Does Louis Williams' Clutch Buzzer Beater Negate His Terrible Game?
by Michael Levin on Mar 28, 2011 5:00 AM PDT
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The abstract concept of clutchness is one that has defied statheads of every sport for years. The casual fan will tell you that David Ortiz is clutch. That John Elway is clutch. That Kobe Bryant is clutch. And usually they'll be right. But is there something tangible to clutchness? Does clutchness outweigh other factors? Or do we put too much stock in our brains to remember all the data rather than relying on a set of concrete statistics.
Two years ago in the NLDS, Ryan Howard was clutch because with two outs in the ninth innings, he ripped a Huston Street offering for a double that propelled the Phillies over the Rockies. Last year he watched a Brian Wilson slider for strike three in the NLCS that sent the Giants to the World Series. Is he clutch or not clutch?
Simply put, one game, one play, one moment does not statistically make a career. It can make you remember Tyus Edney for the rest of your life, but in the bigger picture, he was a very mediocre point guard that had a decent rookie year in the NBA and for better or worse has lived off that buzzer beater ever since. But he's still universally seen as making one of the most clutch plays of all time.
Rohan Cruyff from SB Nation and At The Hive wrote a phenomenal article about the NBA's best performers in clutch time a few months ago. 82 Games defines clutchness as being in the "4th quarter or overtime" with "less than 5 minutes left" and "neither team is ahead by more than 5 points". Which finally brings us to Sixers guard Louis Williams and his big shot against the Kings....after the jump.
According to this data provided by 82 Games, Lou has attempted approximately 24 shots per 48 minutes in clutch time, good for 22nd in the league. This makes sense, considering how often Doug Collins calls his number in the waning moments of the game. But should he? Let's dig deeper.
Generally seen as being clutch, one would think that naturally he performs well in the clutch. Not true. He shoots a Mendoza-like 27.9% from the field during clutch moments, significantly lower than his better-but-still-bad season percentage of 41%. And among players with at least 20 shots per 48, Lou's 27.9% is only higher than Daniel Gibson and Brandon Jennings. Thaddeus Young (57%), Elton Brand (55%) and Jrue Holiday (44%) are all much better options in crunch time, but Lou and Andre Iguodala (33%) get the bulk of the opportunities simply because they have gotten more opportunities.
Yesterday, Lou was zero-for-eight when Collins inserted him into the lineup down 3 with the ball. 0-8. He had already missed 8 shots that, had even just two gone in, the Sixers would be in a significantly different position. Not to forget the 3 turnovers he accrued in under 14 minutes of court time as well. So when Lou took the pass from Spencer Hawes, crossed over Samuel Dalembert and pulled up from 27 feet away, one could say that he was "due".
After the three went in, Lou missed three shots in a short run in overtime that took the Sixers out of their rhythm and instead played isolation games under the direction of Doug Collins. Lou finished the game tagged with an atrocious 1-12 shooting day and an astronomically high usage rate. If you're unfamiliar with usage rate, it basically gives you a percentage of team plays used by a player during the time he was on the court. Lou easily owns the highest rate on the Sixers at 27.8% for the season. I wrote about it a few months ago. Today, however, he managed to rack up a 52% usage rate - the highest I have ever seen. And he did it with terrifically inefficient results, save for one shot.
Did Lou hit a big shot at the end of regulation? Absolutely. It was one that only a few people in the NBA and in the world could make. And it sent the game into overtime where the Sixers had a chance to pull out a victory.
But this does not, by any means, make up for the catastrophically bad game he played otherwise. It's like if your friend started a fire that was burning your house down, then while everyone's getting out of there, he runs in and grabs your Blu Ray player. Pretty cool of him to do, and hey -- at least you've got your Blu Ray player. But that still leaves you houseless and without anything to watch said Blu Ray player on. And he was the main cause of the fire anyhow.
Louis Williams hits clutch shots for the Sixers frequently, because logic dictates that if he takes enough shots, he's bound to make a few. "Even a blind squirrel" and all that. Lou goes through stretches where he is a really good scorer and on a balanced team like this one, where there aren't many guys who can create for themselves regularly, an attacking scorer is needed. But Lou does it at such a wildly inefficient rate that when you add defense into the fold, he causes more harm than good.
