Bobcats Lose Handle, Fall To Cavs 102-94
by Ben Swanson on Jan 16, 2012 4:42 PM EST
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PrintDespite leading by 11 at the half, the Bobcats stumbled into an inefficient offense in the second half as the Cavaliers recovered the lead and held off a Charlotte run late.
On offense, the Bobcats were stunningly good in the first half, save for Kemba Walker and Tyrus Thomas. Walker had difficulty all night with questionable shot selection, too often settling for the long two. Thomas couldn't find his shot and was not an effective defender on Antawn Jamison, who had nine points in the first quarter on five shots. He was good on help defense, however, in rejecting a couple shots from Anderson Varejao. But other than that, the Bobcats were finding their scoring spots well and distributing the ball.
And then the Cavs adjusted and the Bobcats did not. Charlotte became much more stagnant on offense. Cleveland was sloppy, turning the ball over 16 times over the course of the game, yet the Bobcats could not take advantage in the second half. However, the Cavs sure did, scoring 18 points against the Bobcats' poor transition defense off of 12 turnovers.
With strong play from rookie Kyrie Irving, the Cavs regained the lead, but couldn't put away the Bobcats without one final surge led by D.J. White. The Bobcats took the lead once more with a little more than two minutes remaining in the final stanza. But their defensive weakness in the paint and offensive quiescence would prove to end their game. Kyrie Irving sliced to the bucket and Anderson Varejao rebounded and fought for points inside to take the game back from the Bobcats as they put together simply awful possessions, one after another.
Though Kemba had an extremely bad shooting night (14 points on 21 shots, yuck), there were some good things from his performance. He showed some good awareness, finding teammates on the pick and roll and making some nice passes. On defense, he had quick hands, snatching four steals and even a pair of blocks.
On the flip side, D.J. Augustin had a much better night, getting wherever he wanted on the court much of the time, penetrating Cleveland's interior defense at will. His play kept the Cavs from getting too comfortable at any location of the floor, also hitting a couple treys for good measure and dishing out 8 dimes. Gerald Henderson quietly had a good night, scoring efficiently and looking to get into the lane more. He drew more fouls than usual, but unfortunately couldn't take advantage, hitting only five of his nine free throw attempts. Still, 17 points on 11 shots is pretty good.
Moving on, Byron Mullens is starting to try to do too much on offense. He's an excellent shooter in rhythm off a pass, but he often looked to create his own shot against the Cavs -- a bad idea against the stout Anderson Varejao. I saw Mullens attempt to drive baseline a few times. Not once did it work. He's a poor dribbler and turned the rock over a couple times too.
The bench deserves a fair amount of praise, with D.J. White leading the way, doing it the only way he knows how: efficiency. He scored 15 points on nine shots and snagged five rebounds, showcasing his jumper and some nice post moves. Derrick Brown looked good, missing zero shots, save for those that came at the charity stripe (boo). But he did rebound pretty well and attack the hoop.
Bismack Biyombo recorded a DNP-CD. I just don't get one iota of this. At this point in his NBA career, playing time can be like water for Biyombo. Maybe you don't think Biyombo will amount to jack squat. That's fine. But to deny him the opportunity to play at all and learn on the court is confounding.
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Trade Tyrus for anything
I dont care if its a 2nd round pick…i do not wanna see him play anymore! strait garbage!
Trade
Trade DJ, Diop, Diaw, and Maggette. We need a young SF and a bigger backup for the PG heir, Kemba.
I guess Cho said
“I made a mistake. Lets count our losses and move on”…
That's exactly what happened
He saw everything you’ve said on here, and thought, “Man, that guy knows what he’s talking about. Shut it down.”
These Two Point Guards Stink !!
These two point guards stink. They both are the same player, looking to get there shots. They both pass out of necessity as they over penetrate. Any two small guys in the NBA can do what they do. Both do not know how to lead a team. Both over dribble to look for shots. No defense. Dribble, Dribble, Dribble, Dribble, Dribble, Dribble, Dribble, Dribble, Dribble, Dribble, Dribble, Dribble, Dribble, Dribble, Dribble, Dribble, THEY STINK !!!
This makes a total of 10 comments and already there have been 3 insults
I love this game place. Where Amazing Anger happens.
