The One Where Boris Diaw Dunked and the Bobcats Were Downed 102-90
by BrandonBecker on Feb 16, 2012 12:11 AM EST
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PrintAnother game and another loss for the Charlotte Bobcats. The losing streak has reached 16 games after Minnesota shook off the Bobcats with a late third quarter run and never looked back. Turnovers, poor shooting and ultimately a lack of talent doomed Charlotte once again.
The Bobcats got to see how dominant Kevin Love can be up close and personal on Wednesday night. Love was a hound on the boards grabbing 18 to go with 30 points. It wasn't just Love who was causing problems for the Bobcats though, Nikola Pekovic was a pain in the rear in the low post finishing with a double-double (21 points and 11 rebounds).
Charlotte got off to a strong start behind five Kemba Walker points and took a 15-6 lead. From there the Wolves battled back and the game was an up and down affair. Neither team was able to put together a stretch and seize momentum without the other team answering right back. The Bobcats held a five-point lead after the first quarter and would cling to a two-point lead heading into the locker room.
Easily the highlight of the first half was Boris Diaw's driving dunk that looked like it would end up being a simple layup, but instead the Frenchman channeled his inner Blake Griffin and threw down a thunderous dunk. OK, maybe it wasn't that great of a dunk but it was still pretty awesome to see.
Everything was going well for the Bobcats up until the final three minutes of the third quarter. Ricky Rubio nailed a jumper and was fouled, which would spark a 12-0 run to end the quarter. The final minutes of the quarter pretty much summed up Charlotte's season in a nutshell. There were turnovers, poor shooting and just an overall ineptitude displayed by the team.
For those that decided to turn off the TV after the third quarter you didn't miss much. The Wolves got the lead up to 19 twice and J.J. Barea nailed a 30-foot 3-pointer as the shot clock expired, which was the icing on the cake. What was so disappointing about the awful end to the third quarter, and the lackluster fourth quarter, was that through 33 minutes the game was quite enjoyable.
The pace was up and down and the quality of play was above average. Unfortunately, for the Bobcats, they let off the gas and the Wolves ran them out of the building. For those looking for positives you might want to look elsewhere.
3 Studs
Kevin Love: It's a joy to watch Love play basketball. He isn't flashy but he does all of the little things and is relentless rebounding the ball. The Wolves should feel fortunate to have this guy on their team for the next three years or so.
Kemba Walker: Walker isn't a pure point guard at this stage in his career and he may never be. But one thing he can do is score the basketball. He finished with 21 points on 9-of-17 shooting and made some things happen on the offensive end. It would be nice if he created more opportunities for his teammates, yet it's hard to blame him with talent level he is being asked to play with.
Nikola Pekovic: Not the biggest name in the NBA world, but Pekovic is a hard worker and had his way with Bismack Biyombo throughout the game. Pekovic does an excellent job of sealing his defender and establishing good position on the block. He may not be a double-double machine like Love, but he is rounding into a player.
3 Duds
Bismack Biyombo: Picking on Biyombo isn't fun for me but he didn't have a strong game. Pekovic and Love routinely overpowered him on the block and established great position. Throw in the fact that Biyombo missed four free throws and airballed a fadeaway jumper and you have a poor night.
Wes Johnson: Johnson has talent, yet his confidence level seems to get in the way of him playing well. He finished with nine points which is decent by his standards, although he missed all four of his 3-point attempts. If Johnson isn't going to make shots he doesn't add much to the game.
Byron Mullens: Mullens is so bad on defense that it makes me long for the days of Adam Morrison. The seven-foot center snared one rebound in 11 minutes of action and missed all four of his attempts. Need I say more?
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had to rewind it a couple of times to make sure he didn’t jump off someone’s back
did this dude just did this
by OldschoolBlue on Feb 16, 2012 7:17 PM EST up reply actions
Some other positives
Augustin is back, Tyrus Thomas didn’t play much, and DBrown had a decent game
Boone Logan is a good boy. So is David Robertson. Team A.J.
