Question Stolen from Diaries

by Dave on Aug 19, 2007 12:49 AM PDT in News

Kampeska, a fine reader, posted a fine diary asking a fine question:

How important is it to have players who can get their own shot? How many of our players can and who are they?

I've stolen this question for the main page for a couple of reasons:

It's a good question.
In order to meet the 300 character minimum in diaries Kampeska strung together about 200 question marks after his question. This really messed up the formatting. Which reminds me, we haven't had a new "filling up the 300 characters in diaries" question in a while so...if you need some extra characters in your diary tell us what and where the best vacation you ever had was. DON'T DO IT IN THIS THREAD. Just add it to your diary if you're short characters.

Anyway, like Kampy said, how important is it to have guys who can get their own shots and who can right now for the Blazers?

--Dave (blazersub@yahoo.com)

P.S. Sorry to the four people who commented already in the diaries. I deleted it because of the formatting thing. Maybe you can recap here?

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It's important...

...in that it adds another dimension to the offense. Also, at crunch time, a 'creator' is invaluable, as defenders are overplaying to stop the scripted plays.

In my opinion the only Blazer who fits that bill is Brandon Roy and he has room to grow in it. Others have 'potential' but haven't shown it consistently.

Amazingly, Mr. Darius Miles, a decent ball handler with a high confidence level, has shown that skill in the past.

" If you can do it in black wingtips, it aint a sport!" Ken

by Dr Dave on Aug 19, 2007 7:24 AM PDT reply actions

Travis is Getting Better at Creating His Own Shot

Some people say Travis is always open because he can leap so high. I think Travis is just beginning to learn how to create his own shot. He has surprisingly deadly accuracy and has shown a willingness and capacity for increasing his range. He'll get a few threes this year. More importantly, he'll get to the foul line a lot and juke past defenders on the way to the rim a lot more.

by fisheyes on Aug 19, 2007 10:26 AM PDT reply actions

Creating your own shot...

has become important in the NBA over the past 30 years because offenses have become more one on one or pick and roll oriented. I am always amazed when I see clips of the 76-77 Blazers and they are actually running an offense that includes all five players moving, touching the ball, and shooting.
You may remember how effective Jim Paxson was in Ramsey's offense in the early 80s. He was an excellent outside shooter which forced defenses to overplay him on the perimeter which then opened up the backdoor cut. I wouldn't say Paxson was a great one on one player but he was a great scorer in that offense.
In today's NBA, if you have a guy who can create his own shot, you can build your offense around that guy. Nash is the perfect example. He forces defenses to play him and then opens shots up for other people.

by tssbro on Aug 19, 2007 11:29 AM PDT reply actions

finishing my thought...

I disagree with fatty's comment that we have no one on this team that can do this.
Like many have said, the guy most capable of creating his own shot this year will be Roy. He can break down defenders, draw fouls, and get into the lane and finish with both hands. He demonstrated this last year and I expect he will get better at it this year.
I am also going to pick the lightning rod of controversy, Jarret Jack, as another candidate. He has been known to hit a pull up jumper off the dribble on occasion. I have also seen him drive into the lane and finish. Without the black hole to feed the ball to, we might actually see some motion in the offense that will open up lanes for Jack to do more of this.

by tssbro on Aug 20, 2007 12:15 AM PDT up reply actions

if we are

lucky enough to draft that player in next year's lottery would be a blessing for the franchise. because we definately do not have on this roster.

by fatty on Aug 19, 2007 12:01 PM PDT reply actions

did you watch any....

...games last year when Roy wasn't hurt? He ABSOLUTELY can and does create his own shot. Here are some examples: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oEtx0wRy_Dw

by nlj on Aug 19, 2007 11:53 PM PDT up reply actions

Wow...

Thanks for the visual evidence for what I was trying to say. Sometimes fatty says some crazy stuff.

by tssbro on Aug 20, 2007 12:20 AM PDT up reply actions

Roy does well..

because he knows how to play off the weak sided defence. Something EVERY player in the NBA should know how to do.

If you look at most of the shots he took in that video, he got open by being on the defences weak side from a bad rotation or someone was double teamed, and he wasnt.

I am not trying to take away from his ability, in fact I am praising him for what he does. Not a lot of players in general know how to work off a defensive mistake in order to get a good look at the basket.

by Blazer on Aug 20, 2007 3:38 AM PDT up reply actions

Perhaps the 3,000 mile distance

makes it difficult for you to see clearly.

The guy with the ball in his hands at the end of most Blazer games. The one that won RoY. I think he is capable of creating his own shot.

I'm hoping to see the Blazers develop into a team where having a guy who can create his own shot isn't that important. I prefer team basketball to isolation, one on one. As some guy named Wooden used to teach - the ball can move faster than any player on the court.

by timg56 on Aug 20, 2007 7:20 AM PDT up reply actions

Thanks Dave

I appreciate your management style.

by Kampeska on Aug 19, 2007 12:09 PM PDT reply actions

Brandon Roy

Brandon Roy has that skill already, I think that Travis Outlaw and Sergio Potentially could also have that skill with Travis a lot closer, the one in the future however will be Rudy.

by jsh on Aug 19, 2007 12:39 PM PDT reply actions

Believe it or not

There are a few players on the team who can get their own shot. Is that important? Only if they want to win games this year. Being a young team they will experience a lot of offensive break downs at the end of games as better teams clamp down on defense. Having players who can create their own shot in that situation will be critical.