Smh
All of these comments are really entertaining to read too
6 feet of Smooth
by Bring Back Primoz on Jan 16, 2012 7:09 PM EST up reply actions 2 recs
I just dont understand why it centers around me
I just defende our players from people that are unfair to them or just being silly and somehow I get attacked for it? I dont see why people attack the optimist.
I know most people would be happier if I just posted a snarky gif, but...
TS Bobcat, you’re being “attacked” because the above people don’t approve of your conversation. Essentially, they are insulting you because they don’t value your contributions to the site. The ridicule is often veiled in passive aggressive sarcasm with a health dose of “lols” to make sure no one gets offended. I find it to be an obnoxious practice, but it’s pretty well accepted here so I should probably stop harping on it.
To be fair, you cast the first stone in this case. You decided to come on this site and talk trash (kind of ironic considering what you’ve said in the past). However, that’s your business and I don’t choose to demean you for it. Others chose to hurl stone back your way because, well, they don’t respect what you have to say.
by Basketball Rambler on Jan 16, 2012 9:39 PM EST up reply actions
Have I ever even talked to you on this site?
Just for the record I only talk trash to MP so I dont know why you act like I talk crap to everyone. Why are you saying they dont respect what I have to say, do you know what they are thinking? No, I honestly think this is just your own personal opinion of me and I really dont care because I see you get on here every once in awhile and call people who post gifs trolls and start a whole bunch of crap.
For the record I think he was talking about me and BBP getting snarky.
Not about you dissing LBHater (epic name btw).
What they said in response to you is pretty clear
I honestly thought you might start to see my point of view when the ridicule hit so close to home. Guess I was wrong. If I’m the one starting crap, why are you the one calling people dumb? I’m saying you’re not dumb and there’s no reason for any of us to insult each other. That’s it.
It’s all love and respect as far as I’m concerned.
by Basketball Rambler on Jan 16, 2012 9:54 PM EST up reply actions
Let me layout the people I have called dumb recently
LBHate because he gets on here every few months and says crazy things like that or insults focus. I call MP dumb because he gets on here and spreads negativety that makes no sense. And I did call focus dumb for his brash opinions on BB which I will apoligize to focus for because I actually respect him, I think his opinion on BB is dumb but not him as a person. Look I dont want to talk about this anymore because I know this is getting annoying for everyone and I just want to freaking talk about basketball but I will defend myself when I am called out. Can we please leave it at that because I know im not doing anything wrong and anyone that thinks I am can kiss my ass because I really dont care anymore
I don't want to harp on it either
But as long as you continue to see fit to ridicule the conversation, I see fit to criticize your need to ridicule.
Love and respect, brother. Love and respect
by Basketball Rambler on Jan 16, 2012 9:57 PM EST up reply actions
I'm baking come chocolate chip oatmeal cookies right now, and I would offer you one...
but they’re all in the shape of various internet memes, which probably makes them unappetizing to you.
You're correct, that does make them unappetizing to me
Just send over some oreos instead.
by Basketball Rambler on Jan 16, 2012 10:14 PM EST up reply actions
I'm not attacking anyone
I just come to RoF to talk about the Bobcats and there have far too many personal pissing matches and far too few intelligent conversations about basketball.
I’ve never had a beef with anyone, certainly not TS. I just wish these types of comments would vanish into the blue …… and take Diaw with them!
6 feet of Smooth
by Bring Back Primoz on Jan 16, 2012 10:53 PM EST up reply actions
Take it easy
You're nothing but a gif posting troll!
6 feet of Smooth
by Bring Back Primoz on Jan 16, 2012 11:03 PM EST up reply actions
CHO? Are you reading this?
Trade Aisander for a 2nd round pick, asap!
by Tim Rudisill on Jan 17, 2012 12:26 AM EST up reply actions 1 recs
I never thought I'd see someone mention Brandon Costner ever again.
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by Panthers FTW on Jan 17, 2012 1:56 AM EST up reply actions
It's clear from your comments that you didn't respect what the guy had to say
There’s no reason to back off from that. You’re certainly entitled to not respect negative personal attacks. I don’t particularly like these kinds of comments either as they’re generally off topic and nonconstructive. We agree on this point.