The thing That intrigues me the most is
if Maggette can continue to put points up like this for the next 3 weeks, how big of a chance do we have of moving him at the deadline? Im just really looking at Maggs in Boston, LAL or ATL…being that those two teams can offer us expiring contracts…
Boston: O’neal and Dooling and a 1st for Maggs…????
Clippers: Randy Foye (exp)..Eric Bledsoe (3yrs 1.4mil) Brian Cook for Maggs…
ATL: Kirk H. and Vlad Rad and 1st for Maggs…
This is if he keeps up the top notch performances consistently…
i can't see derrick brown starting
so whatever trade we do, it needs to be for a SF in return as well
although, honestly, trading maggs away is gonna give us more room this off-season – there are some really good free agents, but outside of deron williams and dwight howard, only 2 or 3 worth bidding a lot on – in other words, his salary doesn’t necessarily hurt us and he’s playing well enough, there’s little need to trade him
if we want to trade him, we’d get more out of him as an expiring next season, and by then (june 30th) we’ll know what howard and williams are doing
right now, our priority should be figuring out a way to move tyrus, preferably for an expiring, even if it means giving up a future pick
boston would never give up that much for maggette
maybe dooling and a second rounder.
Boone Logan is a good boy. So is David Robertson. Team A.J.
i could have sworn wes johnson hit a three
from the lower corner
did they change it to a two or something?
Walker takes very good care of the ball.
I’m sure we’d ALL like to see his assists go up, but you never see a very high turnover count from him.
I typically pay little attention to the Plus/Minus stat, because there are so many variables that go into that stat besides that one player’s individual contributions….BUT, Diop played only six minutes (Gawd, it seemed like forever ever), and ended up at -11, second lowest on the team. Of course, someone could immediately point to Higgins being tied for highest plus/minus on our team (+4) and shoot my rant down to the ground. It just seemed everything fell apart when Gana checked in.
Sure as hell wish Mullens can figure out his shot.
It’s a shame we wasted Diaw’s bi-monthly good effort game on a loss. Oh well, there’s always April.
"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
And as abused as Biz got...
By Pek and Love…him and his undeterable effort go to the pine…and the gane runs away.
Ben put up a nice Fanshot about Biz. His stats are truely decieving. I’ve said it before, he absolutely changes the opponents offensive attack and adds fire to our boys. Watch the games!!!! (it can hurt, but the young guys are actually fun to watch….give it a whirl!!)
by mives36 on Feb 16, 2012 12:01 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
I haven't missed a game yet.
As dreadful as the games have been, I’ve witnessed (the majority of) every one. I have faith my dedication will pay off in the years to come.
"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
his assists will go up when he doesn't have to do all the scoring
Boone Logan is a good boy. So is David Robertson. Team A.J.
O'Really?
Against Philly, Diaw had 10 assists…and TWO points. Last night, Diaw had 7 assists, and 4 of our starters scored in double digits. I can’t remember the last time that happened.
I’m really excited to see Walker grow as an NBA point guard, but right now, he’s just not a very consistent distributor.
"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'm not sure how this applies to my assertion
because diaw had a couple of good passing games, kemba’s not a very consistent distributor?
Boone Logan is a good boy. So is David Robertson. Team A.J.
I was trying to provide a few examples of how one can have a good number of assists without doing "all the scoring."
(or any of the scoring, in Diaw’s case)
To clarify, Kemba not being a very consistent distributor has nothing to do with DIaw having a few good passing games. Kemba has had a decent amount of passing games, also.
Don’t get me wrong; I’m not burying our rookie. I just hope to seem him grow as a distributor (no more than four assists in 22 out of 29 games).
"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
seem = see
"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
exactly
it’s not as if the rest of the team hasn’t scored at all
i think people tend to undervalue assists
forgetting that every assist was worth at least 2 points on the board
when steve nash has a 10 pt 15 assist night, he was still directly responsible for at least 40 points
to put that in a different context
using only 2 pointers, since the 3 pointer wasn’t always around, John Stockton was directly responsible for 51,323 points in the NBA. The NBA’s all time leading scorer, Kareem? 49,707.