People like Eric Snow will remember Lou nailing an awesome shot at the buzzer. They'll forget that he missed the other 11 shots he took and they certainly won't bother to waste time looking up the clutch statistics they so often allude to but never read up on. And Lou will continue to be seen as clutch because our eyes don't always tell the truth and our brains certainly don't retain all the right information.
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Stop blaming everything on Lou Will
Yeah, he had a horrible game yesterday. Your boy Evan Turner had 5 points in 20:19 on 2 shot attempts, with 1 assist and 1 turnover. When he does get his minutes over guys like Lou and Noccioni (as he did yesterday), he rarely makes use of them, save for a couple games this year against teams that play absolutely no D, like Golden State and Phoenix.
Where is the criticism of ET, the #2 overall draft pick? All I hear is constant excuses. First, it was his agent held him out of organized play in the summer because of the danger of getting injured before the draft. Then, it was the feeling of “not fitting in” (Evan’s words).
I remember reading about his upside here: http://www.nbadraft.net/players/evan-turner
Some of those things are true, and some are flat-out wrong. What I see is a hard-working player that is an above-average defender and rebounder, and is mediocre to poor at everything else. I’d love to see him succeed, but he’s done nothing to earn starting minutes over Meeks, who is another player you unfairly criticize on this site.
Iguodala may frustrate the living bleep out of me at times, but I still remember he was so impressive in his rookie year that he took the starting SF job from Glenn Robinson.
Your first mistake was reading nbadraft.net.
Liberty Ballers / Ridiculous Upside / SBN Philly / Twitter
The Artist Formerly Known As The Artist Formerly Known As Michael Bourn
by Michael Levin on Mar 28, 2011 6:36 AM PDT up reply actions
Ok, point me in the direction of where I can find an accurate pre-2010 draft prediction of what I should have expected from Turner.
by PhillyWarrior on Mar 28, 2011 6:40 AM PDT up reply actions
One of Turner’s problems is that he doesn’t attack the basket, and this is most likely because he’s just not athletic enough. We haven’t seen him make use of the post game though or handles, or anything that would make up that lack of athleticism.
Another problem is the jumper, Turner’s mid-range jumper isn’t as consistent as it was in college.
Ultimately, I’m very disappointed at Turner’s year too, he’s been absolutely terrible and it’s just sickening. From the #2 pick in the draft, we had every reason to expect more.
by LeQuan Glover on Mar 28, 2011 7:36 AM PDT up reply actions
The draft isn’t a science, but could Collins have perhaps worked with Cousins and allowed him to reach his true potential? Instead of sulking in Sacramento?
There were rumors that Collins didn’t like Turner, and I’m starting to see why. His lack of a physical body(for a wing man), means it’s gonna be very difficult for him to translate.
by LeQuan Glover on Mar 28, 2011 7:39 AM PDT up reply actions
Out of curiosity, do you also think his play negates because of the supporting cast as well? What I mean is, typically ET is in with the 2nd team. He needs to improve in his play off the ball which he typically finds himself in with Lou Williams at the point. I have a biased opinion, obviously because I don’t particularly like Lou Wills game/role/play but not the Michael Levin level hate.
"They say that nobody is perfect. Then they tell you practice makes perfect. I wish they'd make up their minds." - Wilt Chamberlain
Evan Turner is what everyone said he is, a player who CLEARLY needs the ball in his hands to be effective. A player who doesn’t do well coming of screens and spot up shoting who prefers to create a rythmn. Basically everything DC does plays into his weaknesses so of course he’s gonna look like a bust. I honestly would prefer Collins put the ball into ET hands as point while Iggy is ailing and we basically have the playoff spot on lock….PS ET thrives in iso situations. I would rather see him get an iso than Lou Will even though I don’t him but he’s a sg in a pg’s body…aka a poor man A.I.
by Shawn Alexander on Mar 28, 2011 4:54 PM PDT via mobile up reply actions
Just some food for thought, I love me some thinkin’ food:
Maybe Lou and Iguodala’s percentages are bad because they take a majority of the shots, as opposed to Thad, Brand and Jrue? Maybe the other guys wouldn’t have high percentages if they also took a lot of shots. It’s hard to say for Brand, because his shots are usually created for him; sometimes Thad as well.