The issue I have; the snarky comments ridiculing the conversation are just as negative and just as useless. “Smh” and sarcastic gifs, or comparing us on this site to babies, all of this is condescending and insulting, and it had nothing to do with our being fans of the Bobcats. It doesn’t necessarily make you a bad person to be condescending and insulting in this way. I recognize that BBP and Aisander are both good guys. It’s just a pet peeve of mine, and I don’t mind sharing my opinion about it.
by Basketball Rambler on Jan 16, 2012 11:13 PM EST up reply actions
Why must everyone make things so personal? This is sports and everyone has their own opinion. Some of y’all act like them saying something means it’s going to happen. And if you feel like someone’s being a troll, THEN DON’T READ IT AND DON’T RESPOND TO IT. If you feel personally provoked, IGNORE IT. It’s that easy. I’m freaking tired of this crap. I don’t want to resort to taking action, but I will.
Lemonade was a popular drink and it still is,
I get more props and stunts than Bruce Willis
- Guru, of Gangstarr
by Ben Swanson on Jan 17, 2012 12:02 AM EST up reply actions
I've stated several times that I don't take anything too seriously
I don’t know how I can be more clear about that. A critique is a critique. No one has to read it or respond to it if they don’t wish to do so.
Threats of censorship may be welcomed by people who disagree with my opinions, but they won’t encourage open discussion on this site. I don’t think censorship is an especially useful or constructive act unless we’re talking about thoughtless negativity. It’s your site, however, and you’re always free to do as you wish.
I can see that the behaviors in question are not open to discussion here, so I’ll leave it alone. We can condescend to and insult others for wanting to engage in conversation, we just can’t question each other for the need to ridicule. I see the rules now, and I’ll respect them.
by Basketball Rambler on Jan 17, 2012 5:41 AM EST up reply actions
I think reading Ben's comment as....
“a threat of censorship” might be taking it a little too seriously.
I think Ben was just trying to get us away from consistently attacking each other in a variety of ways.
My way is to be a little too sarcastic and snarky towards people who are engaged in serious and heated discussion.
Your way is to call people out on not giving others’ conversations enough respect and to be, at times, caustic in that confrontation.
I think we can both agree to tone it down a bit. I’ll stick to posting semi-sexy Asian girl gifs. And you can continue to participate in focused discussions about the Bobcats and basketball in general.
im not
I used to think he got banned and he came back as you. Seriously. Me and that guy used to go at it…BAD
Cause Kemba's 4 steals and 2 blocks illustrate how bad a defender he is
And Augustin’s 8 assist performance is not up to snuff for a starting PG.
Both of them are fine.
I agree with you 100%
Matt Joyce > Gabe (Insert last name here)
by raysfan1181 on Jan 16, 2012 11:51 PM EST up reply actions
Did anyone actually expect anything different this year??
With out roster and the injuries to Reggie Williams and Mags, did anyone think we were going to win a bunch of games?
This is the plan, suck this year and finally get a elite level player next year in a super stacked draft. I just hope Cho can find a way to get us another 1st, even if its a late teen or early 20s, we need to keep getting younger and adding talent.
I fee kinda greedy since my wish of Diaw getting benched was granted, but here goes:
Can we go ahead and start White in place of Thomas? He ended up getting twice as many minutes as TT anyway, so who are we trying to fool here? D-dub is so much more efficient with his playing time, it’s ridiculous.
I love Mullens’ confidence in his range. I don’t care what anyone says, Mulley, keep firing away at those 3s. Helluva night on boards, too.
If the majority of the posters here are correct, and the Augustin trade is inevitable, I might as well enjoy him while he’s here. Solid night for DJ, once again on the verge of a double-double, and only 2 turnovers. He’s easily one of my favorite (current) players on the team, along with Mullens, White & Hendo.
Between 12 minutes for Diaw and 16 for Thomas, I was really disappointed that Silas couldn’t find even a few seconds for Biyombo. Maybe we’ll see him tomorrow against Howard.
I’m discouraged that we lost (tanking be damned!), but I was encouraged that we just didn’t shrivel away in the 4th quarter after we lost the lead. Free throws absolutely killed us tonight; if not for clanging away at the charity stripe, we may have pulled off a close victory.
Let’s do it again tomorrow! (except for the losing part)
"People are gonna respect the Panthers, and I want what I do as a quarterback to be scary. I want people to be in fear. I want it, and I’m gonna get it."
- Carolina Panthers Franchise Quarterback
I *feel* kinda greedy...
"People are gonna respect the Panthers, and I want what I do as a quarterback to be scary. I want people to be in fear. I want it, and I’m gonna get it."
