I was intrigued when Nate put Nicolas on Parker during one critical juncture of last night's game......then proceeded to nearly jump out of my seat when Batum forced Tony into a relatively bad shot for a miss. I'm going, "Huh?! No way, man." Batum's the real deal, guys. His skills/play may just end up revolutionizing the way Nate strategically coaches and substitutes. I love it.
Lets cut Nate some slack here, and this coming from a guy who has at times complained a ggod bit about how he plays or does not plat certain guys. Nate has a bunch of new, young and talented guys to integrate and it takes time to figure out what they can do and how they best mesh together. I mean come on, Rudy-Batum-Oden-Bayless all at once and on an already young club. Five preseason games ain't even close to enough, it should and will take 1/4 to 1/3 of the season to REALLY figure things out a lot more, plus we have injuries to deal with. Batum has shown he will become very important as times goes on, lets show some patience.
Antonio Harvey had an interesting comment about that decision. Basically he said Nate made the right decision at the wrong time -- that the decision should have been made at least a few days earlier. He also said that had Batum been thrown out there to get annihilated by the Lakers it could have set him back quite a bit psychologically, stunting his development and there's a very good chance you could sort of "lose him" for awhile. I'm not sure I totally agree with the premise, but it did give me something to think about.
An earlier announcement would have made a big difference. Still, I've seen no indication these past couple weeks that Batum is mentally fragile. He strikes me as the feisty little brother that keeps getting back up every time you knock him down. Seriously, if he's not scared to attack both Duncan and Parker in his first real game time of his NBA career, why would he have been a worry one game earlier?
Kobe is a back breaker, he forced Nate into making a change simply because Nate was scared. Thats what I think happend... Or Nate realized that Travis has been with the team longer and it would be unfair to him to have a Rookie who hadn't proven a single thing in a regular season game to start over him simply to not ruin chemistry, either way Nate dropped that ball that first game... from here on out we are only improving
The LA loss was pretty much a team "achievement" so I agree, Nate doesn't own that outcome all by himself. The team was performing like a herd of deer in headlights, but the biggest problem I had w/Nate's late line-up decision (again, as far as we know based on media reports) is that it may have blind-sided the units and made their week long prep w/Nic in the starting unit a waste in terms of that one game. Maybe more communication btwn Nate and the players went on behind closed doors. Clearly pulling Batum from the starting 5 vs. LA did not have any lasting negative impact since he played great last night! Can't wait to see more of him. I agree with what many have posted, especially after last nights game. Let's just forget that first game was ever played! Bring on Shaq vs. Joel Part ?? tonight! Hopefully Joel gets some payback from last year's abuse.
It's really an indictment on Steve Blake as a PG. Steve actually does a decent job against 2-guards, but he can't handle small quick PGs. If we make a trade, it'll be for a starting PG, unless..... Batum for starting PG !?!? This is supposed to be funny, I don't think Batum should start at PG. However, I do agree with the "Shades of Scotty Pippen" I read somewhere. In fact, if he learns to shoot, he could make Webster and Outlaw obsolete.
He's already a better shooter than I thought he would be; which might not be saying much. However, I did like his style of play and the way that he doesn't seem to force things and works within the flow of the game. I love his defensive presence and I could definitely see him in a Tayshaun Prince sort of role. Pippen might be a little much.
Phoenix fans are expecting a big game out of Nash now that he doesn't have to play CP3 or Parker. Batum him!!
Batum does have some defensive similarities to Prince and Pippen. I doubt he'll ever have Pippen's all-court defensive game...I've never seen another player replicate Pippen's presence all over the court, on the defensive end. But, like Pippen and Prince, Batum could be the type of player who can defend 1-4 at need. He has the length, athleticism and instincts. A little more strength might help, but he probably wouldn't be benefited from changing his physique too much.
Scottie Pippen was and always will be my favorite player. Batum is NOW my second favorite. I love this kid. Last night was like Christmas Day. I'm still on a high!
I don't know man. He's 19. I can't recall where Pippen was at that stage. But they've got to be in the same realm. What they both share, besides length, is the ability to recognize both offensively and defensively where to be on the court to disrupt or assist in a play. Batum is showing those rare signs of becoming a game changer. Roy/Batum could eventually be our best version of Jordan/Pippen. If either of them ever become even 70 or 80% of what those legends were, we'll have an exciting and successful tandem!
Quite possibly. Batum may even be ahead of 19 year old Pippen. The thing is, Pippen developed an incredibly rare defensive ability that, as far as I can tell, no other perimeter player had: the ability to disrupt opposing offenses, not just one opposing player (the only other players I've seen do that are elite defensive big men). No matter how they compare at age 19, you can't project that kind of thing. The odds are just massively against it. Pippen couldn't have been expected to develop like that...but he did, and that's in the books. I don't think it helps us forecast Batum. But I am very excited about about Batum. His impressive play at age 19, combined with his clear basketball IQ and work ethic (both key aspects of Pippen, it should be noted ), makes his ceiling pretty damn high. 19 year olds shouldn't be able to compete in the NBA...when they can, it suggests special talent.
Was that block on Duncan sick, or what? Heh, what other player right now has the ability to successfully guard/block the opposing team's best Center and PG?
I can't get over that block. It's sort of that signature type of moment, like Pippen dunking on Ewing, knocking Ewing to the floor. Everything Pritchard does seems to turn to gold.
I hadn't thought of that aspect. There just aren't many, if any, current players that have the strength, length, IQ, and speed, to guard any position. Artest doesn't have the length. Prince doesn't have the strength, does he?
True. I also believe Pippen became special due to the players and coaches he was surrounded with. It's exciting to consider what can rub off on Batum. How much of an impact can Nate, Monty and Dean have on him. Will Brandon's leadership qualities (mainly his poise), Rudy's never-give-up effort, Steve's intensity, and Greg's defensive prowess propel him just as far? Secondly, and I know this is going to piss of a many Blazer fans, but how dangerously good could the Blazers become with Phil Jackson as coach or Kobe Bryant on the team? What could they do for Batum? Fun to think about.
