nuraman00
12-31-2011, 10:40 AM
* Coming into the game, Chris Paul had severely outplayed Derrick Rose in their head-to-heads. Derrick Rose outplayed Paul yesterday.
Paul did a good defensive job on Rose in the first half, making Rose pass the ball a lot. But from late in the 3rd quarter, Rose started scoring more. Also, Foye was on Rose for a few possessions in the second half, and Rose had an easier time.
* The Bulls are using the 3-pointer a lot more. Even though Rip Hamilton isn't that great of a 3-point threat, they are using him out by the 3-point line. I think it helps with the spacing, compared to last year's starting lineup.
Between Deng, Hamilton, and Boozer, that's a tough starting lineup to guard. It was already tough last year, and now got tougher.
* DeAndre Jordan has shown no improvement in his game. In fact, I think his FT stroke is worse. He worked out with Olajuwon over summer, but he does not appear to have learned the Dream Shake. Or how to make free throws. Or how to be a DPOY type player. He rebounds poorly. He still looks like a project, even more so on defense since he's starting more this year than compared to before. He tried to overblock shots, leaving him in poor defensive position.
* Cook and Jordan had five fouls each yesterday. I'm not surprised with Jordan getting fouls. He has the 4th highest foul rate among centers, among those that have played at least 4000 minutes, in that span.
* Even though Ryan Gomes didn't do much, I still think he can provide something off the bench. He was terrible last year, but he used to be a decent player for Boston and Minnesota. He did grab a crucial offensive rebound yesterday, something that Jordan didn't even do.
* As has been noted in the previous games, they are isolating Rose less, and going for baseline drives or pick and pops more. Rose is looking to score more less. Last year, he had a big jump in his FGAs, but this year, it's more in line with his career averages.
* On the broadcast yesterday, Lawler compared Noah's FT shooting motion to Shawn Marion's jumper. Lol.
* Griffin's ball handling skills on the perimeter, and his ability to make off-balance jumpers, is fun to watch. No, it shouldn't be a main source of offense, but if he can do it, it's fun.
* I didn't feel Paul's impact on the game until the second half, when he started getting in the paint more and making quick passes. Defensively, I felt his impact all game long, but not on offense until the second half.
* Butler looks like his All-Star self. He's not going to average that many points this year, but I could see him averaging 19-20 points in a playoffs series, if he has the right matchup.
Paul did a good defensive job on Rose in the first half, making Rose pass the ball a lot. But from late in the 3rd quarter, Rose started scoring more. Also, Foye was on Rose for a few possessions in the second half, and Rose had an easier time.
* The Bulls are using the 3-pointer a lot more. Even though Rip Hamilton isn't that great of a 3-point threat, they are using him out by the 3-point line. I think it helps with the spacing, compared to last year's starting lineup.
Between Deng, Hamilton, and Boozer, that's a tough starting lineup to guard. It was already tough last year, and now got tougher.
* DeAndre Jordan has shown no improvement in his game. In fact, I think his FT stroke is worse. He worked out with Olajuwon over summer, but he does not appear to have learned the Dream Shake. Or how to make free throws. Or how to be a DPOY type player. He rebounds poorly. He still looks like a project, even more so on defense since he's starting more this year than compared to before. He tried to overblock shots, leaving him in poor defensive position.
* Cook and Jordan had five fouls each yesterday. I'm not surprised with Jordan getting fouls. He has the 4th highest foul rate among centers, among those that have played at least 4000 minutes, in that span.
* Even though Ryan Gomes didn't do much, I still think he can provide something off the bench. He was terrible last year, but he used to be a decent player for Boston and Minnesota. He did grab a crucial offensive rebound yesterday, something that Jordan didn't even do.
* As has been noted in the previous games, they are isolating Rose less, and going for baseline drives or pick and pops more. Rose is looking to score more less. Last year, he had a big jump in his FGAs, but this year, it's more in line with his career averages.
* On the broadcast yesterday, Lawler compared Noah's FT shooting motion to Shawn Marion's jumper. Lol.
* Griffin's ball handling skills on the perimeter, and his ability to make off-balance jumpers, is fun to watch. No, it shouldn't be a main source of offense, but if he can do it, it's fun.
* I didn't feel Paul's impact on the game until the second half, when he started getting in the paint more and making quick passes. Defensively, I felt his impact all game long, but not on offense until the second half.
* Butler looks like his All-Star self. He's not going to average that many points this year, but I could see him averaging 19-20 points in a playoffs series, if he has the right matchup.