The Four Stages of Randy Foye Grief
by Stop-n-Pop on Dec 27, 2009 9:57 AM CST
33 comments
I'm stealing this line from Feral:
It took [Wizards fans] about a month of actual play to go through all the stages of Foye grief. Randy can be an effective point guard…. Randy is like Billups, who also took some time….. We can go with two "lead guard" hybrid types…. Randy is probably best as juice off the bench.
Unfortunately for Wiz fans, the Mike Miller grief cycle gets stuck up in the anger phase. I think it has something to do with a refusal to shoot the ball and a once-a-game attempt to look as though he is performing some sort of world-saving service by grimacing his way through the pain.
Getting back to Foye for a second, he could have been something of a sympathetic character in Wolves lore were it not for idiotic statements like this:
"The media made a bigger deal out of the Foye-Roy thing. I felt as though they could have pushed for me harder. I was fighting against fans that were reading that and I was fighting against the media.
"I understand he was Rookie of the Year. I understand I got hurt my second year. But you look at how I progressed and you look at the past rookies there -- besides Kevin Love -- and how I was making progress, I felt I was right there."
When it came to talking about the deal, Foye has long walked a fine line between bravado and downright stupidity. He's clearly walking on the wrong side of that line these days.
Anywho, the Wolves have now won two in a row for the first time since last April when they did in the Clips and the Warriors on back-to-back nights. This time around they were able to triumph over the awful Nets and the what-in-the-hell-is-going-on-with-them Wizards.
Thanks to the fact that this wonderful little tilt was the national broadcast on NBA TV, and thanks to our local cable package not carrying Channel 45, yours truly was only able to catch the first quarter and a half and the last quarter and a half of action. Many thanks to the pirated stream and my favorite local watering hole for getting me through the one game of the year where League Pass falls flat on its face.
Without any attempt to bring it all together, here are my notes from last night's game:
- Don Zierden picked up a technical. He was probably swearing at being mad for not being able to coach the Lynx after they won the first pick in the draft, getting another top 5 selection with a trade from New York, grabbing the 2nd pick from Sacramento from the supplemental draft, and then getting stuck having to coach up someone like Gilbert Arenas. The rest of the game I was waiting for a Randy Wittman technical.
- Speaking of the Wizards' bench, someone needs to take the time to explain the concept of offensive rebounding to the Wiz. They rank 21st in the league in oReb% and there were many times during the evening where their forwards were doing absolutely nothing to get themselves in position to grab the rebound once the ball had hit the rim. This led to quite a few scrums under the basket that the Wolves often found themselves on the right side of.
- Despite ending up with a career-high in points with solid shooting and playing solid defense, Corey Brewer ended the night with no assists, 3 turnovers, and was the centerpiece of one of the ugliest possessions of the year. During the first quarter he attempted an ally-oop to Kevin Love which was batted away with the ball ending up in Brew's hands for a wide open three, which he clanged off the iron. The reason I mention this is because these sorts of possessions are getting to be rarer and rarer in the past 2 weeks and it is almost to the point where...well, I don't want to jinx anything. Corey is playing fantastic ball and that should stand by itself.
- Last night was the first time in quite a while where Jonny Flynn and Ramon Sessions essentially split the minutes at the point (24:40/23:20). It was also the first time in quite a while where Flynn opened up a big lead on Sessions in terms of +/- (+11/+1). While Flynn did not turn the ball over, he didn't exactly set the world on fire in terms of facilitation. For example, he can get to where he wants to go, but the problem is that where he wants to go is often not very helpful to the rest of the team. The most glaring example was in the first when he got in the middle of the lane for a dish to Damien Wilkins under the rim where he could do nothing with it. Flynn is fantastic in transition or when everyone is spread out and he can see clearly out to the wing. When things are clogged up in a 1/2 court man-to-man setting, not so much.
