I think Vassilis will cut down on his TOs once he gets consistent PT. And to be fair he had already reduced his mistakes before the game against GSW. Also the stat comparison isn't valid if you don't have a comparable sample size. So it's not accurate to compare a full season --especially the rookie one where you expect to have variations-- with 10 games in the first half of another season. I also agree with other people saying that he will fit better as a pg. IMO it's good that he plays the 2 right now, because this will take some stress off his back and he can focus on good D and some creativeness in the offensive end.
Ok ladies, where can I find an update of his blog...There are so many pages of guys going back and forth, ruining the thread... oh wait, that's what we do....
Does anybody (who is not an idiot) think that it's problematic for JVG to criticize Spanoulis for playing like sh-t vs. GSW? Do you think it's problematic to praise him when he does well?
I do not think it is problematic for JVG to criticize Spanoulis for having 5 turnovers in limited minutes against the GSW's. I do not think it is problematic for JVG to praise Spanoulis for having a good game (which he did after Spanoulis's game against the Wizards). I hope you do not think I am an idiot. (But I cannot control that, so whatever.)
Ok, this is where we get into the "real world" vs. "fantasy world" debate. In the real world, V-Span has turnover problems. This is a fact. I've watched every Rockets game this season, some of the preseason games, and even the Greece/USA game. One thing is very obvious and is confirmed by the albiet limited statistical data available: V-Span is wild and turnover prone. In the real world, when you get more touches, you are more likely to give up more turnovers. When you play PG, you get more touches, you have to bring the ball up the court, and you have to handle the ball at the top of the key. Those things are difficult to do, and if V-Span is already having problems holding onto the ball at the 2, it is very fair to assume he will have at least the same problems at the 1, and probobly more. In the fantasy world, V-Span could put up 10 Ast/Game and 1 TO/Game at PG. He could be just what we need off the bench to put this team into the No. 1 seed in the West. He could start at PG in the playoffs and lead us to a championship. He could be the next Steve Nash! Unfortunately, we live in the real world, and V-Span, though he does have a lot of potential, needs to prove himself BEFORE taking on more responsibility.
Way to not stay classy Sammy Diego !! No problem with criticism, but the message becomes seriously lessened by the large lead. DD
Yes, he would have some turnover problems, but the point is that as he plays more those will get ironed out and his turnovers will go down while his assists will go up. A lot of his turnovers are just getting used to his teamates, and adjusting to the speed of the NBA game. Like tonight he tried a bounce pass to Deke.....which one should NEVER do, but V-Span was just passing to the open guy....he will learn that you don't do that...but it will take time and a chance for him to make mistakes and learn from them. Do you honestly think that he will be a turnover machine forever, or will he improve with time? DD
I would love if he improved, and I think he will. But he's not there yet. We will never agree because you think developing V-Span right now is more important that winning games right now, and I think the opposite.
Ok, this is what gets me...I did not say develop him and sacrifice wins....NEVER have I said that. I said give him some time, and when he messes up, yank him, tell him what he did and put him back in the game. Also, play him at the position in which he will play his career at...PG.... But, I would NEVER sacrifice wins....I want him to get some minutes, and on nights he plays well.....give him some more, on nights he struggles...pull him. Nothing more, nothing less. 10 minutes a game on average is ok but he should be a 15+ minute a game player... DD
DaDa, it's kind of tough to do that. He has to make the mistake to be yanked. So the mistake is MADE already. Putting in Billy knowing that he is more likely to turn the ball over than someone else, that means that you are taking a risk. Everytime you take that risk, and it goes bad, Billy makes a mistake, and we sacrifice wins. I guess my logic is this: Most people think that when you lose a close game, it's because of the last shot you made. But to me, and probably JVG judging by his personality, those 2 points were lost at so many points in the game not just the shots in the least few minutes. So to JVG, he loses a game by 2, and Billy had a really bad TO somewhere in the 2nd or 3rd quarter - he begins to wonder if we would have won had he not played a rookie. It's a tough call. Luckily, we don't have anyone to play backup PG. Head's asst/to ratio is poor as well, and Lucas seems useless in this system. That leaves T-mac, Spanoulis and Sura. T-Mac is playing a lot of 2/3 because we are without Wells and Snyder. Sura is out. Spanoulis is getting a chance he would not have gotten otherwise, and I hope he takes advantage of it before Sura comes back. This is the only time JVG will look at the situation as "the backup PG is going to be bad, whoever it is, so I might as well use V-Span who will get better faster." Good luck Span. Looks like he had a decent game tonight. I'll watch it later. Any notes?
I am happy we won, and yes, I am glad he got some run, but still think he should get some time at the point. DD
That sums the situation up nicely. Tonight, I thought he was decent. No huge mistakes, but he did force some passes and got stripped a few times without losing the ball. I don't know how many TOs he ended up with, but he narrowly avoided quite a few more. His shot obviously still needs work. I really liked how he was playing D tonight, though. He was helping a lot more and avoiding bad fouls, despite increased minutes.
I really don't think there's anything to worry about as far as this guy goes. He seems to have enough talent to make it and a good working relationship with the coach. He gets praised when he plays well and he gets yelled at sometimes when he screws up and he seem to take both in stride. He looks a bit uncertain on court now, but that confidence will come with more experience both in games and in practice. I suspect with Van Gundy (and a lot of other coaches), it's a good sign that you are getting criticized for your mistakes... it's when he stops criticizing you (see Wells, Bonzi; Anderson, Derek) that you know you are in the doghouse. Look back on the articles... Van Gundy is always extra careful about not saying anything to negative about guys he just wants to get rid of.
You are too easy, DD. V-span should gotten at least 36 minutes! John Lucas and Rafer stole his minutes in the last 3 quarters. It was a blow out after the 1st quarter. What's wrong with you, today?
It seems that JVG believes in VSpan and wants to develop him... Vassilis' game will become better during this season...
I am convinced he is going to turn V-span into a top defender. He has done a great job with Yao Ming. I never thought that Yao would improve his defense, so much in the last 3 years. I always thought he was too slow with his feet and that it was stupid to have him rotate to perimeter players. I can salivate at our defense then. Yao, Chuck, T-Mac, Battier, and V-Span. That's going to be a great "Shut them down" team next year. Alston is ok defensively not as bad as some make him out to be. Just ehhh...
