soxhop411 said:
Depending on whom Houston loses, this is a great transaction for them. If Lawson can regain his stroke from deep he is going to give the Rockets some badly needed offensive firepower.
NBA offseason thread
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Depending on whom Houston loses, this is a great transaction for them. If Lawson can regain his stroke from deep he is going to give the Rockets some badly needed offensive firepower.
Are you referring to the NBA's drug suspension? Lawson doesn't even have strike 1 and isn't close to being permanently banned from the league.BigSoxFan said:
If Denver would like to swap Mudiay for any combination of our PG's I'm sure the deal gets done in an Orlando Woolridge heartbeat. I think they are pretty much set at that position for their future.ifmanis5 said:
My first instinct is that Lawson needs to come off the bench. Bev is a much better fit next to Harden.
You forgot perhaps the biggest headcase, Sheed. (He was fun to root for, though) And Ricky Davis.HomeRunBaker said:
Curious what would make you think this. Lawson was as good a 2-guard as he was a 1 when at UNC in that he was an excellent catch-and-shoot spotup shooter which is what you need your PG to be on possessions when Harden is your creator.....which are often. I believe Lawson led the ACC in 3-point pct the year they had Ginyard and Quentin Thomas who were often paired with Lawson and enabling him to be freed up off the ball to score/shoot more.bowiac said:
We don't know the severity of Lawson's personal problems or his conditioning (both mental and physical) so it is very possible Beverley is the better fit however if Lawson is 100% he is a much better overall player than Beverley who would appear to mesh with Harden very well.
I disagree with both parts of this really. All else being equal (i.e., no considerations of "fit"), I think Lawson and Beverley are fairly similar quality players. Lawson is the much better offensive weapon, and can run an offense as well as be a catch and shoot guy. He's a pretty defensive player however. Beverley is a very good defensive PG, and while he's not a creator, he's a capable offensive weapon simply by being a good enough shooter to space the floor, and not turn the ball over much. Defense is half the game - that stuff matters.HomeRunBaker said:
The same thinking is why I think Beverley is the better fit next to Harden. Harden is a one-man wrecking crew offensively, and mostly just needs to be surrounded by shooters he can kick out to as needed, as well as a big he play pick and roll with. That Beverley isn't a shot creator doesn't really hurt you when Harden is on the floor. Beverley also helps cover up for Harden's defensive "lapses." While Lawson may be a good spot-up shooter, part of his offensive game is going to waste while he's playing next to Harden, since his "creation" abilities aren't going to be as necessary. There's only one ball, etc... Further, he doesn't help cover up for Harden's defense.
Beverley is more or less the perfectly designed PG for Harden. They have very complementary skills, and relatively little overlap. Lawson on the other hand is mostly just a worse version of Harden. Creator, good spot up shooter, questionable defensively. I don't want two of those guys out on the floor together all that often.
I think Lowe makes the argument for Lawson as a match well here: http://grantland.com/the-triangle/ty-lawson-ready-to-launch-in-houston/
I'd only add that, while better than Lawson defensively, I think Beverley's defensive prowess was down last year -- didn't seem to be nearly the demon he was the previous year.
I'd only add that, while better than Lawson defensively, I think Beverley's defensive prowess was down last year -- didn't seem to be nearly the demon he was the previous year.
I agree Lawson is a good fit (insofar as adding talent tends to be a good fit), but he mostly agrees Lawson should come off the bench:Tony C said:
It seems like Lowe is saying the same thing I am. Beverley is the better fit next to Harden, but Lawson is valuable enough in secondary role next to Harden that it's fine.
RPM largely agrees with you, although I didn't really notice a difference to be honest. Beverley has a pretty troubling injury history at this point which may contribute to some decline too.
