Bobcats Come Up Short In Comeback Attempt Against Knicks, Fall 91-87
by Ben Swanson on Jan 9, 2012 10:46 PM EST
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PrintThough you wouldn't have guessed it from the first couple minutes of this Bobcats vs. Knicks rematch, New York learned a major lesson from the previous game, exerting much more effort and focus against Charlotte, while the Bobcats fought valiantly to overcome the Knicks' two star players.
First Half
Featuring a bizarre lineup starting power forward Tyrus Thomas at small forward, the Bobcats looked like they were just picking up where they left off on the Knicks from their last meeting. The Knicks spotted Charlotte 10 points, and the Bobcats still squandered the lead, letting the Knicks get easy baskets on Tyson Chandler and Amar'e Stoudemire pick and rolls. The odd frontcourt proved to be an error as Tyrus Thomas is not a small forward and can't create his own offense at that position. And Gana Diop played like Gana Diop, at one point dribbling the basketball looking like how most people dribble a football. He had a particularly bad sequence where he misread a pick and roll, letting Chandler into the paint, who then found a cutting Iman Shumpert for an easy two. And on the offensive end he made a bad attempt at being a point-center, trying to find Gerald Henderson on a backdoor cut, but instead finding Landry Fields' back.
The Knicks hardly looked dominating as the Bobcats stemmed New York's run when they needed buckets to keep the Knicks' lead within reach. But this Knicks team was not the same as last week. They were not settling for long twos and threes, but attacked the Bobcats' interior defense. The Bobcats didn't make it easy, but Amar'e Stoudemire drew plenty of fouls for the most efficient shot in basketball - free throws.
As the benches rolled out onto the hardwood, the Bobcats struggled. D.J. White once again was all efficiency, all of the time, but the Knicks' backup squad brought more defensive intensity than last time, contesting shots well. Surprisingly, Byron Mullens was held scoreless in the first half, and he also showed some poor rebounding and mediocre defensive instincts. As the half wound down, the game turned sloppy with turnovers abound and sketchy transition offense. Kemba Walker endeavored to run the offense, finding an assist to Diaw and White, but turned the ball over as well. Diaw again looked like the best player in New York, hitting shots from just about everywhere, rebounding and doing some dishing, too. Still, the Bobcats went into the break down 50-45.
Second Half
The third quarter was a battle, with the Knicks putting the heat on the Bobcats on both sides of the floor. Charlotte took poor one-on-one well-contested shots while the Knicks pushed the rock inside the paint, finding Tyson Chandler on cuts. As the Bobcats compensated, Stoudemire took advantage of White giving him space for midrange shots. A double-digit deficit developed for Charlotte, as the Knicks' defense forced turnovers, played good help and man defense. The Bobcats bench played better, but still couldn't find easy shots with the Knicks closing off the paint and getting the hands up on defense. Walker had a nice assist to Mullens on a pick and roll, but still couldn't find his own shooting touch. Luckily, the Knicks couldn't take advantage, and held only a seven-point lead with a quarter remaining.
Both offenses couldn't grasp a rhythm in the beginning of the fourth. The Bobcats fought to stay in the game, with Kemba hitting a trey and drawing some fouls, cutting the Knick lead to three. Then New York started moving the ball around and with the Bobcats rotating slowly, took advantage in the paint, as teams tend to do against this Bobcats team. Charlotte foundered for a while against a surprisingly-focused Knicks team forced questionable shot selection. Yet, New York couldn't keep the lead, piddling away their offensive opportunities on poor ball movement with the Bobcats finding more room in the paint and Augustin tying the game on a three, despite a rough shooting night.
After a Knicks timeout, Carmelo Anthony went to work with a little over two minutes remaining. He was nowhere near dominant, just simply outscoring the Bobcats, ending with eight of New York's last nine points. Landry Fields put the Knicks up by four with 13 seconds remaining, seemingly a nail in the coffin, but Augustin drained a miraculous corner three-ball after being trapped in the corner. Down one, the Bobcats fouled Carmelo Anthony, who drilled both shots from the charity stripe. With time winding down, the Bobcats pushed the ball upcourt. New York mistakenly doubled Diaw around halfcourt, giving Augustin an open look at a three to tie the game, but it caromed off the rim into Anthony's grasp. The Bobcats fouled in a futile attempt to refuse to say die, but there wasn't nearly enough time and the Knicks escaped with a win at home.
In The Bonus
- Tyson Chandler had 20 points (ON EIGHT FGA). And 13 rebounds. And 3 blocks. And 3 steals. And an assist. That's why I said the Bobcats would have to pick their poison with Chandler. He was a terror on the pick and roll for the Bobcats' defense. The Bobcats just didn't have the size, strength or mobility at center to defend him.
