Who said they don't like AJ? We're all of 20 minutes into the season, but I like what I see. Do I expect him to have his ups and downs? Yes. But from some of what I saw in preseason, and what I see here early, he could be a serviceable backup PG. If nothing else, in his first game in the NBA, he's shown he can run the team. Now, if he burns out after 20 games, oh well. But let's not bash the guy, when he's a rookie (drafted in Round 2) that hasn't even played a real NBA game until now. I like what I see, and everything I've read he works very hard at his game.
I like him better than Miller already. Dragic just drains a 3 because Miller had to switch on the pick and roll.
He works hard on D. Is he the best defender? No. But damn. He works hard. That isn't usually enough to get my attention, but in the NBA, where 99% of players take it easy on defense, I appreciate a guy that looks like he's busting tail on the D side. And what the hell, he looks like he knows how to run on the offensive end.
I like that it looked as if someone has taught him a defensive crouch at some point of his life. Most players don't seem to care to.
Hopefully he gets his spirit crushed soon, otherwise he's going to start getting a big head and get funny ideas about PT
to be fair, we haven't seen Armon attempt a shot outside of 10 feet, either. I've heard he's not exactly Pistol Pete incarnate.
I was thinking the same thing...I know Miller will warm up as the season goes along, but damn, AJ ran the second unit really welll
Touche', but then again, the Blazers didn't have to switch on the pick and roll when Johnson was in the game.
AJ won't be counted on as an offensive force. They need him to come in for a few minutes, make it tough on the opposing PG, and run a basic offense. From what I've seen of him, he can do that. JB couldn't do either, though he could come down and play 1-on-5 like no other.
This is true. And it is also true that teams will adjust to him once they see him a few teams. But what I have seen from him he is a better outside shooter than Rondo. (And no I am not comparing his over skill set to Rondo......yet) But he appears to have decent form with his outside shot. So he can improve. All he needs is to be able to hit a wide open 20 footer to keep defenses honest. Because he can attack the basket.
Very happy with AJ. Sure, he missed a few open lanes and made some mistakes on D, and we still don't know about his outside shooting, but he was poised and ran the offense well. For a second round pick, as a rookie, I don't think I could realistically ask for anything more. I have no idea if he will become the PGoTF on this board, but for this point in time, I am pleased. Way to go AJ, you beat the odds, made it to the NBA and played like you belonged.
from the game comments over at "Bright side of the sun: http://www.brightsideofthesun.com/2010/10/26/1776843/game-thread-overflow-2-suns-at-blazers#comments Funny.
