Stick a fork in him. I know we've had this discussion before, but after tonight it seems painfully obvious. He is a shell of his former self. He can't beat his man off the dribble, can't get to the hoop, and can't play defense. Tonight, in a game we desperately needed to win, he couldn't hit a single field goal in the second half. In crunch time, when he used to shine, all he could do was pass the ball and hope that someone else would make the big play. It's gotten to the point that I can barely watch this. If this is the Brandon Roy we get after he sits out a week to rest his knees, then we've got nothing at all. He's now basically a decoy. The NBA history of Brandon Roy has been written, it would seem. He had 4 brilliant years and then he fell off the cliff. If you didn't seem him play in those four years, you'll never see him again the way he was. I saw him play and I'm glad I did. He was sensational, a joy to watch. A money player with the game on the line. Today he is just an average or under-average player, and that's a real tragedy.
Thank you for not crowing about being right. I agree with you for the most part; He's basically Sabonis now... one of the best in the game from the waist up, hampered by a lack of legs. In a pantheon of unique and flawed players who flamed out with us, Roy is probably #2 on the list. It's a melancholy list, sure, but one that will make you smile a little too in the future when you look back on it. That said, i think that, as a bench player for 10-15 minutes a game, he can play out his contract, and might even be a pleasant surprise.
Kyrie Irving, Kemba Walker, Harrison Barnes, Terrence Jones, Perry Jones, Enes Kanter, Donatas Motiejunas ... any number of players in the upcoming draft might be able to help us.
But, remember that the lockout might keep these guys in school another year (unless these kids are preps this year)... though I think we might be plenty bad for more than one year...
He needs to sit for at least a couple weeks. If that doesn't help his game, he needs to consider microfracture in both knees.
I've thought the same thing too, but at least according to a couple of draft experts (like Chad Ford and Jonathan Givony) the potential of a partially lost season because of a lockout probably won't keep most guys away, unless they really love college; they seem to think that agents will likely cover their expenses in the short term and that by waiting another year they could put themselves in a more crowded draft class, which means fewer of them get drafted overall or drafted as highly as they might this year. I guess we'll see.
This has already been gone over before, it wouldn't help him; Brandon has no meniscii, MF is for regenerating articular cartilage.
He'll adapt. He's a smart player and he'll figure it out. He's still a high level player. [/Larry Miller]
Barnes won't be the #1 pick. After his performance at UNC so far this year, he'd be better off staying in school. Terrence Jones is the #1 pick right now, maybe even Irving or Kemba Walker.
What I wonder is: in retrospect, can the Matthews signing be viewed as proof that management knew this was coming? At the time, I thought it was Rudy insurance in case he totally flaked. But I wonder if they didn't know that they needed to find a new starting 2 pronto. I thought we overpaid by quite a bit for Matthews, but it makes a lot more sense now...
Is Roy--with no cartilage--any less athletic than Miller? IMO, no. He's younger, bigger, faster, a better shooter...but less effective. Why? Maybe Miller is exactly the player we need here right now; not to mentor a young point guard, but to show Roy how to be effective as a ground-based player.
...interesting take, I can see how he might be able to add some insight. However, Miller can still drive to the hoop and draw fouls while Roy can barely get out of first gear. Maybe Miller can pass the torch of the NBA's Iron Man to Roy...that way Roy will start every single game until 2020 and be able to play at a high level.