Has a lazy/unmotivated player ever "gotten it"?

[th1]

Well, i am not an NBA player, but i really got my **** together once i moved to foreign country. Before i was lazy neckbeard, but once i moved and started making decent money, i became workaholic.

[sonictecture]

Drummond was considered lazy/unmotivated in college but arguably turned it on after playing in the NBA for several months. It's why he slipped so far to Detroit.

I think evaluators were looking for reasons that Drummond wasn't dominating in his one year at UCONN as he should have based on his physical profile alone. Big men who dominate consistently are often branded with motivation or work ethic questions early on.

Drummond didn't know how hard he would have to work in the NBA. The question is once a player is taught the work ethic will they keep it up, do they love the game enough keep working.

Drummond is still in a dangerous zone where he is trying to make a name for himself and earn his first huge contract. Does he keep working after this is completed? Will he be more than a physical specimen? What kind of player do you have if he ever suffers a major injury?

[sonictecture]

Well, i am not an NBA player, but i really got my **** together once i moved to foreign country. Before i was lazy neckbeard, but once i moved and started making decent money, i became workaholic.

How did the foreign country and decent money motivate you to get your **** together?

[ferk]

Lowry

[Hellcrooner]

Id Say Gasol has make this thing twice.
Was completely unmotivated and just coasting in Memphis and even declining a bit and then on the Lakers he turned theswitch On.
Now he was completely numb on the Lakers and seems to have plugged the switch on again in the Bulls.

[Jeff Van Gully]

Odom never sucked but was seen as unmotivated with Clippers, Miami was credited with maturing him.

DeMarcus Cousins had that moniker also and is possibly the best big man in the game now

boogie still has a way to go, but he's getting there.

people thought lance stephenson had done it, but...

[Jeff Van Gully]

This is a very good one. Just goes to show you go from a toxic environment to a nurturing one and you can mature and excel.

agreed. environment can have a LOT to do with it. that's why i don't love the concept of tanking. it is very difficult to breed a winning mentality in players who have resigned to losing. that's not just basketball. that's life.

though, i will say that z-bo showed signs of turning that corner in his last half-season in NY. but it wasn't until he found his place in memphis that we have really seen him work hard. he'll never be able to jump over a phone book. but he has worked hard on the mental part of the game.

I'm not sure if Randolph's issues can be blamed on environment with Portland, when he was responsible for creating so much of that environment? Randolph came into the league as an immature individual who surrounded himself with family and friends that only told him how great he was. IMO Randolph improved as a player and a person due to maturity and a willingness to listen to voices outside his circle.

true. the toxic environment we were referring to is our beloved knicks. but, z-bo came up in the rise of the jailblazers. the team was kind of in tumult when he got there and it only got worse.

but maturity and willingness are what it takes to "get it." we definitely are in agreement.

[panthermark]

I've been thinking about different trades (Tony Snell and a 2nd rounder for Lamb) and certain types of players....and also reading the "project thread", and it got me to pondering.

Has a lazy/non-motivated player ever become motivated? You see all of these players who have wonderful tools and could be great, but seem to just not care enough to put in the work....does it ever work out?

How do you determine whether a player is working hard enough or is motivated enough?

Jeremy Lamb has sleepy eyes, gives interviews like he is disinterested, glides in his movements on the court, but has put as much work as any other Thunder player on his game during his time with the team. So how do we explain his lack of production and playing time?

From my observations, Lamb is a guy that cares, he wants to fit in, he wants to play well for his teammates and himself. We can't say that Lamb hasn't been given some opportunities, but I do think that he has failed to fill the role that Brooks would like him to and that Brooks has been unwilling to grant him the larger role that many young players with talent get based on the goals of the team.

Lamb struggles with confidence issues on the court. He knows that if he misses shots he's going to get pulled, he knows if he misses a defensive assignment he's going to get pulled. He has very little margin for error, because his role is to add a little to the team, but more than anything don't hurt the team. Young players typically have to hurt their teams to develop in game situations. The thing that holds Lamb back on the Thunder is that he has not been able to defend at the level Brooks wants him to. I think this is a case of a player with some skill who isn't fitting into a defined role.

With Snell, you're talking about a guy who plays for a coach who historically uses tight rotations and sticks to them. If only 7-8 guys are playing major minutes thats 6-7 guys who aren't going to get playing time. Snell has some holes in his game as well, so he's losing time to guys who can dribble the ball and create for others or veteran shooters. I don't think Chicago would keep Snell around if he wasn't a hard worker.

Tough to say. Sounds like Snell has the same blase' type personality as Lamb. I'm not saying those two guys in particular are lazy...and maybe unmotivated for them is the wrong term....but Snell was basically force fed minutes recently...and nothing. Could be confidence...could be something else. What really made me think about this was a trade thread on Harkless of the Magic. The big knock on him is that he does not have a motor. At what point do you throw in the towel on a player like that? Is it a change of scenery...or is it something that they will just never get?

