Dion Waiters Traded

[KyrieIrvingDuke]

Dion played well last night, but my god does he need to grow up regarding foul calls. He's probably the worst player in the NBA when it comes to whining about fouls. He stares at the ref for 3 seconds, yells something on every drive, and sulks whenever he misses (blaming it on the "bad" calls), causing him to be late getting back on defense. It's just astonishing MB and co. haven't nipped this in the bud yet.

And if this were Kyrie doing all this, a lot more people would be upset. Dion doesn't get a pass on this shit just because it's his "fiery personality"; it's dumb and selfish basketball, that's what it is.

 

[KB]

Really was nice to see Dion back last night. Now, I'm not sure if MB really wants a player laughing and putting his arm around him a few seconds after a tech, but that was a cool moment to see. It shows that Dion is trying, it is hard to remember but he would have NEVER done something like that in the beginning of the year.

He really seems to be settling in and lowering his defenses some.

was looking for a clip of that but can't find one

 

[Cavatt]

Dion played well last night, but my god does he need to grow up regarding foul calls. He's probably the worst player in the NBA when it comes to whining about fouls. He stares at the ref for 3 seconds, yells something on every drive, and sulks whenever he misses (blaming it on the "bad" calls), causing him to be late getting back on defense. It's just astonishing MB and co. haven't nipped this in the bud yet.

And if this were Kyrie doing all this, a lot more people would be upset. Dion doesn't get a pass on this shit just because it's his "fiery personality"; it's dumb and selfish basketball, that's what it is.

I don't disagree with this, however I think the refs have a serious problem with treating players equally. I saw Durant punch the air and not get called for a tech. I see Lebron an Wade whine all the time. Dion learned this from SARS in the league who are never reined in. Call a tech to teach him a lesson, but not calling the foul is disrespecting the game IMO.

Someone will say, "He is not a superstar!" No kidding? I know that, I think some of the stars in the league set a really bad example for young players in the NBA and everywhere.

 

[KyrieIrvingDuke]

I don't disagree with this, however I think the refs have a serious problem with treating players equally. I saw Durant punch the air and not get called for a tech. I see Lebron an Wade whine all the time. Dion learned this from SARS in the league who are never reined in. Call a tech to teach him a lesson, but not calling the foul is disrespecting the game IMO.

Someone will say, "He is not a superstar!" No kidding? I know that, I think some of the stars in the league set a really bad example for young players in the NBA and everywhere.

I'm not gonna sit here and say Dion never has a valid reason to be pissed. He often gets fouled quite obviously and there's no call. But then again, so do a lot of players. It's his job to not let that stuff rattle him so much and start affecting not just his game, but his teammates' too. It's difficult to do, but his issue with this this is stretching beyond normal players' reactions and it's cause for concern.

Also, I would hazard a guess that if he starts treating refs with more respect, he'll get more of the 50/50 calls. Better calls will come with a better attitude; it should come as no surprise he's not getting the benefit of the doubt from officials right now.

As for the superstar thing, it's undeniable that Durant, LeBron, Kobe/Wade in their primes, etc. get/got bogus calls on a regular basis. As for their whining, I may be in the minority on this, but I don't really think any of them whine excessively... certainly not enough to contribute to Dion's behavior, which is much worse than any of them.

 

[The Process God]

[video=youtube;sb8CRiEfVZw]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sb8CRiEfVZw[/video]

Dion's finishing is slowly, but surely improving. He exposed the ball later more often, and he put himself between the defender and the ball a lot of the time.

It's also nice to see both Dion and Kyrie finally learning how to play off the ball. There's hope for these two yet.

 

[DatDudeZ3]

Regarding the fouls and whining from Dion, I agree he needs to cut it out. But as someone else said about Durant punching the air and not getting a tech... I saw a replay where Durant said (excuse the language) "Fucking bullshit" right to the refs face and DID NOT get a technical. I was literally laughing, wondering how that was not a tech. That's just ridiculous, I don't care who the player is, that should be a tech.

 

[CavsFaninNJ]

Regarding the fouls and whining from Dion, I agree he needs to cut it out. But as someone else said about Durant punching the air and not getting a tech... I saw a replay where Durant said (excuse the language) "Fucking bullshit" right to the refs face and DID NOT get a technical. I was literally laughing, wondering how that was not a tech. That's just ridiculous, I don't care who the player is, that should be a tech.

They thought he was Avon Barksdale from the wire

 

[Maximus]

Dion played well last night, but my god does he need to grow up regarding foul calls. He's probably the worst player in the NBA when it comes to whining about fouls. He stares at the ref for 3 seconds, yells something on every drive, and sulks whenever he misses (blaming it on the "bad" calls), causing him to be late getting back on defense. It's just astonishing MB and co. haven't nipped this in the bud yet.

And if this were Kyrie doing all this, a lot more people would be upset. Dion doesn't get a pass on this shit just because it's his "fiery personality"; it's dumb and selfish basketball, that's what it is.

I thought it was one of his worst games ever from a whining standpoint. One play he was driving and the ball got tapped out from behind. Dion screamed "ayyyyeeee!!!!" and started punching the air. I saw literally no contact whatsoever when I rewatched it. There were at least 3 times I saw him whining where I wounldnt have called anything. His rep is growing as one of the bigger whiners in the league. I'm sure his bitching when there is no reason to bitch is part of the reason he may not be getting calls when he should actually be getting calls.

