All I remember was that he came in when Sacramento was at the top (2002)... and the result was a loss to the Lakers in Game 7.
So I remember him more for what his team couldn't do even more than what he was good at. But make no mistake, that doesn't mean I don't think he was good... that he wouldn't have made us better... that it would make us THIS good. It's just getting Mo was THAT much better.
Now... here's some thoughts:
Could Mo really be the next Mike Bibby?
... Ok, maybe not exactly what I meant, but their careers are paralleling even more now that I looked 'em up deeper.
They got better as their careers went forward, and share so many similarities. Shooting, the ability to pass, willingness to defend, etc.
Mo seems on pace to be clutch shooting too. Bibby was the better passer, but got guys involved all the same, something that Mo has proven. Their defense is very similar, though a big reason why Bibby didn't guard him (Mo did a good job on Bibby, at least for the most part) was because of that. Another aspect is their natural improvement made over seasons (Bibby actually got better on threes at the cost of his regular field goal, so his effective field goal stayed the same for the most part).
This means that Mo may have the impact to become a 20 point scorer, like Bibby did, if that's the limit of potential.
On the other hand, Bibby seems less motivated at this point (and was very detached on the court). His passing and defending also deteriorated, didn't they? The injury he suffered might have affected his ability to play into the 30s, despite still being a capable 14-15 point, 5 assist man.
So does Mo lose a lot of motivation to play if he's still fighting to win championships with LeBron? Even if Mo DOESN'T suffer an injury (and by all means, don't let that invade our conscience), will he still keep his natural skills til he's 33 or so?
Bibby and Mo share so much skill-wise, but don't need to be compared due to circumstances. He's on a different team that's heading in a different direction. But they share the ability to go the same distance, even if LeBron will take most of the scoring away from Mo naturally (like that matters if he's winning
). Perhaps Mo will surpass Bibby's career with a little better health.
Good for us how things worked out, huh? Now let's see if there's a big we can get that's beyond the deal we almost did for Amar'e/Shaq (Bosh anyone?). If it worked for Ferry and plays out the same way the Bibby-but-we-got-Mo-instead drama did, I see good things happening in the future.
Peace.