BRIGGS wrote:Lopez takes all of that juicy interior space and he has played well no doubt--BUT KP has NOT played well with Lopez IN the game for the most part. On top of it their interior defense has been nothing short of crppy.

I don't see that, I see a rookie struggling and no guards to help him out via penetration. KP's PnR game is not good, he doesn't know when to roll, when to pop. He seems to have lost the early season zest or confidence. And there are some bad defensive moments from him - the breakdown of the guards hasn't helped at all either.

KP stands around a lot and is awful at setting picks. His cuts are sloppy too.

Rolo has found some good mojo and flow. That hook is nice. I can't wait until he gets comfortable with the 10-18 face-up jumpshot.

BRIGGS wrote:

martin wrote:

BRIGGS wrote:Lopez takes all of that juicy interior space and he has played well no doubt--BUT KP has NOT played well with Lopez IN the game for the most part. On top of it their interior defense has been nothing short of crppy.

I don't see that, I see a rookie struggling and no guards to help him out via penetration. KP's PnR game is not good, he doesn't know when to roll, when to pop. He seems to have lost the early season zest or confidence. And there are some bad defensive moments from him - the breakdown of the guards hasn't helped at all either.

KP stands around a lot and is awful at setting picks. His cuts are sloppy too.

Rolo has found some good mojo and flow. That hook is nice. I can't wait until he gets comfortable with the 10-18 face-up jumpshot.

One thing for sure Rolo has been nothing short of sensational in terms of scoring and rebounding recently. KP played much better on offense with Ro lo out. He was able to get into the lane a few times--he plays closer to the basket for the most part with Rolo out--hence issues they must try to balance.
Right now Ro lo is playing the best on the team. IF I was coach--Id demand that Ro lo get 20 shots and play 38 minutes. We just have no guards--we have to give Grant more time. Galloway also has been so inconsistent.

When you have 2 7+ plus guys in there--you cant be giving up 60 points in the paint --but the guys cant guard their men the right way because essentially they are both 5's KP to weak to really guard that well inside and both way to slow to guard outside. Add in poor guard defense and whamo. The team is built really poorly in a structural sense of how the nBA plays basketball now.

I thought it was more of a confidence thing with KP in the second half when he was scoring but I'd need to see it again. KP just seems out of sorts, didn't think it had to do with Rolo or spacing necessarily.

nixluva wrote:There's nothing wrong with KP that a film session and good instruction can't solve. He is being hurt by the general dysfunction of the guards. There should be more quality setups from the guards but none of our guards including Jose seem to really know how to take advantage of the defenders and get the other players on this team great shots.

Early in the possession is when they should be looking for more quick offense but our guards often miss the moment and end up having to settle into the post aspects of the offense. Once the players are on the court there has to be a certain amount of BB IQ and INSTINCT that takes over no matter what the system is. You still have to just play ball.

Literally nothing prevents a guard from pushing the ball and probing the D a little. Once the ball is swung to the guard at any point they can attack off picks or dribble hands offs that are part of almost every single possession. KP will be open almost every single time a guard goes quick and hard to the basket. The intent of the guard has to be to cause the defense to react and then feed off of that. It's the part of the offense that's missing!!! KP should be getting tons of open looks from the Elbow all night.

Nixliva you're right about a couple of things. A guard and a system that help create pace and space would do wonders. We need ball moving guards who are also capable of shooting dribble penetration and great team ball movement. One problem with Jackson is he really does not want guards under 6-3 and we are limiting our pool to look at. I think Jackson has some good that is also mixed with an archaic basketball thought process

When you look at a problem and see the solution and u just have to sit and watch this sht year after year it scks

martin wrote:

BRIGGS wrote:Lopez takes all of that juicy interior space and he has played well no doubt--BUT KP has NOT played well with Lopez IN the game for the most part. On top of it their interior defense has been nothing short of crppy.

I don't see that, I see a rookie struggling and no guards to help him out via penetration. KP's PnR game is not good, he doesn't know when to roll, when to pop. He seems to have lost the early season zest or confidence. And there are some bad defensive moments from him - the breakdown of the guards hasn't helped at all either.

KP stands around a lot and is awful at setting picks. His cuts are sloppy too.

Rolo has found some good mojo and flow. That hook is nice. I can't wait until he gets comfortable with the 10-18 face-up jumpshot.