- Carolina Panthers Franchise Quarterback
The one game Tyrus played decent he gets benched
DJ is a more polished offensive player for sure, but Tyrus makes things happen playing the 4, he was benched because offensively the guys dont trust him and looked at him as a liability. My thing is this, when he was out of position at the SF, he got the rock at the 3 point line where he tried to create, BIG MISTAKE! Now in the paint and in his range they didn’t have the faith in him to touch the ball. What Tyrus needs, is coaching, the fact that he came to camp so skinny tells me Silas and company haven’t been properly advising him. He may need a stint in the D league to be honest. If Tyrus can put 20-30 pounds of muscle on, and if he can learn a few moves from the post, this guy can be a real player, he just needs the coaching though.
Well the coaches couldn't advise him until camp until the lockout
He’s 25 years old and this is his 6th season in the NBA. I wouldn’t hold out too much hope in him putting on weight. It’s been a necessity his whole career and it still hasn’t happened yet. I don’t know if we can expect a whole lot of improvement from where he is now.
I hope he proves me wrong, because he’s likely a Bobcat for a while. He has the ability to be a great player. He just needs to be coached up and beefed up a lot.
I disagree about TT-White.
White has earned the starting job over TT so far, but we need to keep letting Thomas play. If we’re going to get anything out of that contract we’ve given him (in terms of actual production or assets in the future) we have to keep letting him play and see if he can give out of this funk of his.
And not to mention that making White a starter right as we’re negotiating an extension with White.
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by Panthers FTW on Jan 16, 2012 9:22 PM EST up reply actions
Not to put words in your mouth, but it sounds like you *do* agree.
You’re saying the only reasons we should let Thomas start over White is to try and justify that inflated contract of his, and to also not maximize D-Dub’s value before we lock him down long term…but if not for those obstacles, White should be the starter, yes?
(on a slightly related note, I find your comments most interesting even more so because I fully believe DJ White is earning Thomas’ current salary with his contributions on the floor, and vice versa)
"People are gonna respect the Panthers, and I want what I do as a quarterback to be scary. I want people to be in fear. I want it, and I’m gonna get it."
- Carolina Panthers Franchise Quarterback
It's sounds like I agree with you because I do agree with you to an extent.
If we hadn’t made a sizeable commitment in Tyrus Thomas and he was more in a position like, say, Derrick Brown, then I’d be more than inclined to give White the minutes. He’s EARNED them by showing up and playing better.
However, life isn’t fair and the economics of it don’t make sense. The reason? The money is talking, in two different ways.
1) Tyrus Thomas has a contract paying him a lot of money to produce. He needs to start producing or the trade will be one of the worst mistakes in Bobcat’s history. As it stands, last season he led our team in PER, showing he has potential still. Since that’s the case, it’s not time to treat him like a sunk assest (such as Diop, who we’re going to amnesty/let run out). Because that’s the case, his contract (and somewhat his potential) are going to dictate he starts ahead of White.
2) We’re in the process of trying to resign White. It’s in our best interests to get him as cheaply as possible since we want him to be a role player for us in the future, not a starter. Therefore, making him a starter while we’re trying to sign him just gives him more leverage to ask for more money, which is the last thing we want. That’s just the cut throat world of business. If I can make note of that, you better believe White’s agent would know the same thing.
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by Panthers FTW on Jan 17, 2012 2:09 AM EST up reply actions
This team is just fatigued
Tomorrow is the end of 11 games in 15 days and you can tell it is wearing on us. Guys ran out of gas in the 2nd half and you could see the shots missing short again. We desperately need the 3 day hiatus coming up after tomorrow’s trip to Orlando.
6 feet of Smooth
by Bring Back Primoz on Jan 16, 2012 8:41 PM EST reply actions
yeah, Mullens tweeted
About the amount of games in so few days. Said his legs were tired.
by Roger, Roger on Jan 16, 2012 9:33 PM EST up reply actions
Follow me on Twitter Roger!
Haha.
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by Panthers FTW on Jan 16, 2012 10:04 PM EST up reply actions
Yup, I could tell, especially from Kembas shots falling short that the team was tired.
Silas is still making some questionable lineup decisions. Overall, a decent game. The shots just weren’t falling.
