http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/awards?page=awards-090331 3. Travis Outlaw, Blazers: He plays solid defense, has crazy hops and attacks the basket hard. What's not to like? (Last week: 5) Exactly. What's not to like?
Has this guy watched Travis Outlaw? About the only part of that assessment which was true was his hops... Travis isn't a good defender and he rarely attacks the rim. He's most a jump shooter.
To be fair, Outlaw has been attacking the hoop to a fault, for my tastes. He puts his head down and just goes to the hoop without a plan. I'd rather him pull up for his J but if you've been watching, you've seen that he goes to the basket a lot. Count it next game.
his defense has improved over the course of the season, I'll give him that, and he is attacking the hoop more often. Still, for me his strengths are his hops and his three point shooting, no doubt about it.
Travis is definitely getting more consistent lately, and you can count on 10-14 points per game from him now. I really love the way he's playing, he's finding open spots on offense, and is actually attacking the rim a little bit more lately. He was a bumbled mess to begin the season when he tried driving, but he's a little more in control now.
Travis has been playing solid man defense (but he loses his man too much for my taste...more than anyone else on the team except maybe Roy haha) and his attacking the rim is absolutely true and absolutely been a blessing to see. outlaw has been a factor in games even when his jumper is off a bit, whereas usually he would be a negative.