Lawson's skillset is better than Beverley's to come off the bench for an offensively challenged second unit so from a team aspect this may be his best role. Interesting however that Morey comes out and calls Ty "a top-ten PG and one of the best distributors in the league"......then go on to say it's McHale's decision as to who starts. Morey's comments make it pretty clear who he wants McHale to start. I think both fit very good with Harden who will be on the floor most of time anyway so it's a great pickup IF Lawson's head is right. Drinking isn't new for Lawson.....getting busted for DUI's is what's new for him so I if I had to guess he isn't suddenly going off on benders any more than he always has.
http://sports.yahoo.com/news/sources--danilo-gallinari-nuggets-171837314.html
Celtics avoid one here: Danilo signs a 2 yr extension with Denver
Celtics avoid one here: Danilo signs a 2 yr extension with Denver
the1andonly3003 said:
Avoid what? Picking up a useful player on what will be a very reasonable deal?
Yeah, that's a damn good contract in today's NBA. His health is obviously a concern, but Gallo looked healthy and played well at the end of last year. A 20 point scorer who can play multiple positions for $15 million a year?
Most teams would take that all day, everyday in a world where guys like Wesley Matthews get 4 yrs. 70 million.
Most teams would take that all day, everyday in a world where guys like Wesley Matthews get 4 yrs. 70 million.
They are about the same player, albeit at different positions. Regardless, this discussion is more about the contract than their abilities. The fact that Gallo is two years younger, has already successfully returned from his injury to play at a high level, plays multiple positions, and is signed for less years and less AAV makes his contract a good deal imo, not a bad one as another poster suggested.Devizier said:
Gallo wasn't a very good SF last year. Until I see that he has the ability to be an above average SF I'll be a little skeptical of the deal.
That said the deal was largely offered (by the Nuggets) as a means of holding on to the asset until it has more trade value, so anyone sighing in relief that Boston isn't getting him should think again.
That said the deal was largely offered (by the Nuggets) as a means of holding on to the asset until it has more trade value, so anyone sighing in relief that Boston isn't getting him should think again.
I mostly agree with this. Gallo is coming off a 12/4 season and I don't know if he ever makes it back to his prime...and even then at his best he was a 16/5 type. Add in major durability concerns (he's missed close to half of the games in the 8 seasons he's been in the league), and 3/$45m doesn't look so great. But the contract itself is still an asset in that it's reasonably short years and can be moved for a better asset in a couple of years after Denver gets a few lotto picks.nighthob said:
After Gallo got back into playing shape, post-ASB he posted a line of 18.6 PPG, 4.8 RPG, 1.9 APG, 1.3 SPG on 44/40/89 shooting. His RPM figures have him as a net positive last year as do most 82games.com's metrics.
I would've been thrilled if the C's got Gallo for this contract. As for the Wes Matthews comparison, (1) they play different positions as Matthews is a 2/3 and Gallo is a 3/4; (2) Gallo is two years younger and (3) Matthews' injury is far more severe and he hasn't shown he's recovered from it. The list of guys who have bounced back from a torn Achilles in the NBA are Dominique Wilkins, Jonas Jerebko, and that's it.
Gallo's deal is great for Denver. Figured this would happen as soon as Denver freed up their commitment from Lawson.
As for Lawson himself, the Nuggets may have just gotten rid of their version of Vin Baker. Baker was pretty productive for Seattle too, then he fell off a cliff in Boston. Alcoholism is a brutal disease and it appears Lawson is not getting the help he needs. Kroenke noted publicly he could smell booze on Lawson in practice, and he's had four DUIs. That's not healthy.
I would've been thrilled if the C's got Gallo for this contract. As for the Wes Matthews comparison, (1) they play different positions as Matthews is a 2/3 and Gallo is a 3/4; (2) Gallo is two years younger and (3) Matthews' injury is far more severe and he hasn't shown he's recovered from it. The list of guys who have bounced back from a torn Achilles in the NBA are Dominique Wilkins, Jonas Jerebko, and that's it.
Gallo's deal is great for Denver. Figured this would happen as soon as Denver freed up their commitment from Lawson.
As for Lawson himself, the Nuggets may have just gotten rid of their version of Vin Baker. Baker was pretty productive for Seattle too, then he fell off a cliff in Boston. Alcoholism is a brutal disease and it appears Lawson is not getting the help he needs. Kroenke noted publicly he could smell booze on Lawson in practice, and he's had four DUIs. That's not healthy.