"You ain't supposed to be smiling and giggling after we lose. I've never had the mentality of losing in my whole life and for a person to tell me you can't win them all, that's a loser's mentality." - Cam Newton
by D.W.G. on Jan 16, 2012 10:02 PM EST via Android app reply actions
Something I am really impressed by Kemba by
Is his ability to make such tough shots. But he still struggles to make ones he is expected to make. But that is such an easy fix and with experience the easy ones will start falling. He is also starting to be a much better distributor I dont think the assist totals tell the whole story on him as a distributor
We are currently 15th in league attendance averaging 17,180 fans a night
We were as high as 13th and then dropped to 16th and now we moved up to 15th. I really like the loyalty the fans are showing after a lockout especially with the team struggling. Just shows the potential for Charlotte in the NBA.
I've been pleasantly surprised with the fan turnout
I need to make it out to a game at some point.
If Jordan and Cho build this team as well as planned, I think the city will finally embrace the team like it did the Hornets. We already have two very likable fan favorites to build around in Kemba and Biz.
You know, I have noticed that in watching the games...
Even against teams that aren’t loaded with super stars, the Cable Box always has a sizable crowd on display. It’s great to see. I bet the atmosphere is awesome in person.
"People are gonna respect the Panthers, and I want what I do as a quarterback to be scary. I want people to be in fear. I want it, and I’m gonna get it."
- Carolina Panthers Franchise Quarterback
That's awesome.
Maybe I should give our fanbase more credit than I thought they deserved.
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by Panthers FTW on Jan 17, 2012 2:10 AM EST up reply actions
You see those stats?
Those are stats that are frequently ignored by many NBA fans across the nation and even some media outlets. For years we’ve been branded as a crappy team, a team people ‘forgot’ existed, a team people say should be contracted, a team that no one cares about, etc. Sure, the season is far from over, but those are nice numbers and it’s good to see a decent crowd turnout, considering we’re terrible this year.
Attendance numbers for our games have steadily increased over the past few seasons; lately we’ve been ending up somewhere between 22 or so, ahead of teams like the Hawks, Pacers, Nets, Rockets, Grizzlies, among others. People just assume we’re always dead last in attendance, which is far from the truth.
by Roger, Roger on Jan 17, 2012 12:32 PM EST up reply actions
Why is kemba walker taking 21 shots on this team. Even if he were 21 for 21 his job is to get in the paint and get easy buckets for his teammates. He solely shot the cats out the game in the 3 rd qtr going 4 for 10 w no assists. The pt gds had 4 asissts between them in the 2 nd half. Its not ther role to shoot but to create in the paint. To playmake. Kyrie irving killed kemba in the last 5 minutes. Hes a rookie and also didnt have a camp.
What he did evry posession down in the last 5 minutes was get in the paint and finished or set his teamates up. All our pt gds did in the last 5 minutes was over dribble , shoot , turn over the ball or twice make an entry pass. If a pt gd cant create in the paint thrugh out the game but definitely down the stretch , hes worthless. His job is not to shoot but playmake. Silas an mj are not teaching this kid correctly.
Kemba was 6 for 21. How do you think his teammates feel. Esp the ones that didnt play. He over dribbles , both do, run the shot clock down and shoot . They had to best kyrie irving but didnt bc he got in the paint n dished ..
I've never liked this opinion that all positions must do one particular thing.
PG’s must distribute. SG’s must score a lot. PF’s and C’s must hold down the paint and get rebounds.
No, no, no. Instead, it’s much simpler than that: each player’s role is to help the team make a profit. The easiest way to do that? By helping the team win. Shorter version? Each player’s responsibility is to help the team win.
If our starting PG went 21 for 21, my only concern would be: “Why in the hell didn’t this guy shoot more?!”
Really, what it boils down to is that each player is supposed to help the team win. It’s up to the coach to figure out how to best utilize those talents. If Kemba’s talents are scoring and grabbing rebounds then it’s up to Silas to figure out how to put him into the team to increase our win total. Allen Iverson did pretty good when his main ability was scoring. I don’t think anyone would really complain if we had a young AI on our team, would we? Or would we give up on AI’s talent just because a young AI doesn’t get as many assists as Steve Nash?
by Tim Rudisill on Jan 17, 2012 12:40 AM EST up reply actions 1 recs
I'll bite on that last sentence...
They had to best kyrie irving but didnt bc he got in the paint n dished ..