- Here's our nightly praise of Love: Early on he hit a three forcing his man to respect the distance on his shot. The next time he had a look from beyond the arc he made a pump fake, put the ball on the deck, and hit a wide open Al Jefferson for an open 18 footer while he drifted towards the rim for an offensive rebound attempt. During each and every single Wolves game there are at least 2-3 moments where I can watch a Kevin Love play and turn to my daughter and say "did you see how he did that?" How many other players on the Wolves can you do this with? It's not just fundamentals, it's smarts and hustle.
- Love kept his double/double streak alive with one of the weakest 10th rebounds you will ever see: he caught an airball.
Well, that about does it. My only other thoughts from the game were a never ending string of wonderment that Gilbert Arenas was able to garner himself a max deal. When a player of Arenas' quality can get that type of green, I think it says a lot about the financial state of the NBA.
Until later.
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See, this is where the whole "stats revolution" thing loses me
It was obvious to me last night that – other than at the free throw line – Ramon Sessions was much more valuable than Flynn to the win, especially in the 4th quarter. Sessions was diving after balls in the stands to save them, keeping balls alive by tipping rebounds to teammates (and grabbing at least 1 or 2 himself) and steadying the offense. Stats won’t show most of that, but I think other than Brewer and Love, he was the biggest reason the Wolves won last night.
by TimAllen on Dec 27, 2009 11:00 AM CST reply actions 0 recs
I agree...
…and I would say this about +/-: The bigger the sample size, the more useful it is. Sessions played fantastic last night (save for the missed free throws).
Forever splitting the Cheechakos from the Sourdoughs
www.canishoopus.com
by Stop-n-Pop on Dec 27, 2009 11:26 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs
He had some man rebounds last night. There were a few plays on both ends of the court where the ball went over 2 or 3 Wiz bigs and Sessions was right there in the lane, fully extended, to grab it. I was there with my bro who’s a huge Wolves fan who doesn’t get to watch them often because he lives in NYC, and by the end of the game all he had to say was that, like Love, Sessions “gets it.” He spies out rebounds, makes solid passes and is just a good, smart player. I’m glad we signed him.
When I get sad, I stop being sad and be awesome instead. True story.
by Xand1 on Dec 27, 2009 2:38 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
I liked the way Sessions initiated the offense...
… but he looked terrible on Arenas. I actually had a flashback and thought I was watching Foye defend Gilbert. But when I came to, I realized Foye was on the other side of the ball & it was Sessions who couldn’t stay in front of Arenas. On the flipside, Brewer frustrated Arenas whenever they were matched up. I think Rambis made the wrong choice when he kept Sessions on Arenas during the fourth quarter. I’d rather see Brewer spend that quarter on Arenas and Sessions on Foye/Nick Young/Earl Boykins. Rambis could’ve put Gomes or Wilkins on Butler, who’s having a bad year—he looks a little heavy and unmotivated.
This cuts to a larger issue with Rambis’ defensive assignments: I get irritated when Rambis refuses to put Brewer on the other team’s best offensive player and stick with it throughout long periods of games. Instead, he tends to put Flynn or Sessions on big, effective point or combo guards like Deron Williams, Chauncey Billups, or Arenas, and Gomes/Wilkins on stud SG/SF. These disadvantageous matchups put us at a disadvantage and contribute to our poor perimeter defense, which puts a lot of pressure on our defensive rotations and magnifies our problems with interior help defense (especially by Jefferson & Hollins. I’m not excusing Jefferson’s lapses, but his D wouldn’t look nearly as bad if our perimeter defenders, who take far less blame for the team’s bad defense, weren’t so far below average.)
So, what’s Kurt’s rationale? I get that size can, and sometimes should, dictate matchups. But Flynn and Sessions are routinely dominated by big PG and combo guards. Ditto Gomes/Wilkins at the 3. (Contra Britt’s opinion, I’d argue that Gomes is an extremely mediocre defender who really struggles against quicker opponents. Which, given Gomes’ plodding footspeed, tends to be the norm rather than the exception.)
