Fun Free Agent Comparison:

[Ned Ryerson 94]

quote:

As you know, Otis acquired Brian Cookie "Blarrity", a very competent power forward to take the position of Battie while he is recovering from surgery. Cookie is presently learning how to rebound and defend. His 2 and 1/2 years remaining on his contract will give us plenty of time to get him ready.

 

Please do not be inpatient and refrain from being negative as that is not good fan behavior.

All the fans that enable me to continue with my job performance are appreciated. Your support is expected as well..thanks.

 

Yours Truly,

Otis

 

I didn't know Otis refered to himself like Ricky Hinderson!

[Ned Ryerson 94]

quote:

Originally posted by SmackDaddy:

quote:

Originally posted by WPMagic:

Here is the point:

 

You can't mention Rashard's stats without also mentioning Dwight. The spacing Rashard brings to the game is part of the reason Dwight is having the monster season he is. Thus, just looking at stats doesn't tell the story. You should know that Smack.

 

You said you don't want to hear, "who cares, we are 18-9." Well, the goal of paying these guys the money NBA teams are paying these days... Is to WIN GAMES!!! I understand there is room for improvement, but the final goal is being met, despite the recent slump.

 

As if you can't already tell, every move we have made in the last year has been for Dwight. We traded Ariza to spread the floor more... We re-signed Jameer to pair him with Dwight. We signed Foyle to put some defense behind Dwight. We signed Rashard to hit the 3 ball when Dwight gets doubled or trippled.

 

So my response to Rashards stat line is:

 

23.6 ppg, 15.3 rpg, 2.65 bpg

 

There is zero proof that Dwight's stats are dependent upon Shard's presence. Admitedly, Turk & Dwight are both playing out of there minds, and some of that could be contributed to the addition of Shard. Problem is, nothing concrete can be used to determine whether this team would be 18-9 without Shard. Or, would be even better than 18-9 had the team gone in a different direction.

 

Alright. So then, without truly knowing the effect of Rashard on Dwight's season, or what our record would be with another FA signee, I present to you Peoples Exhibit A: 18-9.

 

This is the only concrete fact in this whole discussion. I rest my case, Your Honor.

[Drain-O 369]

Here is what I think Rashard has done for this team outside of the stats.

 

I could totally be off-base here but this is my theory. I think when Dwight saw them jump all over Rashard and sign him he knew then that this team was committed to winning a championship. Now I know Dwight is a very loyal person but as a professional athlete and a competitor I would assume that you want to see your organization put your team in the best chance to succeed. I think he then realized that it was time to elevate his game and carry this team. We and I include myself may have viewed this move as Rashard will carry the offense for now until Dwight is ready but I think the move made Dwight ready. Not to take away from this thread but I think I was more impressed with Dwight last night then I have been all season. Yao seemed to be the one guy that Dwight can never get going against and Dwight took it to him on both ends of the floor. Dwight has never won a playoff game so I cannot really blame management for not seeing that he was going to become a force. I think Matty Goukas said he thought Howard improved like 75% over last year. I think the beginning of this transformation can be traced to Rashard and his contributions so far this year. Maybe and this is a big maybe management could have said lets just way a year or two and see how Dwight develops but that would have been absolulety lambasted and that fact is indisputable.

 

Now if you want to get into pure basketball Hedo has been better thus far but last night again we saw Rashard has started to not just settle for the 3. They still run almost no plays for him it seems.

 

The only move that could have been better would have been Billups/Darko...A lineup of Billups/Bogans/Hedo/Darko/Dwight is a very formidable starting 5 but there is absolutely no way Detroit was going to let him go so that would be dealing in hypotheticals. Although it would seem with how big Darko has gotten he is becoming more of a center so the whole inside/outside thing that some dreamed up with Dwight and Darko may never have materialized either.

[Blackhennie 0]

quote:

Originally posted by SmackDaddy:

quote:

Originally posted by Blackhennie:

ok. agreed. though that doesnt mean you can put jj at pf and say it will work. or playing cook 40mins.

 

so smack tell me, what does spacing allow a team/or players to do on the court? or how does spacing help a team win?

 

Seriously, you want to discuss fundamental basketball strategies?

 

My point is, any shooter can space the floor, it doesn't need to be Shard.

Another point was that Dwight's individual growth has to contribute to the increase in his prodcutivity as well, with or without further contributions from his teammates.

 

So to give Shard all the credit for the Magic's record as well as Dwight & Turk's productivity is simply not accurate. And that's not even taking into consideration the addition of a new coach.

 

understandable. but in the same regard making commits like "Originally posted by SmackDaddy:

The difference in the spacing doesn't directly correlate with the addition of Rashard." also gives rashard no credit at the same time.

 

yes, haward is playing better with getting in position on offense and make solid post moves and dominating with power play inside getting to the line and making big shots, yes howard is a force on both ends of the court and improved. yes, turk is being more aggressive, and yes, the style of play is different then last year.

 

yes, seriously i want to talk fundamental basketball because that is what your are missing or falling to admit your not seeing.

