8 for 18: 44.4% 6 for 14: 42.9% Not sure where you're going with that. I haven't and I won't gripe about McGrady coming back and hitting in the low 40s. That's not shabby. Not great, not shabby. The shot selection, the disinclination to take the ball inside, and the lack of passing are what are disappointing to see (still). There is no team offense, no chance for a team offense, if he is going to receive the ball out high and stay outside with it. Taking nothing but contested jumpers from 18+ feet is not going to facilitate anyone's offense but his own. It won't get him to the line. It won't break down a defense. We all know what he is capable of. He looks to be in good shape physically. He put forth good effort too. We need him to enhance the offense, and that entails more than what he gave last night. Evan
You can always make up for bad plays by making good plays when it counts. I.E Yao had a crappy game against the Trailblazers but when he hit that fadeaway at the end, fans were like all on his nizzuts. Also Kobe could have a cold shooting game taking a ton of bad shots but he hits them when it counts, everyone is on his nizzuts.
How about not covering Brandon Roy in the Portland game? The real solution is to not make bad plays in the first place.
It is great for PR, but if they made the smart plays earlier, it would just be a routine win .... 2 points is 2 points whether it is made early or late. In fact, 2 points earlier has a greater impact on the game the 2 points late because they were tallied earlier and have more of an opportunity to affect the rest of the game. (A trivial example is this: A team is down four late but at the very end, they score a basket; however, if they had scored that basket much earlier, it would be a two point game at the end and that alters how teams play.)
Hey, that's brilliant! Now if only we could get certain Rockets to buy into that .... Smart basketball = winning basketball.
Whether it's a smart play or not usually depends if the ball goes in or not. Lebron James used to get hammered for passing the ball open man late in games instead of shooting it. Yao shooting a fadeaway at the end of games isn't a good shot but you live and die with your star players taking them.
TMac started off great last night and finished off the game quite well, considering how long he's been off the court. That clutch layup past Prince was huge when the game started getting close. I hope he can continue to build upon his confidence when that knee. solid 8/10 rating
I respectfully disagree. Is it smart for Lebron to go 1 on 3 or for him to pass it out to the wide open shooter? Whether he gets hammered in the press or not is irrelevant. The right play is to pass it out. It always has been and it always will be. If you listen to the press, then you are sadly being misled. By going 1 on 3, he probably has a 25% chance of making a 2 pt shot (including fouls). By passing it out, his team probably has a 40% chance of making a wide open three (possibly higher if the shooter is half decent). One has an expected value of 0.5 points. The other has an expected value of 1.2 points. You do that enough in a game, and that results in a win. You do not live and die with your star players. 2 points by a star = 2 points by a "role" player. Do you remember the winning shots by the Bulls in the finals? Jordon to Kerr ... Ring! Pippen to Paxson ... Ring! Those were smart plays. Pass to the open shooter. Let him nail it. Remember the college game where the star player was double teamed the whole game whether he had the ball or not? He scored 0 points ... and what was the result?
He looked fluid out there for sure but Id love to see Tmac take over our pg duties before we get to the playoffs, we can't have 2 low fg% guys on the court like rafer and tracy and expect to win when every possession counts.
lol and there's plenty of times where the star takes it upon himself to win the game while being contested. There has been plenty of times where the open shooter has miss the shot as well. Passing it to the open man might be the better option but I don't think having your best player/players on the floor shooting it is bad either.
Again, I disagree. A forced shot is a bad shot. It doesn't matter if it is Kobe, Wade, or Lebron ... it is a bad shot. Those are low percentage shots. A wide open shot is a good shot. Heck, even Rafer will make 35% of wide open threes and he's a terrible shooter. Replace Rafer with any decent shooter and they will make closer to 40 to 45% of wide open threes. Suppose the Rockets are down 1 with 10 seconds left. TMac has the ball at the top of the key. Yao sets the pick. TMac drives but the help defender on Battier steps in front of TMac. If TMac forces the issue, it is a bad shot and will result in a basket maybe 25% of the time. If he passes off to Battier for the wide open shot, that will be a win maybe 50% of the time. If this happens 5 times in a season, then that is the difference of one win. If this happens 4 times a year, then the difference is one win on average. If TMac shoots all 4, then TMac lovers will go crazy because he made a game winning shot and that's all they'll remember. The media will go crazy because he made a clutch shot. Intelligent basketball fans (and coaches) will say that TMac made the wrong play all 4 times and cost the team.
Welpppp, those guys you name have won championships or have gone far into the playoffs by doing a mixture of both. lol it's just a difference in views NE fan I don't think we'll agree.
Blowing big leads late?? No energy on D. Did you guys notice how many times a Knick just blew by TSlack? 2/10.
Tonight he looked worse. He was really a ballstopper tonight but he did create for his teammates. I still would like for him to attack the basket more and do it as soon as he touches the ball instead of waiting. His Defense is still bad though.
He has lost all his speed, he has no way of getting around players that are basically scrubs. Wafer is quicker, a better athlete and plays harder. Tmac should come off the bench of move to PG. DD
No, not at all, I think he is still babying it, and has just simply NOT cut loose yet. I think he is a 29 year old panzy....and until he actually picks a line and puts the pedal to the metal, he will continue to struggle. He is playing scared, it is so obvious, he is just flat out afraid...and that is unreal. Just play the game, go all out.......your knee is not going to explode. The 2 weeks of rehab...may have given him some confidence, but not even close to enough. Make him EARN his time...START WAFER NOW !! DD
Agreed, put Wafer back in the starting spot he didn't have one bad game when he was starting. And at least he finishes.
