One would think that, wouldn't one? One would also think that one would be smart enough to use more than an injury recovering FIVE game sample size to compare the two. One would be sadly mistaken by that. As the incompetence of Man once again fails one. One should go check their respective assist and assist ratios from the ENTIRETY of yesteryear. And then get back to one.
True, it is a very short sample size, but his role is different as a starter, and people have been saying forever that the offense is better with him starting, however, the PPG are way down with him starting, aren't they? Sure the defense is better, but the offense is worse....again, small sample size. But if you do look over the course of Kyle's career, whenever he gets a chance to start or play increased minutes, his contributions to the team do not go up proportionally, some guys are able to handle extra minutes and increase their output, Kyle, so far, has not done that. And while it is only a small sample size for this year's stats, his assist to turnover ratio has been really really poor, and that is not a health issue it is a poor play issue. And BTW - Brooks started games against much better competition......not the dregs of the league that we have played the last 4 games. DD
Look, this thread is clearly about barns, so I won't even get into it. Obviously I do not agree with you, but arguing about it now is pointless, as either side is all opinion, and no sample size. We will have another good 5 weeks to just wait and see. Then I reserve the right to change my mind, or bask in the glory that is sweet sweet internet victory. Either way it will be for the betterment of the team as a whole.
Samples do stabilize much quicker in basketball than in other sports due to the sheer quantity of plays in one game, but this is a fair point and I will acknowledge. However, they were pretty close last year, especially when you consider Lowry was typically playing against less skilled second units, and Brooks was playing against starters. My point is that they are roughly equal in skill when it comes to passing and running the offense, not that one is better than the other.
I hate it when people say stuff like this. As if there is only one path to success in any sport. "Superstars win championships!" "Defense wins championships!" "Pitching wins championships!" "A good field goal kicker wins championships!" In reality there are many different ways to succeed in any sport as we've seen throughout history. What it all boils down to is who's the best overall. Defense is part of that but so is offense. Probably they are roughly equivalent in importance if not strictly 50/50.
I wouldn't say 1.89 vs 2.65 is that close in regards to assist/TO. They are on separate levels, one below average(for a PG) and one very solid. As far as your point on their "skill" of passing. I've said before that Brooks occasionally throws some very creative and "skillful" passes. I do not doubt his skill level. The problem is he far too often abandons this skill and instead chooses to call his own number. This is fine as a primary scorer off the bench, or at crucial moments in a game in need of a big bucket. But during the course of the game, along side much more efficient scorers like Scola, Martin, Yao, it is a source of far too much stagnation.
Agreed with your general point. However I would tilt the importance a bit in the favor of defense. This is because in the trenches of a slugfest playoff basketball, it is far more reliable to.. rely on your defense than depend on offense. The reason is defense is far more effort-based, which is sustainable. While there is a lot more variance in your ability to produce offense just from the nature of making a basket- it is %-based. To your point, in real life it is rarely as cut and dry as these axioms make it seem. But they are rooted in some truths.
For me, it doesn't have to do with pure assists numbers either. I have zero stats to back it up, but there's just a big difference between a point guard for whom setting up the offense and his teammates is top priority and a point guard who is looking to score (and is damn good at it). Even the way Brooks and Lowry bring up the ball and initiate the offense seems different. Lowry just has a better feel for those passes that may not lead to a direct assist but gets the offense moving in the right direction. It's like he's thinking three moves ahead. Brooks' passes feel more linear to me.
BUMP! Well it looks like I panicked at the bottom of Lowry's slump. I'm really happy to see how he has improved. Anyhow, here are his stats from the last 12 games aka the games since I posted this thread. 36.6 mpg 12.3 ppg 8.2 apg to 2.67 TO/g 4 rpg 2.33 spg 47.3% FG% 46.7% 3p% 75.7% FT% Pretty nice to see the great improvement. I hope he can keep the confidence in his shot and let's hope to god that I am not posting this at the top of his shooting %'s! FWIW here are his numbers over the last 10 games 37.4 mpg 13.8 ppg 8.7 apg to 2.4 TO/g 4 rpg 2.5 spg 48% FG% 48.4% 3p% 78.1% FT% ...and last 5 games 37.2 mpg 16 ppg 8.6 apg to 3 TO/g 3.2 rpg 2.6 spg 50% FG% 52.4% 3p% 81.3% FT% one more positive note... over the first 5 games the percentage of fg attempts that were 3pt attempts was at 39%. over the last 12 games that has dropped to 33.6%. over the last 10 it's 31.4%. over the last 5 it's 28.6%.
Look at that FG % and the assist numbers. Take into account that he's averaging about 2.5 steals a game during this stretch.. Lowry deserves 35 mins per game. He's a bona fide starter in this league.
Id like to see Brooks off the bench and Lowry continue to start. Brooks with the second unit is instant offense, run and gun.
He's at 37% which is real good. Great if you remember what he was shooting earlier in the season. Thread title should be changed to "Could Budinger hit the broadside of a barn?"
Personally, never really cared too much for Lowry's shooting ability. If anything, he's capable of hitting the 3 now at an almost-acceptable clip(32%), which is actually a good thing. What concerns me much more has been his inability to get to the foul line. Perhaps his role has changed on offense, staying more on the outside. But that lack of aggression into the paint has really hurt him as a scorer.
Lowry has definitely proved he deserves to be a starter. He seems to be grasping the offense much better now. The second unit seems to be struggling a bit, they would probably be better off with Brooks.
This last info is very promising. It is a sign he gets his job is to drive and dish. That's what he does best, but when he is wide open he has to shoot the 3. He is rarely forcing shots anymore and he is definitely playing his best basketball of his career. I like the idea of having Brooks as our 6th man and Lowry and Brooks on the court together at times but if Lowry can improve his 3pt shooting even more he will become a very valuable pg that could make Brooks expendable. That is if trading Brooks can get us a better sf.
Lowry seems to be a better shooter when he is out of rhythm and has to jack one up , or when the shotclock is expiring. Kind of wierd.
He played well against a crap team, one game after struggling against a good one. If he could be consistent and perform against all opponents he might earn that starting job. BTW - lots of guys play good against crummy opponents.....as our December schedule gets easier, I predict a lot of folks over reacting to what is going on out there. DD
