He doesn't. He's been playing well off the bench. I like having Battier as someone who's actively setting screens and passing. Not that Artest doesn't do that, but that's Battier's primary objective.
good analogy. Adelman has it figured out that there aren't enough basketballs if Yao, Tmac and Artest are in the game. Only time Tmac and Artest were on the floor together was when Yao was out because he was in foul trouble. Artest comes off the bench until either Artest takes Battiers role as the teams defensive specialist who takes the occasional wide open three or Tmac becomes a facilitator first and scorer second.
You only noticed Shane the few times he launched a shot. Shane played a GREAT game against the Bulls, and what I observed from him only convinces me further that he needs to get as many minutes as possible. He is so intelligent and does so many little things on offense that lead to better shots for his teammates. On one possession, he was being guarded by Ben Gordon while McGrady was bringing up the ball, so as soon as McGrady got to the right elbow he quickly set a pick that forced Gordon to switch onto T-Mac. T-Mac proceeded to take him to the basket for an easy score +1. On another possession, he saw that McGrady was having trouble getting a shot off against Deng, so he cut to the basket forcing Gordon to follow him away from the ball. That opened up the top area for McGrady to step into space and hit an open jumper. On each of those possessions, most people were praising McGrady for playing so well, but nobody noticed how Battier was making the game so much easier for McGrady to do his thing. On another possession, he received the ball in the corner for a 3, but he saw that Deng had closed fast and Thomas had overcommitted, so he slipped the ball down the baseline to Scola for a layup. On several occasions, he fed the ball to Yao extremely well, sometimes getting the ball back and immediately reposting him for an easier shot. Those are the things that Battier does that make this team better on offense. You people need to start paying attention and appreciating how valuable he is to this team.
^The best offense is being good offensively (who woulda thunk it). No matter how cerebral you get, if you cant knock down wide open shots, opposing teams will cheat on you. You cant beat top teams playing 4 on 5 on offense... definitely not in the playoffs.
I hope people realize Artest is shooting like 38% this year. So assuming adding him to the starters makes our offense better is misguided at best. He's been shooting much better off the bench when he can be a part of the more mobile 2nd unit. It gives him more makeable shots as opposed to the ISO's he was constatnly running earlier in the year. I think we have our rotations more or less set. Only question is Barry. He was on fire the last he played. I hate to see his talents wasted....
I'm not worried about his shot. It will come around. Everyone knows he has always been a good outside shooter. Everyone goes through slumps, especially when they've been through an injury. The same people condemning his shot right now are the same ones who thought McGrady could never be productive for this team again. And, in the end, it doesn't matter, because the team as a whole is much more efficient offensively when he is on the floor than when he is not, even when he's not taking or making shots. Individual stats do not wins make. If the ROCKETS are scoring more efficiently when he is on the floor, then I want him on the floor. We have plenty of guys who need the ball in their hands. This team needs more guys like Battier greasing the gears, not more players jacking up shots. I repeat: most fans are whining about Battier because they want to be entertained. Battier is not an entertainer. He doesn't tickle the twine with sweet jumpers. He doesn't dunk. Even on defense, where he has made his reputation, he doesn't get a ton of steals or blocks. All he does is the little fundamental things that result in wins for the team. Things like the ones I mentioned in the last post that nobody ever notices because they only watch the guy with the ball in his hands (or the guy making $21 million per year). If Artest had been on the receiving end of that corner pass for a 3, he would have either jacked up a contested shot, dribbled in for a tougher fadeaway, or turned it over. Other than McGrady, the only person on this team smart enough to make that pass to Scola is Battier. This "4 on 5" thing is just a cover for "I'm not getting entertained, entertain me, dammit!". Battier has been a great outside shooter for his career, and when it matters he will make open shots given to him. In the meantime, I'm thrilled to have him setting screens and helping to increase the Rockets' offensive efficiency.
