Jedzz wrote:TheZachAttack wrote:I completely agree. There are reasons why the point guard position and assist numbers are highly correlated--largely due to the traditional role of a PG within an offense. However, the role of a PG--especially in today's game--can vary widely depending on offensive scheme, structure, and the skillsets of players on a team.
I would argue that in a Wolves system (which in its ideal state) seems to want to revolve around ball-movement, drive and kick action, and cutting... there should not be a single player that is averaging a high number of assists. In the Wolves ideal state there are 3 or 4 guys (Wiggins/Culver/Towns and hopefully in the future others as well) that average 3-5 assists per game.
Sorry. I can't buy this rationalization stuff any longer.
If the guy can't shoot well (Culver), and he's the starting Point, than he better be creating and assisting at a high level.
If all he can do is drive the net well, then by all means stand apost at a wing position. I like players that can finish at the rim. Just don't call him our point guard if that's all he can do at this level.
This system calls for shooters. If you can't shoot at a high enough level, then you need to be feeding shooters to be called a Point anything.
I think you are projecting a ton of things onto what rational people are saying about Culver. He has one trait, that being his ball-handling and decision making (and I am using that to describe an eye test type trait that I think we have all see ), that he has shown an ability above expectations that has led to him filling the PG role with the starters that requires a secondary skill set and actually a smaller role than the PG position off the bench.
Culver is playing the PG position right now because of that one trait. He’s in the role he currently is because with the starters he’s actually asked to do even less. However, it’s promising that for a player that isn’t a traditional PG he’s flashing some skills that lend to the idea that he can be the non-traditional 1 in a future Wolves lineup. This being interesting because of how it opens up a number of things especially on the defensive end at least in theory.
There is a laundry list of things Culver needs to do to improve as an NBA player from there: Free throw shooting, assertiveness, finishing at the rim, free throw shooting, etc, etc. Both things can be true you don’t have to trend towards one of the extremes to make a point.
I think the other Hope comes from the idea that Culver has flashed those other traits—albeit obviously not with any degree of consistency.