 

lewis spreads the court at pf and sf. allowing haward more space to make a hook shots in the lane, allowing weak side defense to rotate slow or at a farther distance allowing howard to get more spine alley hoops and power plays. lewis gives turk the lanes needed to drive and kick or dive and scorer. lewis is a scoring threat that team have to check. he is not just a shooter.

 

there is a correlation with lewis and spacing your just not will to admit your error. shooting equals spacing (you said it your self); their is your correlation.

 

 

correlate

v.i.,v.t. have or demonstrate close relationship; bring into relation or accord; n. one of two things or propositions that necessitates or implies the other. correlation, n. correlative, n. & a.

 

smack...

[The Solution 0]

BOTTOM LINE:

 

RASHARD IS PAID TOOOOOO MUCH and that keeps us from signing other players. Stan recognizes the best players on the team and builds a system to maximize the assets of his players. Shard is playing power forward because those are the cards he was dealt.

 

Rashard will always disappoint us, in my opinion, because he is WAY OVER RATED !!!

I have been willing to see what he can do at small forward but HE IS TOOOO SOFT!!!!

 

IF YOU WANT TO WIN YOU HAVE TO HAVE AN EDGE ABOUT YOU AND HE AIN'T GOT IT!!

[Blackhennie 0]

quote:

Originally posted by The Solution:

BOTTOM LINE:

 

RASHARD IS PAID TOOOOOO MUCH and that keeps us from signing other players. Stan recognizes the best players on the team and builds a system to maximize the assets of his players. Shard is playing power forward because those are the cards he was dealt.

 

Rashard will always disappoint us, in my opinion, because he is WAY OVER RATED !!!

I have been willing to see what he can do at small forward but HE IS TOOOO SOFT!!!!

 

IF YOU WANT TO WIN YOU HAVE TO HAVE AN EDGE ABOUT YOU AND HE AIN'T GOT IT!!

 

i agree that lewis is over paid. i agree that he is playing soft and mostly because he is playing out of position. but that was not my beef in this decision. my beef was based on lewis's impact on the game. though i wish his impact was bigger, we are winning and that all that matters for now.

[30Assists 342]

Having a combination of Dwight down low, and then having two 6'10 swing men who can drive and shoot threes very well, greatly spreads out the defense.

 

From the games I've seen, it works like this: defenses have to respect the fact that 'Shard and Hedo can shoot, and no one doubts Dwight's abilities. For those defenses, it's pick your poison:

 

1) Do you let Dwight get his plays down low? Most defenses put 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, +the cheerleaders and refs on him and it hasn't slowed him down, so then you:

 

2) Focus on the next biggest threat. For most defenses, this will be 'Shard, who has an All Star game under his belt, a career average of 18.5 points and three point % of nearly 40%. And he's 6'10. This, in turn:

 

3) Opens up the game for Hedo. You have a center and a PF that are probably focusing their attention on Howard and trying to keep him off the boards (or from dunking on them). Then you have a SF or PF concentrating on 'Shard with probably another guy looking to help out should 'Shard shake loose.

 

What does this do? Gives Hedo (Bogans, Jameer, etc) open lanes and open looks. Hence, Hedo's numbers go up and we win more games.

 

While the cost was high to get 'Shard, and we probably could have had him cheap, I'd say it was worth it.

 

I'd still like to see the Magic add a good PF to compliment Dwight, but I don't think 'Shard was a bad pickup.

[Blackhennie 0]

quote:

Originally posted by 30Assists:

Having a combination of Dwight down low, and then having two 6'10 swing men who can drive and shoot threes very well, greatly spreads out the defense.

 

From the games I've seen, it works like this: defenses have to respect the fact that 'Shard and Hedo can shoot, and no one doubts Dwight's abilities. For those defenses, it's pick your poison:

 

1) Do you let Dwight get his plays down low? Most defenses put 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, +the cheerleaders and refs on him and it hasn't slowed him down, so then you:

 

2) Focus on the next biggest threat. For most defenses, this will be 'Shard, who has an All Star game under his belt, a career average of 18.5 points and three point % of nearly 40%. And he's 6'10. This, in turn:

 

3) Opens up the game for Hedo. You have a center and a PF that are probably focusing their attention on Howard and trying to keep him off the boards (or from dunking on them). Then you have a SF or PF concentrating on 'Shard with probably another guy looking to help out should 'Shard shake loose.

 

What does this do? Gives Hedo (Bogans, Jameer, etc) open lanes and open looks. Hence, Hedo's numbers go up and we win more games.

 

While the cost was high to get 'Shard, and we probably could have had him cheap, I'd say it was worth it.

 

I'd still like to see the Magic add a good PF to compliment Dwight, but I don't think 'Shard was a bad pickup.

 

VERY GOOD points.

[EnFuego 1]

I have three things to say;

 

"We're 17-9, what does it matter."

"It's not your money."

"Beating a dead horse again."

[Blackhennie 0]

quote:

Originally posted by Blackhennie:

quote:

Originally posted by SmackDaddy:

quote:

Originally posted by Blackhennie:

ok. agreed. though that doesnt mean you can put jj at pf and say it will work. or playing cook 40mins.