- Bismack Biyombo played a whopping four minutes tonight, recording zero stats (aka a four trillion). I know he's not good right now. But how can anyone expect him to develop if he doesn't get to see the floor in decent minutes?
- Tyrus Thomas was, generally speaking, pretty blergh out there. He had a couple nice blocks, but the 'Tyrus Thomas As A Small Forward' was more failure than success. While his defense on Anthony was nothing more than humdrum, he was more or less a mess on offense.
- Gerald Henderson was pretty quiet against Landry Fields, hitting some midrange jumpers here and there and finding his way inside on a few occasions against a tougher Knicks defense.
- Iman Shumpert was very good in a quiet way. He shot pretty well, dropping 16 points on 13 shots, but what impressed me was his defense on Augustin and Walker, neither of whom found their shooting touch on point in this game.
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I literally LOLed at the line...
“Gana Diop played like Gana Diop, at one point dribbling the basketball looking like how most people dribble a football.”
What's scarier than a bear with chainsaws for arms? Nothing.
Man. "Rebuilding" really sucks
I’m not sure how much of this I can keep watching. Especially a back to back to friggin back… I’ll be depressed for 3 straight days. No wonder nobody likes the NBA anymore.
This is how I roll, animal print pants out control.
by southtunnel on Jan 9, 2012 11:09 PM EST via mobile reply actions
Um, I still like it.
No, rebuilding isn’t much fun, but no one ever said it would be a non-stop joyride. It’s a necessary evil that hurts for fans, because it’s so hard to watch. Some nights the team will be exciting, and others it will be eye-rolling disapprovement. Mope about it or make your peace with losing, because it’s going to happen.
Personally, this game was a lot of fun to watch for me. It wasn’t pretty, but at least the team fought hard.
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 9, 2012 11:26 PM EST up reply actions 1 recs
I mean the game was entertaining....
If we’re in/winning/making it close for 50% of our games, that’s at least promising if not entertaining. That’s kind of the point of the NBA right? Put out a semi-competitive highly athletic entertainment product. And tonight was a good example. A little sloppy, but still thrilling in the 4th quarter, coming down to the last shot.
So, if nothing else, it’s at least a wash/good thing to blow 3 hours on.
You like the NBA or your team?
I grew up watching the Hornets, so I have a special interest in my hometown’s basketball team. But I really dislike the way the league is setup these days. Of course losing sucks… But in top of it, the NBA gives teams like us very little to look forward to while we go through this.
This is how I roll, animal print pants out control.
by southtunnel on Jan 10, 2012 8:48 AM EST via mobile up reply actions
Also if the NBA was so great
Jordan wouldn’t have had to fight so hard for parity during the labor negotiations.
This is how I roll, animal print pants out control.
by southtunnel on Jan 10, 2012 8:49 AM EST via mobile up reply actions
I like some of it
I like watching DJ, Kemba, Hendo, Bismack, Mullens… I can’t stand watching Diaw, Diop, Maggs… At least with the first set, I can see potential. The second said are just $$$ coming off the books in a couple years.
My beef isn't with those guys
Its that the league makes it so difficult to improve. Bottom line, we have a HUGE missing piece to our “rebuilding” process. And this league has set everything up so small market teams like us have a VERY hard time finding that piece.
This is how I roll, animal print pants out control.
by southtunnel on Jan 10, 2012 8:58 AM EST via mobile up reply actions
I get where you're coming from
But we have to acknowledge the biggest reason we are in this mess is because of decisions the front office has made, not how the NBA operates.
6 feet of Smooth
by Bring Back Primoz on Jan 10, 2012 12:10 PM EST up reply actions
I agree BB Primoz to an extent...
We did make some terrible decisions when Larry Brown was here and the front office picked alot of players and made bad trades when he was coach, which has us in the situation we are in now, but as Southtunnel mentioned above, the league definitely has it’s favorites, and it does make it difficult to improve and gives the league somewhat of a blackeye to fans that sees that Stern as a dictator. The bottom line is they have to get rid of that damn draft lottery bs, so that the bottom teams can get better and get some good players to improve! We can try and tank the season all day, but we’re still not promised to be in the top of the lottery, especially with our luck. This has to change!
Upset Bobcats fan....
said it before, and I’ll say it…..again. Kemba-16 minutes. Biz- 4 minutes.
Other rooks actually getting a chance to learn=
You have Brooks getting 41 minutes of burn in NJ.
Brandon Knight gets 37 min for Det.