Both Outlaw and Roy demonstrated this ability last year. Outlaw by using his leaping ability, Roy by displaying a deceptively quick first step.

I think LMA can also fit into this category as long as "creating your own shot" doesn't mean bringing the ball up the court, but he didn't show it much in his rookie year.

Sergio can also get his own shot, but does anybody want that yet?

by jon @ Blazer's Edge on Aug 19, 2007 2:13 PM PDT reply actions

I believe it

Sergio will end up having a few decent years as backup PG on a Euro-League team. He can go create his own cheesy little Euro-shot in the Euro-League. If ya want a legit shot-creator, look at Travis. Fatty you're all wrong about Travis, he's gonna have a break-out year. And speaking of Fatty, why do so many posters go out of their way to show deference to him? That guy's baskerball insights are so lame he needs a handicap sticker to go with his posts.

by fisheyes on Aug 19, 2007 2:39 PM PDT reply actions

it's huge

Because team ball isn't going to create a open basket every play. When a play breaks down, you need a guy who can flat out score, whether it be creating his own jump shot or flat out getting to the hoop. B-Roy is that guy... Webster is not. I pray Webster can become something even remotely close to it though.

Formerly known as Junit3123

by Jason3123 on Aug 19, 2007 2:39 PM PDT reply actions

Roy

Is the only legit guy on the team who can get his every time. Lamarcus can, but he needs someone to feed him the ball in the right spot, so that doesn't count. However, that doesn't mean LMA isn't a go-to guy, there is a difference. Jarrett, has shown some ability to get to the rim, but not always finish well so that doesn't count either, you have to be able to get good shots, not just shots.

Everyone else on the team either hasnt' proved they can do it yet because of minimal NBA experience, or just plain can't. That's all I got.

I am the master of my fate, I am the Captain of my soul. - Charles Wesley

by Earl on Aug 19, 2007 6:18 PM PDT reply actions

The inclusion

of a top point guard can alleviate the need to create for other players (Nash).

We are not there yet with our PGs.

by lee3022 on Aug 19, 2007 8:06 PM PDT reply actions

How to score in the NBA.

You either need an entire five man unit correctly running an offense on a consistent basis, or you need someone to create their own shot. In a five man unit you need everyone to have a thorough understanding of the offense and the smarts to make the right pass in the offense. In an offense with a creator you need a guy who can create his own shot AND pass.

Teams fail when they have nobody who can consistently make their own shot AND they don't have a sophisticated offense nailed down. Teams also fail when they have someone who can create their own shot but cannot pass. Opposing teams simply shut down the scorer.

The Blazers are not going to have a sophisticated NBA offense run by five smart guys for some time. Therefore in the upcoming season it is going to be important for people to get their own shots. I would say that on the team only Roy and Rodriguez can create their own shot on a consistent basis, and Rodriguez doesn't shoot that well. Both can pass.

A question for me is do post players count? Is creating your own shot the same as needing to be double teamed? I think Oden and Aldridge on the low block will both probably be double-teamed a fair amount this year. I think that will be important, because we can't rely on Roy to be good or great on both sides of the ball on every possession down the floor.

by EnglandDan on Aug 20, 2007 10:45 AM PDT reply actions

Does that count?

When I asked the question I thought about it this way. A player has the ball and is defended. Can he get himself a shot that would be considered a "good shot."

by Kampeska on Aug 20, 2007 2:12 PM PDT up reply actions

That depends where they are when they get the ball

Greg Oden can create his own shot if he gets the ball eight feet from the basket. He can't twenty feet from the basket.

by EnglandDan on Aug 20, 2007 4:04 PM PDT up reply actions

Roy can

Outlaw not so much, at this point. He actually ends up getting his shot blocked sometimes when he tries, too, which is amazing considering his hops.

Martell can, if his defender makes a mistake and closes out too much on him, but that hardly counts.

Jarrett Jack not so much, he ended up taking some poor shots at the end of the shot clock when Zach kicked it out with a second or two left, though he made an impressive number of those.

Roy had the ball in his hands at the end of close games for several reasons. Not only can he create his own shot, but he forces teams to double him, and can be counted on to make an excellent decision at crunch time - whether it's to pass or to shoot.

by baduk on Aug 20, 2007 12:15 PM PDT reply actions

Very Important

Look I won't comment on who in the blazers can create their oen shot as to my dismay here in Aus we get NBA but very few Blazers games (Damn them) anyways I have had me whinge about that.

Creating your own shot can be the different between being good and being a superstar. You look at all the superstars in the league and almsot all of them are able to create their own shot. Its what can make a player.

When the game is close you want guys on the floor that can create their own shot.

Well just my 2 cents.

Have fun all.

by Bairdy on Aug 20, 2007 9:42 PM PDT reply actions