One thing he has to improve on are the speed of his bounces. His slow mo bounce passes in the lane are disturbing.
Bounce passes in the paint are in general a bad idea. I think he's used to Europe, but in the NBA they play above the rim. Once Kostas gets comfortable, he's gonna be tossing lobs like Chris Paul
Bounce passes as entry passes to a set post-up play are a bad idea. Bounce passes in general are not. If you're trying to hit your target in stride through traffic or manage to draw help defense and get them in the air or make them otherwise over-commit, bounce passes are an excellent option. Pap seems to be looking for the second option more than the first. I've no doubt he can recognize an opportunity for an alley oop when one presents itself, cause in Europe he was the one finishing those. He probably has a good sense on how, where and when a ball should be thrown to feed a baseline cut, because he's been on both ends of that play countless times.
Hey, i am not an OLY fan!?!?! ..But i'va also have read that article, and i agree, that pap will take advantage of the facilities & the coaches and all. I've read several comments here, about Kostas having a Shane Battier potential. I've not a clear picture of what that means. I've only seen that guy playing with the star-packed team usa (thus very little time per game). But I would say that Kostas, as a player, may have a potential lying somewhere in a Scola - Ginobili scale, which are also two names that have been "heard" in this thread. Maybe something like a more sophisticated version of Nocioni. ps: I a PAOK fan (oly's northern counterpart rivals), but we can still be brothers
Kostas Papanikolaou shreds. I want everyone to know this. He'll be NBA starter quality this year. He's going to be a super player and have a good career. He should be on the rookie all-star team.
When people mention Shane Battier, it's usually shorthand for a smart player with limited athleticism, but one who knows how to play within his limits. For a fuller explanation, Battier was known for being a capable three-point shooter, an above average rebounder, and an excellent team player who probably made a ton of hockey assists (the pass that leads to the assist). He didn't have much of an offensive repertoire, though he knew how to take advantage of weaknesses in the opposing defense. I always felt he could've made more of an impact on the offensive side, and maybe his smarts kept him from being more offensively daring. But it was on the defensive side of the ball where Battier shone the most. He was a great team and help defender who made sure his teammates were in the proper defensive scheme. He also defended the other team's best perimeter player and made him have a less-than-efficient shooting night. Coaches and GMs, including Jeff van Gundy and Daryl Morey, loved him because he was the ultmate team-first guy who was never looking to pad his personal stats. If interested, here's the New York Times article that continues this ode to the No Stats All-Star. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/15/magazine/15Battier-t.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0
very interesting. not just for what kind of bb player that guy was, but mostly of how complicated team sport bb is. So, did rox introduced that "beyond-the-major-statistical-categories" number crunching analysis, in the NBA?
thats fine as long as he gets it right by all star break. harden is inconsistent too. Tjones is also.
What do you expect? He's only played in 9 NBA games so far. I like the potential, though. He's great at getting Dwight the ball, can hit the 3 ball, decent slash to the basket, good at running the break and he's always motivated when he's on the floor, doesn't take plays off or ball watch. Good all around player with no real holes in his game. If you're old enough to remember a fella by the name of Detlef Schrempf, I think K-Pap's game heavily resembles him. K-Pap will get a little bit better with each game, and I expect his playing time is going to gradually go up as the season progresses.
Love most of what KPap brings to the game and he could easily be the 6th man glue guy on this team "IF" he would only be more consistent with his shot. He is wildly inconsistent with his 3pt shot (it's either dead on or dead off for entire games), and when he drives to the hoop he often looks to pass it when he should just go to the hoop and look for the layup, dunk, or foul. I know it's early for him and he is still adjusting to the the NBA game, so I expect in a by January/February he should be a major force off the bench for us.
He is fine, but we have to play like a team. If you just force him to drive and kick all game it's not going to be pretty.
Yeah, Morey is credited with bring a more stats oriented approach to the basketball game, called "Moreyball" (after Moneyball) by fans and media. He even started that MIT Sloan Sports Analytics conference. Look it up if interested. But while he may be the most visible person using the statistical approach, I'm sure there are other teams that may not be that far behind. For instance, I wonder how much Memphis has changed their approach after hiring John Hollinger.