I agree with your implied conclusion, though, I feel the sixers are better off running their offense in crunch time. I would much rather see Iguodala driving to the basket, drawing defenders, and dishing out to an open shooter than taking a contested 20 footer.
"I admire his competitiveness. As much as I admire it, I thought that he was trying too hard."- Eddie Jordan
Maybe Lou and Iguodala’s percentages are bad because they take a majority of the shots, as opposed to Thad, Brand and Jrue? Maybe the other guys wouldn’t have high percentages if they also took a lot of shots. It’s hard to say for Brand, because his shots are usually created for him; sometimes Thad as well.
There’s definitely more than a little truth to this. I think it’s more relevant to compare Lou and Iguodala’s numbers in these situations to others in the league who isolate at the end of the games with frequency. Lou being amongst the worst in the league is more compelling to me than his percentages compared to Brand’s.
Derek Bodner
LibertyBallers || @derekbodner || derek.bodner@draftexpress.com
by Derek Bodner on Mar 28, 2011 8:51 AM PDT up reply actions
The problem with Philly is that there is not really anyone else to take clutch shots. The Sixers roster consists of a worn down Elton Brand, an Underwhelmibng Andre Igoudala and a group of guys that would range from average to mediocre. The Sixers in essense really does not have that one Go To Guy to mention.
by Jeffrey Thompson on Mar 28, 2011 7:11 AM PDT reply actions
RIGHT! The team rely’s on Williams and Iguodala because those are the players willing to take shots, and actually have a chance to break-down their man or draw a foul.
Collins has no faith in Young’s or Brand’s ability to get off a shot in that situation. Meeks? No way. Hawes? don’t make me laugh. Turner not a chance.
The only one other than Williams or Iguodala could be Speights, but until he can rotate on defense, he’s not going to get the chance. It would also help if he could demonstrate a post game.
Collins doesn’t appear to trust his offense to generate plays at the end of the game. He really is hoping to draw a double team on his primary scorer so they pass to an open man. Teams decide to stay at home, forcing the Sixers to make a shot.
At this point in time, he depends on Iguodala or Williams to make plays, actually both, since they are both in at the end. This is another reason why we don’t often beat teams like LA or Boston, they have clutch players all accustomed to taking and making game winning shots. You know the ball is going to Kobe before the play begins. If you close on him hard, he funds a big man or Fisher all alone in the corner. Same with Boston, Rondo has it to get it to Pierce who attacks, then decides to take it to the rack, pass it to Garnett or hit Ray Allen for an open three.
The thing is, these players practice this all the time, and experience success with it during the regular season. Other teams know what they’re going to do, they just can’t stop it. We don’t have anyone on the Sixers like a Kobe or Pierce or Wade or James. We have Iguodala and Williams if Collins wasn’t such a schmuck he’d have been working all year with Speights for end of game situations. Him just being there near the basket, would put more pressure on the defense and create more opportunities. The Sixers just don’t have a big target down low, another thing Boston and LA have that we don’t.
So speights is the answer to all of our problems?
WHY ISNT HE BEING PLAYED!!? SOMEONE GIVE THIS MAN PLAYING TIME RIGHT NOW!!!
"I admire his competitiveness. As much as I admire it, I thought that he was trying too hard."- Eddie Jordan
by jefu on Mar 28, 2011 8:31 AM PDT via mobile up reply actions
Im not sure why this sent twice. Perhaps for more emphasis?
"I admire his competitiveness. As much as I admire it, I thought that he was trying too hard."- Eddie Jordan
by jefu on Mar 28, 2011 8:33 AM PDT via mobile up reply actions
To be fair, Speights is another player who can get “his shot” in most settings. He can at ;east get a face up 18 foot jumper off against most bigs.
