Didn’t Poole try this at the end of an MSU game (or other B1G game) his soph year?
Yes, in the BTT final.
That one I remember feeling he actually was fouled.
I just read the play log of that game and now I’m sad all over again. Multiple 10+ point leads early the second half. Nine point lead with 13:00 left. Five point lead with 2:30 left. No points the last 2:30.
There’s a good write-up at the Ringer about Poole and how he’s come into his own being a “stunt double” for Curry and running the sets that are designed for him. Overall it is a really positive piece though it does raise a question about whether Poole’s electric performance lately is a reason to invest in him or is an indication that the Warriors could find another guy like him and plug him into the system with similar success. It also ponders what Poole looks like when the rest of their stars are actually healthy.
There is one quote in there about Poole that made me remember his time at Michigan:
“Poole tried unsuccessfully to barrel into Daniel Gafford’s brick-laid frame, missed a jumper off a pick, and put a bookend on the disastrous third quarter with a dribbling expedition. He shot a fadeaway that failed to leave his hands before the buzzer sounded. If the Heat game was the crescendo, this was the nadir. Poole is still learning the intricacies of game management, of recalibrating his attack when his shot goes cold.”
Yeah, it wasn’t about drawing the foul, it was about getting up a three before he got fouled.
The interesting thing with the Warriors season was that Poole was pretty good for the first half of the year, and then when Klay returned, the staff clearly decided that they needed to make an either/or choice between him and Jordan. Jordan was sent to the bench, and really struggled. Not long before Curry got hurt, they realized that maxing offense was the way to go - the Warriors’ absolute best lineup this year has been Curry-Poole-Thompson-Wiggins-Looney (assume that in a world with full health it’s Draymond and not Looney). This lineup is +51 points per 100 possessions.
I am not sure how meaningful to suggest that the success of Steph Curry itself is a product of the system. Many tend to forget that Jordan Poole is only 22 years old.
I mean I can list a ton of young guards that failed in Golden State. The franchise developed no NBA talent between Klay/Draymond and Poole.
Fresh off of concussion protocol, Isaiah Livers had another really good game tonight. 3 of 4 from the field (all 3’s), a couple of dimes, a couple of rebounds, and what should’ve been a steal and a foul drawn from Embiid. Joel hacked him before getting a jump ball call. Embiid is a really annoying player. He flops more than any 280 pound guy I’ve ever seen.
Is this mfer really calling him Isaiah Lie-vers?
I just edited my post to comment on that.
I guess he never watches college ball.
Those OKC guys seem to be about 80% chatter, 20% PBP.
At least they got Johnny Kane’s call for the final bucket.
Zavier’s Simpsons dad just posted on IG that X will finish the season with the big club in OKC. Awesome news.
So, Franz sprained his ankle the other day, then missed his first game of the season. I see little reason he will play again this year, so perhaps it’s a good time for a season-end review of our crew, after having dropped the ball due to life the past 2 months.
Isaiah Livers took a whole lot longer to return from his foot injury than I think anyone expected, and when he did, it was into this late portion of the year that…can sometimes only sort resemble basketball. So it’s hard to have a clear view here. However - in his first 16 games of his career he has established he can shoot in the NBA (41.4% from three) and perhaps more importantly has shown he can get them up at a pretty high rate (about 7 per 36 minutes). He’s rebounded ok, and defensive stats suggest he’s not liability there. A 3-D career is within reach!
Franz Wagner is probably 4th on my ROTY ballot, which has less to do with any back-slide he’s experienced from earlier in the year than with Cade Cunningham’s final two months. If there is a remarkable thing about what Franz did this year, it’s his remarkable consistency: since a slow first month, his true shooting was at least 56% every month, and put up, at minimum, a 15/5/3 each month. In that time, we’ve seen his shooting and passing tic up incrementally. Advanced stats have his defense, like Livers, as respectable but unexceptional (an area I’d expect to improve with age and if he ever plays with real defenders). I don’t know that there is a superstar here, but I can see him rounding into a Pascal Siakam type - a #2/super-quality #3 scoring option on a quality team, a versatile positional defender, and an option as a secondary facilitator (also their frames are pretty similar at this age). Lots of people (not here) had doubts about him as a draft pick, and I think he’s disabused most of them.
Ignas Brazdeikis managed to stay on an NBA roster for the entire season, albeit one of the weakest ones. He played in a career-high 39 games, and the quality, I’d say, was not good but rising to the level of “objectionable”. In his time smoking the G-League the past few years, he’s been a monster at the rim and on the glass, and those sort of get wiped away in the NBA. He’s basically the walking embodiment of the concept of the “Replacement Player” ubiquitously used in baseball stat nerdery.
