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2 myths exposed

840 views 26 replies 10 participants last post by  Minstrel 
#1 · (Edited)
MYTH 1: Rasheed Wallace is a deadly weapon as a 3-point shooter, and this helps Portland win games.

Last night Wallace took only two 3-point shots, and missed them both. But we still beat the team with the best record in the league (and the best home court record). That's because Wallace played close to the basket, where he scored 26 points (way above his average), shot 60% from the floor, drew fouls (he made 8 of 9 free throws), grabbed 15 rebounds, and blocked 3 shots. The fact is, Wallace is a much more potent force when he plays down low. It helps the team much more than his 3-point shooting ever did.

MYTH 2: Zach's excellent interior play is dependent on Wallace making those outside shots and drawing defenders away from the basket.

While it's true that hot outside shooting from Wallace can help Zach's game, it's also true that the two of them can function quite nicely together around the basket. Last night Zach had 16 points on almost 50% shooting. He also grabbed 11 rebounds, which is his average. If Zach improves his off-the-ball offense, he'll also be able to get tip-ins from Wallace misses. And as defenders flock to Wallace when he shoots those 10 and 15-foot jumpers, that will also open up space for Zach underneath. It's a win-win.

The point is, Wallace playing near the basket is good for the TEAM. That should be clear from last night's big win against the Kings.
 
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#2 ·
I definitely agree with both points made. The combo of Sheed and Z-Bo can be a force inside the paint. I hope to see Sheed playing center from here on out. That was the most energy I've seen out of Sheed in a long time. He is a easy all-star if he came out and with that kind of desire each night. DD can play more limited minutes as a backup.
 
#3 · (Edited)
So what your saying is...

SAR and Zach can coexist offensively :D

SAR, Ratliff and Zach can as well.. with Ratliff being the shotblocker we need defensively. (Much like Dale is when he is having an intimidating night)

j/k TH

your points are very well taken. At least for last nights game. I do wish Wallace would play more in the paint. I think a twin PF tandem would be awesome if they can spread the court for them and communicate well. His great length can be very uselful and he needs to take advantage of it. He has an advantage on most PF's in the league.
 
#4 ·
I don't disagree that Sheed is better when he mixes it up inside...

However, I think you're overlooking the fact that Sheed was able to play down low so effectively in part because of DA's return to the starting lineup...

With Damon, DA and Q rounding out the lineup there is enough of an outside presence to punish teams for doubling either post player. Also, Q and DA are arguably better at feeding the post than Damon or McInnis...

Cheers
 
#6 ·
Originally posted by <b>Blazer Ringbearer</b>!
However, I think you're overlooking the fact that Sheed was able to play down low so effectively in part because of DA's return to the starting lineup...

With Damon, DA and Q rounding out the lineup there is enough of an outside presence to punish teams for doubling either post player. Also, Q and DA are arguably better at feeding the post than Damon or McInnis...
I'm reminded of the Cheeks quote early on in the seson responsing to a question if Zach is now the Blazers #1 guy on offense. He said... "Sheed is still the #1 guy. The way he can shoot the ball from the perimeter allows Zach to play inside as much as he does."

Certainly good inside players greatly benefit from being surrounded by guys who keep the defense from collapsing in the paint with their outside threats. It's also a basketball truism that you can't send everyone down on the block... too many cooks in the kitchen sort of thing. Dale Davis and Ruben aren't outside threats, Q and DA are. IMO, Sheed is talented enough inside and out to play at a high level where the team needs him. Change the lineup, and he's able to change his play accordingly.

Whats a myth is that he doesn't like contact and floats to the perimeter all on his own... he's been there on coach's orders.

STOMP
 
#7 ·
It depends on what position he is playing.

It depends what TEAM we are playing.

Sheed's three can be downright necessary if he is playing SF, esp vs certain teams. For instance, in the Dallas series, ESP with DA out, Sheed HAD to shoot threes. We needed outside shooting while Dale and Zach manned the middle.
 
#8 ·
Sheed can be almost unstoppable in the post when he shows that kind of energy last night. He can be stopped with bad shooting on the outside. The percentages are greater when you shoot closer. I hope Sheed is given the ball down low and that he wants to play down in the post the rest of the year. I don't mind the 2 or 3 three-point attempts a game but not 7 or 8. Portland will not win many games if they are relying on Sheed to knock down the three.
 
#9 ·
"Whats a myth is that [Wallace] doesn't like contact and floats to the perimeter all on his own... he's been there on coach's orders."
Wrong. I posted a quote from Cheeks earlier in the season where he clearly stated that Wallace preferred to play on the perimeter, and that's why he was out there.

