Went to the game, and it was fun as hell. Monta and K-Mart were beasting. Randolph with 17 and 10 in 19 minutes, why did Nelson barely play him in the second half?
He had 5 fouls by the 3rd quarter. I thought he'd be put in towards the end of the 4th or at least in OT. Barnett was saying the reason he didn't get in was the game was "too fast" for Randolph to be able to contribute. It was one of the more confusing comments Barnett has made since we all know Randolph doesn't have an issue with speed. Perhaps he meant it would be frantic for Randolph to get into a groove. Still, an odd choice to leave him out given we only had 8 healthy bodies and everybody in foul trouble.
A very odd choice. That's one of those Barnett-moments that don't make sense. Too fast? Randolph is the most active player on the team. Probably the most active player on the court for either team. Probably one of the more active players in the western conference. Always going for tips, for loose balls, running the floor on both ends, reaching for blocks, diving to the floor for scrambles, trying to take charges, trying to defend like a guard by moving his feet... Randolph seems to be "on" from the moment he steps on the floor. I'm not sure what this league is thinking right now, but they might be shocked in a year or two when Randolph becomes a super-star and starts dominating teams every night, which is going to happen and is only a matter of time... Oh... and P.S. Morrow is going to shock the league too, it's only a matter of time before you hear ESPN or TNT guys trying to make Morrow (or Randolph too) their pet new favorite players. I love when Doug Collins tries to talk about up and coming players like he is a mastermind scout discovering some hidden talent... Him and Reggie Miller tried to do it with Monta, but it was too late because we already knew the truth... What some fans on this board are starting to discover is that Morrow is a "pretty" good player... What I'm saying is that he is going to be a star player as well. These are going to be the 4 best players on the team, in this order: Randolph (super star) Monta (star) Beans (star) Morrow (star) It's only a matter of time until the Warriors are on TNT and you hear Reggie Miller say "look out, folks, nobody knows about this kid yet but watch out for Anthony Morrow, this kid is lights out..." Morrow is probably a better pure shooter than Reggie Miller.
That's a bold statement IMO. Morrow has been fantastic lately. Obviously shooting the ball hes been great but hes also shown significantly improved penetration ability. It doesn't always result in a layup but its huge for his development. His jumpshot is such a threat that defenders will close out hard on him, now that he can drive a bit he can take advantage of those hard close-outs and really blow by defenders. Once hes made his move toward the rim hes also a major threat to just pull up and hit the mid-range J but hes also shown a decent floater from about 8 feet. He'll never be a Ray Allen IMO because hes not that athlete that Allen is. Not that Allen is a freak of nature, but hes quite quick for a SG and he could get to the rim and finish fairly well. Morrow's improving in that regard but I don't think he'll ever be that good due to lack of footspeed. Hes proving to be a real scoring threat off the bench though, his shooting perentages have been nuts lately, hes being more aggressive as a scorer, and I think his teammates are letting him get more touches.
Yes, very true, he'll never be the athlete that Ray Allen was in his prime. And you're right, I did make some Ray Allen comparisons when Morrow dropped 37 points in his first start. And since then I've said he'll be as good a shooter as Ray Allen if not better. Well, I was a little off in the comparison. The reason why I made it at the time -- and still stick to it in general -- is because the league hasn't seen a stroke like this in quite a while. This is a Ray Allen stroke. Lightning quick. And smooth as butter. Morrow can get his shot off anytime he wants. The cool thing is, he still doesn't force it. He'll swing it to Crawford if he doesn't like the spacing... then get it back again and swish it in the defender's face. This kid is much more savvy than he's getting credit for. I think it's because of his contagious youthful exuberance.... That's a good thing, I hope he stays that way forever... but basketball wise, he's much more mature in some regards than I think we've seen yet... He knows when he's hot, yet does he ever complain? Does he force it or make mistakes? Very, very rarely...And then Maggette finally gives him one chance, and he's still ready to seize it and bury any shot he wants... But about Ray Allen... The strokes are about as close as I can think of to compare, but overall games... well, they're very different... I don't know who's noticed this yet, but Morrow likes to bang... He's a great rebounder for his position -- a positional rebounder, who boxes out, puts bodies on people, and fights for position and loose balls -- he does the dirty work, and seems to enjoy it. Then leaks out on the fast break and waits patiently to get his tiny sniff of the basketball if Maggette so chooses to share... Morrow is different than Allen because Allen is a true SG and Morrow