Totally agree. What I did notice last night was that KP gets moved a lot by defenders by a good 6 feet all the time. You see him boxing out and he can't keep his position. You see him set a pick but he can't take the initial hit. Teams have figured out his weakness. His lower body strength is not there. The reason he is having problems with the PnR is because they are really digging on him now. AND...on the time that KP actually rolls or pops the right way...Calderon or Galloway keeps missing him. Don't even start me with Afflalo. That dude is the blackhole.

nixluva wrote:There's nothing wrong with KP that a film session and good instruction can't solve. He is being hurt by the general dysfunction of the guards. There should be more quality setups from the guards but none of our guards including Jose seem to really know how to take advantage of the defenders and get the other players on this team great shots.

Early in the possession is when they should be looking for more quick offense but our guards often miss the moment and end up having to settle into the post aspects of the offense. Once the players are on the court there has to be a certain amount of BB IQ and INSTINCT that takes over no matter what the system is. You still have to just play ball.

Literally nothing prevents a guard from pushing the ball and probing the D a little. Once the ball is swung to the guard at any point they can attack off picks or dribble hands offs that are part of almost every single possession. KP will be open almost every single time a guard goes quick and hard to the basket. The intent of the guard has to be to cause the defense to react and then feed off of that. It's the part of the offense that's missing!!! KP should be getting tons of open looks from the Elbow all night.

I saw the same thing. KP and Melo could really benefit from better guard play. The only player that benefits for this kind of guard play is RoLo where he can just anchor the middle and play catch with the guards.

EnySpree wrote:If anything Rolo takes alot of pressure off KP.... they are like a poor man's Aldridge and Duncan right now but would be so much better if they had better guards.

all of our guards suck

Raptor starting guards: 44pts, 14rebs, 13assists, 15-30 FGs
Knicks starting guards: 7pts, 7rebs, 4assists, 3-13 FGs

But yea... its Lopez and KP.

Lopez is a hell of a good basketball player, a very good signing, and no matter how many silly posts you start Briggs we should not trade him for 2nd rounders and cap space. For what Lopez brings his contract is a gem in this new CBA. After drafting KP, Lopez is probably Phil's best move.

Chandler wrote:

fishmike wrote:

EnySpree wrote:If anything Rolo takes alot of pressure off KP.... they are like a poor man's Aldridge and Duncan right now but would be so much better if they had better guards.

all of our guards suck

this is it man... Briggs how can you look at this team's issues and walk away thinking KP/Rolo are a problem?

Raptor starting guards: 44pts, 14rebs, 13assists, 15-30 FGs
Knicks starting guards: 7pts, 7rebs, 4assists, 3-13 FGs

But yea... its Lopez and KP.

Lopez is a hell of a good basketball player, a very good signing, and no matter how many silly posts you start Briggs we should not trade him for 2nd rounders and cap space. For what Lopez brings his contract is a gem in this new CBA. After drafting KP, Lopez is probably Phil's best move.

I agree with a lot of this post. KP's defense has suffered mainly because of guard play; guards get beat too many times, KP has to rotate and pretty soon he's spending more time looking at the opposing guards expecting to rotate than his own man, e.g., Biyombo

Rolo has been impressive (except for Nets game) and was/is a good signing

I think KP would benefit if we simplify things for him a bit the rest of the season. He went from an offensive after thought, to our hoped for savior. too much too soon. he's so good but he's not Lebron (not yet at least)

Does anyone remember X-man (xavier mcdaniel)? I swear that guy only shot from like 2 or 3 spots from the floor but was effective.

We get these two guys working together and we can be a force to be reckoned with -- but that won't happen until our backcourt improves. And FWIW I'm optimistic it's a lot easier for us to fix our backcourt than it was for us to address the front court

BRIGGS wrote:

nixluva wrote:There's nothing wrong with KP that a film session and good instruction can't solve. He is being hurt by the general dysfunction of the guards. There should be more quality setups from the guards but none of our guards including Jose seem to really know how to take advantage of the defenders and get the other players on this team great shots.

Early in the possession is when they should be looking for more quick offense but our guards often miss the moment and end up having to settle into the post aspects of the offense. Once the players are on the court there has to be a certain amount of BB IQ and INSTINCT that takes over no matter what the system is. You still have to just play ball.

Literally nothing prevents a guard from pushing the ball and probing the D a little. Once the ball is swung to the guard at any point they can attack off picks or dribble hands offs that are part of almost every single possession. KP will be open almost every single time a guard goes quick and hard to the basket. The intent of the guard has to be to cause the defense to react and then feed off of that. It's the part of the offense that's missing!!! KP should be getting tons of open looks from the Elbow all night.

