[SlickBouncePassParticipant]

 Win the NCAA tournament?  I’m not sure…

Yesterday’s game was sad.

Russell forgetting 5 seconds on the shot clock trying to isolate himself with the game on the line.

Randle bickering with Russell about giving him his space, basic stuff two of their "core" can’t resolve without bickering for a couple possessions.

They lost to the Sixers without Embiid and Simmons, and the game was never really in doubt.  

They are worlds apart.  I was never teh biggest Brett Brown fan until this year, and you are starting to see them move the ball really well.  The Lakers still have no system, its all one on one basketball, maybe its a product of being in LA without any veteran leadership, trying to be a "star" without a Magic Johnson type leader….which brings me back to D’Angelo….

His defense is atrocious.  The guy is half asleep for almost the entire game.  Lazily chasing around guys like TJ McConnell (who is far better at PG than Russell in his command), its no effort.  He is like Jahlil Okafor only he is a guard, thank goodness Jah isn’t projected to be our leader.

I kind of hope LA gets Lonzo Ball just to expose how awful D’Angelo Russell is.

But yeah that team is so young, not only are their bodies immature, but they just have no concept how to play in a system.  

Obviously joking about the Lakers winning the NCAA, but since the National Media made a deal out of whether the Sixers could beat Kentucky a few years ago…

I wonder if the Lakers could win the NCAA.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[jabbar_medvedenkoParticipant]

Actually, advanced statistics show that Russell, despite his perceived ‘laziness’ is already (at age 20, he turned 21 a couple of weeks ago) a league average defender and one of the better on the Lakers, with Clarkson and especially Nance being the best. Your notion just doesn’t make much sense, as D’Angelo’s game, stats and advanced metrics all show that he’s right up there with the All-Star point men at his age, and much better than his peers from the last three drafts (Payton, Smart, Mudiay, Exum, Dunn). He kinda reminds me of Dwight Howard, who’s also perceived as ‘lazy’ due to his calm demeanor on the court and his laid-back personality.

Leading such a young team is a huge task and I believe he’s been handling it well. He was actually the Lakers’ best player (along with Clarkson) post All-Star break and just one bad game is not going to change that fact. The Lakers started off the season at 10-10, beating the likes of Warriors in the process, and only injuries, tough schedule and one eight-game breakdown in December are the reason we see them fighting to keep that pick and not with the Nuggets and Blazers for the eighth seed. Give the young fellas a break, they will be fine. No need to compare them to amateurs. Nor any other team, including Philly from two years ago.

[SlickBouncePassParticipant]

I watch the Sixers every game, it didn’t take me more than 15 minutes to realize Okafor is a lazy defender.

I watch them play every other team in the NBA, so you get an idea of how everyone matches up in the league playing against the same variables (guards playing TJ etc), so you’re able to realize just how much of a beast Lebron or Kawhi are compared to the rest of the league.

So you take your advanced stats, and keep telling yourself he’s much better than Marcus Smart defensively.  

Dwight Howard was a blocking and rebounding menace and has aged significantly, but yeah, you can compare him to Dwight’s mentality…both are extremely lazy players half asleep that dont’ have that heart and grit to win, they’d rather "coast and have fun".  

Name me some perceived lazy NBA players that are actually great?  Dwight is not great, he never was, and Russell doesnt have no Dwight impact on the game.  

 Russell wants the LA limelight, just wants the ball at the end of the game so he can countdown 321 and shoot the ball.  He is a baby and Lakers brass babying him will not help.  He doesn’t want to grind to get his team in the position to win, he just wants to take that last shot.  Like I said, I kind of hope you get Ball so you can see what an athletic PG can do out there.

LOL at fighting to keep their pick because of injuries and an 8 game breakdown.  

Right now in la la land its "we’re not tanking, we’re just really bad, to "injuries tough schedule and 8 game breakdown are forcing us to fight for our pick".

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

[MopgrassParticipant]

 I like Russell, but I’m surprised metrics show he’s average on D. He is flat footed on offense sometimes, defensive sometimes, around loose balls, and around the boards. There is one good Russell: the one the aggressive one. He’s there most of the time. I think effort/intensity tends to get more consistent in time. He could end up above average on D.

I’d worry most about Randle on D. I don’t know the metrics, but I bet he’s well below average. He’s undersized and offers no rim protection. It’d take Rudy Gobert to make L.A. a defensive force inside and that dude is going nowhere. I love Randle on the boards, the intensity, and possible future all-star-level offense. But I’m not sure he can get to average on D.  If they’re going to trade someone, that’s the guy. GM’s reportedly give mixed reviews of him. Find the good reviewer. 

I’m not sure what to make of Nance. Last year he looked better than this year. But he’s playing injured all year. Mid-way through last year GM’s were saying they might like him more than Randle. He seems disengaged, his jumper isn’t a guarantee like last year, he’s not hitting the boards as hard, blocking as many shots, or making his own offense. Injury? 

I also hope the Lakers get Lonzo Ball. Make Russell the 6th man or a 2. Whatever. Ball is a star. 

