Bima, it will not be as bad as the new Donavon Mitchell extension he just signed. That will be a killer for a team.
Love his smile and upbeat attitude. Hopefully he can be a spark plug scorer for us after he transitions to NBA play.
Nix was a baller down in The Valley and summer league is worse than G league … I heard he’s a lottery talent
Looking more closely at Dunn's opening comments on Thornton, Cluff, and Copeland, what stands out after a couple of practices is that our new guys are strong and good rebounders. I guess after so many years without shooting, the first thing we want to know is: can a guy compete on the glass and get us another possession? It also tells me that there are plenty of missed shots in our SL practices. I also thought it was interesting that Dunn was leaning toward playing a slow, methodical style in Summer League. That fits our program to a T. Our moniker is the Rockets, and we play about as slow as you can. Even worse, we play slow, AND by the end of the game (or season if you take the long view), we're out of gas and can't finish. It's a plan etched in stone.
If you've watched a lot of Bruce Thornton, he plays a very methodical, deliberate style. He was really "good" in college because he a) makes shots, and b) plays under control, doesn't get sped up because his handle is low and he's so strong, and never makes mistakes. It is very hard to imagine any Bruce Thornton team playing fast. He would look pretty bad trying to play that way; he does not run the floor well. Hence the FVV comparisons.
Very hopeful that Thornton has the chops to make it. My problem is you can’t have it both ways: if you’re set up as a grind it out methodical team, you can’t run out of gas. Let’s step back in time, the historic ‘86 Celtics were not fleet of foot. But their modified break was so efficient. Every player filled lanes and they wasted nothing. The didn’t walk it up run a pick and roll and then have to reset for another shot. Now, I’m under no delusion that we have basketball talent as that team had, but slow teams are under more pressure to be razor efficient if they are going to hold continuous pressure on a defense.
They start them young these days. 7U tournaments... I coached my son in 9U and 10U - which are elementary school age - that was over a decade ago. It is a bit of a waste for most players. Your body changes when you hit puberty. It is tough to develop fundamentals with all the games played... A lot of players burn out. It is probably better to just put a basket up in the driveway and if they develop a love for the game, invest in coaching during middle school.
Watching the Pistons Sixers SL game. Philon and Okorie have more skill as ballhandlers and perimeter creators than anyone in our entire organization. Taken at picks 17 and 22. Smh.
Biggest thing I want none of the guys to get hurt and for them to play all potential rostered guys for significant periods in all the games. None of the "explodes for 1 or 1.5 games with a perfect storm" and then sits out the rest of SC.
