I stand corrected, I should have taken the time to look his numbers up ... I think I relied too much on my recollection of his last month and a half of the season and his brilliant playoff run. In any case I think Billups gave that team a point guard they've been lacking since Miller was traded for AI, but saying that Billups made Carmelo better where Miller couldn't just seems flimsy to me; Carmelo was pretty damn young when Miller was with Denver and I think his Olympics experience and maturation as a player have far more to do with his improvement than which point guard he's played with. What I do believe is that Miller made Philly a better team, especially last year after Mo Cheeks got fired and he pretty much ran the team as he saw fit, and I'd argue from the reaction that Iguodala had on his twitter page, he thinks Miller made them a better team too.
Well, I'm certainly not bashing him, I just think Andre Miller is a superior point guard and will play a more significant role than Steve will and will do a better job of taking pressure off of Brandon and do a better job of getting LaMarcus and Oden easier baskets. If anything I think the Miller acquisition will be healthier for Steve -- who's a little slightly built -- to play less minutes over the course of the year.
In terms of being a PG, I'll agree that Miller is a better PG than Blake. In terms of playing in this offense, and with these players, I'm not convinced that Miller is a better fit, though I am looking forward to seeing how he fits. Having either of those two at the back-up PG spot is an instant upgrade over the garbage the Blazers had there last season. I just don't see Miller as a huge upgrade, but perhaps the aggregate of having both is a major improvement.
I think I do okay being both serious and light-hearted. Your feedback is noted and tabulated, though. One can't get all positive reviews. In this business, you can't let one critic get you down.
Of course we're all just throwing out speculation at this point, but knowing how well Miller played alongside another facilitator and high usage, ball handling wing in Andre Iguodala I'm guessing he'll find a way to make it work with the similar, more versatile and better shooting wing Brandon. In terms of him being a huge upgrade I'm not sure if this comparison is completely useful without context, but if we're talking about how these two are going to stack up against each other in training camp my gut tells me the past might be a decent indicator of the future http://www.basketball-reference.com/fc/h2h_finder.cgi?request=1&p1=blakest01&p2=millean02
Nah. I'm just a hobbyist barfo. No one brings the barfo like you. But I appreciate your graceful sentiments.
You're not a thorn in my side, but absolutely on the hugs, big guy. I'm glad you post here, and I mean that sincerely.
