Prediction: Crawford 10-25 from the field. Would like to see Randolph and Morrow play most of the game, but I doubt they will. Belinelli needs to start playing under control.
Yep, Maggette on 4-9 shooting with 6 turnovers in only 28 minutes. Man that was ugly. Meanwhile Morrow scorches 17 points on 6-10 shooting, 3-3 from beyond the arc, in only 20 minutes. Oh yeah and he commits 0 (zero) turnovers.
I don't think Oop'll be happy until Morrow starts and plays the entire game. Nelly put out a ton of different lineups out there last night. Some looked great, some terrible. It's not only about players, it's about groups of players. Morrow was incredibly efficient in many of those lineups, he'll get more and more minutes as the year goes on. Be patient...
Morrow was amazing. But, I think the comparison to Maggette is a little unfair to both Morrow and Maggette. I don't really understand the comparison. It's not like Maggette is eating up Morrow's minutes and they both have totally different games. Morrow will never be the athletic freak Maggette is and Maggette will never be the shooter Morrow is. IMO, I think Maggette as a 6th man is great. I think we've gotten our money's worth and he'll be even more valuable (if he stays in this role) as the team gets better. On another topic, I'm glad Marco's scoring came around a bit yesterday, but I'm really disappointed in his off-ball defense. He seems to struggle getting through screens; he's constantly flailing around trying to chase his man. He needs to take a path of lesser resistance. He doesn't seem very fluid moving around on defense when his man does not have the ball. Anyone else notice this?
I make the comparison basically because they play the same position, and after seeing so much potential from Morrow, I was dumbfounded to then watch him get DNPs while Maggette was playing 35 minutes and shooting 30% from the field (for a while there). Yes, Maggette has looked much better off the bench. And his numbers have improved dramatically (although he still loves me some me). I'm not comparing them because they are similar players. I am comparing them for the coach's sake. Two players, at the same position, one makes $10 mils, the other makes pennies, and the bargain-bin player -- to me -- looks like he will be so much more valuable to the team in the long run. I don't want Morrow to play the whole game. But eventually, I would like him to start, you're right CohanHater. I'll tell right now, I don't mind hitching my wagon and living with the results. I said since the night Randolph was drafted that he will be a star. I voted him as the most improved player this year. I will stick by it: I think Anthony Randolph will be an all-star. He will make the all-star team at some point. Well, I will also stand by Morrow. From the night I watched him scorch 37, I knew I had just seen a very rare shooting stroke, akin to Ray Allen or Michael Redd. That good. As good a shooter as Ray Allen or Michael Redd. Not "showing signs of." Or "looking like." No, I mean he is that good, but probably he's better. As an overall player, of course, he needs a lot of development. But damn if I don't like the signs there, too. With the fire, the hustle, the attitude, plus the kid can rebound, he plays hard on defense, doesn't ever seem to take a play off. Of course he's not as good or complete as Allen or Redd. Maybe he can develop the other areas of his game over time, perhaps. But first and foremost, in terms of accuracy and release, he's probably one of the top three shooters in the league. Will Morrow be an all-star? Who knows. I'm not saying that. But I am saying that, at the SG/SF position, I'd rather see him get the minutes than Maggette. My core starters eventually? Monta Bellinelli Morrow Randolph Biedrins Unless we get a true PG. And some of that is interchangeable. But yes, if I am a coach or a GM, I am sitting there thinking "Okay, Anthony Morrow is more important to this franchise than Jamaal Crawford or Corey Maggette. Now, how do we honor this realization?"
Don't you think Morrow and Beli are kind of redundant? I like Beli starting becuase I think he brings half court playmaking ability but both of their roles are "spot up shooter". I'd much prefer Morrow and Crawford backing up the guards (no more than 15 minutes for Morrow) and Mags backing up Randolph at 3. Jackson is the guy I want to see go. He a good player but he's standing in the way of AR getting time at SF. I really like what Mags bring as a 6 man and Crawford, I think, can also excell in that role- instant offense off the bench.
Good points. I could see one of the two coming off the bench. My reason for that line-up, though, is because right now, of the players that get minutes, Bellinelli is the best pure PG on the team (and he's not even a PG). He has better ball-handling and floor vision than anyone else (I'm not including Marcus Williams). And he is light years ahead of everyone else when it comes to make crisp passes. I'll be damned if guys ike CJ Watson just simply cannot pass. How is that guy labeled at PG? I'm baffled by that. How the hell did he play 4 seasons at Tennessee??? Anyway, Belly could run a clinic on fundamental, crisp two handed passing. So, to me, that is Monta/Belly handling PG. I'd rather have a pure PG, but until we do, I'd rather have Belly handling the rock than anyone else. So that leaves me with SF, and I'd rather have Morrow than Jax/MagsCrawford because I'm crazy. If we got a pure PG, like Chauncy Billups, then I could see: Billups Monta Belly Randolph Beans But until then, I'd rather find a way to move Craxette and make $$ to sign Randolph/Belly/Morrow because I want those three guys on the team for the next 15 years, along with Monta/Beans. But your suggestion of moving Jax to make room for AR at the SF position makes good sense too. I would love that if Nellie would play him there. But the line-up I have, I don't see Morrow/Belly being both spot up shooters. I see Belly being the distributor/play maker, Monta being the slasher/alley-ooper, and Morrow being the sniper.
Okay, so who's going to take Maggette and/or Jackson so we can start playing our youth? I don't disagree with your high hopes, but I do not have faith in the Warrior front office to pull off a move that will help us continue the development of our young talent. I worry that we're going to lose Marco, Morrow, Wright, and even Randolph because we're not going to be able to afford them. That's my main concern. I'm sticking to the reality which is we're stuck with Maggette and Jackson for at least a couple more seasons.
Morrow and Magette may play the same position, but they don't fill the same role. I think Azu and Magette are a closer comparison. When the team settles for jump shots, Magette takes it strong to the hole at all costs, Azu does this too, but he can shoot. There's a level of toughness that teams need. That's why Mags plays more minutes. It has nothing to do with defense (obviously) or shooting percentage. He gets to the line and changes the flow of the game.
