8 random thoughts/ideas on playoffs and draft

I think people make it way to black and white, when their is a massive grey area. I think Kevin Durant has not come through in a few clutch situations for his team in these play-offs, but he is facing a better team and he does have things to clearly work on. His team also has an incredibly difficult executing plays to get him makeable shots, and I am incredibly surprised by the number of times they have called timeouts and looked like chickens with their heads cut off on the inbounds. Durant is still young and still has things to work on in his game, but to say he never delivers in the clutch is like saying the same thing about LeBron James. Be prepared to be wrong eventually.

Totally agree about Mike Brown though, whatever our opinions matter. I think he was at times, a fairly awful coach in Cleveland. Sorry to say, the guy was outcoached on a constant basis, his rotations sometimes made incredibly little sense and his game management was constantly poor. I remember watching a Cleveland game being replayed, and them being out of timeouts with a couple of minutes left in the game. Really? Well, I know people feel he got the raw end of the deal, but I would be incredibly surprised if he leads the Lakers anywhere without major roster changes. If they do not trade atleast a couple major front court guys, would love to see him solve their chemistry issues. Have no idea why Brian Shaw was not given a chance, as he is incredibly knowledgable of their current system. Mike Brown may have insight to stopping LeBron James (though I doubt it, highly), but will he get the Lakers there? Easier said than done.

Also, not sure about your international intel. Yes, the Warriors are weak on defense, but I think they are very interested in Vesely, not to mention the guy provides a potentially major match-up problem for opponents. Also, I have not heard about Motiejunas’ contract being a major issue, and I believe Valanciunas actually has a high interest in the NBA, which Fran Vazquez clearly did not. It could be an issue, but I am guessing it is not an incredibly major one, and if either were to slip, it would probably not be far past the lottery. Stanger things have happened, but I think that teams will take a chance in a draft low on potential impact players.

"Clutch" is such an unbelievably subjective term. At the beginning the of the year, people were arguing that Lebron wasn’t clutch, and that was why Durant would ultimately be the better player. Now the tables have turned. 

As I see it, and as 666 has argued on another thread, clutchness is mostly an artificial idea, that is based more on how we perceive a player and what we remember, than on actual results.

I know people tire of the Durant-Lebron comparisons, but let me do this one last time, because I feel that Lebron’s case perfectly illustrates this. Lebron James is just now trying to shake his reputation as being a choker. He was perceived, especially after last years debacle against the Celtics, as a player who couldn’t deliver down the stretch. This was despite his several game shots in the playoffs, not to mention his 27 straight points against the Pistons to close out the series and take his team to the finals. 

Likewise, Durant has delivered a number of times in end of game situations, including several times during this postseason. My point here being that both players have proven time and time again that they do not shrink when the game is on the line. Yet have fallen victim to the short memories of fans, that somehow lead us to define who is "clutch" and who is not. Lebron came up short against the Celtics and he was a choker. This year he has performed well against the Celtics and Bulls and now he has "ice in his veins." Is he really that much of a different player than he was last year? Last year did he lose the clutch gene that led him to hit that spectacular game winner against Orlando, or to light up the Pistons?

I guess what I’m saying here is that statistically a superstar player is going to deliver at the end of games SOME of the time. Sometimes Durant is going to put the Thunder on his back and lead them to victory, sometimes he’s going to miss shots. That’s just how it works. The same thing goes for Kobe and Lebron, although for some odd reason Kobe seems to get a pass when it comes to this. These players are all superstars and the all have both faltered and delivered at the end of games in the past, and they will all continue to do so moving forward.

I don’t necessarily think this series is grounds to declare KD "not clutch," just as last seasons Boston series wasn’t for Lebron James. In fact I’m not convinced that "clutchness" is quite as real as many are making it out to be.

The Mike Brown pick was a head scratcher.  The Lakers need a new offense, and Mike Brown doesn’t run one.  Yes, they need to improve their defense but defense is an effort thing, and the Lakers don’t need to wear themselves out in the regular season.  I think they need a coach who emphasizes a balance between offense and defense.  

