Cash Games Out West Continue to Bankrupt Us...
So despite not being dealt much of a hand, we flopped what appeared to be a winner against Golden State. Unfortunately, we were trumped at the river (the Baron's 11 point fourth quarter)...and gave up a pot that was all but ours. It was one we really needed.
Ah, Golden State. As celebrated as Don Nelson's coaching comeback may seem, this team is very flawed: they have absolutely nothing inside...and playing without Troy Murphy seemed like a crippling proposition. G State played a BS zone most of the game, which served to limit Bosh's comfort in the high post, and, in this way, the zone was quite effective for, say, the first quarter. Even in the future, GS's aggressive double and triple teams should force opposing star bigs to give up the ball. But this team just cannot rebound...actually missing against them is good offense if you have a talented post...Bosh got 22 rebounds...by himself. And for the record, our 'Franchise' deserves waaaaay more respect from the refs against what is effectively a D-League frontline (because you know the rest of our team won't get it).
The G-State guards have a very small margin of error which will get tighter and tighter amongst the better teams. Sure they will surprise teams...even good ones (I mean, Detroit did spank the Lackers the previous night...). But I just don't see them in the playoffs in the Western Confernece (and I like Baron...) and even if they do make it, they will get crushed in the first round.
Like I said, we had this game...
So to review from yesterday...what happened as per the 3 points of Raptor issue:
1. Defense: Well, played it sporadically...perimeter rotation effective against some of their less talented shooters (not not looking at you, Pietrus...), but we gave up 50-odd 'points in the paint' according to the broadcast. And it damn sure wasn't their bigs. Their guards got inside. A lot. We did a great job on Baron most of the game(11 points on 17 shots until the third), but the 11 in the fourth were on driving lay-ups or open 3's. Sigh. Oh and their secondary scorer: we got done in by Dunleavy. Dunleavy, dammit. 22 for quite possibly the least gully player in the entire NBA. JRich, Monta and Roberson all had moments as well...Monta did it down the stretch tho.
2. Rebounding: Why we shoulda won. Outrebounded them 53 to 42...there were times in the third where Bosh and Garbajosa (yes, he actually came inside the three point line) were playing volleyball with each other. And this with Bosh being the target of some really tacky off the ball calls while fighting for position. Considering the closeness of the game, the refs made some terrible calls down the stretch, in general: quick whistles on one end and total free-for-all contact on the other (unless the offense was reprimanded somehow...so much flopping on the jumping out of picks, I thought I was watching an Italian soccer team practicing...). Guess who got the worse end of things...but not to worry, after the double-digit lead was built, the make-up calls started rollin' in...
3. The Number 2 Scorer: Considering the game was done with a few minutes left, it's hard to take the box score seriously. Still, Ford was the only non-Bosh to crack 15 (by one...). The thing is this...we did not score a field goal for more than five of the final 6-7 minutes of the game. Bosh was regularly getting tripled by the GS BS zone (Nellie's GSBSZ).
Parker had a solid if not unspectacular 15, as usual. Too many three attempts down the stretch. Jones (11 as a starter) dried up like the Sahara in the fourth...same thing. Ford made some ill-advised drives considering he wasn't gonna get a call to save his family in the fourth. Sadly, Calderon's shooting may have helped here (he was rooted to the bench). But, again, nobody to step up and be a presence on the offensive end...somebody who can at least force the defense to play somewhat honest on Bosh. Oh, and where was MoPete you ask? Listen, MoPete would have a better chance putting up numbers if someone spun a wheel on the sideline to tell him whether to shoot or not per possession (for the record, he made his first two shots and nothing else)...his shot selection is that clueless. The half-court offense is a sham (good thing we run...uh, yeah). There's little to execute. Either we get hot and hit some shots or we don't. That's our non-Bosh offense. Rasho invisibility was finally cancelled out by Garbajosa visibility...he even made a cut to the basket for a lay-up...hell, he even drove to the basket. Once. And scored. Wouldn't have believed it if they didn't show the replay.
Did I mention Dunleavy had 22...alright then. Did I mention he makes these facial expressions while playing...?
In this game, the Raptors were most effective with three guards and Bosh and Jorge up front. But there was not enough chemistry to overcome playing in a non-existent half-court set...especially during crunch time. Hopefully that 'running' game will kick in, anytime now. ANY time...
Two things are certain right now. We are the worst team in the Lig at scoring from out of a time out (you're welcome, Knicks...Isiah...hi five). And it's looking bleak in the short term...the Lackers on Friday, back to back with the high-altitude Nuggets. Then, what will be a sure pasting by Sloan's boys (best...team...in...Lig?). Maybe Kobe will completely vex his team by trying to re-create past glory...that might be our only chance, because although we can play teams close...we just can't execute in the clutch at both ends. Milwaukee must be pretty tight right now...
Oh and one last ray of sunshine. For people clamoring for more Bargnani: son got punked repeatedly by, what is most likely, the worst front-line in the NBA. Biedrins would have never had a double-double (14 and12) if Bargnani not been guarding him for stretches. This is not on-the-court learning. Taking a bad shot and subsequently taking a better one next chance is on-the-court learning. Letting a Russian roughly your age, man-handle you around the basket is not. You should not play if you allow teams to repeatedly get offensive rebounds. These are effort plays, not talent plays. I said it before...he should earn his play on the defensive end and learn on the offensive one...being a flat out defensive liability is not an option. Prove you're not one in practice. There's no point in just putting him out there. I don't care how many minutes whichever rookie gets. Understand, people. That's why it's called player development. Hopefully, he will develop. But when you're not ready...you're just not ready. The "Sam watch" is still going...where's Bobby Knight when you need him?