Irving: 25 points (9-16 FG), 6-8 FT, 4 RB, 7 assists, 1 stl, 1 blk, 3 TOs
Augustin (sigh): 24 points (9-17) . 4-5 FT, 4 RB, 8 assists, 2 stls, 2 blks, 2 TOs
I’m not sure how anyone could say that DJA didn’t win out on a head-to-head matchup. Also, if you want to take it one step further and compare the teams’ starting backcourts (DJA & Walker vs. Irving & Parker), then we blew Cleveland out the water…Parker’s box score isn’t even worth mentioning…
oh, what the hell: 1 assist in 9 minutes. The end.
"People are gonna respect the Panthers, and I want what I do as a quarterback to be scary. I want people to be in fear. I want it, and I’m gonna get it."
- Carolina Panthers Franchise Quarterback
The problem with comparing DJ to Irving is that this is one of DJ's best games of the year.
It’s DJ’s fourth year in the league, it’s Irving’s first. We should be getting this kind of performance cery consistently from DJ and we’re just not. That’s one of the reasons I advocate trading him, because he’s too inconsistent for us to be paying for a backup PG.
(Sorry to bring up the DJ trade thing again, I know you hate it.)
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by Panthers FTW on Jan 17, 2012 2:16 AM EST up reply actions
lol...hence my "sigh"
The sad thing is, God help me, I’m actually starting to entertain the thought that it may be in our best long term interests to part ways with him. The thought of it still KILLS me though, because he is only 24 (Walker will be 22 in a few months), he has gotten better every year he’s been in the league, and I personally have no reason to believe that he has hit his ceiling yet. At least with Wallace, as painful as that was, I knew that he had pretty much hit his peak. Not that he was on the decline, but he has reached his full potential. It will be very painful to see Augustin hit his full stride somewhere else.
With all that said, Cho knows best. I’m sure that if he eventually pulls the trigger, it will be for all the right reasons… * sigh *
"People are gonna respect the Panthers, and I want what I do as a quarterback to be scary. I want people to be in fear. I want it, and I’m gonna get it."
- Carolina Panthers Franchise Quarterback
Didn't Parker get hurt? His line is kind of moot because he didn't play most of the game.
I have to agree with panthers here, Irving’s a rookie and DJ’s a vet. I’m glad to see DJ play well, but he’s never been a guy to put the team on his shoulders and pull out a win.
by Basketball Rambler on Jan 17, 2012 6:03 AM EST up reply actions
Yeah, I thought about that.. (Parker's injury)
I should’ve included Gibson’s stats to drive home my point. Throw in Boobie’s (Cavs backup SG) efforts during his 26 minutes, and our frontcourt still wins.
"People are gonna respect the Panthers, and I want what I do as a quarterback to be scary. I want people to be in fear. I want it, and I’m gonna get it."
- Carolina Panthers Franchise Quarterback
Like Tim said, Kemba is playing SG more right now
Anyway, here’s Chris Paul’s last two shooting performances:
vs. MIA: 11-21
vs. LAL: 12-22
Derrick Rose last two games:
vs. BOS: 9-21
vs. TOR: 7-20
(Speaking of Rose, am I the only one who sees similarities between he and Kemba’s game?)
PGs are allowed to shoot. I’ll reiterate what Tim said. If you pigeonhole positions into a specific role, you are less likely to be successful. Every player on the floor has the same goal: Do what it takes to win.
Derrick Rose is a score-first PG. Russell Westbrook is a score-first PG. Tony Parker is a score-first PG. Stephen Curry is a score-first PG. Would you complain about any of these players if they were on our team?
Too bad you’ll never see this comment.
I agree with you.
Except I’m not sure that Kemba is a score-first guard of the order you described. At least, not yet. I’m willing, however, to wait and see.
But I will say that Kemba will never be able to bull rush his way into the lane like Rose and Westbrook. Walker just doesn’t have the size or physicality to pull that off. I do think he can still be very effective doing slightly more finesse things.
I do believe he'll become more of a distributor as he develops
But right now, he’s score first. That’s partially due to the fact that he plays the 2 rather frequently when he shares the court with DJ. He showed the ability to distribute at UConn even while he was almost single handedly winning games for UConn (before the emergence of Lamb). So I do think he’ll become a good distributor after having more time to get comfortable and getting a better cast around him.
As for the comparisons: I know he isn’t as physically gifted as Rose or Westbrook in terms of size and stature, but he seems to make up for it with quickness and craftiness. The comparisons were based on style of play rather than physical ability.
He's physically closer to Russell Westbrook.
