That won't really show what Elliott can do though because if Crawford is playing PG, no one else is getting shots
That's a good point. But if nothing else it'll get him some floor time. I'd like to see him play more myself.
No thanks. Same arguments people have been making for years with Outlaw, Martell, Sergio, Bayless, Babbitt. These young players need to prove they deserve minutes, not get them handed to them irrespective of their play in practice and games. Roy, Rudy, Batum all got big minutes as rookies because their performances warranted it. I'd rather take my chance with Felton or Crawford coming back to their career norms during the rest of the season then throw out some long shot prayer that Elliot miracuously discovers the sceptre of skill.
Exactly. IMO, part of the coach's job is to develop players. Nate doesn't. When he throws them all out together, I wonder if he's doing it to prove he's right, that they aren't ready. Of course they aren't ready. But our starters need rest. Just put in one scrub at a time so they can learn, be evaluated, and have their weaknesses covered a bit. Most nights, they can't possibly do worse than Failton and Crawful, anyway. And for God's sake, someone please tell Nolan to NOT emulate those two!
I don't think the argument is that he "deserves" to play or have PT handed to him, it's that Felton and Crawford (and Wesley at times) have been so awful, that the team would have almost nothing to lose by putting him out there for 10 minutes or so per game ... and that's tough to argue with.
Nolan Smith appears to be completely unready for NBA action--and yet he gets into the games before Williams does! So my question is . . . Is Elliot Williams even worse than Smith?? Is that possible?
How can we know if Smith can play NBA ball if he never actually plays with a legit NBA lineup? Look at the 5-man rotations he's been on the floor with.
Nolan Smith appears to be yet another (Bayless, Pendergraph, Cunningham, Claver, Babbitt, Johnson) in the line of wasted Blazer picks....... Man, Chad Buchanon is one hell of a talent evaluator, isn't he? Elliot Williams? Who knows, Nate never plays the guy.....
Felton and Crawford have played well at times, but not at others, and I'm not sure how anyone could expect anything different... They've joined a new team, with basically no off-season or training camp or preseason. Felton especially I think has just been forcing it too much and trying too hard. I'm pretty sure they'll get better, but it's been hard to watch at times. That said, I can't for the life of me figure out why Elliott gets less time than even Babbitt... He really seems like he can score, but Nate seems upset with his flashy play and wants him to play the 'right way' -- which from what I can tell is to shoot poorly, make horrible turnovers, and allow your man to consistently give you a head-cold as they run by... Hopefully Elliott will learn to play like that soon.
Felton and Crawford are veterans and have been starters in the NBA. Yes, I expect them to come in and contribute efficiently right away. My bad, apparently.
Nothing wrong at all with your opinion. I actually agree. If you have a seasoned veteran and a youngster; chances are the veteran will adapt much quicker than the youngster. At least that's what I think
Feltons' stats from last year to this year: 11.5 10.7 ppg 6.5 6.8 apg 2.1 2.8 TO 1.3 1.1 spg Jamal's stats from last year to this year: 14.2 13.3 ppg 3.2 3.3 apg 1.9 2.0 TO .8 .9 spg So not sure what you expected, especially given the circumstances of being on a new team with no real off-season.
I actually think e will is a SG or even a sf at best. We have Batum, Wallace, Matthews, Crawford and even Felton covering those positions. At pg we only have Felton and Crawford (and we all know that's isn't too realistic). Nolan smith is really our only other option at pg. so I think he gets more burn than e will.
Riiiight, those 4 assists per game JC has averaged over a 12 year NBA career are because he never passes the ball. Besides, defense is supposed to be Elliott's best attribute. STOMP
He gets assists in transition, but the next time he gets an assist within the offense will be his first. I have literally never seen a more selfish player in my life, and I saw Z-Bo play
You are not the first to counter my criticism of Felton with stats. My eyes tell me one thing, his stats say another. I trust my eyes in this instance. Also, I pretty much didn't pay much attention to him prior to him coming here, so I think I may have expected too much.
He plays like a school yard hot dog. This isn't the school yard, and his hot dog routine leaves his teammates out in the cold while he jacks up shit that looks spectacular when it goes in, and leaves me cold when it doesn't, which is often.
It also does huge damage to what little offense we have. When he continually jacks up shots, then our offense tends to stop down the floor because guys start assuming he is just going to jack shots up.
My issue with Crawford is taking difficult contested shots early in the shot clock and over dribbling the ball. He is great at getting his shot off at the end of the clock or when the rest of the offense breaks down. But his one on one offense is not a high percentage play early in the shot clock, and his slow dribbling style causes us to have less early opportunities in the shot clock. It's very frustrating, because I feel like he has the crossover and outside shot to be an extremely productive offensive player; but because of his style and tendencies his overall effectiveness makes him a slightly below average SG. I wonder if he spent his first few seasons on the Spurs or Suns how much of a better team player he would’ve become. Wes, Felton, Wallace, Camby, Batum all pass the ball around the perimeter very quickly which causes the defense to break down and give up wide open shots. Even when Crawford is able to get an assist often it reminds me of Iverson where he holds the ball until the last possible moment when he has no choice but to give it up to a wide open teammate. Crawford doesn’t make the pass that leads to another pass for an assist (hockey assist.)