Why not let Brewer force these guys to work their asses off all night? No one is a bigger pest defensively, and Brewer is versatile enough to defend (big) PG, SG, SF, and (lanky) PF. I’d rather take my chances with a Gomes/Wilkins (or, to a limited extent, Flynn/Sessions) size mismatch against an opponent’s third or fourth option than waste Brewer’s defensive skills on a less-threatening opponent just because it’s the default positional matchup. If anyone in the NBA has the motor to log long minutes defending a fairly wide range of top offensive players, it’s Brewer. His energy level is nothing less than unbelievable. (And yes, I remember the night Tony Parker dissected the Wolves D en route to a 55 point night, many of which were scored with Brewer on him. My take is that Parker’s big night was the result of horrible coaching and a hot hand, not bad D. Wittman stupidly had Brewer go under the the pick and roll almost the entire game despite mounting evidence that Parker was not going to miss the open jumper. Despite Wittman’s terrible in-game decision making, Brewer forced Parker to work incredibly hard for most of those shots, using his length to contest Parker’s jumper despite coming from beneath the screen. With Wittman’s stubborn refusal to change the defensive strategy and Parker’s hot jump shooting, TP could’ve scored those 55 with Michael Cooper on him. It’s hard to believe that Wolves almost won that game. Or any game that Wittman coached.)
Anyway, Brewer’s defensive ability, versatility, and motor make him a lot more valuable to the team than most people acknowledge, even on the nights when he’s missing his shots and making stupid turnovers here and there, but only if they’re being put toward a worthy cause.
So, c’mon, Kurt, let Brew be our defensive stopper! He’s up to the task.
by Shogun on Dec 27, 2009 8:12 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
Sessions was awful in the first half
But fantastic in the second half
by Oceanary on Dec 27, 2009 7:16 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
Thoughts from the Target Center
I feel tempted to go to games more often. Besides the great game, I won $50 and even got to meet Flip after the game. But onto the game:
- Love is the most important player on the team. He just makes everything easier for everyone and he is the best passer on the team hands down. Besides the great outlets, he had a great no look pass to Sessions, I think, for an easy bucket.
- What has gotten into Corey Brewer? He hit a bunch of clutch free throws and his D was fantastic as usual but it was so surprising b/c he simply dominated the 2nd half. He had some noticeable swagger and confidence and his shot actually looked pretty smooth. I actually found myself wanting him to shoot late in the game which is just bizarre. I obviously don’t expect this from him all the time but man… he finally looks like he’s starting to get it. (Well besides the turnovers which were ugggglllyyy)
- Sessions was everywhere last night. He was like a mini KLove on the glass. He also played really solid D on Gilbert, which might be the main reason he was in for so much of the 4th. When Foye and Gilbert were running a pick to switch Brewer off of Gil, Sessions held his own; Jonny did not.
- That dunk by Hollins was just ridiculous to see in person. If only he could do that every game.
- Solid game from Wayne last night…. his shot looks so smooth. And Wilkins just knows how to contribute every night. His shot wasn’t falling but he still made an impact.
- Big Al just didn’t have it last night. I don’t wanna throw too much judgment on him but he really did grind the offense to a halt sometimes. If he’s hitting his shots then it’s okay but when he’s off it just makes our offense look awful. One thing though, I really wish he would contest shots in the paint. I mean he gave Earl Boykins a free shot without even putting his hand up. I mean Earl Boykins for God’s sake! I think it happened at least 4 times last night where he could’ve altered a shot and he simply turned to try and get a rebound.
by jballer_13 on Dec 27, 2009 11:47 AM CST reply actions 0 recs
Appreciating Al Jefferson...