Gallinari had many of his big nights (two 40 point games) during the final 14 games of the season when he was rested having sat out 5 of them due to not playing on back-to-back nights. He was a rested player going up against tired players either playing out the string or against playoff teams who knew they could coast versus Denver. Empty numbers don't tell much of a story as it is and especially under the circumstances Gallinari played under. He's very overrated on this board.jscola85 said:
No, he's really not. Any time he has been healthy on the court, he has been an extremely efficient scorer, an adequate rebounder and defender, and a deft passer. He's got a massively positive net points per 100 rating throughout his career.
I also don't buy the empty stats comment. Shooting is shooting and the guy lit it up down the stretch; his 2nd half was not built on two great games and a bunch of crap.
Is Gallo a game-changer? No, he's not a superstar. But at his salary he's going to be well worth it for Denver. Stretch forwards who can shoot, rebound, pass and defend at an adequate or better level are extremely valuable. Gallo is right with Gordon Hayward, Chandler Parsons, Trevor Ariza and Luol Deng in that 2nd tier of small forwards who might not be superstars but are extremely valuable players.
I also don't buy the empty stats comment. Shooting is shooting and the guy lit it up down the stretch; his 2nd half was not built on two great games and a bunch of crap.
Is Gallo a game-changer? No, he's not a superstar. But at his salary he's going to be well worth it for Denver. Stretch forwards who can shoot, rebound, pass and defend at an adequate or better level are extremely valuable. Gallo is right with Gordon Hayward, Chandler Parsons, Trevor Ariza and Luol Deng in that 2nd tier of small forwards who might not be superstars but are extremely valuable players.
Shooting is not shooting. There is a reason why there are so many personal fouls on 3-point attempts it is due to recognition that contested shots go in at a much lower rate than uncontested 3-poiters. Meaningless games lead to a lower defensive intensity and more uncontested looks. I'm not sure what world you live in where Gallinari can rebound and pass as both his RebRate and AstRate are historically among the worst at his position. He also lost much of what little lateral quickness he had post-surgery......he couldn't defend 3's on the perimeter at all in the games I saw last season. I'd imagine he's purely a stretch 4 moving forward.jscola85 said:
I want to see the Spurs play Jimmer, Boris Diaw, Kyle Anderson, and Matt Bonner together. Would be nice if they still had DuJuan Blair, and could run out the all fringe athlete squad.
Pierce said this will be his last season. I'd be alright seeing him beat LeBron in The Finals next spring.
HomeRunBaker said:
http://stats.nba.com/player/#!/201568/tracking/shots/
From nba.com stats:
Nuggets last 15 games; closest defender location, shot > 10 ft.:
0-2 feet 2.9% of total shots taken
2-4 feet 15.7% of total shots taken
4-6 feet 40% of total shots taken
6+ feet 19.3% of total shots taken
Nuggets previous games:
0-2 feet 1.4% of total shots taken
2-4 feet 14.8% of total shots taken
4-6 feet 39.6% of total shots taken
6+ feet 18.5% of total shots taken
There's no real evidence that his shots were getting less contested in the final part of the season.
The playing surface of an NBA floor is 94x50 (which needs to be enlarged as I've preached for years but that's another story) with 5 long and athletic defenders defending primarily in a halfcourt area of roughly 30x35. There is a vast difference between the intensity of defending and contesting shots than simply having a defender "in the area" which is why we don't see much/if any difference in these numbers in the playoffs versus regular season. Using closest defender in the area stats in this context would indicate that there isn't any evidence of greater defensive intensity/pressure in the playoffs versus the regular season which any reasonable mind recognizes this is obviously preposterous.TroyOLeary said:
The gap between playoff/regular season is similar to the defensive intensity of regular 48 minute games versus a Cleveland, OKC, etc is similar to that opposed to games versus the drecks of the league. We saw this first hand for two years with these Celtics as teams coasted for 42 minutes then we struggled getting shots off in the final 6 minutes of games. Gallinari's numbers of those final games are also skewed due to a 40 and 47 point game in such a small window......one versus Orlando in the midst of the Magic losing 10 of 11 and one of the worst defensive teams in the league even when they weren't mailing it in and the other versus Dallas, another poor defensive team who showed enough urgency in this game to give up 143 points to the Nuggets.
