JR Smith

[Lee]

I said exactly this in the JR thread.

.



Are you lost?

 

[amurderofcrows]

I said exactly this in the JR thread. There's a reason that pundits have asserted that Mozgov and JR added "much-needed toughness" to the Cavs. I get not compromising the integrity of the game and playing it "the right way", but the Cavs, in particular LeBron, were victims of bully ball when opposing teams were unable to beat them straight-up.

The Cavs should come out this year with a chip on their shoulder...not only to avenge their shorthanded Finals loss but also Cleveland's place in the sports world for the past 50+ years. Just a little bit of nastiness would be the edge needed to make this team truly unstoppable.

I have nothing to add but WELL SPOKEN!

 

[JMoneyYourHoney]

WELL SPOKEN![/B]

Thanks, cheers!

 

[The Oi]

The Cavs really didn't have that much of a problem with any of style of team, except the style of team that lucked onto facing them without their 2nd and 3rd best players.

IDGAF how many games the Cavs win in the reg season, but if healthy for the playoffs I literally see them losing maybe 3 games the entire way through to the finals.

They can play any style of basketball now and both sides of the ball.

 

[The Human Q-Tip]

I know a lot of people disagree with what I'm about to say, but here goes anyhow. JR was the closest thing this team had to an enforcer last season. I was proud of him when he backhanded Crowder in the Boston series, the guy clearly had it coming and the refs were allowing Boston to openly foul the Cavs with no whistles or repercussions.

Then again against the Warriors, when JR plowed right over some of those picks by Green, I was proud of him because he alone was doing what should have been done by someone like TT or someone bigger than JR. JR alone knew that we were getting the short end of the stick against certain opponents. It's too bad his previous history made the penalties worse than they should have been, and I hope we have someone on the team who will take appropriate action when another team is bullying our players and the refs swallow their whistles.

I'm glad JR is back. That is all.

You can stick up for yourself and teammates without being a jackass and hurting your team by getting a critical penalty. Compare Perk's pick to J.R.'s punch. I'll guarantee that JR's teammates would have preferred him not to have thrown that punch and not get suspended. We were a shot away from going down 3-1 to the Bulls because of J.R.'s immaturity.

Never understood why some people equate obvious cheap shots that get you penalized with being tough. It's just being stupid. Particularly when the cheap shots for which a guy is retaliating often are intended to provoke a reaction to change the course of a game.

Crowder was baiting JR, and he took the bait. It's something Andy was a master at, and it paid off on the scoreboard when he could do it to someone volatile enough to commit an obvious penalty as a result.

 

[AZCavs]

You can stick up for yourself and teammates without being a jackass and hurting your team by getting a critical penalty. Compare Perk's pick to J.R.'s punch. I'll guarantee that JR's teammates would have preferred him not to have thrown that punch and not get suspended. We were a shot away from going down 3-1 to the Bulls because of J.R.'s immaturity.

Never understood why some people equate obvious cheap shots that get you penalized with being tough. It's just being stupid. Particularly when the cheap shots for which a guy is retaliating often are intended to provoke a reaction to change the course of a game.

Crowder was baiting JR, and he took the bait. It's something Andy was a master at, and it paid off on the scoreboard when he could do it to someone volatile enough to commit an obvious penalty as a result.

You are 100 percent correct, yet I still love watching Crowder get clocked by JR.

 

[godfather]

You can stick up for yourself and teammates without being a jackass and hurting your team by getting a critical penalty. Compare Perk's pick to J.R.'s punch. I'll guarantee that JR's teammates would have preferred him not to have thrown that punch and not get suspended. We were a shot away from going down 3-1 to the Bulls because of J.R.'s immaturity.

Never understood why some people equate obvious cheap shots that get you penalized with being tough. It's just being stupid. Particularly when the cheap shots for which a guy is retaliating often are intended to provoke a reaction to change the course of a game.

Crowder was baiting JR, and he took the bait. It's something Andy was a master at, and it paid off on the scoreboard when he could do it to someone volatile enough to commit an obvious penalty as a result.

You'd have a great point, if you weren't so completely wrong. Perk didn't just set a pick on him?



He set a pick on, then punched him! He should have been ejected, and suspended. It was a miracle he didn't.

JR get's a bad deal for that. Yes, it was stupid, but he lost his cool. Tempers were already hot on both sides, extremely. It was chippy. What Crowder did was not cool, at all, and JR lost his temper. He was trying to get him off his back, but lost his cool and actually swung.