Not exact matches obviously, but I’m willing to be more bullish on Kemba becoming a similar player to Westbrook than Aisander D is.
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by Panthers FTW on Jan 17, 2012 2:18 AM EST up reply actions
I'd be lying if I said I was.
I have no factual basis to stand on besides what my lying eyes tell me. If you have some sort of factual proof (like caring enough to look up their physical attributes), then I’ll probably end my naivety. Otherwise, I’ll hold onto my naive assumptions until I care enough to do the real research myself.
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by Panthers FTW on Jan 17, 2012 2:23 AM EST up reply actions
See Below....
But all of that considered, I think the aggressiveness and willingness to throw one’s body into the trees and finish might be similar.
But I don;t think Kemba is as much of a physical freak as Westbrook is. Doesn’t mean I don’t think Kemba is promising, I certainly do.
Lmao damn.
There goes that fantasy. All I knew is it seemed their styles were similar and in my head, Westbrook (by vurtue of being a PG) was a small dude. Now I see that isn’t the case.
Well, thanks though, always good to be a more informed fan.
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by Panthers FTW on Jan 17, 2012 2:30 AM EST up reply actions
Westbrook is nearly 6’4" with a 6’8" wingspan. He was measured in shoes at that Draft combine as 6’ 3.5"
Kemba is 6’1" with a 6’4" wingspan. He measured in shoes as exactly 6’1".
I’m not saying they can’t have similar styles of play, but I think the physical nature of Westbrook’s game is a little beyond Kemba’s natural size disadvantages.
Kemba will have to add elements to his game to mimic some of the more physically powerful aspects of Westbrook’s game.
by Aisander D on Jan 17, 2012 2:24 AM EST up reply actions 1 recs
We should have won!
Despite what people think DJ Augustin is clearly the best player on the team and Walker will not replace him. In fact when near the end of the game Walker was bringing the ball up he should have deferred and the ball to DJ Augustin, but instead Walker winds up turning the ball over. Someone said both our point guards stink but unless they smell they definitely don’t stink. Augustin was the reason the Bobcats were even in the game. Byron Scott had to change their gameplan because DJ Augustin was killing the Cavaliers and that is why he put Boobies Gibson in to start the second half. Why didn’t Silas play Biyombo? That is why the Cavaliers were getting to the basket because of no interior defense. Biyombo would have made them think twice about going to the rim. I bet you if Augustin is traded people will wish he had been retained. He may be a liability on defense but Augustin is the best player and I have heard other basketball analyst say Augustin is underappreciated in Charlotte. As the saying goes, “your nobody until you leave Charlotte.” I guess I am the only one besides some basketball writers who know how good Augustin is, I bet you other coaches and GM’s know he is good and will want him.
by jayo28262 on Jan 17, 2012 1:55 AM EST via mobile reply actions 1 recs
Of course other GMs will want him.
That’s why we want to trade him, because we know he’s the only tradable player we have that can net us a considerable gain.
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by Panthers FTW on Jan 17, 2012 2:20 AM EST up reply actions
You Wouldn't Know Based on What People Say
I know other GM’s want Augustin but if you read some of the comments on here some people think he is the worst player instead of the best player and that is why I posted that. Its bad when other basketball analysts wrote how Charlotte didn’t value Augustin and that is why they said we drafted Kemba Walker to replace him. One analyst wrote on a chat he would prefer to keep Augustin over Walker if had a choice. We could have gotten another pick instead of Walker because point guard was not a necessity for Charlotte because DJ was solid. The way people act you would think Augustin played like Chris Duhon or somebody. When another team has to change their defensive schemes you must be doing something right. That is what happened this game in the start of the third and why Anthony Parker didn’t start the second half. DJ Augustin lit up Philadelphia in the first half last year at home that had Doug Collins upset with his team that he made changes on guarding Augustin in the second half. The Bobcats could have drafted a small forward which was a position of need instead of Walker.
by jayo28262 on Jan 17, 2012 4:27 AM EST via mobile up reply actions
What game were you watching?
Augustin is very inconsistent. He’s been in the NBA for four years now and averages just ten points and 4 assist a game. IMO, that does not justify him being the starter. Every point guard he plays against scores atleast 20 points on him everytime because his defense is a joke. He lacks focus and he makes some horrible decisions with the ball.
