Shoe wrote:Deni wearing #44. Usually reserved for bigs but the few playmakers who did wear it for their career is good company - Jerry West, Paul Westphal, Pete Maravich
Would have been sweet if he wore paul pierce's number!!!
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Shoe wrote:Deni wearing #44. Usually reserved for bigs but the few playmakers who did wear it for their career is good company - Jerry West, Paul Westphal, Pete Maravich
doclinkin wrote:Ed Wood wrote:Extremely fond of you Doc but your list of good defensive players includes one player I'm comfortable crediting with good NBA defense. Multiple are like notably not good defenders specifically in ways that are more problematic at the NBA level.
My point was not in selecting one, but in trading back you get a chance to select a few.
But it is a metagame thing for me. I have been of the mind that the small ball era was due to change. We saw some of that in the bubble championship. And in the continued short fall of Moreyball. My belief has been that in an era of 3fg chucking, the value of defensive rebounding increases. 3pt shots are a lower percentage shot with a high variance. Meaning there are more missed shots, more attempts. They are streaky. This means are more missed possessions and more missed shots available. Consider that there are loose possessions on more than 60% of 3 pt shots on all 3fg attempts). To my way of thinking, the team that loads up on players who rebound at all positions (considering there are long bounces) and who scores well on the interior (at a %50 or greater clip) can control the number of possessions and squeeze out the streakier long ball teams. Not every team is the Warriors. Most are just hucking and hoping for a streak to stay in the game. Teams that rebound then score efficiently from 2pt land can control the number of possessions and the 3fg bombers do not have enough opportunity to catch fire.
I've been banging that monkey for 5 years now. Then we saw the Spurs with Kawhi begin to play that way, then the Bucks under coach Bud started winning every regular season by dominating the rebounding game. Then the Raptors with Kawhi won that way.
So. My point was simply you can win if you rebound, and score on the inside. Even with cheap high energy bigs who bang underneath. Yes you want them to have range to the free throw line, sure, but if opponent bigs can be enticed to huck from trebuchet range outside, you live with it happily and hoover up every bounce they miss. Stay big, play big.
Now personally if I could get Saddiq Bey, plus [2nd round draft pick] and Xavier Tillman, I'd be happy. If I had Bey and Isaiah Washington and [2nd round pick], I'd be happy. I might gamble on Precious next to a reliable energy big, if I felt I had a coaching staff that could focus him (since I was impressed with his ability to learn on the fly to play and defend all court on effort and talent alone when Wiseman tapped out). I might be wrong, but there is at least a strategy on that side of the ball. Show me a coherent defensive strategy in whatever picks we have made in the Tommy era. I know we have an offensive strategy. That side of the ball we do well with, year after year, even when we otherwise suck. But defense? We never select for rebounding.
(I do credit Tommy for draft decisions we made under the Ernie era. He was the director of scouting. His focus was on international scouting. You can see his fingerprint in many of the draft selections we have made).
I like the guys we have. I do. I like the potential of a guy like Bonga. I like the mindset of a guy like Troy. I've got question makes on Rui but he seems like a good hearted hard working guy. I like Deni. I do. He's going to be fun to cheer for. But for all the character we have, as of right now, we suck at defense. They are a bunch of try hard guys who are overmatched. I don't see any effort to help them in the efforts of our front office. I like Tommy, but he stated his priority was to improve our defense. In the draft in particular. He said we need to get bigger and add energy and rebounding etc. Now. Show me how he did that.
Meliorus wrote:I can't really see how Avdija accomplished anywhere as much as Hedo in the EuroLeague, which is why I see Hezonja as a better situation comparison.
Ed Wood wrote:Meliorus wrote:I can't really see how Avdija accomplished anywhere as much as Hedo in the EuroLeague, which is why I see Hezonja as a better situation comparison.
Avdija has a little more to recommend him statistically than Hezonja would have had he been coming into the league at the same age (Hezonja was drafted roughly a year later than Deni relative to his age - having played a season with Barcelona at 19-20 whereas Deni just played a season at 18-19). Hezonja played his 18-19 season essentially in similar circumstances to Deni - both in a domestic league (the ACB) and the Euroleague playing for one of the stronger teams in Europe (Maccabi was 19-9 in the Euroleague this past year, Barcelona was 23-6 in Euroleague play in 2013-14). Hezonja was significantly less important to Barcelona than was Deni to Maccabi at the same age:
Hezonja played 85 minutes in total for Barca that year, whereas Deni played 371 for Maccabi. Neither player was a per-minute monster in limited time, but Deni played fully 400% of the minutes, which almost in itself is fairly significant point in his favor (that he played actual rotation minutes for a very good Euroleague team rather than essentially spot minutes). The numbers are mostly in his favor as well - Hezonja was the better perimeter shooter in Europe in aggregate and a better foul shooter (he has also been a consistently very good foul shooter in the NBA if nothing else). Deni was, however, a meaningfully better rebounder, and interior scorer. He also managed a positive assist-to-turnover ratio, and recorded some number of blocks and steals - somehow Hezonja apparently managed none of either (!?) in those 85 minutes. For what it's worth (almost nothing from a number crunching standpoint) Deni also played more (granted because 51 total minutes is more than 19) and significantly better than Hezonja in their respective age 17-18 seasons.
