May 24, 2013

While We’re Waiting… Kyrie, advanced stats and upgrading the offense

May 15, 2012 by 16 Comments

While We’re Waiting serves as the early morning gathering of WFNY-esque information for your viewing pleasure. Have something you think we should see? Send it to our tips email at tips@waitingfornextyear.com.

“Kyrie Irving is a special type of player—talented enough, young enough—who intermittently illuminates how inconsequential opinions about the NBA are in relation to fluorescent streaks of skill. We can talk about a lot of stuff, but talking about the moment when Irving dives into the lane off a pick, shows the ball to the best player in the league, then switches hands, double-clutches, and lays it in is futile. Seriously: try to be articulate about that thing. What’s great is that we get to talk about his highlights in incomprehensible shrieks and about Kyrie Irving as an electrifying talent like we did with Blake Griffin last year. There’s no need to figure out his place in the natural order of point guards because we’re just so damned happy he’s here. Thanks for blessing us, dude.” [McGowan/Cavs the Blog]

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This piece is getting a lot of attention around the baseball web community- “These new categories fall under the title of Sabermetrics, the figment of several self-anointed geniuses, mostly originated via the vivid imagination of the illustrious Bill James. They were noisily compacted into a best-selling book entitled “Moneyball.” The book was scripted into a popular motion picture a year ago, starring Hollywood jock Brad Pitts and celebrating the baseball wizardry of Billy Beane.

Yet now, amid all that claptrap, we are being treated to a Major League Baseball season for the ages. It is the sort of season that grabs any longtime baseball lover with sensational joy of the game, without the mashed numbers.” [Green/Detroit News]

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“While the drafts of 2011 and 2010 filled important needs on the defense in the first two rounds, it doesn’t have the same sizzle as selecting a running back and quarterback with the first two picks. And if the Browns only had one but not the other, it wouldn’t have the same impact.

“I was pleased with the way that they performed,” Shurmur said of Weeden and Richardson. “I was glad to see that they were very professional in the way that they work at things and I think it showed up on the field. Now, the next step as we have just talked about is to put them in with the other guys and see them compete with guys that have already played in the league.”

None of this means the Browns can now automatically compete on the field with Pittsburgh and Baltimore, but it’s a big step in the right direction. The Browns won the month of May. The next step is to starting winning when it really counts.” [Red Right 88]

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“The Cavs need a scorer. Harrison Barnes might be the best pure scorer in the entire draft. Seems like a match made in heaven, right? After Barnes’ freshman year, he was probably a top-5 pick in last year’s draft, a possibility for the Cavaliers at #4 even. But, Barnes decided to return the Chapel Hill for another go round.

Barnes showed in his two seasons that he could put the ball in the hole. At 6-8, he is as smooth as can be on the floor and makes scoring look effortless at times. He has a great midrange game and can definitely extend that range beyond the arc. Defensively, he has the tools to be a great defender at the next level. He is long and has the ability to stay with other wing players. But, for some reason this past season, many people wanted to look at Barnes’ shortcomings.

He has the knock of only being a good athlete. Scouts say he isn’t the greatest ball handler and is slightly one-dimensional. When UNC got to the NCAA Tournament, many people, including myself, had them winning it. Then injury struck and they lost starting point guard Kendall Marshall to a broken wrist. This only intensified the talk of Barnes being one-dimensional. The loss of an elite point guard showed that Barnes had trouble creating his own shot and needed someone to get him the ball.” [Mancini/Stepien Rules]

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Finally, if you missed it yesterday, check out our attempt to help the Cleveland Foodbank [WFNY]

 

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  • Vindictive_Pat

    Did anyone watch the end of the Celtics/Sixers game last night?  I don’t get what all the fuss is about.  KG blatantly took another step after setting the pick in order to prolong the amount of time that Iguodala was locked up.  His screen gave Paul Pierce an unfair advantage giving him at least a full second longer to shoot the ball.  Who are these idiots (Barkley who I usually like, Shaq who I don’t) who think that you shouldn’t make that call?  Why don’t we just allow defenders to hold guys on picks as long as its the last play of the game?  Why don’t we just give the player the ball at the 3-point line and say, “OK, if you hit the shot, you win, if you miss it, you lose.”  Like shooting a 3-pointer at the start of a pickup game to see who gets the ball first.  Pure idiocy… can you tell I’m annoyed?  Playing good defense is part of the game, including trying to deny the last shot of the game, and breaking the rules matters as much on the last play as it does on the first.

  • Natedawg86

    Guys, you are still using a pic with Peyton Hillis and Ohio State that refers to Jim Tressel.  Everytime I see a pic of Hillis, it pisses me off how he sucked last year.  Are you guys going to update the pic?

  • 5KMD

    I’ve watched Barnes a lot and I really don’t care for his game at all, but maybe his dream of playing in the league caused him to be bored at the college level.

    He just seems to be “too cool” to me. Like he wants to look good on the floor at all times and feels like diving or scrapping or “playing ugly” is beneath him.