Ricky Rubio gets 30 min off the bench for Minny.
Derrick Williams joins Rubio off the bench for 28 min.
Frickin Jon Leuer gets 22 min for the Bucks.
Markieff Morris off the bench for 30 in PHX.
Jimmer getting 20+ out in Sac-town.
There is a trend here saying you gotta play these kids…and most importantly when you are on a losing team like most of this list!! I can totallly understand youngsters riding the pine when you are pushing for that title…but when in rebuild, one must rebuild. Frustration besets me like a pack of wild hounds on a bloody fox!!!
I agree with you
what frustrated me more was that DJ was smothered by Shumpert all day. Despite the rebuilding argument there were times when I felt that Kemba needed to be out there instead of DJ. Sure DJ made some crucial shots but he really was not on his game against Shumpert. Not sure why Silas isn’t letting Kemba and Biyombo more…
Only reason I could think of maybe is increasing the trade value for DJ but I don’t know… it is frustrating to not only lose but also not getting to see the rookies play.
Cat Scratch Reader's not-so-creepy stalker
a.k.a. DeAngelo Williams in the stalking business- agile and elusive
to fair Shumpert smothered Kemba when they were on the court together as well
and I don’t think Kemba was on his game either.
I fully agree with the sentiment that Kemba and Bismack need to play more minutes (especially Bismack).
Geelong Cats for Premiers 2011 (Completed)
Rich Cho - lead us to the promised land (In Process)
We also have to give our trade bait minutes.
If we’re going to get anything of value for Diaw or DJ they have to be showcased. If we dump them for picks soon our rookies will get plenty of time.
I bet both Kemba and Biz are starting before the end if the season
I can totally see another vet trade for picks coming… Probably Diaw, maybe Augustin. And the rooks will take over.
This is how I roll, animal print pants out control.
by southtunnel on Jan 10, 2012 9:07 AM EST via mobile up reply actions
Realistically,
what kind of picks do we think we are gonna get? We will get no pick better than 18th for either. Trust me.
Is that so bad?
I doubt we’ll want to pay DJ enough to stay after his contract expires and we’ll most likely let Diaw walk if he’s not traded.
I'm totally in favor of relieving Paul Silas of his duties...
He gave it a good run, but his rotations sometimes are mindboggling, he’s being outcoached alot and he seems to have taken on the whole John Fox mentality of playing vets, even though, they’re not performing up to standards, thinking those same vets gives this team a better chance to win, but instead they’re making this team worse! Get rid of him or get someone else in here!
If yal think its Paul Silas' doin
you are outta your mind. U think he wants to play TT? No. He even said TT must earn his spot and what happened the next game? Tyrus was starting. You think he wants Diaw to play center? I refuse to believe that a former big man thinks that is a good idea. You think he wants TT to start at SF or play it at all. Even tho Diaw is the obvious choice? Trust me. THe FO is making the calls. They are trying to showcase everyone. Dont blame the lineups on Silas…this is coming from the inside…
PAIN !
Glass half full, glad I’m not a Knick fan. D’antoni will be gone by the break !
by chris in union county on Jan 10, 2012 12:14 AM EST reply actions
Tyrus has regressed since Larry Brown left the team
Instead of developing some sort of post game he’s trying to be a small forward, instead of bulking up to be a tougher stronger inside player, he appears to have lost 20 pounds making him look weaker and appear to have less energy and athleticism. He’s close to playing himself out of the league. When Silas plays him at the 3, Tyrus rarely cuts to the rim when the openings are there, he stands around and doesnt attack the rim, and he doesn’t defend the rim as well. Boris as fat as he is, would be better at the 3 than Tyrus IMO.
This may get me in trouble with some here, but I’ve never been impressed with the Kemba pick, Kemba is a 5’10-5’11 PG, DJ is a 5’10-5’11 pg, Kemba is quick and streaky, DJ is quick and streaky, Kemba is a shoot first PG, as is DJ, neither of them are great playmakers, neither of them can see the floor particularly well, they are almost the exact same type of players, We could’ve gotten Shumpert, or Norris Cole, or Brandon Jennings, instead we chose a undersized SG who’s got to learn on the fly to be a PG? Why would we go out and get a PG that has the exact same style of play as the PG we want to get rid of?
The best thing about this Bobcat team is the emergence of Mullens and White and the improved play of Henderson and to a degree DJ. I still dont understand why that talented playoff team we had two seasons ago was broken up, is Harrison Barnes really worth the wait and the losing? I dont know about this team, I support them, but this vision they have seems really flawed.
