[Grades] Grades v. Bucks 03/10/2013

[mac]

Reke did an excellent job in the last few minutes setting guys up, or getting the defense out of position which eventually led to open shots for us. He still needs to work on making the pass about half a second earlier so that the opposing bigs have less time to rotate, but unfortunately he rarely gets the chance because he just gets frozen out on offense. Defensively there were several times when Reke jogged back on D instead of running back - no coincidence that those incidents happened when he wasn't touching the ball on offense. I hate to say this, but Reke also needs to find a way to sell calls more. He's getting hacked everytime he goes to the basket but rarely gets to the line.

I thought IT played a pretty good game initially. He was sitting on 8 assists with few shot attempts while Cuz and Reke were on the floor. He certainly started going hero-ball when Cuz and Reke were out, but I think that's a much more appropriate time to do it, and to his credit he got us close for a while.

Jimmer and Cole came up huge for us, and this was a rare exciting finish to a Kings game that I enjoyed watching very much. The refs definitely screwed us on that one. Tyreke also should have passed it out to Jimmer or MT, and I'm surprised that he settled for the lay up. Maybe he didn't know that we didn't have a TO left.

 

[Agent23]

You're not going to like Capt. Factorial's grades.

Naw. I'm not LWP77. I respect the time and commitment you put into this.

 

[Agent23]

Is this some kind of joke or did I miss something? It's getting so hard to even read some of the crap posted around here nowadays. Kenny Thomas played with no heart. Tony Massenburg played with no brains. Bobby Jackson had "it"...Isaiah Thomas might have "it" if he could learn to be more like Bobby and less like our Big Lots version of Kobe Bryant.

Yea, you did. Sorry for the sarcarsm. I got a little irrate during the in-game thread.

 

[LWP777]

Naw. I'm not LWP77. I respect the time and commitment you put into this.

Respecting the time and commitment has nothing to do with having an opinion about the grades. If you took your car in for repairs and they made things worse would you pay them anyway because you "respect their time and commitment" in their efforts to fix your car?

I think it's great that there are a number of posters here who take the time to put the grades up. Critiquing the grades is the fun part and, quite frankly, most of the time Capt. Factorial's grades are WAY off base.

 

[Padrino]

Yea, you did. Sorry for the sarcarsm. I got a little irrate during the in-game thread.

'twas your right. it's madness for anyone to suggest that tyreke has "no heart" and that isaiah thomas' inferiority complex is some kind of evidence that he has "it." tyreke's 3-pt percentage heading into the season was a paltry 26%. this season, he's shooting 37% from 3, an 11-pt improvement on his career percentage, and a perfectly acceptable percentage for a guard of his skill set. but since the all-star break, he's hitting about 45% from 3, which is ridiculous efficiency for a player who began the season with a "broken jumper." clearly the "it" that all of his detractors claim he doesn't have--that drive to improve, that will to get better in the face of criticism and adversity--is absolutely there, whether his detractors want to admit it or not...

but apparently his marked improvements as a stand-still jump shooter, off-the-ball player, pesky defender, and overall decision-maker don't count as "heart." and apparently neither does his calm, unflappable, team-oriented attitude that doesn't buckle beneath the indignity of watching a lesser player like isaiah thomas dominate the ball. does 'reke have the killer instinct of kobe bryant? no. but who the **** does?! even kobe himself didn't have that in year four, just so we're clear. he was too busy worrying about whether he was getting as many touches as shaq...

oh, and one last note: dwayne wade and kobe bryant are the only two shooting guards in the entire nba this season shooting a higher percentage from the field than tyreke. that's pretty good company, considering those names get bandied about all of the time with respect to the kind of player people say tyreke will never become. perhaps the kings might invest some energy in getting him the ball when they need a bucket? ya know, instead of letting IT dribble around until he finds a terrible shot he can take?

 

[King Cool]

it's madness for anyone to suggest that tyreke has "no heart" :

Really? Count how many times he goes all out on a play. You'll come up with less than a handful, and every one of them will be with the ball in his hand in the open court or if he sees a chance at a block from behind, usually after he already let the ball by him. Don't get me wrong, I'm rooting for him, and am excited about the obvious improvements in his game, jumpshot, floor vision,,, but his effort on the floor is ridiculous, which I guess is 'madness' to recognize.

