Lamar Stevens: Junkyard Dog

[NIkeL]

I feel like Lamar Stevens isn't top of mind enough in here.
The Cavs inability to sign anyone but your mom to a portion of the MLE is working towards giving him 16-18 MPG at the 3 Spot.
Also, still time for you PA Cavs fans to sign up for Lamar's low budget Space Jam re-make (what? It's a basketball camp? Who approved that photo??)
OK, scratch that. Still time to sign your child up for Lamar's basketball skills camp:


Also of note: based on Lamar's retweeting, he really likes Cam Reddish.

What do you mean. My mom is signing with the Lakers for the Vet Min.

 

[MirORich]

I was going to put this in the Mobley thread, but it’s just as suited for the Stevens or even Okoro thread.

There were a few nice passes from Mobley to guys cutting in hard from the three point line that resulted in dunks.

There were some other nice passes from Mobley to his brother in sequences where Mobley was backing down and the help side defender started to sag off his brother towards him.

The thing that has been said about Mobley(maybe by Koby at the press conference) is that while most young big men only see the basket and the ball/their immediate defender, Mobley can operate with the ball but see the whole floor and the pieces moving around him.

So anytime he’s in the mid post or just within 5-8 feet of the basket, it’s a triple threat option for him.

1. Make a move(post up, back down, dribble around) on his defender.

2. Pass to Allen for an easy dunk if Allen’s man even starts to shade toward Mobley in help defense.

3. Pass to Okoro or Stevens when they cut hard into the lane, maybe getting a rub or off ball pick from one of the guards.

Obviously, good team and individual defenders will try and shut this down but when you have a 7 foot tall big who keep his head up, see the court, and can make great passes, it opens up so much.

For a guy like Stevens or Okoro, sometimes those easy exciting dunks and layups are the confidence boosters they need to remain aggressive and confident as their offensive game is still developing.

Hoping we get to see some examples of this by the 2nd or 3rd summer league game

 

[weepinwillow]

So anytime he’s in the mid post or just within 5-8 feet of the basket, it’s a triple threat option for him.

1. Make a move(post up, back down, dribble around) on his defender.

2. Pass to Allen for an easy dunk if Allen’s man even starts to shade toward Mobley in help defense.

3. Pass to Okoro or Stevens when they cut hard into the lane, maybe getting a rub or off ball pick from one of the guards.

You can see an offense set up at the elbow.. but Mobley is gonna need to hit the buffet and the weight room. Trying to set up 10-15' when you are 210 soaking wet is going to end up as a set up 20-23' out with a set defense.

Love Lamar working off the ball though.

 

[Cavatt]

Mobley is so tall it is hard to interfere with his passing. He has really excellent timing. If he can really shoot like that, it is going to be hard to guard him.

I was thinking it might be awhile before we see what he can do, but he will be good at several things right away. Won't impact winning a lot, but I am sure we will like what we see.

Lamar and Okoro cutting like that has me very excited.

 

[ChicagoCavFan]

Ah yes, the installation of the exciting Pass and Cut offense of the Summer League.

 

[Man Called X]

Mobley is so tall it is hard to interfere with his passing. He has really excellent timing. If he can really shoot like that, it is going to be hard to guard him.

I was thinking it might be awhile before we see what he can do, but he will be good at several things right away. Won't impact winning a lot, but I am sure we will like what we see.

Lamar and Okoro cutting like that has me very excited.

I'm actually afraid that Mobley is going to impact winning too much too early. I see a big man that's barely scratched the surface of his talent. He's displaying skills that you didn't get to see in college. He just seems to make the right play. I truly think he's a lot more multi-faceted than most give him credit for.

 

[cliffdawg]

Sucks he got concuss late in the season, I think he could have got some valuable playing time to see what we have here, hopefully he’s a late bloomer, it amazing how we always right off 24/25 age player as over the hill and can’t improve……..

 

[Cavatt]

Sucks he got concuss late in the season, I think he could have got some valuable playing time to see what we have here, hopefully he’s a late bloomer, it amazing how we always right off 24/25 age player as over the hill and can’t improve……..

He showed a lot of maturity in his game. I think he is an NBA rotation player if he can shoot a decent % from 3. Just my opinion, but I think he adjusted to the speed of the game a little faster than Okoro did.

I'm actually afraid that Mobley is going to impact winning too much too early. I see a big man that's barely scratched the surface of his talent. He's displaying skills that you didn't get to see in college. He just seems to make the right play. I truly think he's a lot more multi-faceted than most give him credit for.

Yeah, I agree. I think he will add more than the normal things you would expect a big to add. I think we will see the offense make more sense similar to how it looked good with when Love playing well in the lineup.

Do you want to keep going to the lottery? I don't think the young guys are all stars, but I think they have good potential. I'd say if Mobley is what we hope, the team will be pretty good mid tier playoff team. If Garland or Okoro make significant leaps we could go higher.

 

[ansatsusha80]

 

[Lee]

Ah yes, the installation of the exciting Pass and Cut offense of the Summer League.

LOL

Agreeed, summer league is like an all star game without the talent. Not much defense, a bunch of one on one basketball and the worst part is the players trying to make the league are ball dominant.

I think we will be frustrated this summer as Mobley tried to play his regular game of passing, posting up, ect and doesnt get the ball in good position often. I hope I am wrong, but really only Okoro and Mobley himself are locks for the roster, even Lamar is a question mark although i love his athletic ability and effort, he is a fringe NBA player at this point.

I hope I am wrong, but I doubt it.

 

[Lee]

Sucks he got concuss late in the season, I think he could have got some valuable playing time to see what we have here, hopefully he’s a late bloomer, it amazing how we always right off 24/25 age player as over the hill and can’t improve……..

Lamar can improve, but at his age he has less time and less likely to improve enought.

Doesnt mean it isnt possible, doesnt mean a gym rat with professional shooting coaches cant develop a shot. But its less likely.

But I am rooting for Lamar, I love his game outside of shooting. Decent length, built like a shit brick house, tenacious on D, what is not to like except his shooting?

 

[J_J]

I still love this game of him. He does the little things that many people would like. I just want to see you improve your range.

 

[Cavatt]

I still love this game of him. He does the little things that many people would like. I just want to see you improve your range.

I'm optimistic about him.

 

[ansatsusha80]

I'm optimistic about him.

I hope he gets more playing time this season...

 

[weepinwillow]

Cavs are going to need to be good at developing like this. Pretty clear signing semi-proven guys to fill out a roster is not a good route for them.
Lamar looks like a keeper enough given our other option is keeping Denzel Valentine from having to learn a new language.