is in some ways more of a SF with the rebounding and interior work. But he also has some nifty moves and a good nose around the basket. He's more of a two-footed power leaper, as well, where Allen is a one-footed finesse leaper. Morrow likes to grab rebounds, pump fake, pump fake, and then explode of two feet and power-finish off the glass. Allen likes to slice through the lane and finish finger-rolls and dunks off one foot. But Morrow has a little bit -- just enough -- of and-1 creativity in his game too. We haven't seen a lot of that, yet, but trust me, we will. He's got nifty handles in the lane and can pass, too. Apparently, he throws down vicious dunks in practice. I'm not a great player (okay) but I have a sense for the players who have "it," and this kid has it, IMO. Of course, this is just my opinion, and it's a very bold statement, I guess, because I could be wrong, but I will totally hitch my credibility (whatever little I have in this forum) to Morrow's wagon. He will break out. He probably won't be a superstar like Randolph will be, but he will break out (he already has in my mind, a summer league invite who is now the best three point shooter in the NBA? Pretty impressive)
Morrow has great finesse, plus never underestimate the power of a 4 year college athlete. Often they know more than the guys who bolted before the college coaches could teach them anything. I think Morrow is basically like Michael Redd, another guy who could have gone undrafted or waived. I think at one point Redd used to be known for defense and the ability to handle the ball and do some point duties, but he's just a pure scorer who doesn't pass and saves all his energy for offense. Morrow has a different shooting mechanic than Redd, but it's just as quick and explosive. Even if Morrow seems a bit one dimensional, you gotta love an nba player that can shoot. We couldn't even shoot or pass or play defense in the olympics that year we won bronze. It took them 4 years to figure out that chemistry and the ability to shoot, be unselfish and play D matters.
I think Morrow is awesome but making comparisons to Michael Redd or Ray Allen is a bit too much at this stage. But, I would go as far as saying he's got one of the best shots I have ever seen, period. And when I say that, I think it's better than Michael Redd or Ray Allen. Those two just have so much more in their arsenal.
Agree hes just too slow footed to be like either of them. He might have smaller Peja Stojakovic potential. More likely though I see him as a Kyle Korver type player. Good reserve who can really explode off the bench, mostly a shooter but can do some other things.
Funny thing about Morrow is he's a sweet shooter who rebounds. Those are few and far between. Usually, if you're a good spot up shooter (QRich, Raja Bell, Korver) they end up standing outside both on offense and defense. Morrow is either wiry strong or sneaky smart.
Mike Miller maybe? Qrich was always a pretty good rebounder when he started. But I know what you mean. Shooters and anyone in the backcourt have a tendency to run back on D or leak out on O, rather than rebound. Trying to think of other great shooters who also rebound... it must be easier than consistent, spot shooters who also play all-around defense... Players considered all-around "shooters" (free throws, fade-aways, spot shooters, from the elbow, baseline, deep, shooting off the dribble/curl/pick n' pop) who can rebound well for their size/position and are fairly consistent: Mike Miller (when more aggressive he gets stats) Danny Granger (?, is he considered a shooter or more of a scorer?) Dirk Nowitzki (one of the best shooters in the league who rebounds like a center and dribbles like a shooting guard) Peja Stojakavic (for a while, and when he proved he could create his own shot) Donyell Marshall (back in the day) Kobe Bryant Kevin Durant (plays a bit like Nowitzki in some ways) Andres Noccioni (? considered a shooter?) Tayshaun Prince (? considered a shooter?) I apologize if I missed any, but of that list, it seems to me only a few also play good all-around defense or any defense at all right now in addition to offense/defense rebounding. Danny Granger, Kobe Bryant, Tayshaun Prince, and maybe Andres Noccioni. The rest are guys who are known more for scoring than shooting and have limited shot range, range of outside moves, or consistency (guys like Paul Pierce, Lebron James, Brandon Roy, Shawn Marion and such).
Sorry to ramble, but I thought in the short time Morrow has gotten to play, he showed he's got more moves than most rookies ( I think it's his 4 years of college trying to get ready when one has been deemed to have not as much upside as the guys who got drafted in the 2nd round. He had to position himself as somebody who can play now and does other things too just to get minutes and make an nba team )
Agreed. He may not be great or even good at other things outside of shooting, but at least he tries and tries hard. What I love about the team is that we have a lot of players who have worked really hard on their game. From Kurz, Morrow, Azubuike, Watson, Belinelli, Randolph, and Wright. All the kids I'm sure have put in a lot of work. The latter two have unfortunately been hit by injuries, but before that, they were making strides.