Jordan Poole has posted a second breakout year on the back of his first, and it’s shocking how far he’s come in two years - he has added 5% to his assist rate, 150 points to his true shooting, and his defense has moved from “unplayable” to “fine”. If there is a Michigan player in the league poised to be an All-Star, this is the one. Poole started the year as a quality complimentary scoring option and Curry sub, hit some struggles with the re-integration of Klay Thompson and the change in his role, but has arguably shown the most growth in the last twenty games. With his return to the starting lineup, Poole’s usage has jumped to approximately 30%, poured in closed to 26 ppg, and done so at true-shooting percentages around 64%. He has retained his rebounding, foul drawing, and shooting despite a massive usage use, and grown his assist rate…all while improving defense. This was a VERY promising year for Poole, and if he opens next year playing like this, he is an unquestionable all-star.
Duncan Robinson made quite a bit fewer shots this year, and for a player of his profile, that’s really all that matters. With most players we can dig into lots of different stats to see their value, with him, it’s his ability to take and make a very difficult diet of threes that makes him special, and his ability to do that declined enough to first lose time to a player shooting similarly but with better defense (Max Strus), and then losing his starting role to Strus. 37% is certainly a solid shooting year, but less so when “shooting” is what you’re supposed to bring. Thankfully, he’s got some money, but it’s hard to see this as anything but a setback. I’d imagine he’s a strong trade candidate this off-season.
After a season last year that left his viability on an NBA roster in doubt, Mo Wagner quietly had a solid season as the Magic’s “backup center” (quotes because they start two). Those of us who saw him as a stretch big (probably including the Lakers here) seem destined for disappointment on that front. His attempt rate hit a career high (over 7 per 36 minutes), but the effectiveness wasn’t there (under 32%). Despite this, he was an EXTREMELY effective offense player - true shooting over 61%. How? For starters, he shot over 65% from inside the arc, and posted a rather impressive .335 free throw rate - attempting over 5 free throws per 36 minutes (he shoots over 80% at the line). Mo improved his assist and rebounding rate, and while I can’t point at a single stat like steals or blocks to explain it, he was routinely a positive force defensively in terms of raw +/- and advanced stats. Finally, for the first season in his career he posted a positive BPM. For those who track Mo’s profligate fouling, this was his first season under 5 per 36 minutes (though still really high at 4.7)
I think this season has sort of solidified what Caris Levert is. I think he’s worthy of 20+ minutes per game, maybe even for solid teams, but he’s struggled with efficiency for his entire career, and it’s hard to see that changing at this point. Caris’ best trait is his ability to create shots - for others (he’s always been a respectable passer as a primary ball-handler), but mostly for himself. His biggest issue is that he just doesn’t make enough of them - in his rookie season he touched league-average shooting efficiency, but really hasn’t been particularly close since. Colin Sexton is a much maligned player, but given that Caris has been his injury replacement, I think think it’s useful to point out how much more efficient Colin is in the same role. Caris is a guy who will be able to post numbers on bad teams, and maybe can be the engine of your second unit for decent teams.
Trey Burke has hit the COVID protocols FOUR times this year (where he presently is) and hit a career low in games, minutes, minutes per game, shooting, assist rate, and scoring. I think we’re about done here. Whatever affection Rick Carlisle had for playing 2 tiny point guards at once has abandoned him, and it does not seem as if Kidd is similarly enamored.
It was a lost year for Tim Hardaway Jr. - his FG% dropped under 40%, his three point shooting dropped from two seasons a hair under 40% to 33%, and he posted a career low rate inside the arc. He had lost his starting job to Reggie Bullock, then eventually to Brunson/Kleber/a pupu platter of rotating guards), then fractured his foot and missed half the year. The season seemed to be off to a nearly aberrantly poor start, so maybe there is hope for a come-back here. The Mavericks have already openly discussed shedding salary next year, and Hardaway’s pretty large cap number seems to be a prime target. Given his struggle with the coaching change, perhaps its best for all if he moves on.
Looks like X is making his debut tonight
Yep. Blazers/Thunder not the game I expected to choose on league pass tonight but can’t miss the
As always, thanks for putting the effort into this. I was wondering if you had any thoughts on the fringe AAAA players that got cups of coffee this year (Walton, Stauskas, Wilson, etc.). Doesn’t seem like any found a home in the league…but would appreciate your takes.