but seriously what evidence do we have that Bari is a really good shooter? College? He hasn’t shot over 36% in the pros. I don’t think we can take for granted that Bari is a good shooter until he proves that and finishes a season above league average. I hope that happens, but if it doesnt happen this yr I think Bari the shooter is more myth than reality. We’re in year 4!
He has made those shots in the past, including in last year’s playoffs. People have recency bias. He has been disappointing with his consistency, but that is pretty common for 22 year old players.
Ime’s tough love and trying to script everything doesn’t work on the shooters, or players like Sengun who depends on creativity on offense. You can’t shoot well or get rhythm in offense this way.
Shooting 36% is more than enough since its not like he is a volume shooter. He only takes 6 threes a night 36%-40% doesnt make a material difference you are looking at less than half a point a game difference. As long as he doesnt scrub it up like the last 2 games he should be fine. Coaches should emphasize he shouldnt be a one trick pony and stick to jumpers if they arent falling, he should be crashing the boards and using that 6'10 height and length to score inside. Ime already said it during the post game talk so I think its just a matter of emphasizing it to him and strengthening it during practice.
You are right I should be more patient with Jabari considering he is only 22, there some rookies older than him.
The practice part is something that is also affecting this team. The road schedule has made making the necessary adjustments difficult. Rest be damned, this upcoming long homestand should be used almost like a training camp to teach this team how to attack a zone and for the players to continue to work on their weaknesses.
At least its better they face this stuff now than discover in the playoffs like last year. Its kinda wild though we added KD and still suffer from zone like last year. People keep saying Fertita cheaped out but he just signed Ime Udoka to a 6 yr deal. I think its Ime's assistants they are all scrubs. His good assistants like Will Hardy and Tiago Splitter left him and became coaches of their own. All Ime has left are Royal Ivey who's tactics for hot shooting opponent is just wait it out and Ben Sullivan who makes players shoot worse. I think Stone should hire some consultants to help Ime out like what the Clippers did hiring JVG.
We have the same coach as last year. They should have made this a prove it year for Ime or traded him for the first round pick we could’ve gotten from the Knicks. Instead we locked his ass up for 5 years and I’m not sure Tito will eat that salary considering how long it took him to get rid of Silas. We got an all time great offensive player for an all-time bad offensive coach. He is young so maybe he will learn or be humble (lol) enough to get assistance.
That is true, but was getting Durant the best thing to do. Harden was instrumental in getting Westbrook and we see how that worked out. I like the trade when it happened, but in hindsight we might have been better off to just trade Jalen to somebody for mid-level sg and a pick instead. Durant, Sengun, and Amen all like to operate in the same area. It is a difficult puzzle to solve. Is Ime up to it?
Nobody would take Jalen considering his poor performance. Amen is the issue tbh. Maybe trade him for Kon Kneupple and we would be instant 2nd best team in the west. Its really hard when your pg cant shoot in the 3 pt era.
He has been a good shooter since high school. He has shown that he can shoot very well when he is confident. His shooting form is very good. He has always been a good FT shooter all his career, which usually signals good shooting form and touch (which is also why I still have not given up hope that Amen will improve his shooting). His NBA numbers have not been great but also not bad, except for his rookie season.
Exactly. Reed is shooting over 40% from 3 in year 2. Not sure how that's similar to Jabari. Jabari has no confidence issue. He's constantly stating he's a great shooter. He's not afraid to shoot. If anything, he needs to get humbled. Has way too much confidence in something he's never showed in the NBA.
Would not call a Career 34-35% shooter fantastic but confidence is something that is not tangible. His shooting mechanism seems off, arc flat. This is the beginning of what it seems a streaky shooter rather than a highly consistent one.
That game he was, for his career he has not been? I was arguing the idea that shots are all the same at the same time in games, they are not. I mean Jabari was nailing mid range shots all night long...until the 4th quarter hit. Nothing changed except when in the game it happened and the pressure of those shots
that’s fair. I certainly think he’s got time to take that step we all want to see the rest of the season. But as someone that clearly watches bari closely, am I crazy when I don’t see good touch? Sure form. Sure he’s been a good shooter in high school and college. But am I the only person who doesn’t see good touch on the ball? I’m not being facetious, from day one in Houston his lack of “touch” stood out to me.
Jabari Smith ? Meh, whatever. I never see flashes or games that give me hope that he will ever be more than a role player. His handle is bad- and he doesn’t shoot well enough from 3 on volume to be a big scoring threat that way. The question is how good a role player will he be - because there is a big spread. He can’t magically dribble, and very likely will never be great at it - and his shooting isn’t something he can improve on command— but he can’t magically dribble improve as a rebounder, he can get more physical and hustle more and make plays, just be more engaged in the game. I won’t rip the Rockets for taking Jabari #3, he was clearly the top guy left on the board by most people’s estimation.
You didn't enjoy his confidence shooting EVERY SINGLE TRIP at the end of the last portland game? If it's durant i can live with that, but nobody else should be shooting every time if they're ice cold.
