Griffin won't be scary next year, but with his offseason working habits, in 2 years he will be. By that I mean adding muscle and one post move in each of th next 2 offseasons. So, to add to his turnaround and normal jumper, he'll have 2 more moves, plus the size to hold his own in the post. Not bulk, we need him to just keep adding muscle.
What in the hell are you talking about, Raef averaging 2.5 blocked shots a game? I don't even have to look it up, I know that is way off! Shaq doesn't even average 2.5 a game! He would be damned near leading the league Get some sleep James, lay off the copenhager and coors lite dude...
Even if he isn't, Raef CAN average 2.5 a game in extended minutes. But I see the point. But once Griffin establishes his name in the league as a potent weapon on offense and defense, then people will be afraid. His on the ball D is horrible because everyone backs him down or runs right through him since he gets "rookie calls" against veterans, and doesn't have the size to body up anyway. Right now, his mindset is aggressive, and he's working very hard. This is exactly the type of warrior mentality we need from him. One thing though, I always thuoght he should get a lot more tip-ins and stuff like that. He has the size, athleticism and knack for rebounding...It would really help us a whole lot.
It seems to me that Eddie often plays pretty solid defense. If anything, his shot blocking in conjunction with Yao's sure locks up the lane. Those games EG was out we were really hurting with out him. Our team really was lacking in defense with out him.
What made it so laughable? Mo Taylor does have some post moves (at least hook shot). And Tim Thomas is really a jump shooter.
Raef's numbers are down this year, but his career average is 2.35 bpg. He averaged 2.22 last year, 3.00 the year before. Shaq's averaging 2.25 this year, 2.61 over his career. Not sure what the fuss is all about. James doesn't sound way off to me. I hope Eddie turns out, but I agree with a lot of people that it would be ideal to pair a physically strong and aggressive PF along Yao in the frontcourt. Cato's an ideal backup, but his limited offensive game makes him a bit of a liability for significant minutes. I hope Eddie grows up soon. The youngness of this team can be aggravating, and Eddie's practically the youngest.
Holy crap ya'll are right, Raef is a GD blocking machine! Well, anyway, eddie is still young, and I think once he puts on about 20-30 pounds of meat he will be a beast.
What I meant to say was, it's not often that we use Mo's inside game as his forte against others. You know what makes it in this league? Potential + Work ethic. Show me one player in history who had the potential to be great (Physically and mentally) and worked hard, but didn't succeed? Griffin is a gym rat. He works out like crazy in the summer. He will be 21 or 22 next year, and he will be erady for his first season when we'll really be watching, relying on him, and be holding him accountable. He won't be young anymore. 2 years of NBA experience is enough for anyone to start being consistent and produce decent numbers.
I disagree. IMO Kobe wasn't consistent until his 4th year. But then, he was more involved with running the offence; which takes more time. Griffin is in the process of adding more bulk also. Changing body size adds to consistency problems. I might expect Eddie to play every available game & average 8-10 ppg next season. But I think there'll be some 0 point games as well as some 25 point games. Also Eddie will never be more than the 3rd or 4th option on this team.
Eddie needs to starting working on a new shot immediately. I'm not sure what the Rockets are waiting for. The sooner, the better. And he needs to stick to the 15-18 feet range with his jumpshots. He's not shooting well enough behind the arc to warrant him ever taking a 3.
The Rox coaches (I assume) corrected T-Rocks shot...if they fixed his shot they can fix anyone's...God performs miracles, but the Rox coaches in fixing T-MO's shot, just about performed one on their own. EG needs more arch and he can learn it. But it will be this offseason. Unless he wants to pull a Stoudamire and just start dunking on people like crazy! Then his arch wouldn't matter much!
no no no no noooooo, Eddie does not compare to Tim Thomas. That's almost like saying, Glen Rice = Reggie Miller. Tim Thomas is much faster laterally and he can drive inside the basket with power. Tim sees the floor much better then Eddie and Thomas' handles are a lot better. The jumpers from the two are different, Eddie is more of a spot up shooter while Tim is a run and shoot type, and adds more vertical to his range. But anywhoooo... I think Eddie has a better comparison of a quiet type of Rasheed Wallace.
what's the difference if both camp out behind the 3-point line all game long? i don't care if tim can do this and that, but if all he does is jacking up long jump shots, which is what griffin does. griffin seems to pattern his career after tim thomas, playing only one year in college, displaying potential, signing a big contract and will never play to their potential.
As I've stated before, I've actually been encouraged with Griffin's progress this year, and I think he's going to be just fine. Say what you want, he's actually improved this year. * He's more active on the boards * He's improved that little turnaround of his (remember how he used to telegraph that shot last year and get it blocked) and has shown a little jump hook (which he has no confidence in eventhough he looks good shooting it) * He's starting to put the ball on the floor a little * And he's already a good weakside shot-blocker. I don't think he's really ready to start right now, but the rotation is better with Mo playing a Corliss Williamson role on the 2nd unit, and he's a better PF than Morris. He definitely needs to work on his form (he needs more extension on his release, he shoots from his ear a little), and his footwork. And I wouldn't be surprised if he came into next season with that little jumphook and a slashing, a-few-dribbles-and-go move (you can tell that he wants to drive, but he has no confidence in his ball-handling). Eddie's going to be great, just have a little patience.
live, i hope griffin keeps on improving and becomes a great player, but i doubt it. so, i hope the rox pays him based on his play not because of his potential like the bucks with tim thomas. as you know, players with a big contract are very difficult to move if he's not performing.
I think it's also chemistry too James23. My best prediction is that Griffin would be at his highest potential in the East at a team such as Toronto.
all of yall talk like the main thing griffin needs to add is muscle. yes thats one thing but i think one thing that everyone is overlooking is his tenative attitude and that he thinks too much when he plays and it causes him to screw up and not just let things flow. that should come with more experience kind of like how TMo developed from last year to this year. however, that by far is EG's biggest problem...too much thinking and not simply playing.
Griffin just not confident enough yet, that might have to do with his age(he still going to be 20 even at the end of this season), his not fully developed body(as he looks like he's out matched nightly to bang), and his experience(he looks like he feels he's going to get block if he doesn't shoot it right when he get's it). He will be good(maybe really good) just because I've seen him when he is confident in the summer games where he has played more aginst guys his size and age like Amare Stoudimire, Drew Gooden, Miles, Chandler and Curry, etc. and he plays as good or better than most of them. He goes inside much more, takes shots with time and hits more, gets tons of rebounds and blocks tons of shots, even drive in alittle. In time these are the guys he will play against. It's just like J O'neil, Wallace, Lewis, etc. it takes time to develop these young players, they are going to have many bad nights now. With an exception of a few body ready big guys, smaller rookies will always be more ready to play and make an impact than the big guys at PF and C. Also at the begining of the season Griffin looked much better, I think R.T. was right when saying that Thomas was hurting Griffins confidence. Once Thomas came back Griffin suddenly got worse and even got a few DNP-Coach Decision. I think at the begining of the season Griffin felt like he was going to be the starting PF and was going to get 30mins nightly and much was expected of him as if a star, than Thomas came back and Griffin lost that feeling and confidence. Just my opinion on it. Just give him more time just because we have the time.
Just because you're a average shot blocker, anything under 3, doesn't mean you're a good defender. Want to know why The Kings whip the Mavs? Its because Vlade post up soft raef all game and kills him. A player thats light in the ass like Lafrentz and Griffin, you power over them. They're both good weakside shotblockers , but since both are weak, their man normally overpowers them.