[binetParticipant]

 Which advanced statistics are you talking about? He has -1.4 DBPM and he ranks 332nd in the league there, the teams DRtg is also 2.2 points higher when he is on the court than off the court which illustrates bad defense.

 

 

[Magic JordanParticipant]

 Synergy statistics.

He allows 0.903 points per possession.  That ranks him in the 56th percentile.  50th percentile is considered an average defender.  Thus, he is a slightly better than average defender according to synergy.

He’s defintely an above average PNR defender, ranking in the 68th percentile.  Going over screens he is in the 65th, and going under he is in the 61st.

He has not had to guard a ton in isolation.  Only around 40 sequences of such this year.  But when he does he is right at the 50th percentile, so average.

What perpetuates the notion that he can’t defend is how poor he is at closing out (35th percentile) and he gets hammered switching onto bigs (Lakers switch everything).  

Essentially, he is above average where you want your PG to be (PNR defense).  And below average where you would expect him to be (switching).  

His poor defense on closeouts can be attributed to a number of things.  His lack of athleticism being what you would think would be the main factor.  I actually think where he struggles in closeouts though is he just simply loses focus.  He gets caught ball watching, as most young guys do.  This will probably never be completely gone, but will be alleviated as he continues to get older and grow as a player.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[nick5354Participant]

 Are you sure you’re not just mad at that play where Russell hilariously fell over after failing to pick up an uncontested rolling ball heading into halftime with the game tied?

 

   

[jaycee24Participant]

 They can’t buy a bucket watching the 1st quarter against Denver

[BasterdInABasketParticipant]

 I get that you were half joking about the Lakers winning the NCAA tourney but it is ridiculous the thought of anybody seriously think an NBA or NFL team couldn’t beat the current best college teams, whether it’s the Lakers, Browns vs Alabama or Sixers the last couple years. 

Look at the talent alone on the Lakers compared to the best teams Duke, UNC, Villanova, etc. Randle, Russell and Ingram were all All American type go-to players in college now with NBA experience now. Ingram looks lost in the NBA and could probably could put in 25 in his sleep at Duke this year, Russell as well and. Randle would probably average a triple double at UK and any of the three would likely win NPOY.

Get the tourney thing was a joke but most NBA teams would have two rotations of All Americans suiting up in college 

[BeastMode716Participant]

 b/c even though the Lakers would buzz saw thru the NCAA Tourny (as would Any NBA team) 

your underlying point is real & that point is that the Lakers are a mess.

I remember this time last year while Kobe’s fairwell tour was winding down & we Laker fans had the good feelings of reminiscing about Kobe’s career to temporarily distract us from a 17 win team & the FEAR we were all feeling that we could lose our #1 pick to Phila (top 3 protected in 16′ & 17′) 

I don’t want to speak for others but I told myself that Byron Scott was messing up D’Amgelo Russell’s development & the focus on Kobe was not helping either but Next year would be Different! 

I was praying we would get Ben Simmons & the though tof landing Simmons & pairing him w/ Russell & Randle & the hope pf signing a Big free agent game me a Lot of hope. 

The Lottery came & I was crushed that we did not get the #1 pick but the #2 wasn’t bad b/c many people felt Ingram was just as good a prospect. We did not sign or trade for any Big time players but hiring Luke Walton had Laker Nation bursting with excitement.

Now we’re heading into spring of 2017 & I finding it difficult to deny that we are in trouble. With Byron Scott & Kobe gone, Russell’s game has actually regressed. He’s actually playing less & turning the ball over more. Coach Walton appears to have lost confidence in D’Lo. Randle put up good numbers on a semi-consistent basis but his #’s are often hollow.

 And Ingram – the #2 pick – has really really struggled. I’m still hoping that he can grow into something special but it’s getting harder & harder to convince myself of this b/c I just don’t ever see "Flashes" of greatness. Ingram seems like a Great kid & I am really worried that his Confidence has been Destroyed. I think as the team improves that Ingram will be "OK" but I don’t see him as more than a solid pro. The Durant comparisons now seem ridiculous.

The Draft is rapidly approaching & I am debating wether losing the pick this year might be better than losing it in 2018 might actually be Better for us long term. Right now the only bona-fide potential "Super Star" prospects I see on the horizon are Markelle Fultz (2017), DeAndre Ayton (2018) & Michael Porter (2018)….. I’m praying that cleaning house & installing Magic will set the Lakers on the right course long term.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[D7H7NParticipant]

On the bright side, Randle not being particularly amazing is going to let the Lakers re-sign him on a decent contract unless he wants to test free agency and let the Nets offer him a max.

[Magic JordanParticipant]

Some of the D-Russ hate is justified. He floats at times, he makes lazy passes. He’s not a perfect 21 year old player, as nobody is. I see a lot of the hate on this site for him comes from either 76er fans, who let’s be honest… are still sour that he’s not on their team. Instead of having Russell, who would fit perfectly on that team, they were stuck with Okafor… who is terrible. So for all of their sucking the past few years, they have the next Greg Oden in Embiid. Ben Simmons who hasn’t played a game yet, Okafor who is a backup player at best, and Saric who is a nice quality player. Of course they would be sour.