[sonictecture]

Id Say Gasol has make this thing twice.
Was completely unmotivated and just coasting in Memphis and even declining a bit and then on the Lakers he turned theswitch On.
Now he was completely numb on the Lakers and seems to have plugged the switch on again in the Bulls.

How much of this can be attributed to coming to a new league and country and assimilating yourself? Gasol was pretty good from the get to but often criticized for not being physical enough.

Marc is a different story. He was so overweight and had so little production that know one knew what he could be aside from being tall. This is a player who really worked himself into being one of the best players in the league. Maturity again.

[panthermark]

Zach is interesting...but I do think a big part of with him was maturity. He is one of the few that actually grew up, and got his act together. Something that a player like JR Smith never did....(his issue isn't laziness, it is immaturity).

One of Z-Bo's teammates in NY is the poster child for unmotivated: Eddy Curry

[ManualRam]

I've been thinking about different trades (Tony Snell and a 2nd rounder for Lamb) and certain types of players....and also reading the "project thread", and it got me to pondering.

Has a lazy/non-motivated player ever become motivated? You see all of these players who have wonderful tools and could be great, but seem to just not care enough to put in the work....does it ever work out?

How do you determine whether a player is working hard enough or is motivated enough?

Jeremy Lamb has sleepy eyes, gives interviews like he is disinterested, glides in his movements on the court, but has put as much work as any other Thunder player on his game during his time with the team. So how do we explain his lack of production and playing time?

From my observations, Lamb is a guy that cares, he wants to fit in, he wants to play well for his teammates and himself. We can't say that Lamb hasn't been given some opportunities, but I do think that he has failed to fill the role that Brooks would like him to and that Brooks has been unwilling to grant him the larger role that many young players with talent get based on the goals of the team.

Lamb struggles with confidence issues on the court. He knows that if he misses shots he's going to get pulled, he knows if he misses a defensive assignment he's going to get pulled. He has very little margin for error, because his role is to add a little to the team, but more than anything don't hurt the team. Young players typically have to hurt their teams to develop in game situations. The thing that holds Lamb back on the Thunder is that he has not been able to defend at the level Brooks wants him to. I think this is a case of a player with some skill who isn't fitting into a defined role.

With Snell, you're talking about a guy who plays for a coach who historically uses tight rotations and sticks to them. If only 7-8 guys are playing major minutes thats 6-7 guys who aren't going to get playing time. Snell has some holes in his game as well, so he's losing time to guys who can dribble the ball and create for others or veteran shooters. I don't think Chicago would keep Snell around if he wasn't a hard worker.

good post. i dont know which players led to this thread being created but neither of these guys are lazy/unmotivated.

[sonictecture]

I've been thinking about different trades (Tony Snell and a 2nd rounder for Lamb) and certain types of players....and also reading the "project thread", and it got me to pondering.

Has a lazy/non-motivated player ever become motivated? You see all of these players who have wonderful tools and could be great, but seem to just not care enough to put in the work....does it ever work out?

How do you determine whether a player is working hard enough or is motivated enough?

Jeremy Lamb has sleepy eyes, gives interviews like he is disinterested, glides in his movements on the court, but has put as much work as any other Thunder player on his game during his time with the team. So how do we explain his lack of production and playing time?

From my observations, Lamb is a guy that cares, he wants to fit in, he wants to play well for his teammates and himself. We can't say that Lamb hasn't been given some opportunities, but I do think that he has failed to fill the role that Brooks would like him to and that Brooks has been unwilling to grant him the larger role that many young players with talent get based on the goals of the team.

Lamb struggles with confidence issues on the court. He knows that if he misses shots he's going to get pulled, he knows if he misses a defensive assignment he's going to get pulled. He has very little margin for error, because his role is to add a little to the team, but more than anything don't hurt the team. Young players typically have to hurt their teams to develop in game situations. The thing that holds Lamb back on the Thunder is that he has not been able to defend at the level Brooks wants him to. I think this is a case of a player with some skill who isn't fitting into a defined role.

With Snell, you're talking about a guy who plays for a coach who historically uses tight rotations and sticks to them. If only 7-8 guys are playing major minutes thats 6-7 guys who aren't going to get playing time. Snell has some holes in his game as well, so he's losing time to guys who can dribble the ball and create for others or veteran shooters. I don't think Chicago would keep Snell around if he wasn't a hard worker.

