Dion Waiters Traded

[elcheato]

No one's upset that he hit the game winner or not excited. It's just hard to use this as an example of growth, as they're outlining. It's great he's playing so well, but the question always is, is it sustainable? Because right now, it doesn't look that way. Nothing about his play style has changed significantly, he's just hitting more shots. Maybe he's just becoming a better finisher and shooter, but he could also just be on a hot streak and you'll see him fall back. Hope it's the first one, but still, concern remains. You can't just look at base stats anymore these days, there is more to it.

Since January 22nd (Where this stretch roughly started around), he's hitting 47% of his mid range shots (6th among all guards in that time frame with at least 80 attempts from mid range). The one good sign I'd say is that while his mid range percentage has gone up around 5% since the 22nd, his percentage of mid range shots taken has gone down slightly.

He's shooting 55% around the bakset in that time frame, which is league average, but a huge improvement from worst in the league. That MIGHT be sustainable, but he's still not getting to the free throw line.

 

[CosmoKramer]

Terrible shot selection. Don't know how we can "get past that." He's better off being one-foot back (3pt) or several feet closer. But taking the long fadeaway 2 is generally bad basketball.

No one is trying to argue those shots are great in the 1st quarter with time on the shot clock, but that wasn't the case last night. Getting a clean look at the basket is much more imperative than taking an efficient shot when you only have seconds left in a game.

 

[CavsFaninNJ]

Haters gonna hate! My boy Dwait growing before our very eyes and ppl still complaining...

true

Complain about losing, complain about winning, complain that players are injury prone, complain that we haven't had enough injuries (yes, it happens), complain that we couldn't get players picked before us, complain that Lebron left, complain that he may come back

these people will complain about literally everything, even after a buzzer beater they say it wasn't a high percentage shot.

If buzzer beaters after inbounding the ball with a few seconds left were ever truly high percentage shots, there would be a lot more of them. All things considered it was a good look.

They weren't going to call a foul if he threw himself into the lane with a second left, either. That would just be one more things for these fans to complain about.

 

[D-WAIT3]

true

Complain about losing, complain about winning, complain that players are injury prone, complain that we haven't had enough injuries (yes, it happens), complain that we couldn't get players picked before us, complain that Lebron left, complain that he may come back

these people will complain about literally everything, even after a buzzer beater they say it wasn't a high percentage shot.

If buzzer beaters after inbounding the ball with a few seconds left were ever truly high percentage shots, there would be a lot more of them.

Haven't had a lot of good moments with this team in the past 4 yrs and ppl don't want to enjoy game winners makes no sense...

 

[Kyrieville]

Terrible shot selection. Don't know how we can "get past that." He's better off being one-foot back (3pt) or several feet closer. But taking the long fadeaway 2 is generally bad basketball.

Not if it goes in... which it did. Enjoy it.

 

[Jack Brickman]

Terrible shot selection. Don't know how we can "get past that." He's better off being one-foot back (3pt) or several feet closer. But taking the long fadeaway 2 is generally bad basketball.

There were three seconds left on the clock and we were down by one. If you get off a clean look in that scenario, it's a good shot.

 

[KI4MVP]

Terrible shot selection. Don't know how we can "get past that." He's better off being one-foot back (3pt) or several feet closer. But taking the long fadeaway 2 is generally bad basketball.

we only needed 2 points, there was no need to take a shot further away. eFG% is meaningless in that situation.

 

[Baseline Runner]

Jordan use to take a massive amount of 17-20 foot fadeaways (it was actually his go-to shot) and he rarely took threes because his shooting percentages rapidly diminished each further foot back. A great scorer needs to be a threat anywhere on the court. Having a guy who can make a well defended 18 foot fade away 40% of the time with 3 seconds left on the shot clock after a stagnant offensive possession is just as good as having a guy who can get open once in awhile in the corner for a high efficiency three pointer with 15 seconds left on the clock. Obviously it would be great if every shot was a dunk with a 95% success rate, but since we are talking about real basketball, you need different players with different skills who can score in different situations.

 

[Lee63]

Hey Here's an idea for the complainers. Last night NBATV rated Dion's buzzer beater. Fans can go onto this website and vote for themselves. SO if you want to boo his shot go ahead and do it at http://allball.blogs.nba.com/2014/03/26/horry-scale-waiters-serves/ But I have to warn you, he's leading in good numbers. I'm not sure your votes will be enough to overcome it. But at least it'll make you feel better to continue the complaining and bashing. RIght??? LoL

 

[Green Lantern]

If I am wrong he can correct me but I think GOURIMOKO is talking about his overall shot selection during any game being bad , not the game winner from last night.
So before I respond G needs to .

