Grades v. Wolves 12/13
- Thread starter Bricklayer
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Burrito06
Bench
Everyone complains about Bibby's defense but it is not like he just started letting opposing PG's do it this year. It's been happening since the WCF's in 02'. Another interesting thing to look at is that most PG's arent great defenders but they do have big men that can clog the middle and that can jump higher then a phone book. Take Steve Nash for example. He is a terrible defender to but he has always had a big man to make up for it. I.E. Dirk and now Marion and Amare.
nbrans said:
I personally haven't given Bibby a free pass. I said he's a bad defender and he hasn't lived up to expectations this year.
However, he's still more valuable to the team than Peja. Peja's defense is decent to good but he's no Doug Christie and he's certainly no Ron Artest. Being 6'10" I'd be alot more happier if he'd grab some more boards and actually dive for some loose balls.
I think everyone will agree that Peja's supposed best attribute to the team is his shooting. That's what he's known as, not as a defensive stopper. Shooting is what we need the most from Peja and he's been very inconsistent at best in that area, especially in the 2nd half.
Scoring is what the Kings expect most out of Bibby and he's done that better than Peja has (especially if you look at the contributions made over the entire game). If the Kings ran the offense less through Miller, I'm sure Bibby's assists would go up as well.
nbrans
All-Star
Burrito06 said:
Expecting your front line to cover your a** because you aren't giving effort on defense is not the mark of a leader. It's fine that people like Bibby, he certainly has a lot of attributes that I like as well, but the excuses need to stop. He needs to be a better defender. Period.
Saying Mike needs to be a better defender is like saying Peja needs to develop a post game. Look at their ceiling from previous years and compare them to that. Anything extra they add beyond their known capabilities is extra credit. Both have been worse than they were and inconsistent. But Peja has definitely been the more severe underperformer (and it's been going for over a year now).
If I had to rank the starters according to their ratio of achievement vs. ability:
1. Bonzi
2. Reef
3. Bibby
4. Brad
5. Peja
Edit: This is not to say Mike shouldn't try to become a better defender or that Peja shouldn't develop a post game. Just that when comparing their performances, it's unfair to throw out that Mike is horrible on defense when comparing it to Peja's poor shooting (skill Mike never had vs. Peja's meal ticket).
If I had to rank the starters according to their ratio of achievement vs. ability:
1. Bonzi
2. Reef
3. Bibby
4. Brad
5. Peja
Edit: This is not to say Mike shouldn't try to become a better defender or that Peja shouldn't develop a post game. Just that when comparing their performances, it's unfair to throw out that Mike is horrible on defense when comparing it to Peja's poor shooting (skill Mike never had vs. Peja's meal ticket).
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piksi
Hall of Famer
Team Dime said:
Well, there are things that can't be defended like his disappearing or chronical lack of hustle or him being passive. He is below average help defender and he can't jump. He does not want to lead nor should he ever. However, I have seen Pedja win. I have seen him take a game over. I have seen him diving for the lose balls. Unfortunately for the Kings it was for Serbia. We took Webber for granted, Vlade, DC, Bobby etc. Now is Pedja's turn and Mike is next.
nbrans
All-Star
Zyphen said:
I disagree. Just because Bibby doesn't play defense doesn't mean he can't play defense. He's never going to be a stopper because he doesn't have the athleticism, but he has shown sporadically that he can be a more than capable defender, such as against Milwaukee this year. He just coasts on defense.
If he were conserving his energy on the defensive end because he was exerting so much effort on offense I might forgive him, however it's not like he's straining himself on offense either.
nbrans said:
I agree. It's a shame Bibby doesn't put forth the consistent effort defensively, however I think he's always been this way.
The main point is that Mike has played better and been more consistent offensively (his meal ticket) than Peja has been offensively (his meal ticket.
D
DeAtHrOw
Guest
Yoda said:
I don't think you have seen any WC games.
piksi
Hall of Famer
Team Dime said:
wrong.
has nothing to do with that because Pedja skipped last 2 summers.
It is very simple. When Pedja plays for Serbia -he is the man - no questions. The coach and teamates will not let him disappear. He is contantly pushed. No hiding. When he sucks he gets yelled at. When he doesn't hustle - he gets yelled at. He gets 5 screens per possesion if needs to be. He has 3 times as many touches as he has in the NBA. He simply is not given a chance to disappear. Just like Dirk for Germany
bozzwell
Starter
piksi said:
There'd be no money, if this here was not such a GREAT country. How is that not obvious to all and how is that not more important, I will never understand. Fortunately, the men behind USA basketball have realized that they have to put together 12 man that will live and die for every second they play on Team USA. In every other sport very well paid US athletes go out there and play their asses off for US.
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