More than Oscar or Magic.
As far as I can tell, John Stockton is the only player in NBA history responsible for more than 50,000 points.
I think you're overstating the importance of the assist
Steve Nash is a 2 time MVP. NBA culture doesn’t undervalue the assist. In fact, I think we sometimes hold too much reverence for the statistic because it’s somehow come to be viewed as the humble man’s contribution to the game as opposed to the gaudy players who have the audacity to score a lot of points.
Assists are important, very important, but an assist doesn’t constitute the same accomplishment as a made basket. The team witht the most assists wins nothing according to the official rules of the game. Furthermore, there’s a fuzzy nature to how valuable an assist is. Did a player earning an assist make a really skilled play where his teammate couldn’t help but score, or did he make a simple pass to a teammate who hit a tough shot? Scored baskets are far more concrete in terms of importance to the game. This “directly responsible for over 50,000 points” stuff is a little over the top in my opinion.
by Basketball Rambler on Feb 16, 2012 3:05 PM EST up reply actions
"the team with the most assists wins nothing according to the offical rules of the game."
This is true, but my post had nothing to do with team stats at all, and everything to do with individual stats. A player can just as easily score 40 points and not guaruntee that his team is going to win.
However, of the bottom 10 teams in assist %, only 1 has a winning record (Memphis) and 6 of the bottom 7 are Indiana, Toronto, Charlotte, New Orleans, Sacramento and Detroit.
If a player makes an assist, regardless of how the basket is scored, he gets an assist. Without that pass, that particular score wouldn’t have happened. Certainly, NBA guys value assists because they understand how important it is, but my statement about undervaluing assists was geared more to fans. Remember how many people complained about Nash winning the MVP? Of course, you basically proved my point for me in that regard, anyway.
I don't wish to imply that assists have no relationship to winning or good individual performance
I certainly would not argue the importance of setting up your teammates for easy buckets. However, you can’t equate assists as being fundamentally a made basket for the player recording the assist. Assists and baskets are often related, but entirely seperate concepts. That’s why your statement about Stockton is misleading. Let’s just let him be the assists king and not try to make it any more than that.
We don’t need to get into a pissing contest over who’s the most informed NBA fan. I never said Nash didn’t deserve anything award he’s recieved. I said that the NBA and NBA fans tend to recognize the importance of assists. You’re sort of arguing with a ghost to say there’s some hypothetical “other” who doesn’t value assists. I simply think you’re overstating the value.
by Basketball Rambler on Feb 16, 2012 3:28 PM EST up reply actions
i was suggesting fans in general
underestimate assists, and using your own argument, plus the general backlash of nash’s mvp runs, as my point
no third party involved
but you think i’m overstating the value of assists when i say that assists are directly related to 2 points scored, i don’t, so be it
you didn't contrast my position at all
of course one can have a good number of assists without doing all the scoring…i think that’s the exact point i’m making. what i’m saying is if kemba didn’t have to do the majority of the scoring, he passes more and his assist numbers go up.
for the stretch without maggette and augustin (and the recent games without henderson) there would have been no offense whatsoever if kemba was looking to pass first, shoot later. surround kemba with consistent scorers and his assists will increase – it’s a pretty simple formula. for a high profile example, take a look at jeremy lin. he assumed the role of leading scorer until amare came back and now he’s a worthy distributor (even though he never was before now).
Boone Logan is a good boy. So is David Robertson. Team A.J.
except he has led NY in assists in every game he's played
during their win streak
he was averaging 8 assists per game without amare while leading the knicks in scoring in each
in other words
he was a great distributor before now (once got 4 assists in 6 minutes this season before Linsanity) and this is a terrible example to compare to kemba walker
this is not a terrible example
even before amare came back the knicks have had people lin could confidently pass to who would score. kemba does not have that at all. now that amare’s back, lin goes for 13 assists.
by before now i meant before his stint with the knicks. he’s not a natural true point guard, just like kemba isn’t. at his peak in college, lin averaged 4.5 assists with 16 ppg. he’s naturally a score first pg but has learned on the fly to trust his teammates who can score on their own.