 

[Cashius X]

This isn't new knowledge, or at least it shouldn't be. Dion has an attitude problem. I've heard as much from people at Syracuse now that were friends with him. His nickname on campus was "Bron" because he acted so Hollywood :chuckles: They said he was smug and arrogant and he kept to himself for the most part. Didn't really talk to people. I've also heard though that his athleticism and court vision are underrated and he's an ultimate competitor. Literally stays in the gym. Just doesn't know how to keep his emotions in check. Hopefully the bad qualities Dion has change over time as he grows up.

Also, damn I miss Dwyane Wade. Not the #2 option D-Wade who teamed up with LeBron and Chris Bosh. I'm talking about '03-'10 Wade that was the unquestioned leader of his team. Used to be my favorite player

 

[mAo_mAo]

Dion should probably be having 5 or more free throws per game if not for his whining. He needs to cut that out.

 

[tn819]

Far off from PRIME Wade? Yes. If Wade in his prime was a 10, Dion is a 7.5. That's not meant to be a knock on Dion, but i think some of you forget how much of an athletic freak Wade really was in his prime. Is he in the top 20 of the league right now in terms of athleticism? Serious question.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/LkX951BsNP8" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

My knees started hurting just watching those dunks. Can't imagine that repeating that thousands of times does the knees a whole lot of good, but thanks for the blast from the past. Wade vs. Bron was truly the best 1-on-1 showdown from my recollection and one of the games I always sat through in its entirety. You knew it was going to be a show, even if the decision made it clear that they weren't exactly "rivals."

Also, when you say "he" are you referring to Wade or Dion? I wouldn't put either in the top 20 in the league although I think Dion could get there. Dion's strengths are blue chip tools, a killer attitude, and his limitations are his sense of the team rhythm and how to adjust his game when he isn't succeeding. I thought Bron was the master of tuning things down and getting teammates involved when his 3 wasn't falling. He would penetrate, which he could always do and so can Dion, and feed guys. I think that Dion doesn't have an alternative when his shots aren't falling. He will shoot himself to the bench, and I think his game is too diverse for him to do that, but he limits himself a bit. I wonder how much of this is MB's inconsistent rotations and lack of familiarity with Kyrie, and maybe these things will slide, but I don't like that both guys would paly as if they had blinders on with one another. Feels like there is too much talent there for the duo not to make the breakthrough with the right kind of shooters around them. They are two of the craftiest players in the league at getting to the cup, but also two of the worst at finishing at the cup. Something has to break in our favor at some point with this strange conundrum... right?

 

[elcheato]

Dion does have a problem complaining, but his major, more concerning problem as everyone knows, is finishing at the rim still.

Left side is the percentage of attempts that come from the restricted area, right side is how often they convert:

Lance Stephenson: 51% / 64%
Dwyane Wade: 48% / 67%
Monta Ellis: 45% / 55%
Eric Gordon: 44% / 50%
James Harden: 38% / 59%
Dion Waiters: 35% / 45%
Gordon Hayward: 30% / 50%
Wesley Matthews: 27% / 55%
DeMar DeRozan: 26% / 57%
Aaron Afflalo: 21% / 55%
Jamal Crawford: 19% / 50%
Klay Thompson: 16% / 54%

Those are the top 10 scorers at the SG position, I threw in Stephenson as well, and added Dion to compare to them. Right now Dion is by far the worst of the bunch when it comes to converting. Four of the players (Afflalo, Crawford, Thompson, Matthews) below Waiters in terms of shot distribution take significantly more threes and are generally perceived to be better shooters than Waiters, but still finish around the rim at a better rate. DeRozan and Heyward are just highly inefficient players who we don't want Waiters to become, but the good part is he already spends more time in the paint than both.

Can Waiters improve around the rim? I don't know, but last year 42% of his attempts were in the restricted area, and he converted 50% of the time. He has regressed this year in that regard.

In his last 11 games, a stretch people are talking about him playing some of his best all-around ball, he's still only taking 36% of his shots in the restricted area, but he's converting 60% of the time, which is a good sign but Dion needs to either extend some of his mid range shots (39% of his attempts come from mid-range) out to the 3 point line, or get into the paint more often.

On a side note, the current crop of SGs in the NBA is terrible.

 

[Jack Brickman]

Just as an FYI, during the past thirty days, Waiters is shooting 66.6% (22/33) in the restricted area. A small sample size, yes, and possible evidence that he's sold his soul to the devil, but still an obvious improvement.

 

[The Process God]

Just as an FYI, during the past thirty days, Waiters is shooting 66.6% (22/33) in the restricted area. A small sample size, yes, and possible evidence that he's sold his soul to the devil, but still an obvious improvement.

Like I said, he's learning how to finish better. It's been refreshing to see. He is now putting himself between the ball and the defender more, which gives him space to finish. He is also using the glass more and putting some Kyrie-Irving-esque spin on the ball to make the ball go in more easily. Also, that layup where he scooped it up high off of the backboard with his LEFT hand was sick. Overall, you can just see that the game is slowing down for him. His midrange and outside shot is also coming together nicely. He's even rebounding and defending. I can't wait to see what he will be like in a few years down the road.

Btw, I LOVED it when Dion threw down that dunk on Tuesday. He really riled up the crowd when I was there.

 

[math-yoo]

This isn't new knowledge, or at least it shouldn't be. Dion has an attitude problem.

We might as well cut him now, before we can't get anything back for him. What if the GMs of other teams talk to your friend at Syracuse, and find out he's got a bad attitude?! Then we'd really be out of luck.