"Sheed is talented enough inside and out to play at a high level where the team needs him. Change the lineup, and he's able to change his play accordingly."
No one doubts that Wallace is TALENTED enough to play at a high level anywhere along the frontcourt. The point is he is much more valuable playing closer to the basket. The team is not able to exploit all of his diverse skills when he's loitering around at the 3-point line.
 
#10 ·
I'll throw another myth out there...

Myth#3
Outside shooting only occurs outside of the 3 point line.

To me outside shooting is anywhere from 4-5 fdeet inside the arc to obviously outside the Arc. having a guy nail a 18 footer spreads the floor nearly as affectively as hitting a 3.

MYTH BUSTED!
 
#11 ·
Exactly, to drive the point home just a little further - considering Zach and Sheed as an inside tandem, compare the two lineups...

Lineup 1
Zach/Sheed + Damon + McInnis + Davis
(inside tandem + outside guy + midrange-outside guy + inside guy)

Lineup 2
Zach/Sheed + Damon + DA + Qyntel
(inside tandem + outside guy + outside guy + midrange-outside guy)

Now in lineup 1, if Sheed and Zach spend most of their time down low on offense than that can translate into several scenarios.

1 - Zach, Sheed and Davis all operate in the low block at the same time. Obviously this won't work, there's just not enough space and it would be so easy to defend.

2 - Zach and Sheed are down low, with Davis on the perimeter. This renders Dale useless as he is the worst outside shooter in the lineup freeing his man to double team. Also, this takes away his rebounding presence.

3 - Sheed and Davis are down low, with Zach on the perimeter. Zach has a jumper, so this could work on occasion, but you miss his offensive rebounding capability. He's also not the most effective passer.

4 - Zach and Davis inside, Sheed on the perimeter. Sheed is the best outside shooter of the three - if not in the entire lineup. He feeds the post very well and is the only one of the three inside players with three point range to create good spacing and force his man to guard him out there.

I think it is fairly clear why with Lineup 1, Sheed spent so much time on the perimeter. Out of all four options, it is the one that is best for the spacing and flow of the offense and therefore the toughest to defend.

That said, for these reasons, Lineup 2 is clearly superior if Sheed will spend a healthy portion of his time inside on offense.

Cheers
 
#12 ·
Originally posted by <b>Trader Bob</b>!
So what your saying is...

SAR and Zach can coexist offensively :D

SAR, Ratliff and Zach can as well.. with Ratliff being the shotblocker we need defensively. (Much like Dale is when he is having an intimidating night)

j/k TH

your points are very well taken. At least for last nights game. I do wish Wallace would play more in the paint. I think a twin PF tandem would be awesome if they can spread the court for them and communicate well. His great length can be very uselful and he needs to take advantage of it. He has an advantage on most PF's in the league.
Check my Avatar!!:D
 
#14 ·
Originally posted by <b>Blazer Ringbearer</b>!
Schilly,

Good point, but 3-pointers are better for spacing if we're talking about kicking the ball out of the post.

If a guy can knock down the open three with consistency than it means 7 more feet (as compared to an 18 footer) for the defense to cover, which makes a huge difference.
Oh I agree, but at the same time a 18 footer is usually a higher percentage shot than a 3 so the effectiveness kinda balances...Maybe rather than 18 I should say 20 footer though.
 
#17 ·
Originally posted by <b>Talkhard</b>!
MYTH 1: Rasheed Wallace is a deadly weapon as a 3-point shooter, and this helps Portland win games.

MYTH 2: Zach's excellent interior play is dependent on Wallace making those outside shots and drawing defenders away from the basket.
But did you also notice Derek Anderson filling it up from outside? No one's been saying that if someone else can hurt opposing defenses from outside, the Blazers are better off with Wallace hanging around on the perimeter.

The point was, nobody else was doing any damage from outside, leaving Wallace as the only somewhat reliable outside shooter.

There's no question that when this team was at it's best, Steve Smith, Greg Anthony and ocassionally Scottie Pippen handled the outside shooting and Wallace was most effective inside.

If Derek Anderson (and perhaps Wesley Person) can routinely light it up from outside, there's no question in anyone's mind, I don't think, that Wallace is most useful inside.
 
#18 ·
Rasheed is still our best or second-best perimeter/three point shooter. He should not be shooting 3's the the extent that he has occasionally, but him only shooting 2 balls from behind the arc had nothing, really, to do with his rebounding (since 14 of the 15 boards were defensive).