I will respond to your 2nd and 3rd paragraphs
We got Kemba because we feel like Kemba will be better than DJ. And if I remember correctly, one of our needs leading up to the draft was PG, and we got one. Now it’s a problem? And it’s hard to argue his value at the #9 pick.
If you enjoyed wallowing in mediocrity being a fringe playoff team only to be steamrolled out of the playoffs if you even made it, then I can understand why you’d be upset over us breaking up our playoff squad. If you want to build up a potential contender in the conference, than you should be happy with the direction we’re going. The old Bobcats were never going to be better than a 7 seed or so and were never really a threat to any of the powerhouses in a 7 game series.
How do you know that JDeLong? I agree with Mr.Goodlove...
Wallace and Felton are out in Portland ballin! Who’s to say if we had kept that same team from 2 years ago and maybe added a scorer like Reggie Williams and was still able to get a DJ White, and take in consideration the time these guys would have played together, that has to amount for something right?I always thought a balanced team, that knew one another and by this year would have been an experienced team, I think we would be atleast a #2 or #3 seed in the playoffs this year! I’m sorry guys, but we lost all our heart when we got rid of Felton and Wallace, don’t know if we’ll ever get that back again…
We had no money to do anything, if I remember correctly
We had close to the same roster last year as the playoff year, and we still were struggling to make the playoffs, even before the injuries and dealings.
If you wan't Norris Cole over Kemba, be my guest.
btw, Kemba w/ shoes=6’1" DJ w/ shoes=6’0. Don’t give me that 5’10" crap, these numbers were reocrded at the draft combine.
"With the third pick of the 2006 NBA Draft, the Charlotte Bobcats select, Adam Morrison, Gonzaga."
Kemba not a good playmaker? Wow
I guess I just imagined him leading the team to within 4 last night and having multiple game winners in college. Good one bro.
Kemba walker is shooting way too much. He cant work the pik n roll cos he doesnt want to. he wont giveup the ball on the pik in roll. He was two for nine with 4 turnovers. We cuda had norris cole who passes first . Dj was 4 for 13 w 3 turnovers. Silas ..you will be fired unless you find two players to run the basic pik in roll whc is the staple of all the top teams. Try it w a bigger guard and an athletic forward.
Try hendo who can pass n finish w diaw or mullens or white . Dj is too small as is kemba.
And silas , you never adjusted to tyson getn dunk after dunk or layup after layup all game whc is inexcusable. Hes not that good. The offense stops working w kemba in the game who over dribbles too . We have to get a play making pt gd or his team is dead. If our pt gds can get to the rack, they should be able to playmake but all they want to do is shoot.
Shumpert , a rookie pt gd is better than both of our pt gds. 6 or 22 combined, no assists in the paint, w a combined 7 turnovers , whc is the total of assists between them is not only the sole problem we lost but a joke. MAKE THEM PLAYMAKE ON THE BREAK AND HALF CT SETS OR TRADE THEM FOR SOMEONE THAT WILL. WE HAVE FORWARDS AND CENTERS WHO CANT CREATE THEIR OWN SHOTS. !!!
I'll just drop the same thing that I dropped on MP, right, chyere
Assists per 36 minutes, rookie year:
Russell Westbrook: 5.87
Deron Williams: 5.63
Steve Nash: 7.20
Derrick Rose: 6.13
John Wall: 7.90
Rajon Rondo: 5.82
Chris Paul: 7.80
DJ Augustin: 4.75
Kemba Walker: 6.30
And I’ll even throw in the two rookies you mentioned:
Norris Cole: 6.05
Iman Shumpert: 4.3
Please stop saying Kemba can’t distribute
by JDeLong42 on Jan 10, 2012 2:10 AM EST up reply actions 4 recs
Kemba is no Steve Nash, or Rondo
He’s a undersized SG learning how to play the point. He takes a ton of shots, when he gets going he can be streaky, but as a PG he is undersized also, and again, he isnt a natural PG. Yes, the Bobcats needed a PG because DJ is too small and doesn’t see the floor well enough, so what did the Bobcats do, they got a PG who has the exact same size and style of play, the only difference is Kemba maybe a little quicker, but DJ has a better stroke from outside. This team needed a bigger guard, not another DJ clone with less PG abilities.
As for the playoff comment, the Bobcats made it to the playoffs for the first time in team history, had a solid squad and should’ve looked to add a quality point guard to replae Felton to get better, instead they did the opposite, they set the franchise back about 4-5 years in order to try and pick Harrison Barnes because Jordan wants to show his loyalty to his UNC brethren?
