Billups bothered by struggle to mesh with Webber
Trouble in Motown? I think this will go away as Billups gets more time on the court with Chris and just plays his game the same way he has the past four years.
"It changes things, man, it does," Billups said. "When Chris is out there, we go through him and let him make plays. When he's not, I'm attacking, I'm aggressive and I am making plays. I am struggling with that a lot -- when to do what."
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"The only thing that's different is Chris," Billups said. "He's the only new guy and he's a big piece. He's a guy that can really make plays. On one hand, it takes a lot of pressure off me. I don't have to make every play. On the other hand, it puts me in too much of a passive mode and sometimes it's hard for me to turn it back on."
Webber and Billups are confident the issue will resolve itself with a few more games. Webber, in fact, seemed surprised it was even a concern.
"I don't understand that," he said. "In the second half (Sunday against Miami), Rip (Hamilton) was really cutting hard and moving and he got involved a lot when I had the ball. Both him and Tay (Prince)."
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"But Chauncey is the man and he needs to be aggressive at all times," Webber said.
"There should never be a time when he's not. He's deadly from the outside and on the inside. It should never be a problem. He's the point guard. The ball should be in his hands when he wants it."
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Still, Saunders does not buy the notion Webber and Billups cancel each other out on offense.
"It's a positive," Saunders said. "It means you are not one-dimensional. Depending on where you see potential weaknesses (in the opposing defense), you use whatever means you have to exploit it."
What it will come down to, ultimately, is play-calling. If the matchup favors running the offense through the low post, then Saunders would use the sets that feature Webber. If the matchup favors running things out of the perimeter, then he would call Billups' number. It doesn't have to be one or the other.
"This is something that can be worked out," Billups said. "It's just a matter of time and playing together a little bit more."
Trouble in Motown? I think this will go away as Billups gets more time on the court with Chris and just plays his game the same way he has the past four years.