I assume you mean guys like Okafor have given Plumlee and Davis fits all year. Because obviously we have only seen him once so far. I did not watch the second half, but in the first half he killed them from the outside. They seemed unprepared to cover him out there. And he came out on fire. But I do agree that our D against bigs has been a bigger issue this year than the more talked about lack of D by our "small" guards.
I didn't get to see the part early in the game when Vonleh played, but two things about this: 1. Outstanding defensive potential and outstanding defense are different things. I think the first is showing flashes and progress. The second is consistently making guys work hard for position and shots and/or making steals or blocking shots. Vonleh qualifies for the first, which is what he needs to do now. But he still needs to get stronger ... this isn't the summer league. I can kind of see what the coaches are doing with him, play him early against No. 1 players and ask him to just concentrate on defense, then work on the offense. This is what was done with Allen Crabbe and I think it worked pretty well. 2. I can't say for sure, but I doubt Vonleh would have guarded Okafor. He's be giving up like 30 pounds.
Yes, I meant guys like Okafor. Our guard D, I think, actually has been pretty good. It was rough for the first couple of weeks, but I think Dame and CJ have turned into passable defenders at worst despite being small.
I'd argue that Vonleh is worlds stronger than Plumlee. Any time we're playing a team with a legitimate low post threat, I would want to see Vonleh given that defensive assignment.
Okafor's highlights from the Blazer game. It's splitting hairs, but almost everything he scored was 14 feet and in. A lot of it was face-up, though. Looks like he was being guarded by Plumlee, Davis, Leonard and Harkless. Maybe the game plan was to live with him shooting mid-range jumpers because he'd really be a bigger problem down low. He seemed to score wherever he got it, though.
I am not that comfortable with Vonleh yet. Plumlee is a much more savvy defender, and I bet he has at least an inch in height and 15-20 pounds on Vonleh. I don't think either is particularly strong physically at this point, but I think if they went against each other, it would be pretty close -- Plumlee's an undersized 5 who looks small every game because he's guarding bigger guys. Vonleh's an averaged-sized 4 guarding other 4s.
I'm not saying that Vonleh would be shutting people down, but if he's got all this "potential", how else is he going to develop it without being put up against the biggest post threats. I want Plums to be put in positions to develop his help defense and rim protection, and I want Vonleh in positions to develop his man defense against low-post studs. I don't care whether or not they'd necessarily be successful this season, only about their increased success in future seasons.
I don't necessarily disagree with you. I think it's just a matter of philosophy, and the coaching staff feels better going about it this way for whatever reason. I think they have Vonleh working his way up instead of throwing him completely to the wolves as a 4 guarding good, proven 5s, but that's just speculation on my part.
Probably, although I would dispute the notion that on the Sixers, Okafor is the 5 and Noel is the 4. Either way, I'd have matched them up differently, and that's not just hindsight talking. But then again, I'm just a fan, and Stotts is an NBA head coach, so his basketball acumen likely surpasses mine ten times over.
I almost love seeing these Okafor highlights, knowing he could have been a Laker.....and is not. This kid has some skills.
If you're talking about post defense- I could go off and list a dozen games this season where Plumlee has been absolutely destroyed by his competition. Plumlee is not starting center- and asking him to play on starting centers on a nightly basis will end up with him being put in the basket numerous times. Ed Davis isn't a bad post/interior defender, but he's not called on to do it very often either. He's a decent weak side shot blocker- other than Aminu, probably the best on the roster right now. If you're saying that those 2 combine for satisfactory interior defense on a nightly you're setting the bar really low.
Vonleh isn't a starting PF either, but we keep on persisting. I'd love to have a top 5 post player here, but unfortunately our last one left and the queue to replace him (and recruit others over the years) has been rather thin. Of course it could be better, but what exactly are our other options here? All things considered it's ok and the best of what we have. I mean we could be starting Meyers & Vonleh right?
If we're talking post defense and rim protection- the best combination on the floor involves Davis/Leonard. Personally I'd be totally fine swapping the 2 and having Meyers come out first only to have him come back 1st with the 2nd unit early on. I'm not saying that we need that ability right now- that's ridiculous. But asking Plumlee to do something he has consistently shown he can't do is almost the definition of insanity. I get the whole learning process, but to me- there's more value in having Meyers learn than having Mason learn. Who has a realistic possibility at growth? Who has the potential? Who has the size? It all points to Meyers- as do the numbers.
You haven't been reading my posts lately have you? lol Might want to dig into the numbers a bit more before you hop on the Plumlee train.
I'm mildly on the Plum train, heavily on the Davis train and nowhere near the cluster-fuck of the Meyers train. stats be damned if they point to Meyers being better, dude is a fuckin mess. how are you looking at meyers stats that make him look so amazing? looking at hollinger's numbers davis @ 9, plum @ 17 in WC C's http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/hollinger/statistics/_/position/c/league/west vonleh @ 29 meyers @ 25 in WC PF's http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/hollinger/statistics/_/position/pf/league/west i think you've stated you're self -confessed meyers fan right? possibly ur using cluelessness % on Defence and ability to miss rebounds as a driving factor in the appraisal? i can see him streaking ahead if thats the case why vonleh starts and davis doesnt, ill never know
I think given the new roster, system and young season for this group some patience is required, off season, look at the stats...for now it's almost an extended training camp year without expectations so expecting Plumlee's stats to be consistent seems premature. Yeah, he's not going to beat dominant centers night in and night out but paired with a Meyers Leonard, they could develop the missing rim protection and help defense. I'm all for getting an upgrade for Meyers but Plumlee seems like a good rotation player
I think we could possibly get Greg Monroe pretty cheap - the key is do we want him? He left Detroit and they got better, he came to the Bucks ad they got worse - is it bad fits or is his play detrimental to a team's success?
Monroe is playing well; he is averaging almost a double double with a PER of 22.56. It appears he is not a good fit with the Bucks. According to Bucks fans, they would let Monroe go cheap. One Bucks fan said he would trade Monroe for Meyers straight up. Didn’t Paul Allen, Olshey and Stotts meet with Monroe in Washington DC last summer trying to get him to sign with the Blazers?