If the Bobcats are a winning playoff bound team, fans will come to games and you get exposure in order to recruit free agents (which Charlotte would need being a small market team), but if the small market team is losing, you may lose fans, you won’t get any free agents with real talent, and you don’t get many fans to the games. This team had the city buzzing when they got to the playoffs and Jordan wanted to destroy and start over, now I see why Larry Brown wanted out of town? And who’s to say that Jordans superstar rookies will even stay in Charlotte after the rookie contract is up? Does he think the UNC ties or him being the goat will make guys wanna play for him?
Sorry to come off so negative, but I don’t like the direction Mike has taken this team. I’ll repeat what I wrote before too, Mullens has been the best pickup and surprise this season. I know some don’t like him shooting the ball, but this guy is money with that jumper. he just needs to toughen up. Biyombo needs a big man coach to teach him how to play, Tyrus should be right there with them, and they should both be pretty good, especially if Tyrus puts on like 30 pounds of muscle, lol.
Even presented with that evidence
And you still say he doesn’t have the PG abilities of DJ Augustin. Look what I just said. At this point in his career, Kemba is a much better distributor than Augustin was, and he’ll only get better. Especially when he’s not playing the 2 a good chunk of the time or when he’s playing the 1 he is usually surrounded by offensive juggernauts like Biyombo, Diop, Brown, Carroll, and Mullens.
Like I said above, with the team we had before, we were never going to be serious threats. We may sneak into the playoffs, but we wouldn’t have much of a shot once we got there. The key pieces of that team were all aging, so it’s window of opportunity was closing anyway. There’s no reason to think we’re even targeting Barnes at this point, so to say we’ve tanked the franchise for him is just wild unfounded speculation.
We’re going in the right direction. We’re purging big contracts to make us flexible in the coming offseason so we can build a new, YOUNG core of players that can have an extended run of contention. Not a group of 30 year olds that have peaked out as a perennial 8 seed, with nowhere to go but down. Look at the Thunder if you want to see the “template” we’re following. 2007 they drafted their franchise player in Durant, finished the season 20-62. 2008 they drafted key pieces Westbrook and Ibaka, finished the season 23-59. 2009 they drafted Harden and finished the season 50-32. And you know where they are now. That’s what we’re trying to do. We need to be patient.
I think the only valid argument against your Per 36 data....
is that per 36 numbers can be deceiving with a small sample size and limited minutes. There are other examples, where players who have played very limited minutes over a short time span look like All-Stars when their Per 36 stats are extrapolated out.
So at this point, it’s debatable whether Kemba’s played enough games with enough minutes to produce a statistically relevant sample for generating proper Per 36 numbers…. but that’s my only critique.
I like Kemba otherwise and agree that he can be effective in the NBA given the proper opportunities.
One more thing I want to mention is that a lot of folks are forgetting that this rookie class has had none of the normal supports and slow inclusion into the NBA that most classes get. The sum total of their transition period was that slipshod two week pre-season/training camp in early December. That’s it. No Summer League, No Regular Training Camp, No Multiple Preseason Games.
You could make the case that all of the rookies right now are basically playing their way through what is usually an extensive transition period. For that reason, if not others, I think Kemba and the Biz deserve a little more forgiveness than people are giving them.
Oh I know it can be flawed
But Kemba has played about 20 MPG, which I think is a large enough sample size. The only one from that list that I remember being a little skewed due to lack of playing time was Steve Nash of all people. In his second year, when he had roughly the same amount of minutes Kemba is getting, he was actually distributing at a lower rate.
I just use it because it puts everybody on a more level playing field with regards to playing time.
My ideal PG should be around 6'3 or up
6’4 Is the perfect size for a PG imo, I’ve never been big on really small PG’s, I am not saying Kemba cant turn out to be a good player, I’m saying Kemba and DJ are very similar, both short, both streaky shooters, both quick, but both defensive liabilities and neither can see the floor very well which isn’t good for a PG. Kemba is gonna have the same troubles DJ has, so if we wanted a PG, why not get a PG with size? DJ was a very good scorer in college just like Kemba if you remember. I hope I’m wrong about Kemba, but I just don’t see a converted shoot first PG with limited range who’s barely 6’1 with shoes on as the answer.
by Mr Goodlove on Jan 10, 2012 12:51 PM EST up reply actions
Silas' philosophy is to always shoot if you can
Kemba is just doing what everyone’s being told to do… Throw up a bunch of quick shots.