I think they need to open up the offense.  The trade idea of Bynum and Artest for Josh Smith and Kirk Hinrich would be a good one.  That would give them an upgrade at point guard and an explosive forward in Josh Smith who can play both forward spots.  A front line of Pau, Smith, and Odom would be long and nimble.  If I were the Lakers I would then go after a mobile, shot blocking center who can get out and run.  Then play Shannon Brown and Devin Ebanks more.  I would use Shannon Brown as the team’s sixth man and go with a small backcourt off the bench with Brown and Fisher.  Then try to trade Steve Blake for anything.  Even a second round pick would be nice.  

Playing a half court offense with lots of iso’s for Kobe sounds like a bad idea.  Then they waste all their energy playing tough defense in the second quarter against a team like the Bucks.  I think old teams should pick their spots on defense in the regular season then turn it up a notch for the playoffs. 

Kendrick Perkins: the trade opened up playing time for Ibaka and Harden which was a huge plus.  I think he clogged up the middle in the Grizzlies series which slowed Memphis down.  Perkins gave them the toughness they needed for a seven game series.  The Thunder are losing this series because KD isn’t taking over in the stretch, Westbrook is melting down and Harden is the only guy on the team who can create shots for the other guys.  I am not sure that the stats tell the whole picture with Perkins.  In a way he is kind of like Joel Anthony.  Anthony doesn’t have big stats either but he rebounds, defends, clogs the middle, and is a pretty good enforcer.  The up-tempo pace is hurting Perkins as well as Tyson Chandler who is more athletic and even taller than Perkins.  I think Perkins would have held his own better against the Heat or the Bulls.  The Thunder have basically 3 guys that can score (KD, Westbrook, and Harden) and that’s about it.  But I don’t think Kristic would have been the answer either.  He would have been destroyed by Gasol and Z Bo, and he still wouldn’t be able to stop Chandler.  

Durant: great player, but is he more of a Tracy McGrady type who can score effortlessly but won’t be a big winner?  I love his game, but I think they need some veteran leadership.  Perkins is great as an enforcer but I still think they need a veteran scorer/creator.

 I agree on all of your thoughts except for #’s 6 and 7.

Wizards are extremely high Vesely. Yes, they need defense, yes Kawhi Leonard would bring that, but Vesely is alot more defensive then you may think. He is not just a highlight reel, high flying dunking machine. He can also play defense with his ridiculous length. He is a student of the game. Loves it, studies it, and plays very well. He does what the coach asks of him, he is an intangibles guy. A team so young with an inexperienced coach such as Flip Saunders, having Vesely should be a luxery. He may even have better defense than Leonard overall. Their are only 2 knocks against him, 1 he is skinny built. Might not defensively tough to hang with PF’s in the NBA or even SF’s and his hands are very weak. He is constantly dropping passes and loosing his dribble in traffic. But if he can work on his catching, ball control and overall body, he will be quite a player.

I can see why you would think that about Valanciunas but not for the same reason as Fran Vasquez. Vasquez will never come to the NBA. Valanciunas definitely will, although it might not be this year. He is still learning the game, and may be a step behind for the NBA. I think he needs more conditioning and I don’t think he’s quite ready for the NBA. At times he seems lost and at other times he knows what to do. Needs to get a handle on things and show dominance all throughout not just through stretches. The more and more I think about it, it would be smart for him if he decided not to come over this year but wait until next year.

Motiejunas on the other hand, desperately wants to make it the NBA. He knows he’s talented and wants to be a star. The only reason why he didn’t come over last year was because he was not projected to be a lottery pick. I guarantee that’s his motivation this year. If he is not projected to be a lottery pick by most scouts then he will stay overseas, continue to work on his game and see if he can be a lottery pick next year. If he desperately wants to be a lottery pick and someday a star then this is the year to come out. Its a weak draft, and so he has an excellent shot to be a lottery pick. 

