So, if he just naturally declined, that'd be a better excuse? Not something that usually hampers every player? Yeah. Logical sense.
A. You're not getting back an elite center for Nic Batum. B. It's a broken finger. It will heal in a few weeks and he's still making contributions while he's playing through it. C. If you're tired of blaming Nic, I suggest you stop doing it.
Sure. There are plenty of games between us and 8th place, so there's room to play Wright more than zero minutes.
1st, I'm not tired of blaming Nic one bit. I'm tired of the BS excuses every year for why his play falls off around this time. And while you might not be able to trade Batum straight up for an elite center you could as the centerpiece of a multi player package. I don't dislike his game, he is very talented but his mindset and style of play wastes his talent. He seems too concerned with making the extra pass and giving up very good shots or working on his penetration game just to pad his assist totals.
Nic has been playing through pain since before the road trip and we've had pretty good results. Throwing him under the bus after the 4th of 2 back to back games is just small minded. I think he should limit his minutes and Wright or Claver should get some burn. Wright has just suffered a shooting slump as well as Claver. Crabbe can also play his position but without Nico, we wouldn't be 31-11 by any stretch so how about not kicking him while he's down? As was mentioned before, Durant dropped 54 on Iggy last week. Didn'see Warriors fans asking for his head though. I suggest we support any player that has an injury as well as one who has an off game. Nic got beat last night by the guy who's probably the MVP of the league this season.
uh..this IS blaming Nic...for getting too many assists? sheesh! Too concerned with making the extra pass? Have you even watched the team this season?
Good post. But you left off "Call Durant for a foul and he throws a temper tantrum until the refs give him his way, the game, and a bunny". He's good alright.
I was blaming Nic, that's what the entire post was about! It was the first sentence! Have you ever read a comment before this?
I would completely be in favor of resting Nic for a few games to fully heal. I was really looking forward to seeing Claver play this year and I though I heard some good things about him during camp. What the heck happened? I though Claver should be getting all the backup SF mins this year.
I'm just curious to see if he's one of those guys that needs to start to get a rhythm. If he is, at least we'll know.
You might be right but if Nic's play continues for the next five games like this or ten games at what point does he become a liability out there. Furthermore, Nic has shown a willingness to become super passive and hang his head when he struggles, which could effect his game and the team beyond the time it takes his finger to heal. So I would rather try and build Wrights confidence back up than watch Batum struggle and lose his.
Keep playing him. Batum's recent defense is just as good as its always been. He's never been very good against other small forwards. He gets some highlight reel open floor blocks, and his physical appearance is the body type of someone who appears that they could be excellent. But he's always been rated as a poor individual defender.
I cannot argue with this assertion but it worries me that Batum's defense will fall off the more attention he pays to the pain in his finger. Batum is average defensively but his range and ability to shift between positions and to guard the ball handler make him useful.
I'd prefer to rest him until his hand heals. Otherwise it's going to be a nagging injury that causes him to be even more selective in his performances that he decides to show up in. Also, it'll just keep being another excuse for the Blazers.
Have Wright, Claver, and Crabbe split Batum's minutes. One will emerge and "arrive" with a surprise season, like Freeland did. After beating the other two, the winner will take all the minutes, and the two losers will return to the bench. Meanwhile, Batum will shake off his injury in the D-League.