 

so smack tell me, what does spacing allow a team/or players to do on the court? or how does spacing help a team win?

 

Seriously, you want to discuss fundamental basketball strategies?

 

My point is, any shooter can space the floor, it doesn't need to be Shard.

Another point was that Dwight's individual growth has to contribute to the increase in his prodcutivity as well, with or without further contributions from his teammates.

 

So to give Shard all the credit for the Magic's record as well as Dwight & Turk's productivity is simply not accurate. And that's not even taking into consideration the addition of a new coach.

 

understandable. but in the same regard making commits like "Originally posted by SmackDaddy:

The difference in the spacing doesn't directly correlate with the addition of Rashard." also gives rashard no credit at the same time.

 

yes, haward is playing better with getting in position on offense and make solid post moves and dominating with power play inside getting to the line and making big shots, yes howard is a force on both ends of the court and improved. yes, turk is being more aggressive, and yes, the style of play is different then last year.

 

yes, seriously i want to talk fundamental basketball because that is what your are missing or falling to admit your not seeing.

 

lewis spreads the court at pf and sf. allowing haward more space to make a hook shots in the lane, allowing weak side defense to rotate slow or at a farther distance allowing howard to get more spine alley hoops and power plays. lewis gives turk the lanes needed to drive and kick or dive and scorer. lewis is a scoring threat that team have to check. he is not just a shooter.

 

there is a correlation with lewis and spacing your just not will to admit your error. shooting equals spacing (you said it your self); their is your correlation.

 

 

correlate

v.i.,v.t. have or demonstrate close relationship; bring into relation or accord; n. one of two things or propositions that necessitates or implies the other. correlation, n. correlative, n. & a.

 

smack...

 

i guess ur done with ur argument?

[MilitaryMagic 0]

It isn't that a player like Kapono can't space the floor like Rashard.

 

It isn't that a player like G. Wallace can't drive to the hoop and rebound as good, and even better, than Rashard.

 

The trouble is that adding multiple complimentary players that have limitations to their game is the number of spots they take up on the floor.

 

Kapono and Wallace may provide the same, even better when combined, qualities as Rashard, but then you have one less player on the court providing other qualities. Like Bogans' defense, for example, replacing Kapono versus fielding a lineup including Wallace and Kapono.

 

Furthermore, none of the top free agents were power forwards or have the ability to play the 4 at a high level. A player like Evans, while a great rebounder, simply is not a good defender. Seriously. Evans is not a good defensive player on the ball. And he can't do crap on offense. All he does is rebound.

 

Rashard is a multi-faceted player. His ability to be a solid 4, as well as a stud 3, is invaluable to our team while Battie is injured.

 

As another example, we could have kept Darko and added Gerald Wallace. Then where is our additional spacing for Dwight? No DOUBT Rashard is immensely helping Dwight while the opponent's 4 MUST stay away from the paint to keep in distance of Rashard. Darko is not a space-maker in the vein of Rashard at all.

 

Perhaps we keep Darko, add Kapono, and add another complimentary free agent. Then where is our scoring coming from? Darko, Kapono, and XYZ free agent don't replace 19ppg nearly as effectively as Rashard provides it. And then you have 3 players trying to create the production that one Rashard Lewis relatively provides.

 

I think it sucks that Rashard missed all of training camp and that SVG has obviously made the decision to keep Rashard the 3rd option as he was never able to explore Rashard's game during training camp. It's an odd mental challenge that SVG has placed on Rashard - at the same time, he has given full blown freedom to Hedo and Hedo is playing so, SO much better than anyone could have ever predicted (incredible international play is NOT always a precursor to incredible NBA play - see Milicic, Darko).

 

It is totally on SVG as he has completely ignored the fact that Rashard is making a 118 million dollars. He is not playing his lineup in a way to appease Rashard doubters. He's doing the best he can with what he has.

 

In the long run, this is why no media basketball analysts have created a single article of late that questions the decision to give Rashard so much money. They see our record, see Dwight's numbers, and come to the logical conclusion that Rashard is influencing the team in a very positive way. Many informed analysts probably attribute Hedo's explosion to Rashard playing the 4 as well.

 

All in all, I really wish that Rashard was our 2nd option. Hedo turns the ball over a lot and shoots a lower percentage on all spots on the floor. However, SVG simply realizes that, in order to get Hedo producing at this level, he must sacrifice some of Rashard's game. He could very easily relegate Hedo to the "Spot up 4" role and let Rashard run wild, but Hedo's production would drop dramatically.

 

Rashard is stuck between two rocks right now...

[Soul Bro 1,423]

According to ESPN, here are Rashard's PERs for this year and the last couple of years:

 

2007: 15.49 PER

2006-2007: 20.78 PER

2005-2006: 20.04 PER

 

This is why I am disappointed in Rashard's play. Playing in a much better situation here in Orlando, RASHARD'S PER HAS DROPPED OVER 25% SINCE LAST YEAR. This is troubling. Even with limited touches, his play should have significantly improved, not declined.