 

[elcheato]

Jordan use to take a massive amount of 17-20 foot fadeaways (it was actually his go-to shot) and he rarely took threes because his shooting percentages rapidly diminished each further foot back. A great scorer needs to be a threat anywhere on the court. Having a guy who can make a well defended 18 foot fade away 40% of the time with 3 seconds left on the shot clock after a stagnant offensive possession is just as good as having a guy who can get open once in awhile in the corner for a high efficiency three pointer with 15 seconds left on the clock. Obviously it would be great if you every shot was a dunk with a 95% success rate, but since we are talking about real basketball, you need different players with different skills who can score in different situations.

Jordan wasn't nearly as good a 3 point shooter as Dion, making the point not valid. Dion is shooting 37% from three, and 43% from mid range. The more effective and efficient shot for Dion is the three point shot. He should be molding his game like Harden. Harden only hits 40% of his mid range shots and hits 37% of his threes, similarly to Dion with the main difference being that mid range only accounts for 18% of his offense, with the three point shot accounting for nearly 40 percent of his offense. He's maximizing his efficiency, he's a very smart player.

 

[narbar32]

Jordan wasn't nearly as good a 3 point shooter as Dion, making the point not valid. Dion is shooting 37% from three, and 43% from mid range. The more effective and efficient shot for Dion is the three point shot. He should be molding his game like Harden. Harden only hits 40% of his mid range shots and hits 37% of his threes, similarly to Dion with the main difference being that mid range only accounts for 18% of his offense, with the three point shot accounting for nearly 40 percent of his offense. He's maximizing his efficiency, he's a very smart player.

All of the Houston Rockets players have shock collars attached to their nutsacks that give em a jolt every time they shoot a mid range shot, so I don't know that it's a terrific comparison, as Mike Brown doesn't put nearly the same emphasis on shooting solely layups or 3s.

Moreover, it's well established that the long 2 is the least efficient shot in basketball. It's also a commonly held and probably wise belief that Dion should shoot less of those. Further, most of us would agree that Dion should work on his finishing inside and rely on that method of scoring more frequently, perhaps continuing to increase his attempts at attacking the basket with his strength and creating contact, then playing the humble monk with the refs until it's noticed and he starts to get those 50/50 calls.

HOWEVER...

This shit has all been discussed at length. But it's hilarious that the prompt for it this time was a good look on a long two at the buzzer while down by one. Which he hit.

 

[elcheato]

All of the Houston Rockets players have shock collars attached to their nutsacks that give em a jolt every time they shoot a mid range shot, so I don't know that it's a terrific comparison, as Mike Brown doesn't put nearly the same emphasis on shooting solely layups or 3s.

Moreover, it's well established that the long 2 is the least efficient shot in basketball. It's also a commonly held and probably wise belief that Dion should shoot less of those. Further, most of us would agree that Dion should work on his finishing inside and rely on that method of scoring more frequently, perhaps continuing to increase his attempts at attacking the basket with his strength and creating contact, then playing the humble monk with the refs until it's noticed and he starts to get those 50/50 calls.

HOWEVER...

This shit has all been discussed at length. But it's hilarious that the prompt for it this time was a good look on a long two at the buzzer while down by one. Which he hit.

Harden actually took less mid range shots in OKC (less than 10% of his offense in his final year there), but that can be attributed to him being the #1 option in Houston and being the bail out option.

Regardless, Gour simply said it probably wasn't the greatest shot to take and people freaked out him. Saying "haters gonna hate" or "it was a good shot selection because he made it" just show a lack of understanding. I'm sure Gour was excited and happy Dion made it, but he made an observation of how it's not actually growth, it's the same type of shot Dion would have taken at the beginning of the year. That's all.

 

[getBUCKED]

The main problem with Gour's comment about the shot is that there wasn't many options for Dion when he got the ball in the corner. Yes it wasn't a great shot, but with 3 seconds left and no room to dribble/drive, Dion's valuable skill of being able to create a shot whenever he wants and convert it came through. His cold blooded attitude left no doubt in my mind it was going to go through without even touching the rim.

Dion has certainly gone through a major transformation in terms of attitude and play. He might be taking a few long contested twos (that he still makes about 40% of the time), but he is more focused defensively, working off the ball, involving teammates, and had improved his efficiency outside of finishing at the rim. He definitely has room for continued grown, but what player doesn't?

Dion made sure it was well documented how hard he worked in the offseason, so when he gets to it this summer I have no doubt he will continue to improve his game. Finishing at the rim, creating contact to get to the line (and making the free throws), and continued work on his jump shot will be key areas for him to make the leap next season. There no reason he can't average 18-20 ppg on 45/37/70 and earn that starting spot next to Kyrie that he wants so badly.

 

[Soar]

Just keep growing as a player and maturing as a person, Dion. The rest will take care of itself.

Have to love the passion he has.