I don't think Aldridge played soft. In fact, I think he played too tough for his own good. He needs to take a page from Dirks playbook and learn the art of drawing a foul. Chandler was bumping him all game hard and Aldridge was trying to stand his ground too much, rather than display to the ref that he was being fouled. Its sad its the way it is, but its what the league is about these days.
Soft as a goose down mattress. This guy on the other hand, is an unstoppable playoff monster. [video=youtube;fwIJphevjJ0]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fwIJphevjJ0[/video] [video=youtube;ubTZWAOTFRc]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ubTZWAOTFRc[/video] [video=youtube;qFi0qOKCkHw]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qFi0qOKCkHw[/video] [video=youtube;axdskq2Pkxw]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=axdskq2Pkxw&feature=related[/video] [video=youtube;COT4FooZMU8]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=COT4FooZMU8&feature=related[/video] [video=youtube;VXnNTwelwSk]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VXnNTwelwSk[/video]
Dirk is able to put the ball on the floor much better than Aldridge, and he's a master of drawing fouls against smaller players. I don't know how he does it, exactly, but he draws contact from smaller guys on a regular basis. Maybe Aldridge will learn that over time. I don't think that Aldridge was playing soft... he just couldn't hit a jumper. He was working his ass off defensively and it's a draining thing to (a) have to guard Dirk so much (b) get leaned on by a pair of big guys throughout the game, and (c) often being the only big inside on the defensive glass. I hope he bounces back, and I'd like to see him play better, but I am not putting losses on his shoulders. Ed O.
exactly. If the defender is allowed to constantly foul without calls going against them as was the case yesterday, only an idiot would still try to force the issue. Aldridge isn't going to score through that no matter how strong his will is. Dude's body was being turned because of a hand shoving his hip pretty much every time he posted along with constant hacks across his arms. The smart thing to do is try to pull Chandler outside the paint with his jumper hopefully giving him and teammates more room to drive, but unfortunately his jumper wasn't hitting. STOMP
I am generally loathe to a team or individual being dictated to by the opponent. Moving outside is exactly what the Mavs want him to do, so I would rather he do the opposite. If he's not getting foul calls when he's trying to score, then don't focus so much on scoring, but instead increase the amount of contact, to the point where a call of some sort has to be made.
other then answer to their boss, what makes you think the officials have to do anything? the pendulum will probably be swung Portland's way the next game, I'd expect LA to adjust to that too STOMP
Bottom line is we wouldn't even be asking this question if it wasn't true. If LaMarcus was making a stand at either end we'd be talking about that, but he isn't. How many times have you seen Dirk knocked down this series? We need a big guy, any big guy, to stand up and DEMAND RESPECT and INSTILL FEAR. Someone like this big lug. [video=youtube;DW8oBX5ywCo]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DW8oBX5ywCo[/video] or this guy... [video=youtube;e9lHM6h40Zo]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9lHM6h40Zo&feature=related[/video]
Duckworth had 350 blocks in his career (playoffs and regular season) but that clip kinda makes him look like Mutombo Ed O.
Sadly, Roy and Andre seem to be the only players on this team that truly burn inside with the desire and the determination and the commitment to win the championship. The other guys seem almost content just to be in the first round.
All the Mavs have to do is pack it inside, dare the Blazers to beat them from outside (which they haven't shown they can) and an exhausted LMA gets worked over by Tyson Chandler and Branda Haywood. So is LMA playing soft? No I don't think so, I just think he's being asked to carry more of a load than is possible when there is nowhere for him to go with the ball in the middle.
In the playoffs, Aldridge is leading the league in mpg, at 43. The guys closest to him are Deng (42.4), Rondo (42), Durant (41.7), and CP( 41.3). None of those guys have to endure the physical abuse that LA does on offense, nor do they have to stick to a guy like Dirk on defense. The "tired" thing is not just an excuse, it's legit. Nate telling him and the players to "suck it up" yesterday was really silly.
oh please, thats just ridiculous. Chris Paul runs his ass off in nearly identical minutes to LA getting knocked to the floor throughout the game, fighting through blind picks from guys who outweigh him by 80 pounds and often charged with guarding Kobe. On offense he's by far their #1 scoring option and runs their whole show making sure his teammates are getting theirs. All these minutes and responsibilities are really taxing him as he's only managed a 32.8 PER and Win share per 48 minutes of 0.307 STOMP
LMA is getting hit every time he posts up, yet he tries to actually play through it. He needs to flail his arms and legs while yelling like Dirk does at the slightest form of contact. If anything, LMA is trying to not be soft, and that isn't working in the playoffs. He needs to start flopping. I don't like it, but that's today's NBA.
You realize that you are comparing apples to oranges when comparing big man minutes vs guards, right? If you don't think take a look at the leaders in minutes played each year and see how many of them are PFs or Cs.
He needs to talk with Roy to make it obvious to the refs there is a foul. Roy is really good at drawing attention to the refds
Chris Paul is way, WAY better than Aldridge, though. I don't think that holding up one of the best players in the NBA as a standard is fair to evaluate whether Aldridge is worn down or not. Ed O.
This seems like an insignificant argument, but I still stick by my claim that Aldridge endures more physical abuse than Paul. Very few big men play that many mins and play effectively.
yeah, it's insignificant that he plays essentially the same minutes. That he's responsible for initiating their entire offense. That Aldridge is rarely picking himself up off the floor. That he's not getting crushed by guys who outweigh him by 50+ pounds multiple times per game. That he has to stick to a guy like Dirk about the same amount as Paul has to stick to a guy like Kobe. Aldridge is in a whole different world of pain because he has to shoulder guys who are more or less his size for a minute and a half more per game STOMP
