That`s interesting as well, agree. I personally like more the speed of the small ball, but I see your point and think that tall lineup can be useful if we have everyone shooting the 3s
It's weird....but I kinda disagree. Especially with Dwight/T Jones and Smoove defending the paint. I'd rather have a PG that makes the opponent work on the defensive end. Not saying we really have one of those, either...but Bev shutting it down isn't a death sentence at all.
I'm surprised - although I probably shouldn't be - at how many people are quickly dismissing Beverley's departure as a minor setback. It's a big deal. His defense is as good as a PG's defense can be given the offensive skill of most PGs and the way the game is reffed, and his defense is especially good when put next to Terry and Prigioni (who I was told was a decent defender but has been terrible in a Rockets uni). Terry and Prigioni can't play many minutes and remain effective, and Nick Johnson has given us no real reason to believe he can deliver at the end of the year and in the playoffs. I mean, seriously, do you want to see Terry trying to guard Westbrook/CP3/Parker/Curry/Conley? It will be a layup drill for those guys. Our bigs will get in foul trouble, and we'll have to rely on our not-so-good offense too much. I don't want to go all chicken little on everyone, but I think we're underestimating how big of a loss Bev will be.
I agree with small ball, but if you can't get effective defense from your true PGs/SGs, you need to go big in some cases. It's not going to be pretty.....the spacing on offense will be terrible, but you can't let western conference point guards beat you consistently.
His defense may look especially good compared to the other PG's on the roster, but it most definately IS NOT good, or "as good as a PG's defense can be". Especially not this season.
assuming he is gone for the playoffs, it's a loss yeah sure. but it isn't the difference bw the championship imo. his role can be covered as a group. I wouldn't be saying this at the beginning of the season though.
His defense has certainly dropped off this year, but his defensive ability above replacement is immeasurable. Prigioni & Terry won't be able to hold anybody...maybe with the right matchup (Dallas) we could cover up the defensive woes and hope that, if we were to move on, Bev would be ready. Ideally, you'd get Nick Johnson in the lineup for the final 2 weeks to see if his defense can hold up against some contenders. If not, slip Brewer in the lineup for the playoffs, roll with Smoove, Jet, Pringles for your bench.
True, and I agree completely with that. If we can´t stop them at the perimeter, we better make sure there is no layups at all with our bigs. As for the loss of beverley, again, I don´t think I´m dismissing the impact, I´m just saying that even if he plays he was just getting out of his shooting slump, something I don´t think it´s going to happen with a bad wrist. And his defense without shooting to space the offense can be as bad as no having him. We have to start thinking in other options. Having said that, losing a starter is bad for evey western conference team, and I love what he brings to the table, he will be missed if he is injured.
This season Beverley has missed 14 games and we are 12-2 in those games. Additionally, in those 14 games, the only PG that has really had a huge game against us was Curry's 34pt (13-19) and 5 ast. game. Against other top PGs we didn't fare badly: Parker - 6pt (3-8) 1 Ast Rondo - 4pt (2-9) 8 Ast Paul - 10pts(3-7) 7 Ast Knight - 12 pts (4-8) 2 Ast Conley - 15pts (5-9) 6 Ast Paul - 22pts (8-18) 14 Ast. Those numbers are pretty comparable or better than what those same players put up against Beverley.
Makes you really appreciate what Kenny Smith and Sam Cassell did for us. A rookie contributing like Sam did is what this team needs.
With the no hand-checking rules nowadays, I don't think any one perimeter player can effectively lock down any other perimeter player on his own - it takes a team effort to stop the elite guards. I think having Dwight and TJ out there is more important than having Bev with regard to stopping penetration.
Tons of players still hand check, Beverley included. You just have to do it frequently until the refs let you get away with it most of the time.