To his credit, last night Al J. made a few of the nicest passes I’ve ever seen him make. I realize that his “bar” was fairly low, but he executed numerous fundamentally sound, well timed, and crafty passes (most of which were fumbled by teammates or led to open field goal attempts that were not converted). In the arguments here, I’ve always been a bigger Al advocate than most commenters, not because I can’t see his flaws, but because I believe that having a true alpha-dog scorer is almost a prerequisite to having a great team (which is obviously where I want us to end up). That said, Al’s passing habits have always irked me, much moreso than his defensive deficiencies. (My take is that while he’s far from a great defender, he’s not as bad as many claim, and that the weaknesses that he does have on defense—making quick rotations on help-side defense—are exacerbated by our poor perimeter defense. Put him on the current Celtics team, and he’d look serviceable.) Anyway, Al is beginning to see cutters and make quick passes out of double teams. It’s very encouraging, and I think he deserves credit for improving on one of his weaknesses despite the frustration he must be feeling as he tries to recover from a bad injury.
The correlation between Al’s injury-related setback and his improved passing skills merits attention. It strikes me that Al could develop into a very solid passer expressly because of the knee injury; since he can no longer dominate as a scorer, he’s trying to make his mark and help the team as a passer. He was smart enough to perfect an impossibly sophisticated repertoire of unstoppable post moves as a very young player. I won’t be surprised if he’s smart enough to become a very proficient passer. He still has a way to go before he can be considered a good passer, and the will to do so has to remain, but he’s definitely smart enough and proud enough to do it.
If he does, the injury could end up being a blessing in disguise, but only if he fully recovers from the injury and regains his alpha dog scoring ability. We’ll have to keep our fingers crossed. But imagine what an unbelievable asset he’d be if he could routinely make the right pass out of the post while also possessing the ability to dig down and take over when the team needs big hoops in crunch time. This is a large part of what made Duncan and Shaq (Lakers version) such great players on winning teams.
by Shogun on Dec 27, 2009 9:04 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
I agree about the need for a true go-to scorer and Al is definitely capable of filling that role in my mind and I completely agree, his passing skills when he first came here aren’t even comparable to where they are now. He is still having some trouble with recognizing double teams but it should be something that can be improved with better wing play. My comments about his offensive game last night weren’t supposed to be overly negative. Like I said, if he was on and half of his baby hooks went it then he looks like the low-post stud he usually is.
I guess I can agree about him looking serviceable on D if he were on the Celtics, just look at Shelden Williams for example. I do however question his commitment on that end of the floor and probably always will. I just hope that he continues to work at it and that Laimbeer and Rambis can add a little toughness to his game.
by jballer_13 on Dec 27, 2009 11:12 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
Randy Foye is a first class guy
But it really was uncanny to see “Bullets Forever” going through exactly the same arguments Wolves fans had played out over the three seasons Foye spent here.
I’m still very much rooting for him to put it together. Thing is, what’s the “it” in that sentence? At this point I don’t even know what he should be aiming for, and that’s basically Flip Murray territory as a player of his type. It’s sad.
"It has come to the editor’s attention that the Herald-Leader neglected to cover the civil rights movement. We regret the omission."
by feral on Dec 27, 2009 11:59 AM CST reply actions 0 recs
I'm not quite sure what you're talking about, feral
And you’re on BF a lot, so I expect better. There may have been some posters peddling Foye’s merits (poor man’s Billups, etc), but there were just as many who weren’t. I never liked his inclusion in the trade and only tried to look on the bright side by suggesting that if he concentrated on being a role player, he’d be lethal. Problem is, his mindset’s all off.
I dunno, maybe you’re right, but I guess I object to the singular use of “Bullets Forever.”
You know you'll get devoured by Cheaney, Wallace, and Juwan Howard.
by Mike Prada on Dec 27, 2009 12:10 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
You're right,
There’s no singular opinion on the BF board, no more than any other. I should have at least said “some.” Guess I thought “arguments” implied the range of opinions on the subject….
The experience for a Wolves fan was basically a sort of fast-forwarded version of what we did here — complete with both sides of every argument, naturally. The way Chauncey Billups naturally came up was startling to me; we had more reason to refer to Billups here, seemingly, because he’d played for the Wolves right before his breakout. But there that name was again. Bizarre.