The next bunch of hate comes from the fact that he plays for the Lakers, and the whole snapchat incident. People are still holding a grudge about that.

Here is why perception matters. The below numbers are per 36.

Player A –
G GS MP FG FGA FG% 3P 3PA 3P% 2P 2PA 2P% FT FTA FT% ORB DRB TRB AST STL BLK TOV PF PTS AST% USG% WS/48 VORP
51 50 1403 7.1 17.8 .402 2.7 7.8 .353 4.4 10.0 .440 2.7 3.6 .763 0.7 4.0 4.8 6.3 1.8 0.4 3.5 2.6 19.7 28.4 27.0 0.35 0.6

Player B –
G GS MP FG FGA FG% 3P 3PA 3P% 2P 2PA 2P% FT FTA FT% ORB DRB TRB AST STL BLK TOV PF PTS AST% USG% WS/48 VORP
66 66 2285 7.8 18.2 .431 1.9 5.2 .372 5.9 13.0 .454 4.4 5.3 .824 0.6 2.6 3.2 3.3 0.9 0.3 3.1 3.2 22.0 15.3 27.7 0.36 -0.4

Player B is widely considered an untouchable prospect. Destined for greatness and is always the twinkle in peoples eyes when talking about young guards.
Player A is criticized for basically everything he does.

Does Player B look significantly better than Player A? Very similar useage. Very similar WS per 48 (Chose this due to the more games played by Player B). Player A actually has a positive VORP. Higher AST% while only slightly height TOV rate. More steals, more blocks, more rebounding. Slightly worse in scoring and shooting categories.

Player A is also a better defender by most metrics. (Player B DBPM = -2.8, Player A DBPM = -1.4).

So for all of this talk about how bad D’Angelo Russell sucks, you can see that it’s not rooted in on court production, or almost anything basketball related. It’s rooted in what I mentioned above. Sour 76er fans, and bro code fans.

The comparison of D’Angelo Russell to Devin Booker (player B) isn’t as far off as general discussion would have you believe. This is a perception point being made by SlickBouncePass and is not rooted in on court production, or really reality for that matter.

I’m not going to get into the comments made about him being a diva, or chasing the hollywood lights. Frankly because there is nothing to backup those claims (Did I miss him starring in a movie or something?). It is troubling that he has seemingly rubbed 2 coaches the wrong way, and if that is the discussion to be had then we can talk about that because it is troubling.

But this whole notion of him being a bust is just complete and utter bull shit.

PS. Sorry if the stats aren’t aligned, they were in my text editor and I just don’t want to fix them now.

[SlickBouncePassParticipant]

Not looking at the stats but it comes down to a simple eye-test, does he lift his team’s game and make everyone around him better.

I’d argue that Booker and that bad Suns team is also still trying to figure out their roles, especially on that guard-Heavy Suns squad.

I don’t think either of them are stars really, you just see some smooth old man game and competitiveness in Booker that you DONT see in Russell.

Russell falls asleep so often that it is concerning, why?  Because if you want your player to be "good to great", he can’t be fallign asleep on defense.  

He let’s people run past him, all the time.  He gets caught ball watching, but then let’s a cutter get past him all the time.  

 

Anyway, you know he lacks athleticism.  I’d want him on the 76ers ONLY for his shooting ability.  I thought he’d be a better creator, but he’s not.  He said "nobody can guard me"…well, thats false.  He isn’t athletic enough even to chase around screens.

Anyway, he’s asleep.  I said the same thing for Jah, if Jah was a projected "star" that happens to any Lakers player if they do something remotely good, I’d be worried because I know Jah isn’t a leader.

Russell would probably end up on the bench for the 76ers once they drafted a guard with some real athleticism in this draft, whoever that is.  I wouldn’t want him for his defense.

Russell = Jah.  Both guys are skilled offensively, but suck at everything else.  

Its just Russell plays for the Lakers so he’s a "star", but Jah plays on the laughing-stock Sixers.

Sorry, the Lakers are the laughing stock.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

[Magic JordanParticipant]

 I’d say both the lakers and the Sixers are laughing stocks.  Only one gets the benefit of the doubt because of 16 championships, and the other doesn’t really because of perennial losing or mediocrity.

"He isn’t athletic enough to chase around screens".  See what I said above about synergy statistics.  He ranks in the 68th percentile on PNR defense.  So whatever he isn’t able to do, he is able to do it pretty effectively.

That’s nice that your eyes tell you all you think you need to know.  Unfortunately your eyes seem to be a little wrong on Russell.  Probably because as I mentioned, you are still sour about him breaking bro code, or sour that he’s not on the 76ers instead of Jah…. most likely some combination of both.

 Also to the point of "Does he lift everyone around him, and make his teammates better".  Well the simple answer to that is yes.  His team loses by 4 points on average when he starts, and they lose by more than 15 when he doesn’t start.

Next….

 

 

[Author]

Posts