Ah, Golden State. As celebrated as Don Nelson's coaching comeback may seem, this team is very flawed: they have absolutely nothing inside...and playing without Troy Murphy seemed like a crippling proposition. G State played a BS zone most of the game, which served to limit Bosh's comfort in the high post, and, in this way, the zone was quite effective for, say, the first quarter. Even in the future, GS's aggressive double and triple teams should force opposing star bigs to give up the ball. But this team just cannot rebound...actually missing against them is good offense if you have a talented post...Bosh got 22 rebounds...by himself. And for the record, our 'Franchise' deserves waaaaay more respect from the refs against what is effectively a D-League frontline (because you know the rest of our team won't get it).
The G-State guards have a very small margin of error which will get tighter and tighter amongst the better teams. Sure they will surprise teams...even good ones (I mean, Detroit did spank the Lackers the previous night...). But I just don't see them in the playoffs in the Western Confernece (and I like Baron...) and even if they do make it, they will get crushed in the first round.
Like I said, we had this game...
So to review from yesterday...what happened as per the 3 points of Raptor issue:
1. Defense: Well, played it sporadically...perimeter rotation effective against some of their less talented shooters (not not looking at you, Pietrus...), but we gave up 50-odd 'points in the paint' according to the broadcast. And it damn sure wasn't their bigs. Their guards got inside. A lot. We did a great job on Baron most of the game(11 points on 17 shots until the third), but the 11 in the fourth were on driving lay-ups or open 3's. Sigh. Oh and their secondary scorer: we got done in by Dunleavy. Dunleavy, dammit. 22 for quite possibly the least gully player in the entire NBA. JRich, Monta and Roberson all had moments as well...Monta did it down the stretch tho.
2. Rebounding: Why we shoulda won. Outrebounded them 53 to 42...there were times in the third where Bosh and Garbajosa (yes, he actually came inside the three point line) were playing volleyball with each other. And this with Bosh being the target of some really tacky off the ball calls while fighting for position. Considering the closeness of the game, the refs made some terrible calls down the stretch, in general: quick whistles on one end and total free-for-all contact on the other (unless the offense was reprimanded somehow...so much flopping on the jumping out of picks, I thought I was watching an Italian soccer team practicing...). Guess who got the worse end of things...but not to worry, after the double-digit lead was built, the make-up calls started rollin' in...
3. The Number 2 Scorer: Considering the game was done with a few minutes left, it's hard to take the box score seriously. Still, Ford was the only non-Bosh to crack 15 (by one...). The thing is this...we did not score a field goal for more than five of the final 6-7 minutes of the game. Bosh was regularly getting tripled by the GS BS zone (Nellie's GSBSZ).
Parker had a solid if not unspectacular 15, as usual. Too many three attempts down the stretch. Jones (11 as a starter) dried up like the Sahara in the fourth...same thing. Ford made some ill-advised drives considering he wasn't gonna get a call to save his family in the fourth. Sadly, Calderon's shooting may have helped here (he was rooted to the bench). But, again, nobody to step up and be a presence on the offensive end...somebody who can at least force the defense to play somewhat honest on Bosh. Oh, and where was MoPete you ask? Listen, MoPete would have a better chance putting up numbers if someone spun a wheel on the sideline to tell him whether to shoot or not per possession (for the record, he made his first two shots and nothing else)...his shot selection is that clueless. The half-court offense is a sham (good thing we run...uh, yeah). There's little to execute. Either we get hot and hit some shots or we don't. That's our non-Bosh offense. Rasho invisibility was finally cancelled out by Garbajosa visibility...he even made a cut to the basket for a lay-up...hell, he even drove to the basket. Once. And scored. Wouldn't have believed it if they didn't show the replay.
Did I mention Dunleavy had 22...alright then. Did I mention he makes these facial expressions while playing...?
In this game, the Raptors were most effective with three guards and Bosh and Jorge up front. But there was not enough chemistry to overcome playing in a non-existent half-court set...especially during crunch time. Hopefully that 'running' game will kick in, anytime now. ANY time...
Two things are certain right now. We are the worst team in the Lig at scoring from out of a time out (you're welcome, Knicks...Isiah...hi five). And it's looking bleak in the short term...the Lackers on Friday, back to back with the high-altitude Nuggets. Then, what will be a sure pasting by Sloan's boys (best...team...in...Lig?). Maybe Kobe will completely vex his team by trying to re-create past glory...that might be our only chance, because although we can play teams close...we just can't execute in the clutch at both ends. Milwaukee must be pretty tight right now...
Oh and one last ray of sunshine. For people clamoring for more Bargnani: son got punked repeatedly by, what is most likely, the worst front-line in the NBA. Biedrins would have never had a double-double (14 and12) if Bargnani not been guarding him for stretches. This is not on-the-court learning. Taking a bad shot and subsequently taking a better one next chance is on-the-court learning. Letting a Russian roughly your age, man-handle you around the basket is not. You should not play if you allow teams to repeatedly get offensive rebounds. These are effort plays, not talent plays. I said it before...he should earn his play on the defensive end and learn on the offensive one...being a flat out defensive liability is not an option. Prove you're not one in practice. There's no point in just putting him out there. I don't care how many minutes whichever rookie gets. Understand, people. That's why it's called player development. Hopefully, he will develop. But when you're not ready...you're just not ready. The "Sam watch" is still going...where's Bobby Knight when you need him?
posted by Roger Sign at 3:14 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home