The problem with Amen's game is that he is forcing things rather than letting game come to him. Most probable cause of it is "franchise player" or "all star level" expectations. He tries to fill bigger shoes than his feet and becomes unable to do things he normally does great at this like defense.
I'm a bit demeanor guy. I watch body language a lot. Facial expressions. Eyes. Amen's is very different this year. Last year he seemed to be having a lot of fun on the court. This year he doesnt. He's got much more "stone face" look to him compared to say KD, Sengun, Reed and even Jabari who I can say has finally "let go" of his own self imposed expectations and is just playing his game, for better and for worse. The joy doesnt seem to be there this year. Im guessing its a combination of the increased work load and the contract year. He's trying to do too much and tripping over his shoelaces in the process. That being said, I haven't heard a single person complain about his handle this year. Because that thing looks *good*. He handles ball pressure with ease and his turnovers are down from earlier in the season. I feel like Reed starting and giving Holiday (and getting another shooter) more run will help Amen a lot. The double big is killing him right now. His numbers are up and he's still producing but Ime needs to help him a little bit more.
Amen probably had his best overall game of the season. Efficient, dished and played smother defense He was finally making shots around the basket like he did last season. That's really been his main shortcoming is that his touch has fallen off a cliff compared to last season. Hopefully this gets him going.
Wasn't it beautiful that invisible thing that makes everything better? Spacing, we missed you. Please come back soon. Great game by Amen, not surprised at all.
I don't have the stats. But my eye test tells me that Amen plays better with more spacers on the floor with him. This is another reason why I think Reed should start.
I didn't see the game, but I agree that Amen generally plays better with more skilled players who can space the floor. Whether Reed is ready to be a full time starter, I'm less sure, but see Amen, Reed, and Sengun as the young core of the offense going forward (i.e., likely only a matter of time).
Amen has a ways to go before he's a proficient playmaker. He tries to bail himself out a lot (like Reed does on defense) with some gnarly passes. He looks sped up but once the game slows down for him he'll be incredibly difficult to contain. Glad FVV isnt here to take away his touches. Wonder what his stats look like when he shares the floor with Adams and Sengun.
Very difficult to calculate. A guy can be shooting well but not have a shooters reputation so he won't create spacing (Okogie). Could be shooting terrible but they won't leave you open for catch and shoot (FVV). You can have good spacers and the coach can place them on the floor poorly. The opponent can decide to stay home on shooters and let one guy get "his". Lots of factors. However physics doesn't require basketball stats for verification. More space means easier drives. Having 2 to 3 non-shooters or poor shooters on the floor MUST have a negative effect on drives even if we can't measure it. It would be a huge anomaly if it didn't. A great example is Ja Morant who's spiraling since they plopped a non-shooter into the paint rather than sticking with the more successful formula of having a stretch 5 (JJJ). Same for Giannis who looks human when his 5 can't shoot. Same for Wade when they moved Bosh to the 5. Then there's the other crew. Guys who CAN shoot, but their handle and finishing REALLY need the benefit of optimal spacing. Haliburton, Tatum and Jaylen Brown fall in this category. In general, spacing is something a coach does to help his players. People on this board seem to be allergic to helping players, and some seem to prefer to do things a harder way just because it's harder. Will be interesting to monitor. Hope to god Reed wins that spot.
He already has spacers in KD and Jabari but he defers a lot. Without KD on the floor against the Suns, Amen was far more aggressive on offense. I suspect if Reed was in the starting lineup in place of Adams or Okogie, Amen would revert right back to being deferential because he's too unselfish.
A Amen has been consistently getting into the paint and dishing all year. He is better when he looks for his shot more like last night. It opens up the floor for everyone. He had 8 assists last night. He lost some confidence early on learning a new role. He has made astounding progress in 15 games in spite of the stupid 2 big lineups. People are just either being impatient or are married to their preconceptions to truly appreciate his progress. Defenses can’t keep Amen out of the paint only two bigs and Durant isolations.
KD and JSJ are different kinds of spacers than Reed. KD can get his own. However, Reed can space, but also be a secondary ballhandler to create for Amen to give offense more options. I think there's significant synergy potential among Reed, Amen, and Sengun. Not sure if it happens this year, but I think all three have the ability to not let the ball get sticky.
Durant is a spacer only if he's not the primary creator. So he's kind of an enigma. On one hand, you really want a guy like KD when you need a bucket. On the other hand, teammates tend to defer to him on offense simply because he is KD. Jabari is a good spacer. He's been league for his fourth season now. He's still just an afterthought on offense. Unlike Reed, Jabari is not a ball handler. So he depends on teammates to pass him the ball and nobody seems to notice him on the floor. So if you have Bari and a guy like Okogie who is also an afterthought, you don't have too much of gravity to force the defense keep away. These can all be fixed. We have all the necessary ingredients on offense. They just need to work out the synergy.
That's not how spacing works. If you have 2 non-shooters, it doesn't matter if the other 3 are elite shooters. The opponent will just stay home on the good shooters and have plenty of roamers/saggers to disrupt the space. Especially if it's Adams, it's totally pointless because his defender will stay in the paint since Adams is no threat from 3, for a lob and rarely even rolls to the basket when he sets a screen. You just end up with Amen beating his man easily (which he could've done without help) only to find a rim protector in the paint who will force him into a middy (which he could've gotten without all this unnecessary mechanics). Amen is always better with 4 shooters. Now that Sengun can shoot, it's easy to achieve. He'll get his 25 points or shoot up to 8+ assists.
