If I had to trade Brooks or Martin I am not sure....I like them both, but Martin's injury history bothers me as does his reliance on a 3rd party for his effectiveness (the Refs)... That is why he is ineffective in the 4th quarters some games, because he doesn't get those calls, and his shooting percentages overall have been dropping yearly. DD
I would trade anyone on this team if it brought value back and a high draft choice, this rebuilding process is not getting any steam...
I personally don't under appreciate AB; in my view, I've got him pegged exactly where he is: (1) a slighly better version of Mike James; (2) a much lesser version of Calvin Murphy; and (3) a below average defender. We just disagree mainly on the 3rd point.
For the most part I agree, but... That does depend upon your assisgnment, sometimes it is deny the ball, where you are locked onto your man. Which is where you should be late in the game.... On that last possession, AB should have never let Blake slide while he was peeking. AB peeks a LOT ..... DD
What? That is EXACTLY what ball movement offenses try to exploit -- defenses that stare at the ball. I guess when you say "Bball 101" you are talking about teenagers who don't know how to run motion offenses. I hate using football analogies to explain basketball...but you need to pay attention to what happens to secondaries who track the QBs eyes instead of the wide receiver. wide receivers and QBs only need a slight amount of separation, and that works from 20-30yrds away (counting the QBs drop). NBA cutters need a lot less separation...you stare at the ball and Kevin Martin is going to V-cut for a backdoor and you'll be waiving your hands him.
AB would be better served as instant offense off the bench where the holes in his game are not exposed. His defensive and playmaking liabilities simply outweigh his offensive abilities as a starter playing major minutes with Kevin Martin. DD wishing it so does not change the bitter truth. Acknowledging it does not make you an AB hater.
Let me help you see the big picture: a.) Brooks - a scorer b.) Lowry - a defender c.) all of the above
You can't forget that we are SLOW, at best, in our front court. Scola and Yao are very slow off their feet and it doesn't help when Brooks/Martin let guards through into the paint because once Yao or Scola commits to help, it's over. It also doesn't help when Brooks starts jacking up 3's that come off long from the rim and lead to fast break points for the opposing team cuz God knows we can't keep up once that happens. Then we just start looking like a bunch of deer caught in headlights. One more thing. I wonder how "communicative" Brooks is on the defensive end. I don't see him being a "general" on the floor like Rondo or D. Will or CP3. He kind of just dribbles the air out of the ball and shoots jumpers or dishes it off to someone else if he can't find an open shot.
I'm not suggesting "staring at the ball." It's all about the peripheral vision. You shouldn't be staring directly at your man or directly at the ball, but half way between the two.
Brooks was watching Kobe Bryant on that play when Blake slid to his left to get the wide open 3, in that situation, AB could not effect the play at all, he should have been glued to the hot 3pt shooter in Blake. DD
We shouldnt try to mask it. Just flaunt it in their faces and have aB and Martin run them into the ground on the other end. Right after someone scores have them run even harder to the other end of the floor to make the scoreer chase after them. Wearing their butts out for scoring on the other end. Every single time. Until the other guy doesnt want to score anymore because he knows Brooks will make him sprint or Martin and chase them around the court even worse if they do.
