agreed we play Matthews too many minutes relative those other guys but he has won some games for us and his energy is infectious so he’s a good occasional boost off the bench.
Agree….Bird has scored 20+ points multiple times and has a legitimate shot and plays with energy, defense (bunch of charges) and has earned his spot on a last place team as a 10-12th man backup in the NBA. Nix dreams of scoring 5 points in a game and brings nothing to the table at all other than an occasional nice pass that gets reversed by a future turnover.
Nix has shown flashes when he's played next to Green. Even last night he had a few great passes. I'm not saying Nix will work out. I'm just saying I think the experiment should continue to at least the half way point. I agree his development has been slow and he has looked awful. The dribbling out the clock near half court is painful to watch. But at 20 years old, I just think it's worth letting him have more time.
No Normally this makes sense, but he doesn’t pass the “eye test”. It’s like watching a high school game where the coach keeps playing his own out of shape, very slow son over more deserving athletic (TyTy and Christopher) kids. Everyone in the gym knows the situation, but the coach keeps hurting the team and others by ignoring it. Garuba was a legitimate first round pick who was supposed to be very good when drafted and had size and athletic ability. He was a defensive gem who could cover the likes of Durant. He fell out of shape and favor with the fanbase this offseason, but played a ton in Europe to get back in shape and now it is paying dividends. He has the speed and ability to block shots from behind and hustles his arse off when on the court. Sadly, Nix wasn’t gifted with speed and hasn’t worked hard enough on simple things like weight management and free throw shooting, so he is subpar at the highest level in professional sports.
From Wikipedia: In 2019, when he was 17 years old, he became the youngest starter in Real Madrid history. In the 2020–21 season, Garuba was named EuroLeague Rising Star and ACB Best Young Player. He earned most valuable player (MVP) honors at the 2016 FIBA U16 European Championship at age 14. He also went through Real Madrid training, played in Spanish league and Euroleague. There was no way he would not make it as long as he kept working hard. The only way you could think negatively about him, if you significantly misjudge Euro basketaball and the accolades he has had. Nix is nobody. He can't play in the nba or any competitive euro team.
30 minute comparisons: Nix 6 pts 4 assists 8 turnovers 32% fg; Garuba 10 points 10 rebounds 57% Nix is averaging 4 assists and 4 turnovers per 30 minutes on 32% shooting and 60% free throws. Garuba is averaging a double double (10-10) on 57% shooting per 30 minutes.
I think the biggest concern with Nix will be on the defensive end. But like I said, I'm going to be patient before deciding one way or the other. Still haven't written him off.
The thing is if you have a backup PG better than Nix then he'd probably be better thank KPj as well and we can't be having any of that.
Agree with all you've laid out. Would add JC should be getting Nix minutes with the mandate to think pass first. He's a much better defender and player in general, jut more of a combo guard.
Nix can't finish around the basket. Each time he drives to the bucket my stomach turns. Also, he can't hit free throws. It is like I'm watching Shaq, Dwight or Christian Wood each time he gets to the line but this is supposed to be an NBA level point guard. He does hit the occasional wide open three pointer or make a nice assist but that is negated by a stupid unforced turnover. We've seen more than enough of Nix last year between the NBA & G League, summer league, preseason and now this season to know that he is not the one. I'm willing to give anyone a shot at backup point guard rather it be Christopher, Gordon, Washington or Tate. I would have rather kept Maledon and waived Nix or used the roster spot for one of those expiring contracts like Derrick Favors. We don't need 3 inexperience young point guards on the roster. At this point lets thank Nix for his services and bring back DJ Augustin.
Great post MadMax! My stomach turns too although I often kind of laugh when he tries to drive the lane in slow motion and the throws up an uncoordinated 2 foot shot which misses.
He's bad, he's slow, he's a poor defender, he's in terrible shape to play point guard and his body language is a massive turn off. Josh Christopher should be getting the bulk of backup pg minutes until TyTy and Trevor Hudgins are ready to join the main roster
agreed. If we are looking for defense, Christopher should be playing ahead of both Nix and Garry Bird.