Boone Logan is a good boy. So is David Robertson. Team A.J.
you can't possibly be comparing Jeremy Lin's college career to Kemba Walker's pro career
whatever, i’m not going to get into another long argument where I provide irrefutable evidence to back up my point, but it still manages to go on for 40 posts regardless
lol your home must have custom door frames
to fit that ego of yours through it
Boone Logan is a good boy. So is David Robertson. Team A.J.
i'm right a lot more than i'm not
but since you insist….
you’re either comparing jeremy lin as a pro to kemba walker as a pro (kemba has had more games, and way more minutes, btw), and if so, saying lin was a bad distributer is a terrible example because it’s not true
or you’re comparing jeremy lin’s college career to kemba’s pro career, and that’s a terrible example for comparison standards since you’re comparing apples to oranges
my mommy says i know better than you do
jesus man, drop the superiority complex
i’m comparing jeremy lin the complete player to kemba the complete player. college and pro. see below for rationale.
Boone Logan is a good boy. So is David Robertson. Team A.J.
or here's a better idea
don’t come on sports blogs and post contrarion ideas and then expect people to just shrug and move on
no one expects you to agree with everyone all the time, that would be boring, but it’s a fair request that if you post something against the grain and someone asks “why” you should be able to explain yourself
lol you're hilarious - i've provided my argument and your refuse to acknowledge it because you're the all-knowing sports blog god
if you would kindly remove your head from the sand, you can see that I’m not making a ridiculous claim at all. in fact, i would think that a majority of people would agree with me. you should heed your own advice.
here is my rationale for you AGAIN:
even before amare came back the knicks have had people lin could confidently pass to who would score. kemba does not have that at all. now that amare’s back, lin goes for 13 assists.
lin is not a natural true point guard, just like kemba isn’t. at his peak in college, lin averaged 4.5 assists with 16 ppg. he’s naturally a score first pg but has learned on the fly to trust his teammates who can score on their own.
My argument isn’t too difficult and is pretty rational:
Lin has always been a shoot first player. Kemba has always been a shoot first player. Lin has good talent around him. Lin has become a better passing point guard. If Kemba had better supporting talent, he could becoming a better passing point guard.
Boone Logan is a good boy. So is David Robertson. Team A.J.
i'm sorry but what about this statment
he assumed the role of leading scorer until amare came back and now he’s a worthy distributor (even though he never was before now).
suggests that lin was a worthy distributer before amare came back or even “before now”…. he’s always been a good distributer in the NBA, regardless of what he did at Harvard
meanwhile, Kemba Walker has not been a good distributer in the NBA, despite more games and more minutes to learn to do so
so once again, comparing Jeremy Lin to Kemba Walker is a bad comparison
just so there's no confusion
this has already gotten out of hand anyway and i should’ve just let it go
my issue is with you saying that Jeremy Lin isn’t or wasn’t or hasn’t been a “worthy distributer” as a score first PG, comparing him to Kemba in that regard
However, Leremy Lin has always been a good distributer, at least by NBA standards. It’s not like he became a good passer overnight. He was getting over 5 assists per 36 with Golden State, too. Yes, Jeremy Lin was probably a score first point guard at Harvard and has been a score first point guard with New York. But he has the size and skills necessary to be a true point guard if that is what is called upon him.
So, in my opinion, any like comparisons between him and Kemba in that regard just aren’t realistic.
Do I think the Bobcats would be any better with Jeremy Lin instead of Kemba Walker? Yes, I do, because I think he’s proven himself a smarter player. Would he get anywhere near the same numbers he does in NY? Of course not.
Although in fairness
Lin is turning the ball over at an alarmingly high rate too.
6 feet of Smooth
by Bring Back Primoz on Feb 16, 2012 4:55 PM EST up reply actions
indeed
although a good bit of those are from driving the lane and not getting fouls called
He needs to learn how to flail his arms and scream
6 feet of Smooth
by Bring Back Primoz on Feb 16, 2012 5:16 PM EST up reply actions
don't use quotes when i never made that argument
i just said he was a shoot first pg, not that he wasn’t a “worthy distributor.” i think kemba and lin are both worthy distributors. i think the fact that kemba has such low turnover numbers of indicative as such.
