(04-22-2021, 10:59 AM)HanspardsShowerVoice Wrote: Ehh .. it's not like he was a complete bust there.  They signed him to an extension.  He was just hurt a lot, the Heat promised Butler they would go all out for a Championship and they had a chance to get two proven playoff rotation contributors in Crowder and Iggy for a guy who was having on and off back issues.   Like I said, he's got to get healthy and stay healthy.  Otherwise there is no chance, regardless of the talent. 


Mavs and the Heat are a lot alike ... neither one would offer Crowder an extra year because they wanted to go big game hunting in free agency in 21-22, and now he's been one of the biggest steals of free agency and current a Top 10 power forward in Real Plus Minus (currently sandwhiched right between John Collins and Zion).   I wouldn't say either front office is foolproof.

(04-23-2021, 02:32 PM)HanspardsShowerVoice Wrote: On this train of thought again, I overlooked who might be the obvious answer ... Malik Monk, who has suddenly resembled the same kind of shooter we remember from Kentucky and is now currently 42+% at 3P%.   Wonder what kind of offer he is going to get as an unrestricted free agent.   He's a bit of a one hit wonder work in progess, but he's still just turned 23 years old a couple of months ago.     

The Ringer had a good write up on Monk recenty, and go into the deeper issue of how teams handle player development.  Especially for 19 year old kids who come in the after a 1 and done year in college and need a ton of patience and support on and off the court, and how teams with playoff and title aspirations have hard time finding the minutes to let them take their lumps.  And it's even worse for young kids today who live on social media where the criticism and pressure is in their face everyday.  

The question of how to properly develop a player is tricky. Every team has their own approach for getting guys up to speed, as well as their own timeline. Oklahoma City, for example, is letting its young, inexperienced roster play through mistakes as part of a rebuild, while the Warriors have struggled with how to incorporate no. 2 pick James Wiseman as they’ve tried to compete. (Wiseman is now out for the rest of the season with a meniscus injury.) Then there’s the fact that no two players grow and learn the exact same way.

“I had a head coach on a different team telling me that for a top-10 pick, the best thing they could have done was put them in the G league,” the scout said, referencing the fact that some young picks don’t get enough in-game experience early in their NBA careers. “But there was too much pressure. He was a top-10 pick in the draft, so it’s also about how the player handles it. … I think the best teams know how to make the G League a vehicle for development.”

https://www.theringer.com/nba/2021/4/20/22392444/malik-monk-charlotte-hornets-player-development-nba

(04-24-2021, 03:37 PM)omahen Wrote: NO will really need to do some soul searching. Despite all the hype, progress Zion made and him being healthy basically whole season they actually regressed from last season. Their "stars" Ingram, Zion and Ball are puting nice numbers which don't materialize in team success. So much hype aroud them yet they are not even close to top 10 in the league.

(04-25-2021, 09:15 AM)ClutchDirk Wrote: https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2941093-nuggets-will-barton-out-for-foreseeable-future-because-of-hamstring-injury

(04-25-2021, 09:37 AM)Paul Gasol Wrote: Now is the time to go all-out for that sweet, sweet 5th seed...

(04-25-2021, 11:53 PM)jesusshuttlesworth82 Wrote: Bogdan Bogdanovic is averaging 21.5ppg in April 

WTF

(04-26-2021, 12:10 AM)Tyler Wrote: In all seriousness, what happened to Portland?

(04-26-2021, 12:10 AM)Tyler Wrote: In all seriousness, what happened to Portland?

(04-26-2021, 01:29 AM)dirkfansince1998 Wrote: Regression towards the mean. Only team in the playoff race with a negative net rating. They won a lot of close games because Lillard was all time great in clutch minutes. Also had one of the easiest schedules.

(04-26-2021, 01:14 AM)Mavs2021 Wrote: I remember the good old days, when I made daily threads about acquiring his draft rights from Phoenix.

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Injuries, but now they are back at full strength more or less. That Memphis team might be a problem. They have done what the Mavs failed to do: developed all their rookies. Now they get JJJ/Winslow back and might go up another level.