While I was happy with Rasheed's play last night, if the Kings had hit a decent FG% (as almost every other opponent has this season) Portland would have been blown out of the water and the myths that TH seems so confidently to dismiss would not be affected at all.

Ed O.
 
#19 ·
Re: Re: 2 myths exposed

Originally posted by <b>Minstrel</b>!
If Derek Anderson (and perhaps Wesley Person) can routinely light it up from outside, there's no question in anyone's mind, I don't think, that Wallace is most useful inside.
This is exactly why I've been hoping for a quality outside shooting 3 (specifically Battier) for Portland all season long. Dale, Wallace, and Zach would make an excellent 3 man rotation for the 4/5 inside positions IMO. Add that guy for Damon and this is a pretty tough squad.

STOMP
 
#20 ·
Originally posted by <b>Ed O</b>!
While I was happy with Rasheed's play last night, if the Kings had hit a decent FG% (as almost every other opponent has this season) Portland would have been blown out of the water and the myths that TH seems so confidently to dismiss would not be affected at all.

Ed O.
I would have to say Portland had something to do with the Kings shooting so poorly. The Blazers played decent defense for most of the game. I saw more hustle and desire than in recent games. I also liked the fact that they didn't just let guys walk down the paint...put a few to the floor. Plus, the Kings are not going to shoot lights out every night. I actually thought the Kings were even lucky to be in the game at all for two reasons. #1, Portland was horrible from the foul line. They were not even close to their bad season average. #2, The Kings shot a very high 3-pt % for the game. This game could have been a blow out for Portland depending on how you look at it.
 
#21 · (Edited)
"If the Kings had hit a decent FG% (as almost every other opponent has this season) Portland would have been blown out of the water and the myths that TH seems so confidently to dismiss would not be affected at all."
You always seem to miss the big picture, Ed. We went down to Sacramento and beat the best team in the NBA! And Wallace had a monster game at center. These two facts are not completely unrelated, you know.

And did you ever think that Portland's defense might have had something to do with the Kings' poor shooting?

Even if Portland had lost, the fact remains that Wallace STILL got all those points and all those rebounds while playing inside. He also shot 60% from the field, which is fantastic. I'll take that kind of production from him any night of the week, thank you. It will lead to a win more times than not.

By the way, your avatar is the creepiest thing I've ever seen. The pasty-faced Dweeb with the Dutch-Boy haircut looks like some kind of twisted Nazi-Youth child molester.
 
#23 ·
Originally posted by <b>Schilly</b>!
Here's my theory on the FG% situation last night

Portland played slightly better D last night and Sacramento shot slightly worse than usual last night.

Combine the 2 and you have a larger difference of FG% from the kings.
I agree with this 100%. The Blazers had more energy across the board, including defensively, and the Kings missed a LOT of shots they'd normally nail.

Ed O.
 
#24 ·
Originally posted by <b>Talkhard</b>!

You always seem to miss the big picture, Ed. We went down to Sacramento and beat the best team in the NBA! And Wallace had a monster game at center. These two facts are not completely unrelated, you know.
I didn't say they were totally unrelated. Without Rasheed having a big game, Portland probably would not have won (although they ended up winning without either Wallace or McInnis in OT).

A mere relationship doesn't determine the "big picture", though. Your extrapolation of ONE game where Rasheed got a lot of defensive rebounds and happened to shoot only 2 three pointers is not one that I'm willing to accept with only one game to support your point.

Even if Portland had lost, the fact remains that Wallace STILL got all those points and all those rebounds while playing inside. He also shot 60% from the field, which is fantastic. I'll take that kind of production from him any night of the week, thank you. It will lead to a win more times than not.
60% from 2 point range is that same as shooting 40% from 3 point range. Rasheed needs to attack the basket like he did last night, sure, but he should not be unwilling to shoot 3 pointers, either.

If Rasheed had been shooting 60% from 2 point range this season and sub-30% from 3's, I'd argue that he should cut down on his 3's. As it is, he's been struggling from all over the court, and I think his 3 point shooting slump is part of his overall slump, rather than an aberration.

And, as I noted in my original post, 14 of Rasheed's 15 rebounds were defensive. This was because of his aggressiveness and the Kings' poor shooting, but had nothing to do with his lack of 3 point attempts.

By the way, your avatar is the creepiest thing I've ever seen. The pasty-faced Dweeb with the Dutch-Boy haircut looks like some kind of twisted Nazi-Youth child molester.
Definitely a creepy-looking guy. You gotta catch the British show "The Office". It's hilarious and Gareth (pictured) is pretty darn good. Check out his site here.

Ed O.
 
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