This is how I roll, animal print pants out control.
by southtunnel on Jan 10, 2012 9:10 AM EST via mobile up reply actions
Lineup Problems
I disagree with the statement about both DJ and Kemba both being shoot first point guards, I would say its true about Kemba because he tends to shoot when trying to run the pick and roll. Kemba was over dribbling and kept turning the ball over. I do agree we didn’t need Kemba when we already had DJ. DJ was not the problem and there were other draftees we could have gotten instead of another undersized point guard. That was a bad draft decision.
by jayo28262 on Jan 10, 2012 1:39 AM EST via mobile reply actions
Playing Time
Derrick Brown is straight garbage! He lost the ball twice on trips to the basket and doesn’t deserve any playing time. Matt Carroll is useless as well and Higgins needs playing time over Carroll. Bismack is behind the eight ball because he never got to practice with the team because of his contract situation he had with his Spanish club. He does need playing time to get better. Tyrus is not working out in the small forward position because he can’t dribble and his shot is rusty.
by jayo28262 on Jan 10, 2012 1:54 AM EST via mobile reply actions
You say Derrick Brown is garbage, and Tyrus isn't working out at SF
So what do you suggest we do? Who plays SF?
Get a time machine
And match the Grizzlies offer on Cunningham. I don’t know why we didn’t in the first place, considering Maggs is known league wide for being injured at least 1/4 of the season every year.
by Jern Dough on Jan 10, 2012 8:58 AM EST via mobile up reply actions
Nope
lemme say this. I never liked Cunningham. Glad he’s gone. But if you read this site, you’ll see how everyone wished for UPS back. Except you know who. I promoted young d-league guys like Elijah Milsap and the young boy that now plays for the Heat. I got thrashed. Now we have our wish. We got Derrick Brown and he’s doing exactly what I expected. NOTHING. In our defense we did sign Williams. We didnt expect Maggs to get hurt or did we? I just think Brown was a loyalty/friendship addition. The fans brought that on ourselves
I personally like Brown
I just hate when people come in and bash the team but have no realistic solution on how to fix the perceived problem. Now I don’t think Brown is a starter by any means, but I like him as a high energy defensive player off the bench.
lol Higgins getting playing time
Lemonade was a popular drink and it still is,
I get more props and stunts than Bruce Willis
- Guru, of Gangstarr
So Hendo gets a million chances
but we cant let Higgins play valuable minutes. Minimum contract or not. If we signed him in a rebuilding season, then we need to let his tail play. We cried about tha big guard but we aint used him yet. We might as well signed another small guard if we werent gonna put the “big guard” propaganda to use…and yes I still think the “big guard” need was created by MJ and Higgins to make room for his son “just in case” he got cut. from all the other teams…
I really think Higgins can be just as good as Hendo if he gets time to play...
We are not a playoff team, so it makes no sense that we are not seeing what this kid Higgins can do….C’mon Silas!
Gerald was the 12th pick of the 09 draft
Not an undrafted rook who only got a spot on the roster because of daddy. He has no future with this team… There’s no way Silas gives him anything but garbage time.
by ad0131065 on Jan 10, 2012 2:44 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
That was about to get sent to the d-league
but MJ saved him. You dont know what the guy can do. Ben Wallace, Jamario Moon, Reggie Evans, Chuck Hayes, Carlos Aroyyo, Azubuike, Chucky Atkins, Mike James, Bruce Bowen, Avery Johnson, Udonis Haslem, Avery Johnson, Brad Miller, John Starks, David Wesley, Raja Bell all were undrafted. And they all have contributed nicely in the NBA. You telling me, u’d rather play Carroll.
I dont see why we didnt put him in the game yesterday when Shumpert was killing us on both ends of the floor. I thought thats what we got him for right.?
rather see him play than Carroll now
DJ and Kemba at PG
Gerald and Higgins SG
Diaw at Brown (Higgins could also play)SF
TT and White at PF
Mullens and Biyombo (Diaw at times)
Tyrus has not yet earned his spot over White.
But I think bc White plays so well that he is now secretly being showcased. He will be traded I hope. He is not the type of PF that he was projected to be or that we or Chicago hoped for. I like PFs like Taj Gibson. DJ White is perfect as a backup. So Im all for showcasing Thomas. BUT, I’ll wait til the deadline to see if him playing was a bad decision. As a matter of fact, BB would be perfect as a starting PF. The improvement that he’s shown and what he does is exactly what I like outta PFs. DJ playing over Kemba is fine with me bc he too needs to be SHOWCASED, Maybe teams will consider him bc Nelson stinks, Deron aint comin back, TP is gettin old ect. Im going to wait til the deadline before I put a verdict out on Silas’ coaching. But if we dont trade these guys then it was all for nothing. Carroll has no value. NONE. So lets play Higgins please.