I have a similar reaction to how BF posters talked about Flip Saunders in the preseason, as opposed to today. Maybe it’s that Minnesota filter.
"It has come to the editor’s attention that the Herald-Leader neglected to cover the civil rights movement. We regret the omission."
by feral on Dec 28, 2009 8:23 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs
I was a good game
and a fairly decent crowd. I kind of liked having people in my row!
I spent a lot of time on the way home trying to get inside the head of Kahn/Rambis on the Flynn/Sessions rotation. There have not been many times when Sessions has been given significant burn with the 1st teamers ( any combination of Love/Brewer/Jefferson/Gomes/Wilkins) But when its happened, I see very good things. We can still run, but more importantly, we can play some half court. I wish I could find a stat for it, but 82 games does not list any Session/first team groups in their top ten units. So, it just seems to be a gut feeling.
So, I could only come up with 2 reasons. 1- because our 2nd unit is so low on talent, its possible that Kahn/Rambis want to get protect Flynn’s development from being negatively impacted by doing too much because of lack of supporting cast. 2- Sessions is destined to be traded so he does not need the 1st team minutes. Honestly, I hate both of these rationales. I hope someone else has better ideas. The developing young players first argument does not hold much water for me considering Sessions is only 24 and would be in his prime (27-30) when it was time to contend. So, what is it? Or do I just see Sessions through rose colored glasses?
Washington desperately needs a hard nosed defensive player. They have no one willing to get in someone’s face. Our rebounding advantage was great – no small part due to just a lack of effort on their part. With Love/Brewer/Gomes and last night Sessions, we have some players willing to get after it. I think it makes us closer to being a contender than them.
Brewer continues to improve that jump shot with a much stronger lower body base. The efforts are starting to pay off.
by Just A Fan on Dec 27, 2009 12:08 PM CST reply actions 0 recs
I've been looking...
….for the same thing with Sessions and the first teamers. I think he’d be doing much better out there if he were starting. I will never get why he isn’t starting. His rebounding and defense alone are probably worth him starting ahead of Flynn.
Forever splitting the Cheechakos from the Sourdoughs
www.canishoopus.com
by Stop-n-Pop on Dec 27, 2009 1:29 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
Forming a tangent from something JAF said
Maybe in a strange way it does make more sense for the team, even in the short-term, to be playing Jonny with the 1st-teamers and Ramon with the 2nd team.
Jonny is still learning how to play NBA basketball, and he’s likely better off learning with the more talented and smarter-playing starting squad to give him a lot of support in his decision making. Guys like Love and Gomes are gonna make the right plays and Putting Jonny out there with Sasha, Oleksiy, Hollins, and other no-BBIQ guys for most of his game time would be pretty ugly and would stunt his growth.
On the other hand, it probably pays off to have Ramon as a steadying influence for the reserve players. His decision making and experience is needed among that group more so than it is for the starters.
Put it this way: are you more comfortable with Jonny leading the 2nd group or Ramon? I really think it might heighten the effectiveness of both squads, if not keep them more balanced. I doubt the quality of play improving with Sessions starting would be enough to mitigate the dropoff we’d have with Jonny leading the 2nd team. Maybe I’m wrong and they’d fit better than expected. But it’s not bad strategy if that’s what they’re doing.
by nja700 on Dec 27, 2009 5:05 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
Isn't it possible
that since Kahn has been touting Flynn as this great young point guard, and many casual fans have grown attached to him in that sense, he has told Rambis to start him? Maybe Kahn thinks it would be bad from a fan perspective if the franchise’s future star is benched.
