Hey, wasn't there a guy who kept getting flamed for posting on BBF over and over the last several years about Sergio being something really special and if Nate started to give him some real minutes it would become obvious to all? I forget his name but that's one smart poster, IMO.
Until this year Sergio had shown no real commitment to playing defense and the mechanics of his shot were utterly broken last season. In the offseason he worked on correcting the latter and is improved in the former. He's getting his shot and making the most of it, but it has as much to do (or more) with earning the minutes by correcting deficiencies as being given the minutes.
I have been impressed by Sergio's on the ball defense lately. He has greatly improved in that area. This combined with the lack of ugly turnovers has been the key to his getting more minutes. Now if he could develop a floater or some other finishing skills he will be great.
I have been giving Sergio some cred - he is trying to stay in front of his man and his shot is 3000000% better than last year - but let's not get crazy about him having a better night than Blake. Blake was going most of the time against Rose and doing a darn good job of it - and Hunter is a shell of his former self - he is slow and looks as if he should have been retired from the league already.
I actually love the idea of Sergio coming off the bench for the same reason I love Rudy not starting. Both bring energy at a time when the games enters a lull. It's like splashing cold water on the team. I don't care about starting the best five players; I care about starting the players that fit well with each other. Sergio and Rudy fit together like beer goggles and regret--there's no reason to separate them.
If Sergio could can big threes like Blake can, then hey, he's our PG. Right now, he's on my "trade carefully" list.
I don't see how Sergio can work out for us long term. Who are the best guards on this team? Roy first. Rudy second. Unless we trade one of those guys, they both will get a ton of playing time, often on the floor together. Sergio is playing better, I grant him that. But, our perimeter defense is terrible. Broken. Has to be fixed. Roy and Rudy will hopefully improve. Roy and Rudy will not ever improve enough to become "stoppers", nor will they improve enough to hide a defensive liability like Sergio. Blake isn't the answer either. Bayless is an unknown, but is a possibility, as he has the potential to be an excellent defender of the pg position. So, either Bayless is the future at the point, or we need somebody else entirely.
Any player is going to have deficiencies in their game. Sergio's was defense and scoring. He's really improving both. I'm not ready to write him off yet. He's now hit 8 of 23 3-pointers. Not stellar, but also a bit above average. He reads the passing lanes well and his contant movement is at least pestering. Having Sergio on the court is just not as bad defensively IMO as some are making it out. His constant movement on the offensive end is pretty valuable as it tires out the opposing point guard. It was fun watching Rose follow Sergio around. And we already know that his assist/turnovers is among tops in the league. Sergio is young and only going to improve. He worked hard this summer and look what he's done! I'm all for upgrading, but only at the right price (cough Kirk Hinrich cough). Otherwise, I'd really like to see Blake remain the starter but get less minutes and Sergio's role increased.
By the way, it was awesome how Sergio kept trying to get the ball to Bayless in the last 7 minutes of the 4th quarter. After some disappointing drives and possessions by Bayless, Sergio went up to him, patted him on the butt to console him. Sergio was making sure that Bayless wasn't getting down on himself. So add leadership to Sergio growing list of improvements too!
If Sergio can hit the outside shot consistently like he did, he could develop into a starter. But right now, I love how much Sergio, Travis, Rudy and Greg turn it up a notch in the second unit. It's like a big wave of holy crap, we're deep.
