rvwink wrote:I suspect MDA has additional motivation for giving the Iman playing time at point guard in the scrimage. Toney Douglas seems about the same size as Rajon Rondo. He is listed at 6'2" while Rondo is listed at 6'1". But check out their wingspans, and you will find that Toney Douglas's wingspan is 6'6" while Rajon Rondo's wingspan is 6'9". Rondo's exceptionally long arms and huge hands make a huge difference. So Rajon Rondo's playing length is considerably longer than Toney Douglas's playing length is. Also we all know that Rajon Rondo played significantly better than Toney Douglas did in Celtics/Knicks playoff season last year.

Now enter Shumpert. His height is 6' 5.5", versus 6'1" for RR. His wingspan is 6'9.5" i.e. slightly longer than Rondo. His standing reach is therefore longer than Rondo's. He seems every bit as athletic as Rondo is and may be one of the very people playing point guard in the NBA who defensively will match up well with Rajon Rondo.

MDA was preparing in today's scrimage to put the Iman into the Celtics game to guard Rajon Rondo. He will likely do it either before or after Toney Douglas plays. Either way, it should be exciting to watch. It seems likely to me that having the Iman guarding Rajon Rondo, will improve the Knick's chance of winning the upcoming Celtics game. Thanks to Shump Shump's new role, I am predicting a victory for the Knicks.

Watching the preseason games, I agree Iman looks more like a combo guard than PG.
These are the scenarios in which I think I felt he could redirect his energy, guarding players and giving them a hard time that generate a lot of our opponents offense.
Some of these guys are pick, some of them are quick, some of them are both, TD just isn't in that same caliber as Iman.

Cp3
Deron
Wade/Lebron
Rose
WestBrook
Rhondo
Wall
Nelson
Philly would be tough, I am not sure if we use him for the wing or PG.

Remember why we drafted him and what his main skill is, I want him to learn and make mistakes, get crossed, get dunked on, knowing his spirits, it will make him work only harder.
You learn through your mistakes, but just watching the 2 steals he made in the preseason I believe both vs Deron he looked special.
Those are plays I think that can totally defeat our confidence and fear Iman, playing more conservatively, then this is where he switched gears and play the passing lanes at times.
Some little guys having really killed us over the years, even guys like Mo Williams, mainly because we have no shot blocker, but we didn't have a person to stay in front of them, apply pressure, and play solid D. Anthony Carter, with his limited game appearances, has been the best defender on his limited playing time in the near recent.

I think TD, should learn a little bit more from the sidelines, from Iman and watching the games with Chandler and notice the difference. I think he has the tools to be a good defender but he isn't very smart and always cheats too much. He has to mix it up, know how to guard a shooter, don't give them room don't let them easily get the ball by playing the passing lane. He is suited better playing the 2nd unit and after Iman has given the first units huffing and puffing, TD can come in help. In the future, I think they can be a good combo together, however, in certain matchups, in the end of the games, it would be nice to have another good wing defender like

Players that probably, could be tradeable, if they don't look like they are in contention for playoffs at deadline
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Wilson Chandler I miss this fella, I know many would welcome him back, I think we can give a decent package for him, *i dont know if Denver can trade him because if they give him
QO, he comes back around the deadline. Does it have to be a sign and trade with QO or for a couple of years extended.

Ariza He didn't play last preseason game, not sure if he is hurt. If Iman can hold the PG spot well enough, having these 2 on the backcourt will be sick defensively.

Grant Hill * not sure about at his age, he looked great last year*

Dunleavy *doubt they will trade him, with father n son united*

I don't believe he is a pure PG, however, if we add someone with the skills of Joe Johnson, Odom, Grant Hill, or someone that can play the PG as well. It would be ideal for Dantoni's offense. He prefers 2 players playing together that can penetrate and handle the ball, and surrounded by players that can hit the 3.
His system prefers a lot of skill sets, Joe Johnson's year there, it showed how Nash, Joe Johnson, and Barbosa's ability to penetrate helped create room to shoot wide open shots.
I think Amare/Boris Diaw also helped a lot. His system, might need some tweaking with Tyson Chandler, inability to shoot a consistent shot *preferably a step behind free throw*, clogging the paint. However, what he brings on the offensive end, and his pick's will leave a lot of guys open as well.

