What about ball handling? He is a terrible ball handler.
Ariza ain't Magic Johnson. He has very limited ball-handling skills. But he is not a terrible ballhandler. The reason he is not a terrible ball handler is that he knows his limitations and strengths. He doesn't try to dribble too much. Most of his ball handling consists of passing which he is pretty good at. More intricate ball handling is a skill that can be built with time.
He doesn't dribble with his head up and he rarely dribbles more than twice unless he is all alone on the break.
I can't say I've noticed whether or not he is looking at the ball when he dribbles, but I think it is a good thing that he doesn't dribble much. He knows what he is good at, and that is what he tries to do. He plays smart and unselfish.
Dude is a good player but he needs to get better. He looks stronger but he actually needs to work on his game and get better. He's 20!!!! I would think at 20 his handle would be decent cuz all the kids nowadays have some sort of handle.....especially swingmen.
Interesting point...I understand Ariza is Panamanian or something. I wonder is he even grew up playing basketball from birth the way Americans do or if he picked it up in his teen years. I think his handle has gotten better, I saw him do some breaking down of his defensive player in the summer league.
Just to clarify a little further, you need to cut back on the Kool Aid if you think Ariza is going to become a star.
Was that the clarification?
Magliore made the All Star team and people here don't view him as a star. Just check the "Bucks trade for Magliore" thread.
Was this the clarification? Because it seems more of a statement of semantic definition. I thought we were talking basketball.
Ariza will never be a star. Can you ever imagine Ariza really dominating another opponent or a game?
Yes.
He's not a skill player.
There are, have been, and will be players that are stars who aren't 'skill players'.
People learn to shoot and dribble when they are very young, not when the get into the NBA.
When people are 6' 8" they learn all kinds of skills at the NBA level.
***
I am not saying Ariza is a can't miss superstar, but he has heart and he is a smart player. He is also one of the best athletes on the court whenever he steps onto it. At 20, I think that equals star potential.
oohah
P.S. enyspree, you got me this week, you sonofagun! Your boys were hot, my boys were not! (Except for Paul Pierce, he kept me in the game.)
[Edited by - oohah on 11-07-2005 11:15 AM]
11/6/2005 9:05 PM