With the Rise of Von Wafer and the addition of Artest, Battier is the odd man out, but since he's played very poorly for most of this season, he doesn't have much trade value. If he's not relegated to the bench, his mpg should be reduced to no more than 20. Wafer and Barry should get those mins instead and Artest should play more as well.
I'd rather have a 6 ft tall moderately attractive woman with some tangible assets camping out at the corner 3 pt line the whole game over Battier. At least she would draw some attention from the other team. She probably would have better ball handling skills than Battier as well. It's not too much to ask Battier to score at least the league average for his position (wich is 9.6 ppg and Battier is at 6.5). He's got to show up a little in the box score. As it stands now, guarding Shane Battier is one of the easiest jobs in the NBA.
Relax, Battier will get back to his former self. He's never been a great scorer and he has shown he can still score (like the 4-4 3 pointers a while back). We got enough scorers with Scola, Yao and T-mac in the starting line-up. Artest is the monster, the beast from the east (of the US) and our 6th man. P.S. We're not the Spurs, Artest is not a flopper and I'll take him over Whinobili any day. Please stop the Artest = Ginobili now
I disagree that Battier is a better fit with the starters. I actually think both he and Rafer would be a better fit with the bench crew for the simple fact that they actually run the motion offense and Ron doesn't. Notice how smooth the motion offense ran with the guys off the bench when Ron isn't on the floor with them. Guys screen, cut, back cut, and the ball keeps moving. When Ron is on the court with those guys the other four players eventually stop moving because Ron is just holding the ball. Having Battier with that group would help him be more involved in the offense and possibly score more points as well as keeping a defensive presence on the court with that second unit. On the flip side, having Ron on the court with Yao and Tracy would benefit all involved because that helps spread the floor since he has actually been hitting his open 3s, and also reduces the amount of double-teams Yao and Tracy see. That would allow Tracy, Yao, and Ron to see more single coverage.
So sick of people saying Battier defense is better than Artest do you guys even watch basketball. How many Defense players of the year have Shane one. Yes he is a hustle guy and keeps a hand in players face but it doesn't stop them from getting off. Artest has some of the quickest strongest hands every and with that bull strengh he is a force on the defense his only mistake is he gambles a little much. Shane is averaging 6.6 points a game on basically wide open looks at 39% Artest is getting double teams and manages 15.8 has been a all star and clearly the better player. The Shane hype machine is sick you put him on the trade block and see what other GMs will offer you. Yeah he is from Duke, Yeah he is a team guy, blah blah blah. He has no go to moves and couldn't even start consistantly for the Grizzles. Stop listening to what you hear and actually watch a game from a real prospective his great effort and hustle still can't stop nobody not athletic enough. Almost like he has a secret on the NBA to keep giving him credit.
I completely agree. Go ask Kobe Bryant and Lebron James as to who plays the best D against them. I'm pretty sure they'll say Artest (LJ23 I believe has gone on record as having said this). If you're one of those guys, who do you want staring you down for 7 games - Battier or Artest? The answer would clearly be Battier. No one wants to deal with Artest hounding them, physically punishing them, and making them work their ass off for every point for an entire playoff series while at the same time forcing them to play D on him at the other end. Just wait until the playoffs and you'll see how Ron takes his game to another level. Unfortunately, Battier does not have the ability to do that. Ron has practically won games in the postseason for his team (ex. Sac vs SA) with his defense. You can't say the same about Battier. While Artest has had success in the playoffs, Shane has been a miserable failure. He's only had 1 good offensive game in his entire post-season career and on D, his supposed strong suit, he hasn't had that much success either...I remember watching Dirk absolutely torch him in the playoffs when Battier was with the Grizz.
Battier is needed because hes the only guy that runs back in transition to prevent a fastbreak. he does that once or twice a game. Artest is needed to be on the bench because theres not enough shots to go around the starting 5 and the 2nd unit wouldnt have a go-to guy.
great analysis JeopardE... that pass to Scola by battier was uber cool.. and I just get a feeling that he is improving slowly.. his defense was also slipping . that was definitely due to the injury.. in 4-5 games i think he will be back to 07-08 battier..
