I have been really impressed with Luther Head and I think he has a lot of potential to be a good NBA player. He has all the skills to be a very good defender and 3 point shooter. One thing I think he need a lot of work on is his mid range game. His mid range game is horrible. He looks lost when he is not behind the 3 point line. If he wants to take his game to the next level, he needs to be more aggressive and work on his mid range game. He also needs to work on his free throw shooting. I know he is a rookie so he is still learning and I heard he is a gym rat so that is good news.
yep, that's pretty much the book on luther right now. I'd like him to get back to dunking from the free throw line though like he used to at Illinois.
I agree 100%. After the game, the ex New Jersey Nets assistant coach (and ex Utah Jazz assistant coach) Gordie Chiesa talked in depth about Luther Head's game. He said what the Jazz did was after the coaches watching alot of films of Luther Head, they found out he couldn't shoot to save his life if he's not behind the 3 point line. So, in the game, they asked the players who were guarding him to intentionally go underneath the screens and bait him to shoot from mid-range, while packing the lane to prevent him from penetrating to the basket. It worked to perfection for Utah. Head was open time and again after the screen, and he took the bait and shot the ball, and he almost missed all of them. Chiesa said the problems for Luther Head are not uncommon in the NBA. If he doesn't adjust and develop that mid-range shot, his quickness will eventually become obsolete, because people will simply back off him and dare him to shoot from mid-range everytime. Players like TMac are extremely hard to guard, because if you give them space, they can shoot over you from anywhere. But players like Luther Head is easy to figure out and deal with, simply because they don't know how to shoot from mid-range. Luther Head will always prefer to drive to the basket, because of his quickness. However, without a mid-range shot to get himself open for drives, he will never become a quality starter in the NBA.
The league is finally catching up to him. He is shooting under .400% and lately his shooting has be atrocious. He needs to make the adjustment because the man guarding him now is all up in his grill because they know he can't beat them off the dribble.
He has looked very tenative of late, he is not looking for his shot. Defensive adjustments are likely responsible along with the Rocket's overall offensive ineffectiveness. When a team shoots like the Rocket's do, every shot is like a "do or die."
Luther needs to improve on his mid-range game, his pull up shooting, his ball handling, finishing, defensive positioning, and strength and conditioning. Let's face it, for a young player to survive and flourish in the league requires constant improvement and refinement of skills and abilities. To say that, "Luther needs to work on his ______ game" is to say that, "The Rockets need to play better if they want to win some more games."
If he could add some abilities over the offseason like, 1. better handles 2. Stop and pop 3. Catch and shoot mid-range 4. Not getting caught with no place to go in the air 5. Learn to dish a little bit better. then he'll probably become 6th man of the year or borderline all-star. Some reasonable goals like 14 pts 6 rbs 7 ast 2 stls aren't that far away
Come on now. I was never expecting Luther to be our savior this season. I gave the rookie B+ so far. He is far better than any of other draft picks we had in years other than Yao.
He has alot more than just his mid range game that he needs to work on. That or our Coach needs to draw up some plays so that we can free him up to where he likes to score.
Agreed, particularly with his ball handling and finishing. He doesn't seem to finish strong in traffic, around the basket. As an initial goal, I'm wondering if he can't model his game after Cat Mobley, who is of of similar size and seems to have similar raw athleticism. Ok, so Cat is more athletic, longer arms, more explosive, but close enough I think...? I don't recall, was Mobley able to finish strong when he first came into the League, or was this something he developed gradually? I do remember in Cat's rookie year him getting his sh(beeep) swatted by Shaq on that last second layup attempt in the playoffs, right after Pippen choked. Was that horrible layup attempt indicative of his overall ability to finish around the bucket his rookie season, or was that a fluke?
Mobley didn't show strong finishing skills in the first season from what I recall. He mainly dumped the ball to Hakeem and Barkley and stationed beyond the arc. He also didn't find out how well he could drive. His game exploded after he had found his great first step in the second season. It's that edge and confidence gained propelled his game.
It's no surprise the league has caught up to Luther. Their are two kinds of rookie walls in the NBA: 1 Fatigue, when playing so many games for the first time catches up to a player. Some get a second wind, others never recover and slump the remainder of the season. 2 Scouting, which is the issue here. There is now a book on Luther and every team has read from it. Rule #1 says no wide open 3s. What he must do now is adjust his game to take advantage of what defenses give him. He can start going harder to the basket and finishing better. He can learn to shoot 3 pointers better with a hand near his face. He can learn to hit 15-18 footers. Learning to go left or developing a runner (or tear drop) during this season is unlikely. The next move is up to Luther. It's on him and JVG to figure out the best course of action. There is a limit to how much he can improve. The experience gained with playing time will help him figure out exactly what he can and cannot get away with against NBA defenses. He's a work in progress. I know one thing: It sure is nice to have a promising rookie on our roster. BTW, this also applies to his defense. He's got a good head on his shoulders. In time, Luther will learn how to apply tough D without becoming a foul machine. As long as I watch the NBA, I will never forget how Sam Cassell abused SF the first time they played each other. It was child abuse.
Wow! Good thread this makes Luther's struggles much clearer. I would also like to see him begin using his quickness to the hoop to anticipate dropping it off to Tmac or Stro (or Yao) instead of always looking like a dying swan flailing through the defense.
Yeah where the hell is that 38 inch vertical? Man for once atleast try to stuff it on someone, its okay if you get blocked. Show some emotion.
Considering he's a rookie, he needs to work on alot of stuff, midrange, dribbling, playing pg, etc, etc. Thats like saying water needs to learn being wet. Skills dont come overnight or over the course of the season.
For me they do. -PvP Master Disregard the above. Anyway, like many have already said Luther is a rookie...I think the biggest holes in his game are as said, finishing at the rim and mid range shooting. Oh, and of course the ordinary rookie mistakes, like fouling too early last night with a foul to give. Hopefully he can pick up those missing things and be a solid and consistent contributor on the team.
ya for real....we all heard so much from Head being a high flyer in college, but he has shown absolutely nothing of that athletic ability around the rim except for grabbing rebounds...on a team in which we dont have any athleticism in the backcourt other than T-Mac, i dont know why Head doesnt try to show off his hops more often...hmm, maybe van gundy made him change his style? who knows
My guess, since i'm not an nba player, is scoring around the rim is many times more difficult in the nba, than in college. It is probably easier to get inside in the NBA, but to finish inside has to be harder.
