i don't think its quite as black and white as everybody is making it out to be. mike bibby's "role" probably will not change much. we've seen a trend recently in which bibby has clearly looked to get others involved more than himself. admirable, certainly, especially considering how good of a shooter bibby can be and has been in the past. point is, the kings are still an offensively-oriented team, though one with more defensive punch than they've had in awhile. the kings have always been at their most effective when they play into the hot hand. mike recognizes that he hasn't been the hot hand of late, and with the arrival of ron artest, the emergence of kevin martin and francisco garcia, the consistency of kenny thomas as a starter as well as the consistency of shareef abdur rahim as a sixth man, and the resurgance of the team as a whole, mike has discovered that he has a lot more options to work with when it comes to the offensive set. mike has been great in the half court the past coupla games. he's seeing the whole court (ie: bibby to martin alley-oop), as opposed to his typically narrow two-man-game-vision (ie: mike bibby/brad miller pick & roll...not a bad thing, of course). this may not be a "new" development in mike's career, though it is one for this kings team as it stands today.
mike's always gonna look to score, cuz he's a scorer. but he doesn't need to carry the team night in and night out, and i'm of the opinion that that is a relief to mike bibby. he wants to lead the team, but being the team's leading scorer doesn't necessarily equate to leading the team. mike's not shy when it comes to being the first scoring option, but i think he's playing his best ball when he sees the whole court, and the defense is forced to spread itself out. then mike can just play to the hot hands. k-mart, cisco, ron ron, b-52, bonzi. SAR...whoever it may be. mike's still a threat offensively, so his penetrate-and-dish has been very effective of late. he and brad miller are still a killer two-man combo, and thats cemented in the playbook. now adelman and bibby can be more creative and be more confident in their other scoring options. don't think of it as a "new" role for mike bibby. think if it as the return to a role that he was most effective in when the kings were at their best. this is how he used to play. the effectiveness of the offense--getting to the basket, getting to the line, taking open jumpers, not forcing the action--is how the kings used to play. the style has changed, but the efficiency is there, and that just opens up new doors.