I wish everyone here a Merry Xmas Eve and be safe driving/with a lot of drunk drivers during the holidays. I am looking forward for Xmas and our Knicks to earn respect from one of the toughest defense of the league. I wouldn't want to disrespect KG, Ray Allen, and the Celtics in anyway, I look forward to the possibility to recruiting them this summer.

nixluva wrote:Iman is a COMBO GUARD!!! He's used to doing both things and so it's not really a stretch for him to do a little distributing and a lot of scoring. He's the prototypical Combo guard. He's got enough handle to play point and he's a capable scorer inside and out.

personally, I hope he turns into a great SG. I don't think he'll be a great PG. I've never heard "combo guard" being used as a compliment

Iman thinks he will turn into an NBA point guard. I personally wouldn't bet against Shump Shump once he has set his mind on something.

Can he be a Chris Paul point guard? I doubt it. How about a point guard in the mold of Chauncey Billups? One would think that might end up being a workable proposition. Do you agree?

loweyecue wrote:

SupremeCommander wrote:

nixluva wrote:Iman is a COMBO GUARD!!! He's used to doing both things and so it's not really a stretch for him to do a little distributing and a lot of scoring. He's the prototypical Combo guard. He's got enough handle to play point and he's a capable scorer inside and out.

personally, I hope he turns into a great SG. I don't think he'll be a great PG. I've never heard "combo guard" being used as a compliment

Prototypical combo guard? Someone who is too confused to play either guard position effectively? Is there such a thing?

What we don't need are more TD/Nate types. Granted this dude is bigger but I hope he finds a role and becomes a specialist 1 or 2, I don't want combo anything.

nixluva wrote:There are lots of scoring guards who have PG size, but a SG mentality. Iman is a SG that is capable of playing the point and has played the point for years. He's not a pure PG like CP3 or Nash, but he's not a pure SG like H2O or Ray Allen. Iman is a bit of both and that designation doesn't have to be a negative. Iman could certainly limit his game to just being a SG and be just fine, but since he's capable of doing more than that, there's no reason to limit his contributions to just being a SG. It gives the team more flexibility with the lineups they can put on the court.

Everybody seems to always look at the offensive side. It's his defensive impact that allows MDA to play him as a pointguard. (Fellas, keep in mind, the PG position doesn't exist anymore. The NBA is nothing but guards and postmen / forwards.) But the key with Iman is that he can guard 3 positions. So whenever you have a pick and roll, and he has to guard a big, he does that better than TD or Bibby.

This is why I think the best guard combination is Barron and Iman. Both guys can guard multiple positions. This is going to be key all season, as a defensive team. Personally, I like Iman as the Point Shooting Guard....similar to Melo's Point Small Forward role. The more players you have on the floor that can run the point, the better. If Melo or Iman gets the rebound, they can both start the offense which allows more time in half court offensive sets.

What Iman brings to the team defensively, is enough to allow some growing pains while he learns how to run the point in MDA's system...The plus side to this strategy is that you can potentially develop a defensive stopper to also be a full time PG. This is exactly what we need. And Barron Davis might be the most important Knick on the team, because of his leadership and mentoring with Iman.

I responded recently not to your entire body of work, which is quite excellent, but to a recently written quote. I wonder how many times a year do you think Deron Williams has a ball stolen by an opponent, who then adds insult to injury by taking the ball the length of the court and scoring. Because of both length and explosive speed, I think Iman is going to find some way to decrease Rondo's offensive contribution to the Celtics cause today. I think you will agree that crediting Iman with "explosive defense" is more than a single step past your "flexibility in lineups" suggestion. LOl.