I don’t disagree with you by the way. I thought Sessions should have been starting from day one. But I’m just throwing that out as one theory.
by TimAllen on Dec 27, 2009 1:39 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
sometimes
i think that rambis is getting game film together to show Flynn what sessions does differently with the first team versus him. He will play Flynn until he starts doing a lot of poor things and then puts in sessions to calm things down. I firmly believe that the wolves are taking a longterm approach to making Flynn better faster and sacraficing wins to do it.
by TheEvilProfessor on Dec 27, 2009 1:52 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
My take is that maybe it's Flynn to be traded
I’m not saying that there is a definite plan to do so, but with Kahn’s business savvy, maybe the smart thing is to build up Flynn, develop him as much as possible, and then see how things go with Rubio.
If Ricky is gonna be a wolf, they will get more out of trading Flynn next year and keeping Sessions than vice versa. Or maybe not next year, maybe the year after.
It makes sense to showcase Flynn and teach him, as others point out. But does that mean Sessions is the best trade option in the future? I think the opposite is true.
And this is all the more true if we should get a crack at Mr. Wall. Sessions would be a great backup to Wall, and Flynn would be a great trade asset.
At this point, Flynn is probably as good a trade asset as Rubio, and this is a good thing. It gives Kahn a lot of options.
So I agree with all of the logic about developing Flynn, using Sessions as teaching material, and so forth. I’m not sure it means that Sessions is the best trade option. In fact, keeping him out of the spotlight is not so dumb either.
But then, I’m often wrong.
by timmuggs on Dec 27, 2009 2:27 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
Thinking the same thing
I have a strange feeling that Sessions will be here for his four years. If we do end up drafting Wall there is a good chance that both Flynn and Rubio could be gone. The obvious reason is that they could get a lot more in return but also I can’t ever see Flynn or Rubio sitting on the bench being number two. Sessions has already proven he is man enough to play with the second string. His ceiling isn’t as high but he is an excellent back up with a great attitude, and that is hard to find.
by Far East on Dec 28, 2009 8:18 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs
Two thoughts
Flynn is 20. While Sessions is also still young, that’s 3 years of extra production. Sessions should be ahead of him at this point, but that doesn’t mean Flynn won’t be a more productive player at Sessions’ age than Sessions is.
Second, maybe it’s me, but Flynn has more potential to grow his game offensively and is comparably productive to Sessions in the scoring department as it is now. Sessions played better than Flynn did last night, without question, but Flynn had a pretty good night on Wednesday in New Jersey.
by pagingstanleyroberts on Dec 27, 2009 7:00 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
Sessions will never be the scoring force Flynn is
He’s just not a great shooter, or even a good shooter. That’s definitely going to limit his ceiling.
I don’t think there’s much question that Flynn will eventually overtake Sessions.
by Oceanary on Dec 27, 2009 7:18 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
It was nice to see the triangle
versus Flip’s pure isolation offense. The Wolves moved the ball MUCH better than the Wizards. Looked last night like the triangle was actually working. Fun game.
Air Bud 4 MVP
by Tight to the Bite on Dec 27, 2009 3:46 PM CST reply actions 0 recs
I really thought...
..the Wiz had the right personnel to make Flip’s system work…especially Butler and Jameson.
Forever splitting the Cheechakos from the Sourdoughs
www.canishoopus.com
by Stop-n-Pop on Dec 27, 2009 4:54 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
It's not Washington's offense
which I thought looked pretty good. It was the horrible effort on defensive. 19 O rebounds? That is a lack of defensive effort.
I mean, really, the Twolves should struggle scoring 101 points when Jefferson is having an off night. Yet, it looked effortless at times. I will give the Twolves some props for better execution, but the real factor was Washington’s lack of interest in defense.
by Just A Fan on Dec 27, 2009 5:13 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
Not all of Washington's offense but...
Gilbert Arenas was a huge part, and his game is all him. 10-28 shooting with 7 TO’s is pretty horrendous. In the 4th he went 1-8 with a few awful fast breaks into double and triple teams. The rest of the Wizard’s guards and forwards are good shooters, but Gil is the centerpiece of their offense. He tries to put the entire offensive load on his shoulders and fails—he shot the game away.