You're basically just saying that the rest of the NBA took a night off when they played Gallo and Denver post-ASB, which is ridiculous. We get it, you don't like Gallo. Unfortunately, there's little evidence that your arguments against him actually hold water.
I have no idea what you are referring to. I actually liked Gallo a lot prior to his injury. Those who watched him attempt to defend on the perimeter last season would like him much less than others however. Playoff teams take nights off against the sisters of the poor all the time.....just as they did for the Celtics last year. Again, anyone who noticed the difference in the Celtics execution over the first 42 minutes of games versus the final 6 over the year and a half prior to acquiring Isaiah can understand this. It was a running joke on this board and celticsnuts in the game threads on virtually a nightly basis.jscola85 said:
The period that Gallo had his resurgence was the time of year that the good teams are on cruise control and the bad ones throwing games to maximise lottery position. I mean these sorts of garbage time all stars roll around every single NBA season. It's not the miraculous phenomenon that you're making it out to be.jscola85 said:
Well, I suppose we will have to just wait and see how Gallo performs this year. I suspect he's going to do about what he's done his whole career - post 16-5-2 on high efficiency shooting with passable defense, making him a clear net-positive for the Nuggets.
Gallo's career averages are "under" on all those numbers, FYI.
I think the deal is fair for the Nuggets, but I don't think he's a Matthews-caliber player (as was inferred earlier in the thread) and I don't think his 49 game/season average can be ignored, either.
I think the deal is fair for the Nuggets, but I don't think he's a Matthews-caliber player (as was inferred earlier in the thread) and I don't think his 49 game/season average can be ignored, either.
Dante Exum may have just torn his ACL. Non-contact injury while playing for AUS. Headed to Utah for evaluation.
I saw video on another board. It certainly looked bad. He came to a jump stop in the lane and it buckled/hyperextended.Cellar-Door said:
It's torn apparently.
https://twitter.com/TheMontyShow/status/628716426266738688
This sucks. I'd rather get to see Exum play than see some trivial bump in the Celtics' draft pick. Also moves the Mavs more squarely into a playoff spot.
https://twitter.com/TheMontyShow/status/628716426266738688
This sucks. I'd rather get to see Exum play than see some trivial bump in the Celtics' draft pick. Also moves the Mavs more squarely into a playoff spot.
bowiac said:
I'm not sure the Jazz were going to be the team to knock Dallas out, but even if that were the case, Exum was horrible last year, he'd have to show major growth this year to just be below average. The Jazz' chances of taking a step forward was always dependent on Favors/Gobert/Hayward.
I though Exum was very impressive when I saw him, but that was mostly in the second half of the year. My projections had the Jazz and Dallas neck and neck, in the mid to low 40s for wins before this, but they also liked Exum a lot.moondog80 said:
That draft really has been gutted by injuries. Embiid, Exum, Parker, Randle etc. Wow. Bubble wrap on Wiggins!
That's not all. Vonleh underwent surgery for a sports hernia, missed all of training camp and the start of the season which put him behind the 8-ball as a rookie. Aaron Gordon missed most of the year with foot surgery on his broken 5th metatarsal then broke his jaw a few months ago.LondonSox said:
Of the top 9 picks in the draft the only ones who escaped significant injuries in their first year were Wiggins, Smart, and Stauskas.
bowiac said:
Exum looked great in the limited Summer League time I saw him. Got to the rim with ease and showed decent midrange touch. I think his injury is more of a loss for his development curve than the Jazz this year; he'd probably have been a nice rotation player but nothing game-changing, though the 1,500+ minutes he'd have logged would've gone a long way to getting him on his way to reaching the oodles of potential he has.
I agree with this, except the difference between nice rotation player and what Trey Burke has shown so far is a big one.jscola85 said:
I think Raul Neto will be their PG, not Burke. Bryce Cotton also looked like a decent 10-15 MPG PG at the end of last year as well. Lastly, PG is the deepest position in the NBA, so finding a capable veteran at the deadline would not be tough if the Jazz are in the hunt but have a need at that position.