Nine games in! Time to start wishing we had drafted Norris Cole over Kemba Walker, I guess? SOUNDS REASONABLE
Lemonade was a popular drink and it still is,
I get more props and stunts than Bruce Willis
- Guru, of Gangstarr
I think it's safe to say at this point that Bismack is a bust and that it may be
time for us to move on from Kemba.
LOL.
1. “We didn’t need Kemba…”. Really?? This team had and still has no identity. Kemba is a PROVEN leader and WINNER. Augustin did nothing in college. Augustin brings nothing to the table. Augustin has had his chance. It’s time to move on. For those that say Kemba is the same as Augustin, I just smh. Kemba is exciting, he brings energy, he creates his own shot, he draws fouls, he has LEADERSHIP qualities, he can bring a winning attitude to this team, he can take over a game, he’s proven he can be clutch time and time again. Augustin has reached his ceiling. His numbers are a PRODUCT OF DEFAULT. They didn’t want to resign Felton and Livingston was not given a fair chance.
2. This is not a rebuilding year. The only NEW additions to this team were Kemba & Bismack. That’s it. Augustin, Diaw, Thomas, White, Carroll, Diop, Najera, Henderson all have been here at least a year. Mullens, Williams, Maggette have NBA experience.
3. I really don’t see Silas’ reasoning for not playing the rookies more. This same, tired, inconsistent starting line up has netted you a 2-7 record. This team is going to be bad anyways, so why not give them some NBA learning experience? He is the NBA version of John Fox at this point.
4. Maybe if Walker got the same MINUTES as Cole is getting in Miami, we would see a difference. Kemba WILL NEVER BE EFFECTIVE HERE COMING OFF THE BENCH. He needs touches, he needs to be in the game at clutch moments.
"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
I don't agree with your views on DJ
as I think he still has improvement to go (he has already improved from last year to this year) and I think he adds alot to our team as currently constructed.
Geelong Cats for Premiers 2011 (Completed)
Rich Cho - lead us to the promised land (In Process)
2. This is not a rebuilding year.
Yes, it most certainly is.
by Panthers FTW on Jan 10, 2012 6:19 PM EST up reply actions
I still like kemba but we should decide now
I am all in on Kemba.
Silas is the same as Larry Brown...
only difference is, Silas let’s them shoot more and doesn’t punish missed shots. Now that I think about it, that’s even worse.
You know, I never was one of those folks that thought Jordan was a bad choice as owner of this team, but now, I’m starting to see this all starts from the top. The terrible draft choices, the awful tv deals, the same “somehow tied to North Carolina or Jordan in some way” coaching staff. It’s all just starting to look really bad now.
They really need a new, fresh start. A young, hungry coach with fresh ideas. They need assistants that can teach basic post moves and positioning down low. All the forwards and centers on this team want to be shooting guards.
"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
Game was blacked out on League Pass
So I didn’t get to see it, but from the stat line it appears I need to repent of my snarkiness toward Ben in the pregame thread about Chandler. Mea culpa.
You stat guys kill me w simply feeding us stats wo any further analysis. My problem w kemba and dj was specifically that they didnt get assists in the paint. And they dont or cant. In all fairness, dj got in the paint on the break and half ct stes in the last atlanta game to the tune of 12 so its simply lack of intent w him. They shoot first, pass second . Thats not the role of a tru pt gd esp on a team w few players whom can create their own shot.
More importantly, the pt gd list w assist averages means little if the asissts are perimetter asissts!!!! You have to look and see whos getn in the paint and dishing. Rose, on your list does not get in the paint and playmake. He does the same thing kemba n dj do , namely try to selfishly finish himself. Thats a huge reason why the heat beat them in the playoffs as good as rose is..
Agin, the mvp pt gds playmake in the paint in half ct sets and dish in the paint on the break. Until one of them does that their not doing their job. Dont tell me about scoring or perimeter asissts ..bring in guys like rhondo, nash,paul, derron, norris cole even bc their tru blu pt gds that get in the paint and create easy buckets to the tune damn nr double digit numbers any nite its needed.
Last night we had Chandler roaming the paint
And who on our team is going to finish around the rim so DJ and Kemba can get assists in the paint? Diop? Biyombo? Diaw with his 8 inch vertical? Mullens just shoots jump shots, Diop and Biymobo can’t score, Tyrus thinks he’s a SF, Diaw is not exactly a powerful finisher, Brown has no offensive touch, Maggette needs to hold the ball a minimum of 3 seconds before he decides what to do with it, DJ White isn’t athletic or strong enough to be consistent in the paint, and Matt Carroll is just Matt Carroll. They really don’t have many options to get assists to besides perimeter scoring.