I’m not sure that is the shot they want. But he also can run some pick and roll. But his defense is questionable, and his flop attemps will draw blocking calls 90% of the time in late game settings. So maybe I’d use him offense/defense substitutions.
Sort of moot since he lives in the deepest and most remote parts of the NBA coaching associations doghouse. If their is a player blacklist, he is on it.
according to hoopdata, he’s shooting 44% from 16-23 feet. Not bad, but like you said, an 18 footer is not a desirable shot on a last possession.
The problem with Speights, beyond defense, is his inability to play within an offense, or remember an offense, or learn one. I’m not sure we want to count on him to make a good decision in crunch time.
"I admire his competitiveness. As much as I admire it, I thought that he was trying too hard."- Eddie Jordan
44% for a last second shot would actually be a tremendous percentage.
Derek Bodner
LibertyBallers || @derekbodner || derek.bodner@draftexpress.com
by Derek Bodner on Mar 28, 2011 1:45 PM PDT up reply actions
I’d say about 1/2 of those jumpers are wide open. I’d like to know his percentage on contested ones- its still probably pretty good.
35.6%
Derek Bodner
LibertyBallers || @derekbodner || derek.bodner@draftexpress.com
by Derek Bodner on Mar 28, 2011 1:49 PM PDT up reply actions
Thank you Synergy :)
So how does that roughly compare?
for example, per hoopdata the NBA average for 16-23 foot jumpers overall is 39.3%. Sixers 39.2%. 10th best in the NBA. Skewed by the top 4 teams who shoot 42-46%. But I don’t know what the NBA average is for contested 16-23 foot jumpers.
Synergy says?
I believe it was right around the 40th-45th percentile. I closed the screen. But somewhere in that range.
Derek Bodner
LibertyBallers || @derekbodner || derek.bodner@draftexpress.com
by Derek Bodner on Mar 28, 2011 2:19 PM PDT up reply actions
I was surprised to not see Brandon Roy in that article at all. I am constantly seeing him take and make last minute shots but it must not be as many as I think it is.
It pains me to say it, but I think I can make a case for Lou getting the ball in the final minutes of a game over someone like Andre, only because Lou can at least create his own shot. Andre can’t.
That being said, neither player should be taking shots in crunch time, especially when you have a situation like yesterday where Jrue was absolutely on fire, can create his own shot and instead you give the ball to Lou and Andre…really?
Ignorance, no other word for it.
"You can commit no mistake and still lose. That is not a weakness. That is life." - Jean-Luc Picard
Holliday would have been my choice as well. I’m not sure why Collins doesn’t see him as creating a shot as well as the other two, but at this point in the season, he’s starting to break his man down more than his team-mates.
When you look at 82games.com clutch stats (last 5 min of close games and OT) Jrue’s assist rate goes down and hit turnover rate shoots up. His coring numbers are good.
You can explain the low assists by being marginalized in the late game offense. But the TO’s can only be chalked up to inexperience and trying to do too much when he gets the ball.
http://www.82games.com/1011/10PHI1.HTM#clutch
Jrue in “clutch time”:
Assist/bad pass ratio: 2.0
Passing rating: 2.4 (higher is better)
Hands rating: 7.4 (looks at taking care of the ball)
Asst/48: 4.9
Jrue overall:
Assits/bad pass: 4.1
Passing rating: 9.1
Hands rating: 19.1 (looks at taking care of the ball)
Asst/48: 8.6
Regrading clutch shots
1. The stats show that all “isolation type” players are “bad” which is not surprising since the defense is stacked against them in those settings.
-But “iso players” can generate a shot with minimal complication. Either one pick or straight iso. This is important since TO rate is sky high in clutch time, so often running a complex play results in a turnover unless you have a quality veteran squad (like Boston).
2. Stats show pure shooters types are the best in clutch settings. But generally this type of player needs a play run that gets them open. You can’t always get them open, as opposed to the iso guys, who can always get a shot (if not always a great one.)
-Some players are pure shooters who have some iso skills. Durant, Ginobli and formerly Ray Allen fit in this group. While guys like Kobe and MJ were close to automatic/pure if they can get to a favorite spot. These are probably the best type to have in clutch settings.
