SI analyzes Dion & the rest of the NBA rookies

[Orangeyes]

SI analyzes Dion & the rest of the NBA rookies

Cleveland Cavaliers rookie Dion Waiters injured but cleared to play

 

[armory]

That guy is pretty harsh with his criticism.

 

[MyMeloMyMan]

You look at some of these guys who were just beasts in college... it's hard to make it in the NBA. I give Dion credit..I think he is playing great. If he can just turn on the signal in his brain to PASS when he decides to drive...it will open up everything. Everyone knows once he puts his head down, he is driving and throwing up a crazy low percentage lay up. But his jump shooting has been good overall. Needs more point guard instincts and less Ben-Gordon-lite instincts, because he isn't the shooter BG was.

 

[Gabjon]

I think his drive game will come around. His first 2 weeks he was getting his shot blocked at a high rate. Now I think he is so concerned with that (as he should be) he is not finishing. He has also been passing it better. I think by the all-star break we will get a better feel for his game, but he is a straight line player (seems like the author doesn't like that but that is more personal taste than analysis) which is fine because he can finish with both hands. His game is more power (for a guard) than speed.

 

[Knicks411]

I saw he's had an awful shooting stretch. He's been above 40% one time in a game (41%) since 11/11. 37% from 3 though.

 

[suthrills]

That guy is pretty harsh with his criticism.

What was harsh? The guy gave a fair and objective assessment of dions play to this point.

 

[Gabjon]

I saw he's had an awful shooting stretch. He's been above 40% one time in a game (41%) since 11/11. 37% from 3 though.

6-21 fg vs Washington
4-18 fg vs Detroit
4-12 fg vs Brooklyn

These are Damian Lillard's last 3 games shooting and he is the best rookie in the league. They all hit the wall. The amount of games and travel catches up with everyone. Davis has missed the last 2 weeks with a stress fracture in his foot.

 

[Upstate]

it's going to take time for dion to hit his stride in the NBA. He's streaky, but he can also get by nearly anyone already. He's got to do what George Karl did with Melo: get to the line 10x, get 10 shots in the lane or around the basket, and you can then take 10 jumpers. Maybe not to that scale, because he is no Melo, but he should be taking the ball to the basket consistently, which also gives him opportunities to do some point guardy things.

 

[Shenexon]

Dion was a success story in Syracuse and is working hard to be a success in the NBA. Ambition is both a strength and weakness for him to go along with his physical talents. He painfully learned some discipline from JB and needs to keep applying those lessons and he'll be a good one.

 

[armory]

What was harsh? The guy gave a fair and objective assessment of dions play to this point.

I don't find much of his criticism "fair" at all. He picks a flaw, meditates on it to its limit and exacerbates any effect it has. There is a difference between giving an assessment, and phrasing it with belittling extremes.

 

[SoBeCuse]

I think the difference between 6'2 and 6'4 like Wade is huge. The post defenders and shot blockers are so good in the NBA and the acrobatic layup attempts just don't work like they did at SU. He is playing pretty well in general but I think he really will need to improve his shooting and mid-range game moving forward.

 

[MyMeloMyMan]

The pull up jumper will be his best friend. Richard Hamilton made a career on it.

 

[Gabjon]

I don't find much of his criticism "fair" at all. He picks a flaw, meditates on it to its limit and exacerbates any effect it has. There is a difference between giving an assessment, and phrasing it with belittling extremes.

Agreed "Barreling towards the rim" is not an objective criticism.

 

[suthrills]

Agreed "Barreling towards the rim" is not an objective criticism.

Have you not watched him play? That's what dion does, it's an apt description.

 

[suthrills]

I don't find much of his criticism "fair" at all. He picks a flaw, meditates on it to its limit and exacerbates any effect it has. There is a difference between giving an assessment, and phrasing it with belittling extremes.

He described dions game well, just because you don't like it doesn't mean it's not fair. I didn't find it belittling as he points out there is promise in dions future if he can refine parts of his game.

 

[Knicks411]

Waiters already has volume scorer written all over him only a month into his NBA career. But it should be interesting to see how the Cavs’ eventual roster shaping affects Waiters’ shot selection. Though he and point guard Kyrie Irving essentially have carte blanche to hoist up shots, Waiters’ optimal NBA utility will require that he rein in his bulk shooting attempts and tone down his driving game to the point where he can actually convert some of the looks he’s creating. Waiters has some nice ball skills (including a decent off-hand) and can use the pick-and-roll to launch toward the rim by either splitting defenders or wheeling around them.
That said, once Waiters creates a sliver of space, he hurls himself toward the basket without regard for help defense or the potential for the slightest creativity. His basketball world is composed of binaries and straight lines, and that kind of stripped-down court view often does him more harm than good. If Waiters starts to identify the context of the game more clearly (a big if, given that we’ve long waited for so many players to come to a similar realization), his field-goal percentage will jump. If not, he may prove to be equal parts help and imposition to Cleveland’s offense.

Is this really that harsh?

 

[OttoinGrotto]

I don't find much of his criticism "fair" at all. He picks a flaw, meditates on it to its limit and exacerbates any effect it has. There is a difference between giving an assessment, and phrasing it with belittling extremes.

I finished that article wondering why any NBA team was giving any minutes to them under any circumstances.

Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk 2

 

[armory]

He described dions game well, just because you don't like it doesn't mean it's not fair.

Just because you say its fair doesnt make it fair. That 2nd paragraph is riddled with hyperbole, I dont like it because I dont find it fair.

 

[MyMeloMyMan]

I remember a lot of people taking offense to a lot of the heat Jonny Flynn and Donte Greene were getting in the NBA...

 

[armory]

I remember a lot of people taking offense to a lot of the heat Jonny Flynn and Donte Greene were getting in the NBA...

Because Dion is performing far better than they did?

 

[Sufran]

I think he is very fair and accurate. Dion will do well once he gets everything down. I expect him to get 6-8 assists a game here soon.

 

[Gabjon]

Have you not watched him play? That's what dion does, it's an apt description.

No it's not because it implies he is not under control. How many charges does he get call for? How are you defining Barrels?