He is an offensive powerhouse but is very weak defensively. Teams will definitely shy away because of his lack of defense. But eventually his offensive strength will just be too much to pass up. To me he is definitely a lottery pick. (Probably late lottery) I just can’t see a player with such offensive skill fall out of the lottery in what is said to be a weak draft. He needs to definitely gain some weight, (That seems to the problem with most European players) but his offensive skill is just too much to pass up.

Remember this guy used to be in the top 10 on the big board of this site and other site’s as well, then all of a sudden once the draft lottery order was set, he fell off the rankings and is now a top 20 prospect. How can a guy that was on everybody’s top 10 for most of the season all of sudden fall off the charts? What happened?

Seriously? You think Lawernce Frank is a more gifted coach then Mike Brown? I personally would have gone for Shaw, but after the Frank disaster with the Nets, I won’t be surprised if we don’t see him head coaching a team for at least a couple of seasons, because everyone who’s hiring him will look at his record and say "You went 0-16 with the Nets and then got fired." See my point.

Perkins is in a bad matchup against the Mavs, but Ibaka and Collins are pretty good. Against the Grizz it was better for Perkins because Gasol and Randolph are traditional power post players. They really got Perk to bang against Bynum and P. Gasol anyway. I would have thought the Lakers were still going to be around, so the trade made sense to get Perk at the time. Especially since they didn’t give up anything but average type NBA players who wouldn’t start on most teams.  They need to understand that he doesn’t make sense in this series and that he needs to sit and not take it personal.

 As Mikeyvthedon alluded to, Durant’s struggles in the clutch is less a mental toughness issue than a general lack of ability of the Thunder to consistently execute in the halfcourt.  The Thunder are a great offensive team, their scoring numbers are great, but they struggle when the game slows down.  I think this is mostly due to inexperience.  Westbrook shows flashes of brilliance, but still is lacking in some of the finer points of pg skills, namely shot selection, fast break timing, and drive and kick ability.  I do not doubt that one day Westbrook will be a more complete pg, just look at game 7 against the Grizzlies for his playmaking ability, but right now he is too willing to isolate, takes too many pull up jumpers, and can sometimes unnecessarily outrun his own team down the floor on the fast break.  

Durant himself still has some issues as well, as he can take poor angles off of screens, allowing his defender to stay with him, and settle for long jumpers too often rather than attacking the rim, which would keep the defense honest.  This is most likely due to his lack of strength.  

I am nitpicking here.  Both Westbrook and Durant are great players, but they still have room to improve.  Mental toughness is not what primarily needs to be improved, however. 

8thDeadlySin isn’t going to be happy with this…

IDK about everything else, but as far as OKC goes…

IDK why everybody only thinks of a "clutch" playeras being able to hit that last second shot. Isn’t the ability to close out a close game (and not have to that last second shot because the game is pretty much wrapped up) clutch? Kevin Durant does that well. It’s funny how he’s no longer "clutch" because he hasn’t hit a last second shot. If that determines a player’s "clutch" ability, then the onlky "clutch" players in the NBA are Kobe and Melo, if you are talking about game winning/ buzzer beating shots. I do agree Kevin Durant can be passive offensively, in terms of not demanding the ball in certain times of the game and allowing the defense to dictate where he catches the ball, but he make those shots. People forget that he is 22 years old. Some players in the draft are older than him!! I believe that the WCF is too much pressure on a young player/ team and coach like OKC to not necessarily have that veteran guy who can take over the game for them offensively/defensively. D Wade got his ring because of Shaq’s presense. Kobe got his first 3 because he has arguably the greatest coach of all time in Phil Jackson (as well as proven winner in Horace Grant and Ron Harper). I didn’t feel he was readyfor this step this year personally. Next year should be a different story, though.

Perkins isn’t useless, he helped well in the DEN-OKC series and although Marc Gasol scored points, they didn’t come easy. I agree he is ineffective in this series because Tyson and Haywood are not threats offensively, but he’s not useless. Serge starts and James Harden is showingwhy he will start next year because of him.

Come on man.. Couldnt think of 1 more or just use one less??? Of the infinate numbers in the universe, I called 8 for this site… I called it…

Do I not have the presence on this site for people to stay off my number… Damn…