Unfortunately, Crowder happen to get hurt, and it seemed A LOT worse. It was a bad break, but JR kinda got the raw deal. His reputation, along with that, didn't play his way.

I think just about any other player in that situation, given what had already happen, would have done something similar. It just happen to be the notorious troublemaker JR, so it seems much worse.

But Perkins? Gimme a break, he was sent in there to act like a complete goon, nothing more.

I blame the refs more for not grabbing a hold of the situation when it was clear it was starting to escalate. It was a horrific officiated game, and a lot of this shit could have been avoided.

JR lost his cool. It was dumb, but bad luck for him, too.

 

[The Human Q-Tip]

You'd have a great point, if you weren't so completely wrong. Perk didn't just set a pick on him?



He set a pick on, then punched him!

No, Perk didn't punch him. That's just you trying to equate two things that aren't equal. He shoved him, and the NBA has always treated punches differently than shoves.

He should have been ejected, and suspended. It was a miracle he didn't.

No. He could have been given a flagrant 2 and ejected, but that kind of play normally doesn't get a suspension.

JR get's a bad deal for that. Yes, it was stupid, but he lost his cool.

You say that as if having "lost his cool" is an excuse for doing something "stupid". It's not. That's the difference between being professional, and not. And as much as winning comes before everything else in the NBA, it's the reason teams shy away from the guy despite his talent. Because he is likely to do stupid things that cost games. That's why I disagree with the guys who like JR's attitude. It's confusing what is amusing or cathartic with what wins games. If they were right that stuff like what JR does is needed/valuable, then other teams would have been hot after the guy to sign him. They weren't.

I think just about any other player in that situation, given what had already happen, would have done something similar. It just happen to be the notorious troublemaker JR, so it seems much worse.

No, I don't think that's remotely true. LBJ (and Delly) both got beaten up much worse than JR did throughout the playoffs, yet not once did either do anything 1/4 as stupid. Because they know that them feeling emotionally satisfied for a moment is less important than winning damn games. JR doesn't. Most players don't do that shit, which is why JR has the reputation he has. It's earned.

But Perkins? Gimme a break, he was sent in there to act like a complete goon, nothing more.

Sure he was. But he was smart about it. He was facing Crowder so he was careful not to hit him in the face -- that's when the penalties ratchet up. It was a body foul, not a closed fist punch (no matter how much you try to mischaracterize it) and that also isn't going to get as steep a penalty. And, Perk's shot was in the context of setting a pick -- which is a basketball play. Swinging your fist behind you is not.

And perhaps most importantly, Perk knows his role. Why wasn't it Moz, or LBJ, or TT setting that pick instead? Because smart basketball players and coaches know you don't lose important players in a misguided attempt to "send a message". You use the guys you can afford to lose if something goes wrong and a greater than expected penalty is imposed.

I blame the refs more for not grabbing a hold of the situation when it was clear it was starting to escalate. It was a horrific officiated game, and a lot of this shit could have been avoided.

Of course the refs deserve blame. But it is the player's responsibility to react intelligently to the way the refs are officiating. I'm still glad we re-signed the guy simply because we didn't have the cap room to get anyone else close to his talent level. But I still don't trust him to 1) not to something stupid at the wrong time, or 2) not have some other emotional issue that prevents him from keeping his head in the game.

 

[Simon]

 

[spydy13]

Wow, we really view him as a ticking time bomb.

Also, I have to imagine he definitely opts out next year to find something with more than $2.1M guaranteed.

 

[MirORich]

The Cavs know JR is best when surrounded by quality teammates and when highly motivated. It seems like the way this contract is structured, the chief aim is to keep JR highly focused and motivated. Smart work done by Griff.

 

[Chopz]

Sly, sly Griff.

 

[shoes22]

Is this a performance based contract or a “if he’s still on the team by a certain date” he gets the rest of the money?

It certainly seems like an unusual contract for sure.

 

[Kypus]

Wow, we really view him as a ticking time bomb.

Well it's his own damn fault, TBH- he should've signed the first one we gave him.

Later we didn't have as much wriggle room, and he should've known our options were going to shrink- not just his. He gambled on the market and this is really the best we could do for him, given our other priorities.

 

[mhi]

No way he doesnt get full amount for at least year 1. No suiters this summer either so I doubt we can find free dumping grounds if shit goes south in year 1 prior to his guarantee date.