I attribute part of the Wolves scoring 101 to a great night from Brewer, who teams can, and should, usually leave open for jump shots. The Wizard’s played Brewer according to scouting reports and left him wide open, this time he just knocked his shots down. The other keys to the win were the OREbs you mentioned and Gilbert’s terrible play.
Air Bud 4 MVP
by Tight to the Bite on Dec 27, 2009 10:05 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
they were standing around..
….and looking at the ball when the wolves put a shot up. it was really weird. nobody seemed to be going for position.
Forever splitting the Cheechakos from the Sourdoughs
www.canishoopus.com
by Stop-n-Pop on Dec 28, 2009 8:41 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs
I was thinking the same thing
They just fit the mold of what a “Flip Saunders team” has been known to be. Just being really basic about it, his offenses usually demand a lot of jump-shots; the Wizards seem to be loaded with talented shooters. Not a lot of slashers or post presences in the bunch. Similar to the Pistons or Wolves teams he coached. They also fit the stereotype of Saunders teams being soft, which looks to be true so far.
by nja700 on Dec 27, 2009 5:28 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
Right, Butler in particular.
And yet Caron has been much less effective this season.
"It has come to the editor’s attention that the Herald-Leader neglected to cover the civil rights movement. We regret the omission."
by feral on Dec 28, 2009 8:27 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs
The young guys were moving with a purpose
It was actually enjoyable to watch them start their offense in the triangle and use it correctly. Brewer and Ellington made great cuts to get free looks and I was really impressed by the decision making of Love and Jefferson in terms of passing to the right cutters.
Al really fits well as the weakside post. He got plenty of iso’s when they would rotate the ball away from the triangle. If he can get a few quick moves that take advantage of the ball movement then he could add 4-6 easy points a night. And of course, Love did a great job facilitating out of the high post. He just looks so comfortable operating in space as opposed to last year when Wittman would force him in the post.
Maybe it was the Wizards lazy D that led to a lot of good looks, but last night the offense actually looked good.
by jballer_13 on Dec 27, 2009 11:24 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
Brewer's 27
It reminded me of the way the late Malik Sealy would get 27 in those rare occasions: by taking shots he knew he could make in the right situations. Most of his shots were jump shots, there weren’t a lot of kamikaze drives to the rim, and he shot when open. It also helped that he wasn’t required to put up many shots with the shot clock winding down, which happens far too often.
by pagingstanleyroberts on Dec 27, 2009 7:03 PM CST reply actions 0 recs
Brewer and Sealy...
…compare very closely on almost all accounts. Only major difference I see is Malik was more solid with his strength, Corey is a lot more athletic.
by Oceanary on Dec 27, 2009 7:20 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
Hmm. Comparing the two of them....
Here are the first three seasons of both players, compared.
Notable differences offhand:
Sealy’s PER and shooting percentages, and surprisingly (at least to me) his “Usage,” are significantly higher. (I guess Corey’s newfound willingness to take “good shots” when he’s left uncovered is still in the small data pool of this early season; Malik’s numbers are based on 3 full years.) Given that they played in very different eras, Malik still produced much better offensively during 93-95 when defensive play was much tighter.
Malik Sealy (Requiescat in Pace) was never regarded as a great, great prospect. I’d probably take him over Corey Brewer, if that was the hypothetical choice.
"It has come to the editor’s attention that the Herald-Leader neglected to cover the civil rights movement. We regret the omission."
by feral on Dec 28, 2009 8:36 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs
Brewer was definitly playing better. He’s not really consistant yet but he’s bad moments are definitly getting fewer and fewer in number.
Jefferson still not looking like the old big al.
Love is by far the best player on our team.
Loved the game, nice solid basketball and some excitement in the 4th.
Official Kahn/Rambis band-wagon rider since 2009
by Wim (Belgium) on Dec 28, 2009 5:23 PM CST reply actions 0 recs
it was definitely fun to watch
Forever splitting the Cheechakos from the Sourdoughs
www.canishoopus.com
by Stop-n-Pop on Dec 28, 2009 6:35 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
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