 

[Padrino]

Really? Count how many times he goes all out on a play. You'll come up with less than a handful, and every one of them will be with the ball in his hand in the open court or if he sees a chance at a block from behind, usually after he already let the ball by him. Don't get me wrong, I'm rooting for him, and am excited about the obvious improvements in his game, jumpshot, floor vision,,, but his effort on the floor is ridiculous, which I guess is 'madness' to recognize.

what are you going on about? define "goes all out on a play," please. give me evidence. otherwise, you're just grasping at something amorphous, something romantic, this idea that you have to see the sweat pouring down a player's face like shaq in order for the effort to be visible. tyreke evans may in fact be the one king on the court you can count on to give an effort--on BOTH sides of the floor--night in and night out. but you're choosing not to see what's there and are instead tossing a straw man on the court... which 'reke will happily two-step around and score on...

here's something concrete, a lengthy highlight package that shows tyreke going pretty hard. there's more than a handful of sheer effort plays here, and little of it is "in the open court":

 

[UK_King]

After the way things have gone down for Tyreke I'm surprised at just how much effort he does put in. A lot of other players would have called it a day long, long ago. The kid is a professional, terrific attitude.

 

[Darth Divac]

what are you going on about? define "goes all out on a play," please. give me evidence. otherwise, you're just grasping at something amorphous, something romantic, this idea that you have to see the sweat pouring down a player's face like shaq in order for the effort to be visible. tyreke evans may in fact be the one king on the court you can count on to give an effort--on BOTH sides of the floor--night in and night out. but you're choosing not to see what's there and are instead tossing a straw man on the court... which 'reke will happily two-step around and score on...

here's something concrete, a lengthy highlight package that shows tyreke going pretty hard. there's more than a handful of sheer effort plays here, and little of it is "in the open court":

Don't you remember when all his plays were like that? He's amazing, it's unbeleaveable that he is still this good after years of the kings. God knows he would've been the next LeBron on anotheer team, or at least another Kyrie.

 

[Agent23]

'twas your right. it's madness for anyone to suggest that tyreke has "no heart" and that isaiah thomas' inferiority complex is some kind of evidence that he has "it." tyreke's 3-pt percentage heading into the season was a paltry 26%. this season, he's shooting 37% from 3, an 11-pt improvement on his career percentage, and a perfectly acceptable percentage for a guard of his skill set. but since the all-star break, he's hitting about 45% from 3, which is ridiculous efficiency for a player who began the season with a "broken jumper." clearly the "it" that all of his detractors claim he doesn't have--that drive to improve, that will to get better in the face of criticism and adversity--is absolutely there, whether his detractors want to admit it or not...

but apparently his marked improvements as a stand-still jump shooter, off-the-ball player, pesky defender, and overall decision-maker don't count as "heart." and apparently neither does his calm, unflappable, team-oriented attitude that doesn't buckle beneath the indignity of watching a lesser player like isaiah thomas dominate the ball. does 'reke have the killer instinct of kobe bryant? no. but who the **** does?! even kobe himself didn't have that in year four, just so we're clear. he was too busy worrying about whether he was getting as many touches as shaq...

oh, and one last note: dwayne wade and kobe bryant are the only two shooting guards in the entire nba this season shooting a higher percentage from the field than tyreke. that's pretty good company, considering those names get bandied about all of the time with respect to the kind of player people say tyreke will never become. perhaps the kings might invest some energy in getting him the ball when they need a bucket? ya know, instead of letting IT dribble around until he finds a terrible shot he can take?

I salute you, sir.

 

[Kingsnbucs1987]

After the way things have gone down for Tyreke I'm surprised at just how much effort he does put in. A lot of other players would have called it a day long, long ago. The kid is a professional, terrific attitude.

Pretty much, he could of packed it in and said forget you guys after they moved from PG to SG to PF in one year and jerked around just to accommodate other players, but nope he kept working on his game and improved it. Everybody focused on him not having a jumpshot and things he can't do, so what does he do, goes out and works on it and comes back this year and gives you a better 3 point shot and scores at a way more efficient rate while being made the 1st or 2nd option one night then made to be the 4th option who needs to just play defense and sit at the 3 point line

 

[gunks]

Yup. With a coach, he'd be a heckofa player right now. Hope new ownership does their homework and tries to resign and re-utilize Reke.

