biggest games and in the biggest moments.

[exculpatory]

Paul The Truth Pierce passed Pat Ewing tonight, & is now the 18th leading scorer in NBA history with 24,819 points.

He is on schedule to finish the season with >25K points. Next season, he will easily move up to #14 on the NBA All Time Scoring List.

Freaking magnificent!