Tough to say. Sounds like Snell has the same blase' type personality as Lamb. I'm not saying those two guys in particular are lazy...and maybe unmotivated for them is the wrong term....but Snell was basically force fed minutes recently...and nothing. Could be confidence...could be something else. What really made me think about this was a trade thread on Harkless of the Magic. The big knock on him is that he does not have a motor. At what point do you throw in the towel on a player like that? Is it a change of scenery...or is it something that they will just never get?

Sometimes its just personality. The NBA is an aggressive game and if you are blessed with the physical profile and adequate skill level but lack aggressiveness to your mental approach then I think you can get labeled as unmotivated. This type of player frustrates observers like no other, but I'm interested to whether you can identify such a player and make him successful in your system.

Sometimes it's the player not fitting the role. Sometimes it's the player not being ready for a role either skill wise or mentally. We discuss working on skills all of the time, but the mental aspect is huge to and typically that is ignored in development. The hope is that once the skills improve the mental will follow, but I think that is an overly simplistic approach.

[Calvin Klein]

Some say Gerald Green

I doubt he played any other way than what he is doing now. It just worked for a while in Phoenix' system.

[th1]

Well, i am not an NBA player, but i really got my **** together once i moved to foreign country. Before i was lazy neckbeard, but once i moved and started making decent money, i became workaholic.

How did the foreign country and decent money motivate you to get your **** together?

I came to Denmark from poor Eastern Europe country. I had no way back. The GDP of my home country fell by something like 15% due to global economic crisis. Either i get it together or i kill my self. That's how desperate i was. When i got my first salary it was awesome. I could buy decent food, clothes and even support my parents back at home. 5 years and i still work in the same place, my salary 3 times bigger of what i got the first year and i am the right hand of my boss. I would guess desperation has something to do with players getting it after some time. Those who came from powerty and have no way back, will bust their asses to make it. Then there are guys like Bynum, who was talented enough to make good money with little work and dedication. He was not desperate enough. He already has millions in his account, so he can **** around.

[ufsports]

I think the hard part is finding something that motivates you. I feel like once you have a couple million dollars in the bank, it gets harder to work as hard because no matter what, you've made it in life. When I work out, I think of all the parties and dances there are out there and they'd be super fun with all the attractive girls a much-more-ripped version of me could pick up. I know it's stupid, but hey, whatever works

[sonictecture]

Well, i am not an NBA player, but i really got my **** together once i moved to foreign country. Before i was lazy neckbeard, but once i moved and started making decent money, i became workaholic.

How did the foreign country and decent money motivate you to get your **** together?

I came to Denmark from poor Eastern Europe country. I had no way back. The GDP of my home country fell by something like 15% due to global economic crisis. Either i get it together or i kill my self. That's how desperate i was. When i got my first salary it was awesome. I could buy decent food, clothes and even support my parents back at home. 5 years and i still work in the same place, my salary 3 times bigger of what i got the first year and i am the right hand of my boss. I would guess desperation has something to do with players getting it after some time. Those who came from powerty and have no way back, will bust their asses to make it. Then there are guys like Bynum, who was talented enough to make good money with little work and dedication. He was not desperate enough. He already has millions in his account, so he can **** around.

You have a nice story. Would you say that the lack of opportunities in the Country of your birth contributed to what you viewed as your own laziness there? We're not all the same. Some can make something out of nothing and others need a little bit of support to make something of themselves and still others need a lot of support.

Relating your experience back to basketball, the investment is players is based on the support your willing and capable of giving after the acquisition. Some decision makers don't want to invest more than a year before seeing a health return for that investment and others take a longer term approach.

[NYKAL]

Boris Diaw

True, very so but, in a VERY weird way. Put Diaw on a poor team and you will see one of the MOST unmotivated, out of shape and lazy players in the league. Put him on a good team and you will see one of the most focused, motivated guys around.

[ChokeFasncists]

Damp and Cato

Jeff Green getting it?

[sonictecture]

I think the hard part is finding something that motivates you. I feel like once you have a couple million dollars in the bank, it gets harder to work as hard because no matter what, you've made it in life. When I work out, I think of all the parties and dances there are out there and they'd be super fun with all the attractive girls a much-more-ripped version of me could pick up. I know it's stupid, but hey, whatever works

I think this is a very realistic way to view how basketball players might approach the NBA.

As an evaluator I think you're looking for the guy that would work out (play basketball) even if he wasn't going to get anything for doing it. The self satisfaction becomes the principle motivator and the money and girls etc are secondary benefits.

I believe that only about 5% of the players who enter the league through the draft understand the work ethic necessary to thrive in the NBA. Most of the players learn it when they get in. Then it's about which ones are going to be willing to outwork the others and use both their minds and bodies to find success in the realm.

[StocktonShorts]

Echoing what others have said, I don't know if the examples listed are players "getting it" or if they're just put in situations with stronger/better leadership.