And, most of the time when he scores 20, they lose. When Walker scores close to twenty or above, they win. BECAUSE WALKER IS CLUTCH. One thing DJ will NEVER BE.
They should’ve drafted Lopez that night. But, since Lopez basically thought he would be gone and spit in the face of the Bobcats and other teams that he didn’t work out for, the Cat’s took it personally and passed on him.
"You ain't supposed to be smiling and giggling after we lose. I've never had the mentality of losing in my whole life and for a person to tell me you can't win them all, that's a loser's mentality." - Cam Newton
The story has always been that LB wanted a point guard
I don’t know that they were offended by Lopez. Everyone expected him to be gone before he was, so why would the Bobcats have taken offense?
by Basketball Rambler on Jan 17, 2012 6:06 AM EST up reply actions
I think it's similar to the Felton situation
We believe DJ is a good PG but will never be a great one and we don’t feel like shelling out $7 or $8 million a season to sign him long term. So we draft a PG who is relatively of the same competence and save $5 million a year for the first 4 years of his deal and hope he develops into something better. It’s all finances with this team right now.
6 feet of Smooth
by Bring Back Primoz on Jan 17, 2012 5:32 PM EST up reply actions 3 recs
Exactly.
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by Panthers FTW on Jan 17, 2012 6:11 PM EST up reply actions
You're not the only one...
ugh…the thought is severely depressing to my sports fan inner child. I’m going to bed.
"People are gonna respect the Panthers, and I want what I do as a quarterback to be scary. I want people to be in fear. I want it, and I’m gonna get it."
- Carolina Panthers Franchise Quarterback
Mullens and defense
I like BJ Mullens but he is terrible on defense. He needs to be paired with a shot blocker when he is in, I.e. Biyombo or TT. Mullens also needs to learn to repost sometimes. If he doesn’t have the shot pass the ball out to the point guard and repost by going down on the block and then calling for the ball. On Biyombo, how can he get better if he doesn’t play?
by jayo28262 on Jan 17, 2012 2:02 AM EST via mobile reply actions
Mullen does have a lot to learn, and some strength to add.
I agree completely, but I’m going to love watching him grow playing alongside Kemba (and hopefully Biyombo).
by Basketball Rambler on Jan 17, 2012 6:08 AM EST up reply actions
You never liked a specific role for a position, well then let the centers play pt gd then , how many wins you gunna get. And comparing our pt gds to iverson. Pls . Actually, as far as playing pt gd both here do it much better than iverson could or would , thats why the 76ers never won anything w him. He was a brilliant scorer but sucked at dishing to teammates n hogged the ball. I wish i had thought of him as an example of why you never want your pt gds shooting without creating.
Loook . Dj is a good scorer , kemba not as consistent . Dj will as i said before shine on a team that passes and has great ball n man movement and the pt gd is not relied upon as much to dish in the paint. That aint here tho. Its obvious or should be that he was brought in to replace dj not play along side him. If and when he does , he must play pt gd the correct way.. The only way the greats do it .. GET IN THE PAINT AND CREATE AND DISH.
And comparing dj’s stats to kyrie irving’ s as proof as whom bested whom tells not the whole story but of course you guys have to know at least that. Kyrie got in the paint in the last 5 minutes of the game on each posession and finished or dished killing the cats thus clearly besting dj..dj didnt come close when it counted ..at the end of the game when it counted, not dishing in the paint despite his glorious first half.
If you dont think mj will trade him and get good value and avoid another huge contract he cant afford and get good value in return and thereafter start kemba at pt gd , ur a fool.
Magic Johnson is 6'9" 220 lbs
Under your line of thinking he should have been a forward and his role would have been to score. Allen Iverson carried his team to the finals with his scoring as a PG. Dirk Nowitzki led his team to championship last year. I highly doubt you’d call him a traditional Power Forward.
You can’t force players into roles based on position, you do it by ability.
by JDeLong42 on Jan 17, 2012 2:08 PM EST up reply actions 1 recs
That's exactly what I was trying to say.
I like how 2 of those 3 examples of non-traditional roles won a championship. The last managed to lead his team to a championship series, though they didn’t win.
So yes, it works. Most players will say, “I’m a center, I should develop a center’s skill set.” However, not all players do. In my opinion, it’s up to the coach to best figure out how to utilize those players. It’s obvious you can win with these players.
by Tim Rudisill on Jan 17, 2012 5:30 PM EST up reply actions
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