 

[Kingster]

what are you going on about? define "goes all out on a play," please. give me evidence. otherwise, you're just grasping at something amorphous, something romantic, this idea that you have to see the sweat pouring down a player's face like shaq in order for the effort to be visible. tyreke evans may in fact be the one king on the court you can count on to give an effort--on BOTH sides of the floor--night in and night out. but you're choosing not to see what's there and are instead tossing a straw man on the court... which 'reke will happily two-step around and score on...

here's something concrete, a lengthy highlight package that shows tyreke going pretty hard. there's more than a handful of sheer effort plays here, and little of it is "in the open court":

Look, Padrino. You seem like a fairly intelligent guy. I want you to observe something for the next several games. Presumably you have a DVR so you can go back and review the games in a dispassionate way. I want you to observe: 1) who are the guys on the Kings running (not watching) for loose balls, and 2) who are the guys who are consistently getting back on defense. And I want you to include Tyreke in this little test. Then you decide for yourself what the deal is.

 

[Padrino]

Look, Padrino. You seem like a fairly intelligent guy. I want you to observe something for the next several games. Presumably you have a DVR so you can go back and review the games in a dispassionate way. I want you to observe: 1) who are the guys on the Kings running (not watching) for loose balls, and 2) who are the guys who are consistently getting back on defense. And I want you to include Tyreke in this little test. Then you decide for yourself what the deal is.

you are insufferable. we both know that it wouldn't matter how much evidence i provide, you would still insist that tyreke evans and demarcus cousins are not worth the amount of praise they receive. you're so convinced of it, in fact, that you wouldn't believe your own eyes no matter what they were communicating to your brain. you'd rationalize that you were hallucinating, i'm sure. but here is said evidence, for the sake of argument...

in a recent game against the lakers, DMC tries to do too much on offense, turns it over, and tyreke hustles back, picks up the ball, and times a perfect block on metta world peace. looked like quite a bit of effort was involved there, if ya ask me, especially considering how often you like to point out that evans is lacking for vertical jumping ability:

in a recent game against the sixers, tyreke pressures the ball and plays excellent man defense on evan turner, forces the turnover, chases down the loose ball with considerable effort, and finishes with the dunk:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5UpaXj7yoTI (for whatever reason we can't include more than one embedded video per post anymore?)

perhaps it is you who does not watch closely enough, and is too prejudiced to admit that evans is easily the kings best two-way player. he consistently gives effort on both sides of the ball, is strong, has quick hands, is one of the best rebounders at his position in the entire league, impacts the game positively, and makes the most of his oft-limited minutes. how 'bout you first take your own advice and comb through the DVR, hm? it's on and off the stat sheet, and it ain't that hard to find...

 

[rainmaker]

Look, Padrino. You seem like a fairly intelligent guy. I want you to observe something for the next several games. Presumably you have a DVR so you can go back and review the games in a dispassionate way. I want you to observe: 1) who are the guys on the Kings running (not watching) for loose balls, and 2) who are the guys who are consistently getting back on defense. And I want you to include Tyreke in this little test. Then you decide for yourself what the deal is.

As far as stats go for SG's across the league:

Steals Per Game:
1-Harden
2-Wade
3-Iggy
4-Tony Allen
5-Tyreke Evans
6-Sefolosha

Blocks Per Game:
1-Wade
2-Green
3-Iggy
4-Sefolosha
5-Allen
6-Thompson
7 -Carter
8-Tyreke Evans
9-Harden

Defensive Rebounds Per Game:
4-Harden
5-Chandler
6-Wade
7-Tyreke Evans
-Thompson

The fact you keep pinpointing Reke's defense as one of our bigger problems when he's top 8 for his position in three key defensive categories pretty much shows your agenda. Reke does have moments where he can work harder, and he does leave 3pt shooters too often, although I'm beginning to think Smart wants him helping off in the lane, but he is far from one of our bigger problems on defense. Yet here you are again trying to find any reason to zero in on Reke. You don't do it with any other player, it's always Reke. Always something to nitpick. We have four guys constantly trying to make up for IT's defensive issues, yet before you'd ever acknowledge that it's Reke you've got to key in on.