Hezonja did play better in Barca's domestic league games than in the Euroleague (and the ACB is certainly a more esteemed league than is the Israeli league). That said, he was far from a centerpiece player for Barca in domestic play - here's his 18-19 season:
That's at least reasonably less impressive than Avdija's stint in the Israeli league this past year. Setting aside that Avdija was the league MVP (he probably should not have been, from a very quick sweep of league stats) he was at least one of the better players in the league across a number of metrics. He was towards the top of the league in both TS and EFG% (Amare produced the league best in both). Similarly his PER and ORtg were fine - strong for the league - but not really in MVP territory. His DRtg, however, was in the neighborhood of league best, and as a result his net impact was pretty distinctly positive. He was probably a league all-star, and at least arguably the best player on the league's best team.
Neither player clearly showed they were going to be a good NBA player from the word go based on their Euroleague track record (which squares with the common sentiment that Hezonja has underperformed his talent and hasn't improved more-so than that he isn't capable of being a reasonable NBA player). It certainly looks to me that Deni has been significantly better at the same ages.
e: It's interesting that it looks like Deni's case for the Israeli MVP this past year is kind of tied up in his plausibly having been the league DPOY, or otherwise probably first team all defense. I understand that he isn't as sure a bet to be a very good defensive player in the NBA as a few of the other members of the class (notably Okoro and Vassell) but he was legitimately very good relative to his competition. The guy this is conjuring up for me is a young Ron Artest, when he was kind of an emerging offensive player but already a formidable defender.
NatP4 wrote:He’s actually going to wear #9 now.
Ed Wood wrote:Meliorus wrote:I can't really see how Avdija accomplished anywhere as much as Hedo in the EuroLeague, which is why I see Hezonja as a better situation comparison.
Avdija has a little more to recommend him statistically than Hezonja would have had he been coming into the league at the same age (Hezonja was drafted roughly a year later than Deni relative to his age - having played a season with Barcelona at 19-20 whereas Deni just played a season at 18-19). Hezonja played his 18-19 season essentially in similar circumstances to Deni - both in a domestic league (the ACB) and the Euroleague playing for one of the stronger teams in Europe (Maccabi was 19-9 in the Euroleague this past year, Barcelona was 23-6 in Euroleague play in 2013-14). Hezonja was significantly less important to Barcelona than was Deni to Maccabi at the same age:
Hezonja played 85 minutes in total for Barca that year, whereas Deni played 371 for Maccabi. Neither player was a per-minute monster in limited time, but Deni played fully 400% of the minutes, which almost in itself is fairly significant point in his favor (that he played actual rotation minutes for a very good Euroleague team rather than essentially spot minutes). The numbers are mostly in his favor as well - Hezonja was the better perimeter shooter in Europe in aggregate and a better foul shooter (he has also been a consistently very good foul shooter in the NBA if nothing else). Deni was, however, a meaningfully better rebounder, and interior scorer. He also managed a positive assist-to-turnover ratio, and recorded some number of blocks and steals - somehow Hezonja apparently managed none of either (!?) in those 85 minutes. For what it's worth (almost nothing from a number crunching standpoint) Deni also played more (granted because 51 total minutes is more than 19) and significantly better than Hezonja in their respective age 17-18 seasons.
Hezonja did play better in Barca's domestic league games than in the Euroleague (and the ACB is certainly a more esteemed league than is the Israeli league). That said, he was far from a centerpiece player for Barca in domestic play - here's his 18-19 season:
That's at least reasonably less impressive than Avdija's stint in the Israeli league this past year. Setting aside that Avdija was the league MVP (he probably should not have been, from a very quick sweep of league stats) he was at least one of the better players in the league across a number of metrics. He was towards the top of the league in both TS and EFG% (Amare produced the league best in both). Similarly his PER and ORtg were fine - strong for the league - but not really in MVP territory. His DRtg, however, was in the neighborhood of league best, and as a result his net impact was pretty distinctly positive. He was probably a league all-star, and at least arguably the best player on the league's best team.
Neither player clearly showed they were going to be a good NBA player from the word go based on their Euroleague track record (which squares with the common sentiment that Hezonja has underperformed his talent and hasn't improved more-so than that he isn't capable of being a reasonable NBA player). It certainly looks to me that Deni has been significantly better at the same ages.
e: It's interesting that it looks like Deni's case for the Israeli MVP this past year is kind of tied up in his plausibly having been the league DPOY, or otherwise probably first team all defense. I understand that he isn't as sure a bet to be a very good defensive player in the NBA as a few of the other members of the class (notably Okoro and Vassell) but he was legitimately very good relative to his competition. The guy this is conjuring up for me is a young Ron Artest, when he was kind of an emerging offensive player but already a formidable defender.
WizarDynasty wrote:NatP4 wrote:He’s actually going to wear #9 now.
I hope he stays away from 9, 9 is a soft number. 44 or 34 would have been better.
