SwipeDaFox wrote:I still don't think Deni has a good enough handle or big and vast enough shots repertoire to take on himself to create shots for himself on a consistent basis with good efficiency (Posting up or driving right after moving off the ball after a curl would be his best offensive move in the half court) - I actually think the way he's brought up is good, playing off of the main guys at first and using his IQ to find his own niche and see what he can do in the flow of the game.
Still don't think he's a guy you put the ball in his hands and let him operate - that will come with time. He can take more occasional pick and roll situations though cause he really excels passing out of it - but creating for himself in the PNR is still a struggle for him I think and will lead to some forced shots.
His defense has definitely been the key area in his game so far and what earned him the most credit and playing time, besides his high IQ and simple game offensively with flashes every now and then - the kid really has an amazing knack for team basketball, is extremely aware, always has a hand in the shooters face and is always alert when to help, where to move, what to show defensively to prevent penetration and close the paint and then on the alert when to return to his player which is extremely hard.
The place he's surprised me the most though, is when he's put on an island or gets switched off to smaller guys - he really uses his size and length well - and arguably has the best feel for vertically raising his hands up without fouling for a rookie in all my years watching the game. Cause he's a rookie he gets called BS fouls, but he just really really plays solid D and showed the ability to switch basically 1-5 and get stops which is ridicules cause even I questioned his footspeed - but his positioning is so on point and his knowledge of how to use his body is so good that he just gets it done.
Really, really impressed with him defensively on the perimeter which was my biggest question mark for him early on.
Well. Number of times he had chance to run p&r is very very small... More or less every time he did it - the result was successful
Now the one case he took the pull up jumper he missed - but it was ok shot (he wouldn't probably do it if it wasn't the situation when there was very little time to try to close gap in last game minutes), he didn't miss badly and this one miss doesn't mean much