y2zipper wrote:Markji wrote:Jeffries is good at what he does - defense and taking a charge. His offense around the basket is terrible. What I don't understand is why he can't/hasn't improved? I'm sure the coaches recognize this deficiency and should be working with him. He's a smart BB player and veteran. He should be able to improve.The one incredible shot he made was a reverse layup against the Nets. It's in the Jeremy Lin highlights I believe.
Jeffries' success, as I've said before, is relative to his role. When the conversation starts with, "Hey guys! We're going into the year with Jared Jeffries as our starting center!" of course everybody dumps on it because that means you have somebody worse backing him up. This year the Knicks have Chandler, STAT and Jorts all ahead of him in the rotation, which means he can thrive in his ideal role: a guy who can give us 15-20 minutes as a positional defender around the basket.
It's really the same thing as Toney Douglas. When he's allowed to be a backup SG, catch-and-shoot, and take the ball to the basket and his shots fall, he's great. When he's asked to facilitate for Melo and STAT or run the offense in any capacity, he sucks.
Absolutely. Not to mention that Jeffries is an excellent TEAM defender. Now that we have an actual TEAM defense along side of him, JJ is just a much better fit.
The defining moment when Jared won my respect was, ironically, when he chased down Melo after the Mardy Collins sucker punch. His offensive limitations are definitely frustrating at times, but you just can't hate on the guy.