Really Spiegel? Really? Really? Those other guys beat me to posting the link b/c I was too busy rolling on the floor laughing but if you're going to make a statement- don't intentionally mislead people with it. David Thorpe (the guy who does some chats on ESPN Insider) was the ONLY guy that picked Beverley. He's definitely not a coach or even an expert. Sheesh.
It was by the media and not the coaches so I stand corrected.But nonetheless it shows people like David Thorpe who is well respected has Bev in the likes of Howard, Noah and Hibbert. Infact Howard did call Bev our defensive leader.
This tells me that there is something wrong with your eye's dude. It's one guy- David Thorpe. I would've given more cred to him if it was Otis Thorpe.
Howard also said it was a luxury having two great PGs, which may have been less than genuine. He says stuff.
And as you know, the media is wrong... a lot. Here's another prediction from "well respected" David Thorpe. Man- the guy is a Nostradamus! "Cleveland's Anthony Bennett and Milwaukee's Giannis Antetokounmpo are two rooks to watch closely." - David Thorpe http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/preview2013/story/_/page/Rookies-131024/10-storylines-watch (With Citation)
Well at least you make some realistic observations when you talk about Bev v Lin and don't just go to the eye test bud. Though you were a lil quiet after the Lakers game... HAHAHA
Ok then, forget David Thorpe, However if you think Lin is the better defender then that's you'r opinion and you are entitled to it, but my opinion is Bev is the better defender. We have to agree to disagree.
The Lin love is amazing, dude is an average defender that only goes right and turns it over at a high rate. Lin scouting report, "get on his right hand, make him dribble left and watch him pick up the ball, jump in the air with no where to pass or shot, stop in the lane and pump fake forever, or last, shoot that crazy fade away!! Yes he dynamic going right. He runs into screens like a magnet to a refrigerator!! Bottom line, his all around game isn't the $8 mln he is being paid. This is truth and has nothing to do with race. It's Basketball 101!!
Beverly is one of the best on ball defenders. He gets lose balls, rebounds, he is a team leader as far as intensity and effort go! Lin has a different skill set, stop comparing the two!!!! Beverly is a defensive specialist!!! case in point: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ZNuAbQ6PJ4 ps a lot of LOF on this thread
and there is also a reason why lin was in the top 20 list of DPOY last year, on nba.com (along with asik). this was around jan or feb last year.
It may be in the scouting reports, but given how well Lin's played over the last 7 games overall, it's clearly more difficult for teams to actually deal with it on the court when they play him.
I can say with a straight face that I personally think that Beverly will make some amazing defensive plays from time to time but from start to end, I think that Lin's overall defense is better. Watch the games and count how many times Bev doesn't stay on his man when his man doesn't have the ball. He leaves his man wide open so that he can drift closer to the lane and try to get a steal from the man with the ball. It works once in a while but most of the time we get killed because he left his man all alone to sink a 3. Also, tons of folks were saying how well Bev fights through screens. Really? I've watched time and time again and he gets picked off repeatedly and seems to just give up on the play when he does. Lin may not be the fastest defender but he stays on his man a lot more than Bev and he has played good steady D for most of the season. Case in point- Kemba Walker was abusing Beverley the first few minutes of the game against the Bobcats. Lin comes in and slows him down. Nash was having his way with Beverley and looked like he was back with Dirk on the Mavs. Lin comes in and slows him down. My point is, Bev's going to give us more ESPN Highlights for his D but for the best and most consistent D, it's Lin so far this season.
The way that the media continuously underrated Lin throughout his career since high school makes me take those same media folks who say that Lin is a weak, bad, or mediocre defender with a grain of salt. Just because these "experts" are able to rate other NBA players more or less accurately has not proven that they have been able to judge Lin accurately. If they couldn't do so before, what makes people think that they can do so now? Their eye test about Lin failed them repeatedly before. And now we are supposed to believe that they are accurate in their assessments about Lin's defense, where defense ratings are largely based on eye tests? At every stage of his career through at least college, Lin has been the best defender on his team, and his teammates have repeatedly acknowledged this. Does that translate to him being a top NBA defender? Maybe, maybe not, but it is clear that he continues to improve in this area, and he clearly has the athleticism, aggressiveness, nose for the ball, and willingness to put in effort. Lin himself said that his defense was NBA ready when he was with the Warriors, and he was the Warriors' perimeter stopper. Now all of a sudden when Linsanity hit he supposedly became a bad defender. I did not see him exert any less energy in New York or Houston than he did in Golden State, and he is smarter and even more solid on the defensive end now. IMO, when someone blows by Bev (or another reknowned defender), they say that Bev got tricked but will get it next time. When someone blows by Lin, it is somehow because Lin is a crappy defender and lacks lateral quickness, when all tests have shown that Lin is one of the quickest players in the NBA. The truth is that all NBA players get blown by, time and again. Even Joe Dumars admitted that when a guy like Drazen Petrovic got going, that there was nothing he could do about it. I'm ranting a bit I know, but I think this image that Lin has as a bad or mediocre defender is complete baloney.
The Anthony Bennet comment made you a believer right? LOL I am all good with letting everyone have their opinion. The difference between me and most of the folks on here is that as much as I say Bev is overrated, I like him a ton and am glad we have both PGs. He's way better than Brooks (who used to be my favorite Rocket back in the day) and there are very few backup PG's that I would want over Bev. But people's hate for Lin makes them want to put anyone in as a starter over Lin and they can't back it up with stats or real arguments but rather just go with the "Eye Test". I had a guy last season who posted something about how many shots Lin missed and when I posted Lin's FG% and 3PT% he said "How come it feels like it's so much worse?" That's exactly the type of sentiment that Lin haters have. It's all about their personal bias influencing how they see things.
Here, once again if you haven't read it yet, is Jason Friedman's interview with defensive coach Kelvin Sampson. He singled out Omer and Bev as the only two defensive players from last season, while also clarifying that Lin is an underrated defender. All this infighting is so crazy. We have a pretty elite PG defender and another one that puts in a lot of effort, all of this is a very good thing. http://www.nba.com/rockets/news/qa-kelvin-sampson-1