Nixliva you're right about a couple of things. A guard and a system that help create pace and space would do wonders. We need ball moving guards who are also capable of shooting dribble penetration and great team ball movement. One problem with Jackson is he really does not want guards under 6-3 and we are limiting our pool to look at. I think Jackson has some good that is also mixed with an archaic basketball thought process

When you look at a problem and see the solution and u just have to sit and watch this sht year after year it scks

Don't get suckered by that thought, plenty of under 6-3 guards that played important roles at G for Phil, you can name a lot of them yourself.

fishmike wrote:

Chandler wrote:

fishmike wrote:

EnySpree wrote:If anything Rolo takes alot of pressure off KP.... they are like a poor man's Aldridge and Duncan right now but would be so much better if they had better guards.

all of our guards suck

this is it man... Briggs how can you look at this team's issues and walk away thinking KP/Rolo are a problem?

Raptor starting guards: 44pts, 14rebs, 13assists, 15-30 FGs
Knicks starting guards: 7pts, 7rebs, 4assists, 3-13 FGs

But yea... its Lopez and KP.

Lopez is a hell of a good basketball player, a very good signing, and no matter how many silly posts you start Briggs we should not trade him for 2nd rounders and cap space. For what Lopez brings his contract is a gem in this new CBA. After drafting KP, Lopez is probably Phil's best move.

I agree with a lot of this post. KP's defense has suffered mainly because of guard play; guards get beat too many times, KP has to rotate and pretty soon he's spending more time looking at the opposing guards expecting to rotate than his own man, e.g., Biyombo

Rolo has been impressive (except for Nets game) and was/is a good signing

I think KP would benefit if we simplify things for him a bit the rest of the season. He went from an offensive after thought, to our hoped for savior. too much too soon. he's so good but he's not Lebron (not yet at least)

Does anyone remember X-man (xavier mcdaniel)? I swear that guy only shot from like 2 or 3 spots from the floor but was effective.

We get these two guys working together and we can be a force to be reckoned with -- but that won't happen until our backcourt improves. And FWIW I'm optimistic it's a lot easier for us to fix our backcourt than it was for us to address the front court

I agree 100% and this is thing. We honestly got lucky signing Lopez. He wanted to be in the city and live near Brook even though their cats dont get along. Lopez sets a nasty screen and he and KP are excellent rim protectors. If you are a guard this is a desirable destination.

Thats something I never really keyed in on but that's got to be a big selling point to free agent guards.

fishmike wrote:

EnySpree wrote:

fishmike wrote:

Chandler wrote:

fishmike wrote:

EnySpree wrote:If anything Rolo takes alot of pressure off KP.... they are like a poor man's Aldridge and Duncan right now but would be so much better if they had better guards.

all of our guards suck

this is it man... Briggs how can you look at this team's issues and walk away thinking KP/Rolo are a problem?

Raptor starting guards: 44pts, 14rebs, 13assists, 15-30 FGs
Knicks starting guards: 7pts, 7rebs, 4assists, 3-13 FGs

But yea... its Lopez and KP.

Lopez is a hell of a good basketball player, a very good signing, and no matter how many silly posts you start Briggs we should not trade him for 2nd rounders and cap space. For what Lopez brings his contract is a gem in this new CBA. After drafting KP, Lopez is probably Phil's best move.

I agree with a lot of this post. KP's defense has suffered mainly because of guard play; guards get beat too many times, KP has to rotate and pretty soon he's spending more time looking at the opposing guards expecting to rotate than his own man, e.g., Biyombo

Rolo has been impressive (except for Nets game) and was/is a good signing

I think KP would benefit if we simplify things for him a bit the rest of the season. He went from an offensive after thought, to our hoped for savior. too much too soon. he's so good but he's not Lebron (not yet at least)

Does anyone remember X-man (xavier mcdaniel)? I swear that guy only shot from like 2 or 3 spots from the floor but was effective.

We get these two guys working together and we can be a force to be reckoned with -- but that won't happen until our backcourt improves. And FWIW I'm optimistic it's a lot easier for us to fix our backcourt than it was for us to address the front court

I agree 100% and this is thing. We honestly got lucky signing Lopez. He wanted to be in the city and live near Brook even though their cats dont get along. Lopez sets a nasty screen and he and KP are excellent rim protectors. If you are a guard this is a desirable destination.

Thats something I never really keyed in on but that's got to be a big selling point to free agent guards.

Here's the thing... are we willing to run the P&R? The fact that I never see Grant (best P&R PG in college) and Lopez (sets a nasty screen, finishes well) NEVER run the P&R tells me this something they really dont want to do. I dont get it, I figure I must be missing something

No. Do what 99% of the league is doing?

Why would we abandon the vaulted triangle for that?