Morey: McGrady is the best passing wing player in NBA

Amen. TMac is a helluva f'n passer. He just can't shoot worth a damn.

 

DD, he's not the shooter he once was. he can become that if he dedicates this offseason and focus primarily on his mid-range game (b/c next yr i think he'll operate 90% at the high post), he'll be one of the elites again.

but the main reason why tmac is still a superstar is b/c of his passing. i think lebron is just as good as him though. but his passing is unbelievable.

that's why i don't suggest trading him. if he improves his jumper next yr and operates at the high post, i don't think any other player can dominate for us in this adelman system. tmac is tailor made for the high post.

 

His midrange jumper is still top notch...his 3pt shot is what really needs work. According to 82games he is still the better overall jumpshooter than Bron, Melo, Wade, etc... And in the past few seasons he has been right up there with Kobe, Pierce, etc...

 

his mid-range is indeed top notch (tmac has to start taking 90% of his shots from 15-18ft from now on).

the reason his shooting % is so poor b/c he still takes 4-5 3s a game and he's only making 30% of them (18% in the playoffs). and he finishes poorly around the rim (which makes it worse if you compound the fact that he RARELY gets calls that he should get). and he's a pathetic ft shooter.

minimizing the 3s is something he can do.
improving his ft shooting is something he can do.

do those 2 things -> he's back to being a great scorer again if we use him in the high post.

i'm REALLY optimistic for next yr. how tmac played game 5 offensively is how he should play next yr every game.

 

There is also a huge difference between your shooting ability and your GAME shooting ability.

During a game Tmac (and those other guys with low fg% listed) draw extra defensive attention. As a result, tmac is taking a lot of his shots coming off screens, fading away or over defenders hands.

If anyone watched Davidson play in the NCAA tournament, what made curry so amazing was that he was one of the only players i have ever seen that seemed to shoot just as well off screens, with defensive pressure, fading away as he did catch and shoot.

what makes tmac an offensive threat is his ability to shoot even that low of a % with the amount of pressure he draws. that's what opens up the offense for his teammates, and why his passing ability is even more useful.

 

no excuse for tmac basically shooting 38% the last 2 months. he was avg 44% before the huge struggle the last 2 months. he can still shoot, but for whatever reason, his jumpshot was never the same since he got those knee injuries.

his form, technique, stroke are fine. just hope he'll stay healthy next yr and i'm sure he'll be fine.

 

1. Shooting fell off
2. Great passer

This means that he is an ideal 2nd fiddle player. Which is a perfect fit with Yao, contrary to what people say.

Manu gets to play 3rd fiddle. Imagine McGrady with the luxury of differing to 2 finals MVPs and picking and choosing his offense. Trade McGrady for Manu my butt.

 

If he's healthy he can limit himself. He takes the occasional heat check which I won't begrudge him. Limiting the 3's is a must, and getting to the line and knocking them down should be a priority this offseason, after staying healthy, of course.

I think everyone knows he can have a great game every now and then, the problem is, can he be consistent? We'll see how he plays in game 6. I'm not waiting so much for another 50% shooting night as I am to see him take the game over in the clutch and to make the shots when it counts, and to take good shots, and to make free throws. A couple heat checks will change his shooting percentage drastically, but if he takes them smartly he won't affect the game momentum.

Morey's right, he's a great passer though. Great vision. Willing to pass. This team should succeed next season with a consistent Yao as the first option and a willing passer in T-Mac. I can't wait...

 

The one thing that puzzles me is his DAMN FREE THROWS.

Why is a supremely gifted perimeter player like him is so bad at the charity stripe? I don't think any other star wing player like him shoots that bad at the line.

Matt Bullard's theory is that he uses too much arm on his shots when he just needs to use more wrist. Since then I've been studying his shooting form at the line, and I tend to agree with Bull, too much arm motion which tends to get no favorable bounce because more velocity is put into the shot when all someone like Tmac who is tall needs a flick of the wrist, which is a softer shot and tends to get more favorable bounces.

 

totally agree thats why i have never hated on him and agreed with trade threads.

 

Is this Morey pumping up TMac's trade value?

 

I love how people still think Yao can be our #1 option. He is still not a good enough passer to run an offense through (which is what has seperated the KG's, Shaq's and Duncan's from the Howard's, Bosh's and Amare's), he still has lots of trouble beating fronting defenses and double teams, and he still turns the ball over a ton (more than T-Mac which is very worrisome).

Yao is a terrific scoring option, but on a night to night basis T-Mac should still be the #1 option. He is one of only a handful of players that can get a shot off no matter where he is on the floor, and next to Kobe and Arenas no one can be as explosive a scorer as he can be (not in terms of athleticism...I'm talking exploding for a 9-12 half or something). Not to mention you can run an offense through him, and expect he will take care of the ball very well and get everyone else open shots. Yao is the consistent rock, but he is not ready to take over this team...hate all you want on T-Mac for his poor shooting %'s, but he is a proven #1 option who had led this team to 3 50 win seasons despite Yao being injured for 30+ games in 2 of them.

 

if tmac would put more spin on the ball when he shoots it would naturally raise the arc of his shot thus making his FG% go up.

 

also he should experiment with a bank shot because since his current shot is so flat the bank would help him a lot too. (like wade)
original topic... i think tmac is up there with magic in terms of passing.

 

i hear DJ Augustin can pass too.

 

True so if we can just add a damn shooter we are set. Man I hate to say it but a player like Korver would help Tmac emmensely, or freaking Kapono.

 

totally agree, his knee is in pain right now and with that tendon (bruised bone) injury it just needs time to recover, it can be even 1 month I belive,

He will be fine.

 

Dont worry guys, remember at the beginning of the season, he was the scoring leader until he got his knee injured. Then his shoulder getting injured made his jump shot worse. But, he will be back next year AND if HEALTHY will be really good. He'll probably average 25 ppg 6 rebounds and 6 assists.

 

Best playmaker right behind Steve Nash.