Isaac 3 & D Okoro - A Two Way Playing Basketball Savant

[Cavsfan1985]

Okoro is probably the most "raw" , at least offensively, of the three guys we've drafted in the lottery. He's already shown some nice flashes this year. I love how he competes defensively. His size doesn't concern me, once he has some time in an NBA strength/conditioning program his strength will increase.

Cavs seem to be doing a good job, year to year, of picking guys that want to consistently get better and are doing a good job of developing their young guys under this new regime

I agree. I also think he has been hurt with the amount of injury's we have had as well. When we had our backcourt, he seemed to fit well with being the 4th/5th option on the floor, with the injury's I think we are putting him spots he is not ready to be in. He is not at a point he is able to create on his own, and with the lack of guards who can create for others it has hurt him. His best offense is when we are able to get out and run in transition and have guys driving and kicking.

 

[Dr. Gymbo]

Okoro’s size was glaring last night. Dwarfed by Harden even.

Harden fat joke? Because if so, I approve.

 

[blommen]

I think Okoro handled himself well on Harden considering he’s 19 years old, and I don’t think his size was an issue outside of when he was on KD, which... yeah.

His passing is starting to flash as well, even if they don't all turn into assists. He’s got good accuracy and you Can tell he’s aware of open teammates when driving towards the paint. He’s aware of his limitations so he wards off tunnel vision by always being cogniscent of having a way to keep the ball moving.

Sometimes that manifests as a lack of aggression I think, but I can’t imagine a guy that smart, talented and hard working not figuring out how to balance that dynamic.

To me, his ceilling is honest to god Jimmy Butler. Similar build, similar work ethic, similar approach where you simply look for whatever way to positively impact the game, and as your game develops over time, that impact gets lagrer and larger

 

[ryanf]

Okoro’s size was glaring last night. Dwarfed by Harden even. JBB pointed out his positive defensive performance so it must’ve been a non-issue.

if Sexton, Garland, Okoro are all going to play 30+ minutes a game, there will be significant stretches where all three are on the court at the same time. You’re giving up size at 1-2-3 but it seems like the system is capable of mitigating that. Especially with the big mobile guys at four and five.

This is just wait and see mode. The rotations will continue to work themselves out as players get healthy and get hurt. Okoro seems pretty safe though. JBB really likes him even if he provides next to nothing on offense currently

He seems small because he's always in a defensive stance. You need to get worried when wings are bullying him on post ups and drives or is just plainly shooting over him. So far, only khris middleton has done that on a couple of occassions, and he's a PF sized wing. On most nights he just holds his ground.

 

[jvpertz]

Okuro to me is a guy who could be like a late career Andre Igoudala type.

I don’t see him like a young Igoudala because young Igoudala was way more advanced with the ball in his hands and with his overall floor game.

 

[Randolphkeys]

I was about to go into a long rant about how Iguodala has a freak wingspan that Okoro does not possess, but I should just stick to the script here.

Okoro had the toughest one on one matchup for a rookie defender in the NBA, and passed with flying colors. Instead of Harden playing his usual game, drawing fouls and scoring, he turned Harden into a distributor. Sure Okoro eventually fouled out, but there are a lot of veterans still getting in foul trouble in the first quarter trying to contain Harden. Okoro passed a heck of a test defensively.

 

[ansatsusha80]

Isaac Okoro swarms James Harden, Nets in impressive defensive night

Spencer Davies dives into Isaac Okoro's stout defensive night against the Brooklyn Nets' Big Three.

www.basketballnews.com

 

[ansatsusha80]

Delete

 

[Muffinalt]

My favorite was when he was waiving off the nets at the end after the last Sexton dagger lol.

 

[Cavatt]

He just looks tentative to me. He hasn't figured out how to finish yet. His timing is off. He got blocked twice on layups he should have made had he gone faster, but he hesitated. His shooting from the corner has been money. I am happy he is comfortable taking those. Just continue to grind on that.

I think he is the type of offensive player that just needs to slowly get more comfortable. As confident as he is defensively, he is not there yet offensively. As he learns what he can and can't do in the NBA he will get a lot better.

I am literally not worried at all. He is going to be a killer on those drives, and he will get more respect from the refs at some point.

His timing is off right now. The game is still too fast. He is caught up speed wise defensively, but not on the other side.

 

[Jordan]

Isaac Okoro swarms James Harden, Nets in impressive defensive night

Spencer Davies dives into Isaac Okoro's stout defensive night against the Brooklyn Nets' Big Three.

www.basketballnews.com

Sexton deserves all the praise he is earning from last night. The kid is a complete stud. I do think Okoro's game, though, is not getting talked about enough.

Okoro literally helped mitigate James Harden. Harden literally could not do his dribble-drive bs nor did he draw any ugly fouls. That is incredibly difficult.

Okoro already is a positive NBA defender... like a really, really positive NBA defender. This kid has so much potential.

 

[Sir'Dom Pointer]

Sexton deserves all the praise he is earning from last night. The kid is a complete stud. I do think Okoro's game, though, is not getting talked about enough.

Okoro literally helped mitigate James Harden. Harden literally could not do his dribble-drive bs nor did he draw any ugly fouls. That is incredibly difficult.

Okoro already is a positive NBA defender... like a really, really positive NBA defender. This kid has so much potential.

Remember that post I wrote couple months ago about Okoro guarding Kyrie and Harden that he wouldn't falling for their herky jerky dribbling exhibitions?

He is just very balanced with his stance and doesn't really guard the PLAYER or follows their movement. His stance is always the same and his movements are always precise and constant. He doesn't try to stop the player or not get beat, he just shadows and plays balanced defense all around.

The only real limiting factor to me is his reach. Which could be problematic or insignificant in the long term...we can't know yet. But as of right now, it limits him.

I also think he has to work some on how he handles screens. It's not really an issue, but he can be better at it as far as going over more effortlessly and more quickly.

 

[Jordan]

Remember that post I wrote couple months ago about Okoro guarding Kyrie and Harden that he wouldn't falling for their herky jerky dribbling exhibitions?

He is just very balanced with his stance and doesn't really guard the PLAYER or follows their movement. His stance is always the same and his movements are always precise and constant. He doesn't try to stop the player or not get beat, he just shadows and plays balanced defense all around.

The only real limiting factor to me is his reach. Which could be problematic or insignificant in the long term...we can't know yet. But as of right now, it limits him.

I also think he has to work some on how he handles screens. It's not really an issue, but he can be better at it as far as going over more effortlessly and more quickly.

Yeah, I agree on screens, especially when the team is contending for playoffs. But yes, you called it!

 

[Sir'Dom Pointer]

Yeah, I agree on screens, especially when the team is contending for playoffs. But yes, you called it!

He is by far the best at guarding in isolation. Buuut, he is also good at anticipating the screen and deciding how to defend it on the fly. Most players will either go over or under depending on the matchup, but Okoro will decide and react based on how well he is positioned in space, how well the team is positioned and which angle the player will decide to attack from.

 

[blommen]

It is honestly wild how polished and advanced he is defensively for a 19-year old. Like, there have been rookie impact defenders on the perimeter before obviously, but most of the time it’s largely propelled by physical tools and team fit. I can’t remember the last rookie guard/Wing who entered the league with the level of understanding and feel that Isaac has shown.