Bruno had 26 points 12 rebounds 4 blocks in 3 quarters tonight. He's getting more and more comfortable at the 5.
I like him! At the 5 though, yuck. Maybe smallball 5? I thought he was a decent 4, a bit too slow at the 3 but lengthy and deceptively thicc... I'm still a fan. I hope he can get things together and really contribute AND for us. Despite how much I like him, I recognize he's only added if he can make a difference. I hope he can be that difference maker though. Gotta support my people.
As I said here http://bbs.clutchfans.net/index.php?threads/rockets-need-to-sign-bruno-asap.294689/#post-12091602 just a few days ago.... He's ready. He's completely found himself as a small ball 5. He's switching and defending smalls very, very good. His 3-ball looks beautiful. We need to sign him or he's going to disappear onto another team. Bruno is ready to step into an NBA rotation and play. He's found his nitch.
He sure is hitting his threes. But, you should watch the highlights for the opponent C, PF and SF in various games, which I've been doing. Focus on his body language...just not very active. His defense is not that good, probably no improvement from pre-season or his last year with TOR. I don't know, maybe his defense could be better than Isiah's, but we'll need PJ out there with him, or he'll have to play SF and PF, where I don't think he's showing much speed. ---------------------------------- KJ McDaniels at PF, embarrasses Caboclo a few times in here Darius Johnson-Odom with blow-by on switch Johnson-Odom toying with Caboclo in ISO Johnson-Odom embarrassing put-back slam over his back
Sorry to do this, but Caboclo's highlights in his last three games only show about 3 defensive plays. Have to post the opponents to really see him play defense. Sigh, Dez Wells with a blow-by dunk (who?) Sigh, Big lug center Tyler Davis with perimeter blow-by dunk Here's Jared Terrell blowing by him on a switch once, and scoring easily 3 other times. Video starts with the blow-by, but view whole thing for other Caboclo plays on Terrell Watch this Spain PnR (first play in vid)...Caboclo misses two picks (the second one, the pin down is a head scratcher, like he had no clue what the play was) Series of 3 lazy or poor defenses plays in a row in the middle of vid Full highlights of Tyler Davis scoring 31 at center. A monster comparatively.
When Holic gives his final word, You know for sure the player’s a turd... Goodbye Bruno, Zhou. It was nice knowing you.
Very little of Tyler Davis was on Bruno. Bruno DOES have a positioning issue in iso when they back out and in PnR when it is out high and the guard can shoot the 3. He's hunting the contest, gets too close, and they blow by him. That's correctable with coaching. I doubt that's a point of emphasis down there. But his switch defense is very, very good, excellent, when he positions correctly and coaxes the drive without overplaying the shot. His issues in switch are fixable. Body language? Yes....He does give off a Whiteside vibe. And that could become a major negative issue in time. Who knows. Or it could change. We're not talking about a major salary signing here though. We're talking a partially guaranteed minimum salary deal...2-3 years. And he's rotation worthy for us. We're running Ennis, Clark, and IH out there. And Ennis and Clark are getting whupped. The McDaniels stuff was nothing. Most of that wasn't Bruno. He was the helper. Possibly could have been a little more aggressive on the contests but....fouls, etc. Nothing to see there. Walker, Bond, Sampson, Robinson are all defensive zeros. You put Bruno out there with them and he doesn't have much of a chance defensively. Put him on the court with other defenders and he'll look like a defensive stud. And his offense is ready. The 3-ball burns and he can feel when to dive on the pnr and when to pop outside for the 3. He is ready for an NBA rotation. If we don't sign him somebody else is going to. We need to sign him.
Bruno has nice athleticism and a very intriguing body type with the ridiculously long arms. I think he has found his nice as a small ball 5 in this new era of basketball. However, I don't see a good "basketball feel" from him. Could just come down to a marginal BB IQ. That holds him back. BUT, him finding a niche as a small ball 5 might give him a chance. I am lukewarm on him.
Don't get me wrong. If he's going to drain 3s at that clip, then I'd sign him like you say. But not sure if I'd use the MLE for a 3yr deal. (Might as well, unless he's shown insubordination like he did with the Brazil National Team when they sent him home from the olympics.) But I'd temper your talk about his defense. It sucks, still, imo. Against D-League Bigs and Perimeter switches. That initial Tyler Davis blow by was embarrassing. Davis look like perimeter, face-up AD or Griffin on that play....lulz Davis just pushes him aside like a doll on 2 other scores from the block. That's three plays. KJ embarrassed him, too. Odom got him twice on the perimeter. He's being toyed with on defense. Then Dez Well (who?) from perimeter and Jared Teller toasted him. Also generalized laziness and low BBball-IQ at times. But, geez, he's hitting his 3s. I'll give him a contract. I'm going to watch the full games, only seen the opponent highlights and the condensed full version of OKC. But it isn't looking like he's improved at all on defense to me. And that will likely keep him off the court, this year. Keep draining those 3s though!
Yeah, I'd sign him for those 3s, and cut Zhou if I had too to make a roster spot. Zhou looks like zero improvement on D. Like Zhou's height, the long arms and athleticism of Caboclo aren't impressing me anymore. He's isn't using it. He looks awkward. He looks uncoordinated, like the strange, gangly body-type is having a negative effect on his ability to react with NBA speed, and time jumps, etc.
He's having defensive impact. Especially when he's not playing with Walker or Bond. I see what you're seeing. Yes, still not a complete player. But he's good enough for our rotation presently. He's a better option than Hartenstein. ..which makes Hartenstein expendable.
My feelings on Zhou really quick. I like his motor. I like his BB IQ a lot. And of course his long arms make him a good paint deterrent. And he has the ability to be a stretch 5. All good qualities. BUT. His lack of strength is a HUGE issue. So much that I don't see him becoming a rotation player. MAYBE a fringe rotation? But that is the best for him to me. What allows Hartenstein to get on the floor is what Zhou does not have, and that is the strength to battle inside at his position. I don't see Zhou being able to cover come the strength issue. Not at the NBA level. I would move on from him.
Bruno and Zhou have looked very good together defensively. I don't know what you're watching here. Zhou has defensive player of the year potential.
Length over Strength in today's game. You got guys like Mahinmi and Biyombo buried on the bench. Zhou's strength is fine. And it'll improve. He's got some nasty in his game. The bulky guys don't like messing with him. And they start stuff. And he gives it right back to them. I'm still high on Zhou. Although I would trade him in the right deal.
I don't know about Bruno, but that McDaniels kid looks amazing! Too bad Morey never acquires players like him.
Of the G league? Sure. Of the NBA? 0% chance. He has a 50/50 change to become a "rotation player" off the bench. Much less a starter. Much less a 30MPG player. Much less an All Star. Much less a NBA Defensive Player of the League candidate. Thon Maker, to use one of your guys, is at least a rotation player.
Length over strength....sure. But Zhou doesn't even have an acceptable amount of strength. His current strength is not fine. He gets pushed around. I am not advocating "bulky guys." Some guys are slight but strong. Ariza for example. But Zhou gets pushed around on rebounds.
