We hardly saw his game because of Musselman benching him in favor of Calbert Cheney. Call it a hunch but I think he could end up making more impact than Richardson in the league because he is so quick and athletic and he's shown signs of being able to split defenders, finish around the rim in traffic, and be a tough defender. If only he was coached better sooner when he was in Europe.
I'll preface this by saying I haven't seen Pietrus play much, so I'm working from what I've read, mainly. He reminds me a lot of what we heard about Sprewell when he was drafted. Very athletic, great defender, raw offensively. Turned out, Spre was such a good athlete that he could do just about anything on the court, and he picked up new skills quickly. Pietrus seems similar. We were told that he's not polished offensively, but given playing time, his offensive game got better by the day, statistically...I can't say if he gets totally lost in the set offense. To summarize, I'm not saying his game is like Spre, and I sure hope his attitude isn't, but his ability to develop new skills quickly reminds me a lot of Spre. I think he could be a special player.
I would love it if he turned out like a Sprewell type player. He definately wont have the same attitude. My prediction is that he will be our 6th man of the year this year.
I think the general consensus is that Pietrus will play a much bigger role this year, than he did last year. I predict that we will see a great improvement in his offensive skills and the overall knowlege of the game. I know a lot of you guys want to stick Pietrus into the lineup right now and kick J-Rich/Dunleavy to the curb, but I just don't think that would be a good idea. Don't get me wrong, I'm a big Pietrus fan and love what he brings to the team, but I think a lot of people are down on Jason Richardson and think that he can't improve his game, when he has been improving it EVERY SINGLE SEASON!
^^I pretty much agree. There is really no need to expect too much from Pietrus too early and put him in that starting role so soon. His time will come, even if its because of an injury. Pietrus is an energy player and he will be great coming off the bench where he will provide instant energy and defensive intensity. I look forward to seeing him develope in only his second season in the L.
I think he has a good chance to be at allstar weekend in Denver for the Rookie vs. Sohpmore game. I say: 10ppg, 5rpg, 1.5spg.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Bobcats:</div><div class="quote_post">I think he has a good chance to be at allstar weekend in Denver for the Rookie vs. Sohpmore game. I say: 10ppg, 5rpg, 1.5spg.</div> That would be sweet!
If only he was coached better sooner when he was in Europe. [/QUOTE] I'd be happy if he was healthy and played 20 mpg. Then I think he could go between 7-10 per game. I must say I don't understand what you're saying here Custodian. The year he was drafted his team won the French League Championships and MP wasn't sitting on the bench. I think he suffers more from general in-experience, the fact that he grew up on an island and probably didn't commit to basketball until late being the big factors. I think it's a tad unfair to blame his prior coaching, say what you will about the unrefined state of his tools, he arrived knowing how to share the ball and with great defensive footwork. A lot of Gringos don't get that after for years of college let alone two. If there's any stud athlete on the Warriors who could have used better coaching when he was young it's J-Rich. He played power forward all the way up to high school. HMMM, I wonder why ballhandling is an issue? Even Biendris played a little PG in the Latvian league, just so he could work on his ball handling. Maybe I'm wrong , but I've always thought that the coaching style in Europe as a little more visionary.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting meshgearfox:</div><div class="quote_post">If only he was coached better sooner when he was in Europe. I'd be happy if he was healthy and played 20 mpg. Then I think he could go between 7-10 per game. I must say I don't understand what you're saying here Custodian. The year he was drafted his team won the French League Championships and MP wasn't sitting on the bench. I think he suffers more from general in-experience, the fact that he grew up on an island and probably didn't commit to basketball until late being the big factors. I think it's a tad unfair to blame his prior coaching, say what you will about the unrefined state of his tools, he arrived knowing how to share the ball and with great defensive footwork. A lot of Gringos don't get that after for years of college let alone two. If there's any stud athlete on the Warriors who could have used better coaching when he was young it's J-Rich. He played power forward all the way up to high school. HMMM, I wonder why ballhandling is an issue? Even Biendris played a little PG in the Latvian league, just so he could work on his ball handling. Maybe I'm wrong , but I've always thought that the coaching style in Europe as a little more visionary.</div> I'm not bashing the European coaching style, I think I was looking for the word encouraged. If he was encouraged to play when he was younger and found the right coaches he could be like a young Michael Jordan right now I bet. But I guess whatever circumstances he faced he couldn't get that opportunity or it wasn't in his interest at the time. BTW Pau Orthez has a lot of former NBA players and college standouts, so them being a championship team was the result of having a lot of talent and depth. Pietrus wasn't really the scorer on that team I don't think, but he was the athletic Ron Artest of that league.