Boone Logan is a good boy. So is David Robertson. Team A.J.
Mikey D does tend to make point guards look really good.
Felton had the best 3 months of his career in NY.
by Basketball Rambler on Feb 16, 2012 3:08 PM EST up reply actions
i'll concede the point
but let’s be honest – jeremy lin has way more talent around him than kemba walker does.
Boone Logan is a good boy. So is David Robertson. Team A.J.
That's the exact idea that I wished to support by bringing up Felton's time in NY
Not just the talent on the Knicks, but the system and the coach.
That’s not to say that Lin isn’t playing great and that Walker couldn’t stand to pass the ball more. But you’re right that the circumstances are different for Walker and Lin. We should take that into account when comparing the two.
by Basketball Rambler on Feb 16, 2012 3:18 PM EST up reply actions
Thank you for a rationale, calm, reasonable response
I really appreciate having a conversation without being summarily dismissed simply because I have a different opinion. +1
Boone Logan is a good boy. So is David Robertson. Team A.J.
most people here never dismiss an opinion
we question their rationality, but not dismiss them unless a reason is given to do so
if you give an opinion that is contrary to public opinion then you should be ready to back it up, is all, because basically, what you’re saying is, “i disagree with all of you”
i provided statistical analysis and you refused to respond
basically by saying “F you, you’re not even worth my time of posting statistics because I know I’m right and refuse to acknowledge that someone may have a reasonable position other than mine”
My argument isn’t too difficult and is pretty rationale:
Lin has always been a shoot first player. Kemba has always been a shoot first player. Lin has good talent around him. Lin has become a better passing point guard. If Kemba had better supporting talent, he could becoming a better passing point guard.
Boone Logan is a good boy. So is David Robertson. Team A.J.
i'm sorry what stat did you post?
that jeremy lin only got 4.5 assists in college means he’s a shoot first pg?
that was the post i decided not to argue because i knew it could go on and would waste my time… since i can sit here and compare stats from a bunch of point guards and their assist ratio
but instead of doing that, i’ll just post this one simple phrase:
By your own standards, Jeremy Lin getting 4.5 assists in college at Harvard is paramount to Kemba Walker getting 3.6 assists as a pro.
I’m not arguing that Jeremy Lin is a better player than Kemba Walker, I’m saying that Jeremy Lin has always been an adequate distributer.
Meanwhile, Kemba Walker isn’t even the second best distributer on our team.
COLLEGE AVERAGE PER GAME
Jeremy Lin 3.5 Assists
Kemba Walker 4.1 Assists
Jeremy Lin 12.9 PPG
Kemba Walker 16.1 PPG
Jeremy Lin 1.8 Turnovers/game
Kemba Walker 1.8 Turnovers/game
PRO AVERAGE PER GAME
Jeremy Lin (with Knicks) 5.1 Assists
Kemba Walker 3.6 Assists
Jeremy Lin (with Knicks) 12.7 PPG
Kemba Walker 13.1 PPG
Jeremy Lin (with Knicks) 2.8 Turnovers/game
Kemba Walker 1.9 Turnovers/game
NUMBER OF PLAYERS SCORING AT LEAST 10 PPG (minimum 15 games)
Knicks: 6
Bobcats: 4
2011-2012 TEAM FG%
Knicks: .432%
Bobcats: .416%
I’d say the college stats are quite similar, but don’t forget Lin played in the garbage (for basketball) Ivy League and Kemba played in the powerhouse Big East. I’d be willing to bet if Kemba played for the Knicks his assists would be right in line with Lin’s and he would have fewer turnovers. Of course this is a hypothetical which couldn’t actually be achieved, but I hold to it. Additionally, don’t forget that Kemba has some time logged at the 2 guard spot, which means he wasn’t the primary distributor and thus decreased his assists/game ratio.
Boone Logan is a good boy. So is David Robertson. Team A.J.
