I got comped arena seats for last night's game.
As you all know , I have been on Drummond's positives since he was acquired.. I remain convinced that when he is focused he is the best player on the court..
However.. Last night was a microcosm of good and bad Drummond.. it seemed half the time he took a rest on defense.. walking back to defend, hanging in the paint when his man popped outside, not making the rotation...The other half he was swatting, halting the inside moves, rebounding like a vacuum cleaner... On offense, he is tough to stop when he wants it, and pretty much gets fouled every time he goes up hard.. last night he got whacked in the face, the head, knocked over and tripped, but nary a call.. You could see he was visibly upset by this.. but he was not the only one as Windler got kicked in the gut..(Plumlee is just a dirty player, and the refs were horrible.. ). He does take bad shots, but he makes them often enough to keep making them. He also draws a crowd when he rolls to the basket, which Sexton follows him in and scores a lot on the pull up.. The pistons in the fourth set him up to get posterized by Plumlee ( rose did it) and it visibly pissed him off. Sexton came right back and fed Andre on the block so he could dunk it back on Plumlee... But in the end, the posters saying we are better when he is not playing are not wrong..
Some other takes from the game..
Garland is better than last year, but is still defensively in the wrong place often.. When he was in the pistons intentionally took it to him and it was pretty clear why.. He is not ready to defend a rose, or delon wright at all.
Playing Prince, Windler and Okoru, worked well regardless, but was best with Allen and Sexton.. Several times Sexton waived Windler over to take that straight on three, but Windler only tried it twice, and hit both.. Prince is a plus on both sides of the ball, and he creates problems for the opposition with his physical profile and activity.. Okoro actually whiffed a couple of defensive plays but was pretty solid, and quick to spot the right pass.. I have heard the small talk, but when there is a collision on the court, it's the other guy that's bouncing, while okoro barely moves.. very larry johnson like.. and the energy he brings is crazy..
Windler would be very very good if he added some strength.. he got beat up a lot, and I thought Plumlee punching and kicking was intentional.. Plumlee was to chicken to try that shit on Okoro..
On the other side of the ball, Jeremy grant is the real deal.. I also think Deron Wright is a real nba talent.. Doumboya plays like he just learned the game yesterday...I wouldn't give you a nickel for any of thier other players..
