Dan T. Rosenbaum posted a +/- analysis by position for defense (found out from another thread ... (http://www.justbball.com/forums/showthread.php?t=41643) I thought it interesting that the Sonics show up a couple of times. Reggie Evans is ranked #9 in the league, making it all the more important to sign him. Rashard Lewis is ranked #39 (bottom ten), showing us we are correct in our assessment of his performance at that end of the floor. Though he has improved his individual defense as far as blocks, his steals and defensive rebounding went down in his All Star offensive turn last year after steady increases. The +/- analysis says the whole team plays worse defense when he is in the game. It is also worth noting that neither Ray nor Luke, both of whom have been pegged as poor individual defenders make the bottom 10 at their positions. Players that have been talked about as "better," like Michael Redd (#59, worst in the league at the SG position), Devin Brown (#50), Troy Hudson (#60, worst in the league at the PG position) and Leandro Barbosa (#55) do make the lists. My contention is that Luke is a rather good team defender, though he tends to get burned one on one. All in all, it may be a reflection of the extra efforts put in by the post players to deal with the guards defensive lapses.
I think in most cases, guards are generally only as good as the players they have behind them. Sure, you have some guys who are better than others, and certain defenders who can shut down an opponent solo (these are rare), but, as an example, is Chauncey Billups really a better defender by himself than Luke? I don't think so, but one has the two Wallaces behind him. It makes a world of difference, which is why I am not that keen on Pot starting with Nick and Danny backing him up.