Your argument is fine
You just provided very limited evidence that really didn’t do much to back up your stance. That’s what adam is saying.
I didn't think it would be so controversial
to suggest if Kemba had the supporting cast that Lin has that he would have higher assist numbers.
Boone Logan is a good boy. So is David Robertson. Team A.J.
no one argued that point
you said something rediculous and then doubled back and tried to say you meant something else
fair enough lol
my bad on that one. it’s been spaced out so long that i forgot i said that. i honestly don’t mind if you disagree with me man, it’s gonna happen, just please watch your tone – i don’t deserve to be talked down to. you’re obviously a smart guy who follows the game and is a fan of the team just as i am, so let’s see each other as allies instead of enemies.
Boone Logan is a good boy. So is David Robertson. Team A.J.
wait i meant for this to be reply to the quote
Boone Logan is a good boy. So is David Robertson. Team A.J.
I did argue this point.
“surround kemba with consistent scorers and his assists will increase – it’s a pretty simple formula. for a high profile example, take a look at jeremy lin.”
Boone Logan is a good boy. So is David Robertson. Team A.J.
actually i made this point several times
Boone Logan is a good boy. So is David Robertson. Team A.J.
and i never argued that if kemba
had better talent, he’d get more assists, that’s a given
i apologize if i came off as arrogant or condescending, sometimes i get too worked up over something that doesn’t affect my life in any way, shape or form
i was a season ticket holder last season and declined to renew this season, so i have considerably less invested in the bobcats other than my own fandom and sometimes i forget that
the only true comparison you can make between them
is how they perform in isolation situations
i don’t have any numbers to support this, but from what I’ve seen, Jeremy Lin is certainly better than Kemba in this regard, but Kemba is no slouch himself, especially when he drives, which he needs to do more of.
To be fair (and I love Lin's game so I'm not knocking the guy)
Lin has a pick and roll veteran in Tyson Chandler. He also has solid shooters on the wings able to hit open jumpers. Lin’s doing great things. He’s certainly playing better than Walker right now. No one can say that Walker would be playing just as well were he in NY (I certainly don’t believe this to be true), but we should recognize that varying circumstances do influence performance. That’s all.
by Basketball Rambler on Feb 16, 2012 3:38 PM EST up reply actions
i didn't mean to sound like i was disagreeing with you
unless you were just explaining yourself further
i just meant, because of their different situations, any comparisons would be moot, except iso, since that involves no teammates
just because lin is better at iso than kemba (maybe?) doesn’t mean i was suggesting he’s a better player than kemba by that statement
but, he is a better player than kemba
diaw has more assists per game than kemba does
but only 9% of his assists have gone to kemba walker this season
meaning boris is finding more assists (4.0 per game) with the same talent kemba is, without even taking out kemba’s assists to boris diaw
I may be wrong
But this is just what I see. It seems we run our offense through multiple individuals, not just the point guard. Sometimes Kemba initiates the offense, sometimes Reggie Williams does it, and sometimes we run the offense through Boris Diaw in the high post. So it’s not surprising that Diaw gets so many assists because he has the ball in his hands frequently with the offense set up for him to distribute.
CANADIAN PAIN TOMORROW ?
Thank you Mr. DeRozan may I have another !!!
by chris in union county on Feb 16, 2012 4:44 PM EST reply actions
At least the Bobcats were on Sportscenter today.
I don't want to draft Michael Brockers or Devon Still. Member of the Copleites
by Son of a Newton on Feb 16, 2012 7:02 PM EST reply actions
I just saw that
We got our own little mini-segment talking about how bad we are.
Seeing it just filled me with joy.
The sad thing is that we can't get on TV any other way.
ACC Championship Member Brandon Thompson is the new Jacoby Ford. You better pick him Panthers or you will be doomed to relive the 2010 season over and over again in the Twilight Zone.
Clemson 2011 ACC Champions! Look forward to doing it again next year! :D
+1
I don't want to draft Michael Brockers or Devon Still. Kreider is the future.
by Son of a Newton on Feb 17, 2012 3:31 PM EST up reply actions
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