Thedragonking wrote:WizarDynasty wrote:NatP4 wrote:He’s actually going to wear #9 now.
I hope he stays away from 9, 9 is a soft number. 44 or 34 would have been better.
Not so sure about that.
That's a nicer number imo.
Btw, Iguodala, tony parker, serge ibaka and rondo aren't soft players, and they all had number 9.
Meliorus wrote:...I just don't think we can measure work ethic, and it's just too broad, so I would rather focus on measurable percentiles....
Meliorus wrote:...I believe there are a lot of players who fit this prerequisite of high character and work ethic.
http://www.tankathon.com/players/deni-avdija
http://www.tankathon.com/players/tyrese-haliburton
http://www.tankathon.com/players/jalen-smith
http://www.tankathon.com/players/devin-vassell
...(these) guys ...grade out the best in both box score and advanced stats.... This is measurable. ...
Meliorus wrote:...I think my last biggest question of Deni is his lateral quickness....
Meliorus wrote:...I did read this from a guy who has claimed to watch Deni this entire year...
Meliorus wrote:..."Athleticism/body; decent athleticism/hops, not great. Very good end to end speed for a guy his size. His main issue IMO is his lateral speed. Sufficient for Europe, but will he be able to keep up in the NBA? I don’t know."...
Meliorus wrote:...I don't know either, I don't see the quick-twitch/lateral quickness that good defenders have. I'm not sure he won't struggle on that end....
WizarDynasty wrote:... AVdija is like Paul Pierce. Advija has a filthy hip bend and that allows him to control his momentum like an elite point guard....I was glad to be harsh on him, but the more i study him, and his personality, the more impressed I am. He doesn't have european game, his game again...is a Paul Pierce game. ... Avdija is hardcore in the post like Paul Pierce. Everything about him to me screams paul pierce. He can change his momentum and handles like a F1 race car going around curves. I keep mentioning it he has hip bend like Paul Pierce. I have a problem with his lower arch but his hip bend and speed is elite.
Advija has elite hip bend while dribbling. He probably has one of the sickest handles already at 19 over almost any forward in the NBA right now. I want to see him get with some specialist to work on his lower back arch but what he has --with his hip bend while dribbling can't be taught. He must have practiced this all his life since he was kid to have that amount of coordination with his body. Definitely you can see he was son of a pro player.
payitforward wrote:WizarDynasty wrote:... AVdija is like Paul Pierce. Advija has a filthy hip bend and that allows him to control his momentum like an elite point guard....I was glad to be harsh on him, but the more i study him, and his personality, the more impressed I am. He doesn't have european game, his game again...is a Paul Pierce game. ... Avdija is hardcore in the post like Paul Pierce. Everything about him to me screams paul pierce. He can change his momentum and handles like a F1 race car going around curves. I keep mentioning it he has hip bend like Paul Pierce. I have a problem with his lower arch but his hip bend and speed is elite.
Advija has elite hip bend while dribbling. He probably has one of the sickest handles already at 19 over almost any forward in the NBA right now. I want to see him get with some specialist to work on his lower back arch but what he has --with his hip bend while dribbling can't be taught. He must have practiced this all his life since he was kid to have that amount of coordination with his body. Definitely you can see he was son of a pro player.
All right, WizD!!!
WizarDynasty wrote:NatP4 wrote:He’s actually going to wear #9 now.
I hope he stays away from 9, 9 is a soft number. 44 or 34 would have been better.
Dat2U wrote:WizarDynasty wrote:NatP4 wrote:He’s actually going to wear #9 now.
I hope he stays away from 9, 9 is a soft number. 44 or 34 would have been better.
I know something little about numbers, 9 isn't soft, it represents adaptability or completion in some instances. For Avdija its a fine number.
If any number is "soft", its number "2", John Wall's number lol. The number is feminine/peacemaker energy.
The only real numbers to avoid on a jersey is "7" or any number that adds to 7 such as 34 (3+4=7). The "lucky number 7" is actually pretty unlucky with a higher risk of injury.
Best numbers to wear would be numbers equaling to 5 or 6 . Why? NBA founded on June 6, 1946 (6 + 6 + 1 + 9 + 4 + 6 = 32 = 3 + 2 = 5). A 5 life path day with 6 energy. 11, 22, 33, 44 etc are great as well. The number 13 has special significance too.
Dat2U wrote:The only real numbers to avoid on a jersey is "7" or any number that adds to 7 such as 34 (3+4=7). The "lucky number 7" is actually pretty unlucky with a higher risk of injury.
queridiculo wrote:This is such a nothing pick, I guess it's obvious now that Sheppard has had his hand in one of the wort draft decisions of the Leonsis era.
A tweener forward that lacks NBA athleticism and can't shoot.
I have no idea what anybody sees in this guy. Decent at a lot of things, but not excelling at anything that contributes to winning basketball.
Defense, nope.
Rebouding, naw.
Shooting, who cares.
He looks good running the floor though and dishing passes.
If you ever wondered what a Satoranski, Vesely (minus the vertical) hybrid looked like, there's your guy.
Shoot me, what a waste.