3. There are some guys who have a bad habbit of forcing things in clutch settings. Their TO rate shoots up (Jrue) or they try shots that they can’t hit and are not in their comfort zone (Iguodala.)
How this applies to the Sixers
1. If they try and run a play like they do in the normal parts of the game their lack of experience often leads to a TO and no shot generated, or a forced look late in the shotclock that can result in a fastbreak chance for the other team.
2. Their best high percentage scorers (Thad and Brand) need space to operate and cannot score or pass well out of double teams. makes it hard to go to in the clutch.
3. Iguodala is their best player, but has poor touch. So if he shoots outside of his limitted comfort zone the results are bad.
4. Jrue could become a great player in these settings, bringing much of Iguodala’s skill set but with a better touch… but at this state his TO rate in the clutch times of the game is sky high. He also lacks the pure athleticism to elevate above quality defense (unless guarded by a smaller PG.)
5. Turner was a great option in college. But right now his skill set has not ttransfered (yet.) Even at OSU he struggled in isolation against long, athletic defenders. So it remains to be seen if that “clutch” part of his game will translate with more experience.
6. Lou has flaws, but also has the skills to generate the same types of looks he gets normally in the game. These are not high percentage looks, but they low risk (low TO) and he is a guy who hits tough, contested shots as part of his normal game. His biggest problem is that his foul drawing ability does not translate to clutch situations.
1. If they try and run a play like they do in the normal parts of the game their lack of experience often leads to a TO and no shot generated, or a forced look late in the shotclock that can result in a fastbreak chance for the other team.
This could well be true, but have we actually tried it? We have three starters (Meeks, Brand, Hawes) who are fairly consistent from their comfort zones. Have BOSS or AI9 ever drived and dished to one of these 3 on a final possession?
Maybe it has happened, and ended the way you describe. Certainly plenty of other possessions this season have.
'Things are more like today than they have ever been before." Gerald R. Ford
I’ve seen them go 4 or 5 possessions in a row late in games where they fail to generate a shot. Some of those games (Boston) they even won.
When they iso Lou or Iguodala they typically generate a shot. Just not a quality one. But when they have tried to run plays the best they get is a Hawes 3pt attempt :)
It is harder to run set offense because the defense puts in a ton more effort and really crowds everyone. Defenses can do this for parts of the game- but they can’t for 48 minutes. Thats partly why the team can successfully run plays at other times.
Very nice work, tk76. Sound analysis. And explains why the coach is doing it the way he does.
This team isn’t strong at the end of games. They really don’t seem to close out well. More often than not, the other team can’t buy a bucket, which is what happened in the Boston game. There, the Sixers played good defense, and the refs didn’t bail them out. But they couldn’t stop Sacramento, one of the least disciplined teams in the league, and even worse, they failed to score on them.
Maybe Doug is justified in not playing Speights, but I think he would have had a great time guarding Dalembert. It’s not as though anyone else on the Sixers was effective at that.
To be clear, I don’t consider beyond the arc within the Hawes-comfort zone.
He does, apparently.
'Things are more like today than they have ever been before." Gerald R. Ford
Spencer doesn’t get the joke.
'Things are more like today than they have ever been before." Gerald R. Ford
I’ll save Hawes from my typical hate. He had a great game yesterday. Maybe he was not as into the concert as the other guys.
by tk76 on Mar 28, 2011 11:50 AM PDT up reply actions 1 recs
If the point is...
…to not run the ISO, or to run an ISO with a drive and kick, and pure shooters are the best at this, why are we not talking more about Meeks in these situations. Say what you will about the guy, he still shoots over 40% from three-point range.
Seriously, I blame Collins for this. Blaming Tha BOSS for Stone Cold BOSSin’ is kind of like blaming a dog for licking his balls. It would seem that the coach should put his team in position to be most effective.