    If the Cavs fall to 5 or 6 and Barnes is the best available player at that point he most likely would be good value. If they get him, I hope I’m wrong because I think he has the size and talent to be great.

  • mgbode

    the problem I think people have with the call is that moving picks have not been called this season.  so, to call it with the game on the line when you have been allowing it all season is upsetting.  still, I wouldn’t complain because the right call was made.

    and the Eastern Conference playoffs are reminding me of the mid-90s EC playoffs in all the wrong ways.   the injuries are part of the reason (a ton), but this is just getting really bad. 

  • Boomhauertjs

    It also looked like to me that KG was using his arms to impede Iggy’s progess, which is an obvious foul. It’s one thing to stand straight and slide your feet a bit as you set the pick, it’s another to put your arms out to keep a guy from following his man.

  • Vindictive_Pat

    I agree… the arms got extended and pushed.

  • Vindictive_Pat

    You’re right, moving screens usually don’t get called but I think there’s a difference between the screen KG set and your run-of-the-mill moving screen.  In most situations, the screener might slide is foot on the floor a little bit to buy an extra split second.  In this case Garnett actually took a step where he lifted his foot of the ground and placed it further to his side in an obvious attempt to impede progress.  Sometimes with a slide, you could make the point that your momentum was causing you to slide, but this was so much more blatant to me and as Boomhauer points out below, there was also too much arm extension.

    I hate to agree with you, but you’re right… the EC playoffs have been really boring so far.  I need the Pacers to step up and give the Heat a challenge because the Celtics/Sixers series is a snooze-fest.

  • porckchopexpress

    It’ll be interesting to see if Kyrie gets to play on the Olympic squad with Rose getting hurt.  I hope whatever he does this summer it includes some defensive bootcamp.  As for running mates I just can’t talk myself into Barnes, I watched about a dozen NC games over the year plus the tourney and that second attempt against Ohio highlighted everything wrong with the guy, he simply can’t get his shot off, against a MAC defender.  If the Cavs are at 6 and everyone we wanted is gone, I’d rather take a shot on Perry Jones than Barnes.  I just think Jones problems are more fixable at the NBA level than Barnes, and if they do get fixed he will be frightening.

  • Vindictive_Pat

    This is my beef with Barnes as well… even if you want to make a point that he was just coasting with UNC knowing that he’s going to the NBA this summer, he still would have wanted to play well in the NCAA tournament if for no other reason than to improve his draft stock and get paid more.  When you play 4 quarters against the Ohio Bobcats (sorry OU fans… loved the run) and you are basically invisible the whole game while never being double-teamed, that seems like a red flag to me.  He needs to work hard on his ball-handling if he ever wants to be able to create his own shot in the NBA.  When I watch him, I see athleticism, but it’s not explosive.  He doesn’t look particularly quick.  /EndofBeef

  • The_Real_Shamrock

    Garnett fouled the fact it was in the last 12 seconds of the game shouldn’t matter.  All the whining is getting old.

  • The_Real_Shamrock

    The Stepien Rules column hit on most of why I’m not such a big Barnes fan as I once was a few years ago.  He’s regressed or played down as you mention.  He has the physical tools and abilities but I question whether he has the mental makeup to be a top 5 pick.  The Cavaliers hit a grand slam with Kyrie Irving and a solid double with Tristan Thompson I just hope Chris Grant can continue the magic for another draft.  This upcoming draft is just as important as last years.  For that reason there are several other players I’d consider before Barnes.  Ideally Nick Gilbert works his magic and the Cavaliers steal their second consecutive #1 overall pick and we won’t have to worry about Barnes or anyone else.

  • Vindictive_Pat

    I’m allowing myself to dream, but man would it be sweet to have Anthony Davis.  Our defense would become one of the best in the league, and you’ve got to love the idea of his ability to hit jump shots pulling out the center so TT can ravage the offensive boards.

  • mgbode

    get the #1 overall picks, sign Eric Gordon and Roy Hibbert in FA and somehow the Hornets and Pacers don’t match and Gordon stays healthy. 

    hey, if you are going to dream, dream big :)

  • DontbringLBJback

    Don’t think there is enough money to sign Gordon and Hibbert.  I’d take Hibbert and hopefully we’ll get MKG in the draft.  At least that’s a possible scenario.  Starting 5: Kyrie, MKG, Gee, TT/Varejao, Hibbert…. that sounds like a playoff team to me, if not next year, than the year after for sure.

  • DontbringLBJback

    Don’t think there is enough money to sign Gordon and Hibbert.  I’d take Hibbert and hopefully we’ll get MKG in the draft.  At least that’s a possible scenario.  Starting 5: Kyrie, MKG, Gee, TT/Varejao, Hibbert…. that sounds like a playoff team to me, if not next year, than the year after for sure.

  • mgbode

    we’re not getting either.  no way the Pacers would let Hibbert go without matching.