LMA was good ball player and properly shot to many times when he wasn't on but he know different then any elite player that plays on any team in league or through NBA history there going to shoot a lot to get there points.
I think offensive flow and who you are surrounded with means a lot. It can change a player as much as a player can change himself. I am not saying that Henderson is better or worse. Just saying that the comparison of the past, I don't agree with. Wes had players around that help him to be more efficient. Henderson didn't. And that is fairly black and white isn't it?
Guys like Henderson, Davis and Vonleh are why I think Stotts is a dark horse candidate for coach of the year. If you put Wes Matthews in the system these guys are coming out of, I really doubt he would have anywhere close to the contract he just got. Wes is the opposite of a good numbers/bad team player, simply because he can't create for himself. He needs ball movement, player movement, and somebody else drawing the defense's attention. Put him in a good offense and he'll look great. Put him in a terrible offense, and he'll be just another mediocre player (at least on the offensive end). Coach of the Year usually goes to either a great team or a team that massively beat expectations. After the fiasco of our summer, it's hard to beat down expectations any further. But I've got a lot of faith in Stotts' ability to maximize the talents of these guys. These are Wes Matthews kind of players--talented guys who need motion on the offense (we'll definitely have with Stotts) and a superstar to play off of (which we hopefully have in Lillard).
I agree. As good as Wes was to the heart and soul of the Blazers, I think his on court play is over rated. He was only as good as the guys around him in my opinion and it allowed him to have MANY MANY open threes. Lets see how effiecient he is when he doesn't have a solid linup that plays well together. Love the man but his play is overated in my book.
Areas Wes lacked skills...passing, dribbling, finishing layups and creating his own shot. Henderson is a better ball handler, finishes well at the rim better than Wes...Wes was a good defender, great 3pt shooter and posted up well for his size but his leadership was the icing on the cake.
They all sucked. I like change. This year's team will be more fun to watch. If it isn't, change the Coach and GM. I like change.
When it's time to change, then its time to change Don't fight the tide, come along for the ride, don't you see When it's time to change, you've got to rearrange who you are into what you're gonna be.
i'm not sure I agree with your assement as wes' numbers have been extremely consistant whether in Utah or under mcmillen or stotts maybe wes adapts his game to the players around him better than you realize, not just an offensive philosophy to take advantage of his skillset.(forgot to include canales as one of his coaches and consistentancy)
Wes is a great piece to a good team but he's not a franchise player. Cuban rolled the dice big time with the contract he got. Canales is his assistant coach in Dallas now and they are close. Wes made me think twice about keeping him when he asked for 15 mil and wanted to be a go to guy on offense...plus the injury.
I agree that wes isn't a franchise or even max player, especially factoring injury and rehab, even Cuban admits the risk involved. I just don't not agree that his success was a byproduct of stotts 'flow' offense, in that he has produced consistently no matter who's system he has been in. limited skillset and warts aside, he has been an efficient and effective player throughout his career whether playing off of Dwilliams, broy or Aldridge he has played within his limitations and been a very good, if not robin then third cornerstone to some very good teams, regardless of who was coaching him.
If he returns mostly to form, won't the big increase in salary cap in a couple years make Wes' contract not so bad?
Cuban is betting it will work out, I wish Wes well but he hasn't played a game since his injury and I wouldn't risk that money on our roster for the "if" gamble
That's a pretty good point. His numbers are pretty consistent across different coaches/teams when you take into account natural progress as he matured. Still, you'd probably agree that he still doesn't get a fat contract if he were stuck in Charlotte or a bad Lakers team. He'd likely put up similar numbers and his team would lose a lot. On further reflection, I don't think our team succeeding this year is really about Henderson or Davis or Plumlee or Aminu having breakout years because they play with Stotts/Lillard. Much like Matthews, they are what they are--decent guys with limited upside who can help a team win in the right environment. The real key is that Leonard, Vonleh or McCollum has to show themselves to be a bona fide second banana/complimentary star to Lillard. If one of those guys breaks out, Stotts will definitely get votes for COY.