In all fairness, there exist other major problems. No asissts in the paint can make them winners .
But the cats are soft at center. We have no one protecting the paint . Teams go inside at will . The cats didnt go inside against howard,tyson ,the pacers center and the heat. We need such presence. Busmack is too small. Thomas too. Both are shot blockers but cant protect the paint. Mulkens is too weak. Hes good on offense but as of late, his arc on shots way too flat.
Theres no sf either. Whats just as huge as no assists in the paint is theres no pick and role. This will get silas fired. Dj n kemba are too small . Defenses can stop them easily in the pik n roll and know whats about to unfold ..get a bigger guard n forward to run this and run it like stockton n malone did all game every game. Hendo n white.
The fact that theres no pik n roll should get silas fired. He or his staff have to include this in the offense and theres no excuse. This pik w diaw n dj resulting in one of them stepping bak n firining a long prayer three is a joke. Then silas grimaces. I like him. Really but u can reduce your grimacing by implementing the above huge staples ..
Two things
First of all, it’s not like there’s a wealth of available talent just sitting out there waiting for us to pick them up and improve our team. We have to make do with what we’ve got.
Secondly, did you really just say we needed a bigger PG to run the pick and role and then proceed use 6’1" 175 lb John Stockton as an example? He’s the same size as Kemba and DJ.
Hahahaha
The Stockton/Malone pick and roll worked…because it was frickin Stockton and the Mailman!! Top 50 all time players. Argues ly the best passer ever, dishing to arguably the best scoring PF ever. Dog, I could run an efficient p&r if I was dropping it off to Karl. As was said, if you have to pass for assists to Diop, Mullens, Diaw, Bismack… They aren’t scoters at the rim. You are asking them to build a Lego Millenium Falcon out of Lincoln Logs!!! Don’t work.
by mives36 on Jan 10, 2012 11:46 AM EST via mobile up reply actions
Those of you who have given up on our rookies after only 9 games, are absolutely insane
This is how I roll, animal print pants out control.
by southtunnel on Jan 10, 2012 9:15 AM EST via mobile reply actions
Thank you
Our fans are getting dumb. I mean seriously people they are rookies and with no offseason. Im seeing some dude talk about how he never like Kemba and im just thinking who cares he is on the team now so stop bashing and root for him because he is our franchise PG.
I hate to say it, but Larry Brown would have been great for Kemba
LB was a teacher and ex- point guard. He would have been all over Kemba about choosing better shots and playing the position the right way. And unlike DJ, Kemba has the thick skin to tolerate LB.
This is how I roll, animal print pants out control.
by southtunnel on Jan 10, 2012 9:23 AM EST via mobile reply actions
People seem to forget AI
got instant burn,,,
A.I was a scoring machine and he was still bigger than Kemba
A.I only played 2 years of college ball and was a phenom out the gate, Kemba had to build his name up and wasn’t really considered a lottery type talent until his senior year. A.I also played with much better competition.
by Mr Goodlove on Jan 10, 2012 12:57 PM EST up reply actions
Not only that...
It was the Answer!!! I mean. He had a whole persona that didnt exsist at the time in the league. He was the little, tough streets kid from Bad News, VA who played football and beat anuses at bowling alleys. He was tatted. Doo-ragged. His attitude didn’t allow you NOT to play him…from Day 1.
I mean, to this day the old guy would rather hoop in Bolivia than have to take minutes off the bench in the NBA. He is just a different type of player than has been….
by mives36 on Jan 10, 2012 1:58 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
I think as of right now, we need to get rid of all the Barnes talk...
And the rebuilding stuff, no matter how much we lose, we are still not guaranteed any winning lottery top #5 spot! We should save that until after the fixed NBA lotto happens…
We have the right to talk about what we want
Dont reply if you dont like it.
by TS BOBCAT on Jan 10, 2012 3:21 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
You wanna know something really sad
Last night on the game thread MP didnt have anything to do with us until he saw Kemba struggling. That.dude was so EXCITED to see Kemba struggling he had to get online and bug us about how he was right. What fan gets excited and brags when a player on his team struggles? The man or whatever it is not a fanand should not be allowed to continue to post here. But im sure nothing will be done about it as usual because we refuse to ban people awho deserve it even after he was already banned from another site for this kind of behavior. Also out was funny he stopped commenting after Kemba turned it on.
He also goes through every comment and rec'ds everything that says anything bad about Kemba
And I know he is the one doing it because on his profile it says it under recent activity. Who goes and does this if he is hoping a player does well?
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