01-06-2006, 03:53 PM
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#1 (permalink)
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3 + 2 = 5
Join Date: Aug 2002
Age: 25
Posts: 22,246
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Eddie Jones back on track
Quote:
Eddie Jones Is Back On Track
Graham Kendrick
In the midst of Damon Stoudamire’s injury, the subsequent elevation of Bobby Jackson to the starting lineup and the All-Star push being made by Pau Gasol, it almost seems as if Eddie Jones has been a forgotten man lately.
But in his last five games since returning from an ankle injury that sidelined him for two games last month, Jones has averaged 19.4 points per game while shooting 50.8% from the field, including 43.8% from three-point range.
Prior to the injury, Jones’ play had been erratic. Over a month-long, 14-game stretch prior to injuring his ankle in the double-overtime loss to Detroit, he scored in single figures in eight of those games, averaging just 10.2 points per game on 38.7% shooting from the field overall, and 33.9% shooting from three-point range over than span.
So was the ankle injury, with the time off it allowed him, a blessing in disguise?
“Maybe so,” he laughed after Wednesday’s practice. “Even though I was injured I was coming in here and getting up a lot of shots at the end of practice. That’s all I was trying to do. When you’re not playing you have to get off some shots and stay moving. Once you see that ball going in the hole, that’s the confidence right there.”
That confidence has helped the Grizzlies win four straight to raise their record to 20-10, a feat due largely to improved offensive play from not just Jones, but the entire starting unit. Memphis has scored 100 or more points in four of the last five games, after hitting the century mark just four times in the first 25 games.
“The shots are falling and we’re moving the ball. We’re an unselfish team, and once you move the ball you get the best shot, the ball is getting into the right people’s hands at the right time and the ball is going down for you,” said Jones. “When you move the ball you get open shots, and open shots in this league are hard to come by.”
The game on January 3 against Golden State was a perfect example. With Pau Gasol commanding double-teams in the post, he kept kicking it back out to the perimeter players for open looks, as the Grizzlies shot 59.5% in the first half to build a 20-point lead over the Warriors that they would never relinquish.
“(Pau)’s the one guy we have on this team that demands a double-team,” said Jones. “When we get it to him he’s going to create opportunities for you. When he’s going well, we’re going well.”
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Read the rest of the story here.
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Originally Posted by Ballscientist
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Eddie Jones back on track
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