Thursday Bolts – 11.13.14
Dan Feldman of PBT on Reggie Jackson: “These are his final opportunities to prove to other teams, not only that he can be a starting point guard, but that he’s worth the huge offer sheet necessary to pry him from Oklahoma City. Whether or not Jackson actually wants to leave the Thunder to start elsewhere – which he reportedly does – it’d be nice to have the option. For the Thunder, who committed not to trading Jackson like Harden when they couldn’t agree to an extension with him, a dangerous and costly standoff could lurk ahead. Jackson, joining Daequan Cook and Robert Swift, is slated to become just the franchise’s third player on a rookie-scale contract to become a restricted free agent since Sam Presti became general manager in 2007. Everyone else either signed an extension (Ibaka, Westbrook, Durant and Thabo Sefolosha), was traded (Eric Maynor, James Harden, Lazar Hayward, Cole Aldrich, D.J. White, Byron Mullens, Jeff Green, Johan Petro and Delonte West) or was waived (Mouhamed Sene) before getting that far.”
Darnell Mayberry: “He gave you glimpses Tuesday night in Milwaukee. But it was his season debut and he was on a minute restriction. One night later, the real Anthony Morrow was unleashed and he showed you just how much he could mean to the Thunder’s offense. And as each subsequent shot splashed through the bottom of the net, sending the opponent closer to its fateful demise, Morrow exhibited exactly why he just might be this summer’s most underrated free agent acquisition.”
Anthony Slater: “Considering his breakout postseason and eye-opening preseason, Steven Adams has been underwhelming the past few weeks. Part of that has been the lack of playmaking around him. The offensive chemistry between Adams and his two stars had grown exponentially before the duo got hurt. They’d consistently find him for simple buckets on the drive and in the pick-and-roll (“Layups, bro,” Adams said of the ease of his shots). That’s part of the reason he shot 68 percent in the postseason and 78 percent this past preseason. And it’s been a clear factor through the first nine games, with that number dipping to 48 percent without his typical facilitators — normally a solid clip, but not great for a center who lives in the painted area. It got ugly the first six quarters of this road trip, when Adams bumbled through an unimpactful 0-of-7 showing — his struggles only illuminated by Kendrick Perkins’ sudden offensive renaissance.”
Cool thing about defensive big men archetypes.
Perk says Rondo should stay: “I think it’s the perfect situation for him,” said Perkins. “He’s got a good group of guys around him, a good young coach. It’s his team, he’s able to play the way he’s capable of playing, and he’s almost averaging a triple-double. He’s got some good talent around him in [Jared] Sullinger, Jeff [Green], the young kid — I can’t pronounce it — with the long hair [Kelly Olynyk]. He’s got some good talent around him.”
Tom Haberstroh of ESPN Insider says KD is the fourth-best floor spacer: “If Durant has any weakness on the offensive side of the floor, it’s freeing himself off the ball. Defenders always have made it a point to be up in his jersey when guarding him off the ball, and his respect rating reflects that aggressive defensive scheme. According to SportVU, Durant is one of the rare players who shot better on pull-up 3s (41.1 percent) as opposed to the catch-and-shoot variety (38.2 percent), so letting him get comfortable off the dribble is a fatal mistake. It’ll be interesting to see whether lingering effects from his foot injury will affect his ability to create separation.”
Jason Conception of Grantland: “That’s what’s taking place in OKC, and it’s astounding to watch. Bad basketball with a purpose. Most of the time, I only pay attention to bad basketball, like the Lakers, for entertainment purposes. This bad basketball is different. There’s a championship at stake. The play of Lance Thomas and Andre Roberson will determine the fate of a serious contender. This group needs to win as many games as physically possible to make a realistic climb back into the playoff race. Scott Brooks is rewriting his playbook, calling for things like LOTS of Kendrick Perkins, and allowing Reggie Jackson to go iso for 22 seconds per possession. They’re also running plays for 3-point specialists like Anthony Morrow (28 points last night!) and Nick Collison, who has already hit more 3s this season than in all other seasons of his 10-year career … combined. MY GOD, I LOVE THIS TEAM.”