I’m not a super X-and-O guy, especially compared to many of the regulars here. But I assume Doug Collins is, at least compared to us. So I don’t know much about what he should do to free up his guys who can knock down a shot without running endless BOSS ISOs, but there would seem to be something involving…I don’t know, passing the ball? Using the ISO to set up Meeks from three and/or Brand from the elbow could theoretically be effective, if we had an ISO guy willing to actually pass to these guys if they were open.
Blaming Tha BOSS for Stone Cold BOSSin’ is kind of like blaming a dog for licking his balls
Winner.
Liberty Ballers / Ridiculous Upside / SBN Philly / Twitter
The Artist Formerly Known As The Artist Formerly Known As Michael Bourn
by Michael Levin on Mar 28, 2011 12:08 PM PDT up reply actions
The funny thing is, a few weeks ago Lou started trying to pass off of his late game Isos’s- and it really hurt things. he made terrible bad pass TO’s and missed shots when he was undable to pass.
He actually showed some good improvement (at least in the 2:1 at late quarter situations) when he returned to “Stone Cold Bossing” by looking for his own shot as option #1, #2 and #3.
Collins is the guy to blame for a lack of a sound way to close out games, but you have to consider what he has to work with. You know you want Holiday in at the end, along with Williams. So now you want a third guard, instead of Iguodala or Young? Or do you want to get rid of Lou and depend on Andre or Jrue to make something happen against a stacked defense? With Jodi as a third or fourth option?
The Sixers are short on good closers. I think Andre is probably as effective as any of them, with fewer options to pass to when he gets stuck. I think the three best players to depend on to break down a defense are Iguodala, Williams and Speights or possibly Holliday. Speights is the only big you can project as being effective as a primary scorer on the roster.
Maybe Speights is such a liability on Defense, that you sub him in and out, so he’s only in when the team’s on offense like tk76 suggests. But playing him gives Iguodala another target that has to be covered unlike Hawes who decides to take a frikin’ open 3, and that might be all the team needs to be more successful at the end of games!
The best teams know how to close out games and their opponents know their plays and have strategies to stop them. The teams that win are the ones that overcome the defense with great offensive plays. What they have in common is that they all have multiple players that can hit that last shot, so the ball handler has options. You might be able to cover one or two, but that third guy is going to be open- with what should be considered a high-percentage shot.
The targets have to be knockdown shooters with a knack for getting open, not just standing around, nailed to the floor. Guys like Ray Allen or even Derek Fisher get open running through a screen that the defender goes over when he should go under, or vice-versa, and the ball handler whatever else he is doing makes THAT PASS.
Holliday is a little young, and his inexperience is limiting Doug’s choices. He has to have the ball in Andre or Lou’s hands, so he has to play all 3. That leaves 2 open spots, for Brand and a Center. The easiest, least disruptive thing is to let Speezy play offense instead of Hawes. The thing about Speights is he’s a big target and a legitimate (perceived) threat to score. More so than Young or Brand. Once Holliday is more steady at the end of games, you can afford to replace Williams with Meeks.
ou know you want Holiday in at the end, along with Williams. So now you want a third guard, instead of Iguodala or Young?
Yes. I’d rather have Meeks in there in the “we need a miracle shot to close out” situation than Young. And I love Thad, but you have to consider that Collins likes to go super-small in those situations anyway (usually, Thad plays C, which seems kinda goofy). I’d rather have Jrue/BOSS (at least for right now, but hopefully eventually Turner)/Meeks/Iguodala/Brand as my closeout lineup.
It seems to me that if we’re going to base our close-out game on ISOs leading to dribble penetration, a drive-and-kick game would be almost a natural here. Brand can hit the elbow jumper as well as anyone in the league, and Meeks can park out at the three-point line somewhere. That gives us two reasonably reliable jump-shooters to feed off the dribble penetration if the penetrator can collapse the lane at all.
The problem as I see it is that our ISO guys don’t seem to want to kick out of the dribble-drive, except for Jrue, who seems to get nervous when he has to do it at the end of the game. Also, he doesn’t have the flat-out quickness of either BOSS or Iguodala. I understand why BOSS doesn’t kick it out, him being a BOSS and all, but I’m not sure why it is that Iguodala, who is a superior and very willing passer AND has the ability to get himself into the lane, doesn’t seem to want to kick out of the dribble penetration when he gets the lane to collapse on him. It’s like, with two or less minutes left, Iguodala’s brain short-circuits and he turns into a BOSS.
