http://espn.go.com/blog/truehoop/post/_/id/24975/24975 Lots to love in this blog post. One, stating that the Bulls are the league's top ranked defense. Two, giving some love to Taj. Three, just reading Taj's quotes, its remarkable how coached up Thibs has these guys. He really is doing a good job here in Chicago. He's the perfect balance of hard nosed attitude and NBA savvy, getting the most out of his guys without losing them.
Now if only he could shoot a jumper like Garnett. Taj's much ballyhooed offense at the start of the season for a few games was an aberration. His jumper has Bieber like side spin and his release looks like he's winding up an antique grandfather clock. He's a good 4th big to have on the team though
I like K4E's point. The team is REALLY well organized. They know their roles. They're thinking about their roles. Thibs has done a great job. And its not all on Derrick.
Nice, K4E. Gibson's a great kid and a steal where he was picked. He's a defensive stud. With the Boozer signing, he plays a lot of his minutes with the 2nd team. He's forcing his offense there, something he didn't do last season as a starter. The result is more jump shots and a lower %. At this point, he's not a plus offensive player. Among Bulls' fans, there's clearly a split on Gibson. Of course the problem with a lot of fans is that they undervalue defensive contributions. Players, coaches and GMs don't. Despite his offensive limitations, Gibson's very valuable both as a player and as an "asset." When he hits RFA, he ain't going to be a cheap re-up. Until then, I'm very glad we have him.
I value Taj's defensive contributions ...but to be frank , I only see one guy on the Bulls roster who has the capacity to play the Dwight Howards and the Blake Griffins of this league hard and for these guys to know it His name is Omer Asik . I wouldn't deal Taj just for the sake of dealing him for a so / so 2 guard , but , there will come a time ( through next season is my tip ) where Omer Asik will be genuinely deserving of the majority of back up big man minutes behind Noah and Boozer , and where , the 4th big should be a hard assed interior defense vet in the AD/PJ/Big Sexy mould ...which would render Taj surplus But I've been calling this one for a long time
Let's be honest. There is no one on the Bulls who can guard (or even has the potential to guard) Dwight Howard or Blake Griffin. Bill Simmons released his annual league trade value column last week and it is as illuminating as ever. Simmons put Howard at two and Griffin at 5 (Lebron was 1, Durant 3 and Rose 4) and he's dead on the money, if you take a moment to get past your initial gut feeling. Howard is one of four guys in the league (it will be five next year with Griffin) who can instantly turn a bad lottery-bound team into a playoff team, the others being L.J., Rose, and Paul. Howard and Griffin are those generational big men who only come along every five or six years. As to Taj's offense, I'm not ready to write him off just yet, though I'm not going to argue with anyone who believes as you do. I think the reason I think his offense wasn't an aberration is that it made sense with his development ark. Gibson played well up until the moment he got that concussion (was it in Toronto?) and Boozer returned. He has struggled coming off the bench until this past month, which makes some sense. Gibson has never in his entire basketball life come off the bench and I wouldn't be surprised if it takes him an adjustment period. I like the smoothness of his jumper and am not willing to give up on it just yet. It's nice to see him getting press. These are the types of stories that only get written about bench players on good teams. As far as defense in all-star games, it wasn't only Taj. I had a laughing fit when I saw D. Rose try to ice Chris Paul along the baseline and Dwight Howard was just like "what?" and didn't show hard and trap. Old habits . . .
I've had a thingy for Taj for sometime....and I still do. FJ's sentiments be damned. I didn't see anything out of Taj's offensive contributions as a starter which couldn't be replicated again in similar circumstances. (I do recognize that the team is better with him coming off the bench, so I'm not saying I want to go back to that). I like Taj not because he's some awesome player, or that he can't afford to be traded, but because he's the ultimate role player, and I just like to root for those types. Quietly effective, and a man for all occasions. To Taj!!!!
Gibson is a "middling" sort of NBA player so there are certainly weaknesses in his game. While he can defend some centers, it's a mismatch against the few really big-really good ones. By the same token, Asik can defend some PFs, but you don't want him going up against the smaller-quicker ones. Right now, the two of them give (plus Thomas) the Bulls some exceptional front court depth which can be very important come playoff time.
I see the same thing that SST does. As a starter, Gibson exceeded expectations. As a bench player, he's been rather meh. His PER as a starter (when Boozer was out) was near 20. Overall now it's 13.6. He's a really good shot blocker, but he's really thin and would be pushed around by a lot of the Cs in the league. His .443 shooting % is not very good for a PF or C. To get an idea of how thin he really is, he's listed at 6'9" 225 lbs, and our starting SG is listed at 6'5" 215 lbs. I agree you can never have enough big men, so he's a great luxury to have on the team.
For the record .... I'm not suggesting that Omer is going to be a Dwight or Blake stopper.....not at all ......but I see him as one of a few bigs going around that can play guys like this hard and straight up.and really make them work for it . On our roster I see a defensive front court of Jomer as being highly effective. Seeing Omer live in a couple of games has increased my regard for him. He, IMO,is not that far away from clicking and with a bit more strength and maturity...and when the refs understand him a bit better he's going to really surprise some people. I don't know why people keep banging on about Taj's jumper. Its fucking horrible. You could time his release with a sundial , he never gets the shooter's roll because the way he winds it back to his arse which screws up his release/rotation ....these two main things in his mechanics make him a real easy cover if you close hard on him He gets half his points on dunks and putbacks and he's shooting 44% Wake up guys. The biggest problem I have with Taj supporters is that these guys love the idea of Taj and aren't honest about who and what he is. Its like they're chubbed to the max about his cost ( like it was their own money ) just because he can walk and chew gum at the same time which for some is a bonus for where he was picked. A little honesty in perspective is a wonderful thing
And don't play the concussion card on Tajilicious. He was blowing hard before that lil tap on the head That little ray of sunshine at the start of the season ......just put it down to the fact that even the sun shines on a dog's ass some days and move on.
Hmm, I'm beginning to think you don't think much of Gibson as a player. I haven't seen anyone here overselling Gibson. What did I miss? Gibson was selected by NBA head coaches as 1st team all-rookie last season. Was that not deserved? If it was deserved, then that's pretty good for a guy taken with the 26th overall pick...isn't it? He was 8th in the NBA last season in offensive rebounding % and is 7th in block % this season. On the defensive end, I can't think of anything he doesn't do well despite his kinda slight build. This season, his jump shot hasn't been good. It's been the key weakness in his game. Any others serious shortcomings? I can't think of any. This is who he is as I see it. Not sure if it meets your honesty standard.
I was very pleased with Taj last year. Surprised the hell out of me! He could play. Defense impressed me to no end! He shot 49% last year, so yes, his jumper sucks this year. Dont know why unless confidence has a lot to do with it. He started last year. He was the man. This year, no so much. Rebounding is down somewhat, but so are his minutes so there is a correlation there no doubt. His blocked shots are actually better this year than last year. He is a nice player to have! Gives help on the boards and especially defensively. He hits the J once in a while.
I like Taj as a defender in certain situations and have been consistent in that view I don't think he has much to offer on the offensive side of the ball and the Tajalites get all narky when I give reasons for this view and think I'm the Devil who is sticking pins in my Taj doll. I like him . Glad we've got him. He's a great 4th big to have in the rotation