Also, it would really, really help if he could hit his free throws sometimes :)
So in late game situations:
We have a guy who can pass but not shoot (Iggy).
A guy who can generate a shot, but not a quality one (Lou).
A guy who can score but can’t get open (Brand).
A guy who can shoot, but only when wide open (Meeks).
A guy who could do it all, but against inferior Big 10 competition (ET.)
A guy can do it but trips over his own feet in the clutch (Jrue.)
A guy who can score but not play defense (Speights.)
Reeminds me a bit of the cast in The Wizard of Oz.
Exactly. But even they defeated the Wicked Witch and lived happily ever after. You forgot about the Coach, the man behind the Curtain!
This was my assessment of the team, but you expressed it better than I could. This was why I came to the conclusion that Speights was needed, only because there doesn’t appear to be anyone else who can play the role of a big man.
He can serve as a decoy if nothing else, and that makes the team better. He’s good at getting missed shots and putting them in the hole and he’s big enough to set a pick.
He should at least have been developed to do just a few things so they could use him at the end of games. Maybe that’s too hard to do on defense But on offense, you are going to a set place and then move in a co-ordinated way like so many gears in a watch.
It’s up to the Wizard, but if I see another Hawes three I’m going to be really pissed.
I wonder how people feel about this?
I used to go to concerts on school nights in college and even on nights when I work the next day, I was still able to get my job done.
Then again, I am not a professional athlete so I don’t know if it is really fair to compare.
"You can commit no mistake and still lose. That is not a weakness. That is life." - Jean-Luc Picard
12 Noon games are always hard to predict in any case. So I’m not sure a concert the night before makes a difference. Now if they were out partying after the concert then that’s an entirely different issue.
NBA players generally are night owls because of their schedule (whether they go out or not.) So a 12N game is even harder on them then you’d expect. Most players take naps to help with their odd hours. Although not all keep a top 10 list…
This makes me want to vomit:
"Ball’s going to be in his hands," 76ers coach Doug Collins stated flatly Sunday, after the Sixers’ overtime loss to the Kings. "He’s going to drive the basket, and he’s going to make a play for us or he’s going to get fouled or he’s going to score."
But not as much as this:
"He has the size to see up over the top of people," Collins said. "And if they’re smothering that pick and roll, I feel good that he can make a play out of that."
So he will drive the lane? One of those drives ended in a charge, another ended in him losing control of the ball and not being able to get a shot off. But it’s cool, he’ll make a play…you know, by passing, since he can see over people. Except I haven’t seen him do that. Not saying he can’t, passing is clearly one of his strengths but in crunch time, he doesn’t do it. But it’s cool, cause if he does drive, and can’t get a pass off, and his shot is bad he can force it up there and draw a foul, and then go to the line where where he is sinking them at an amazing 69% clip…good for 2nd worst among anyone on the team at least 17 minutes a game.
Knowing all of that, Doug still wants to put Andre in that situation…how can someone seemingly so smart be so stupid?
"You can commit no mistake and still lose. That is not a weakness. That is life." - Jean-Luc Picard
We already know that Lou will shoot. Sometimes it goes in, sometimes it goes out. He was off tonight. I’m placing blame on Collins for going to Mr. Brick-A-Shot in the cluch more than Mr. Holiday. The whole “Veterans” thing is now just plain stupid in this case. I’m tired of Nocioni over Turner, Battie over Spieghts.
Lou made a nice shot. Good for him. But I just cant support him any longer. Just about all of his shots are stupid. Three pointer with 20 seconds left on shot clock? And he’s not even open? Wth? Move the ball around. Let’s see if we can draw a foul or get a better shot. Am I missing something here? Seems like it makes sense.
I'm tired of hearing about money, money, money, money, money. I just want to play the game, drink Pepsi, wear Reebok---Shaquille O'Neal
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