[ABM]

Bonzi Stuff From The Blog....

Blazers vs. Bonzi

The Blazers meet up with Bonzi Wells and the Grizzlies tonight in Memphis. The Grizz are on a roll of late, having won eight-straight games.

Check out what Bonzi Wells had to say following their most recent win, a 106-88 win over Denver:

"When you come off screens and see that open outside shot, it's tempting at times," said Wells, who scored a team-high 17 points off the bench two days after being slowed by the flu. "We've got a lot of guys with great three-point strokes - Mike (Miller), J-Will (Jason Williams), Shane (Battier) and Posey. But we weren't making the shots, so we went to the hole like Coach told us, and we started getting layups."
"...like coach told us..."

Did Bonzi Wells really just say that? Why was that so hard to do in Portland?
By the way, here is a comparison of the stats Bonzi put up in 13 games with Portland this season, compared with his stats through 25 games with Memphis:

Bonzi Wells in Portland
PPG RPG APG FG% 3-PT FG% FT% TO STL MIN
12.2 4.7 2.7 .389 .125 .778 2.5 1.5 31.1

Bonzi Wells in Memphis
PPG RPG APG FG% 3-PT FG% FT% TO STL MIN
12.8 3.3 1.9 .422 .333 .725 2.5 1.0 23.6


For the record, the Grizzlies are 16-10 since the trade (Wells missed one game with the flu), while the Blazers are a cool 9-17.

BTW, here's Bonzi's profound quote of the day (LOL!)

Q: Based on your experience, what is it going to take for this team to remain in playoff contention? (Nicole Osborne, Memphis)

A: "We just have to continue doing what we've been doing. We have to take it one day at a time. We can't overlook teams and look down the line past teams we think we can beat. We have to make sure we take every game seriously so that our wins can keep stacking up."

And, here's the results of a poll taken last week in Memphis....

Who among the Grizzlies deserves to be named to the all-star team?

Jason Williams, 22.6%

Pau Gasol, 49.0%

Lorenzen Wright, 3.7%

James Posey, 11.5%

Shane Battier, 7.1%

Mike Miller, 4.4%

Bonzi Wells, 1.7%

-->>Here's the Memphis game preview.

And, -->>Here's an article on Bonzi.......

Sitting down on a job that requires constant lateral movement may otherwise lead to termination.

But using a chair under the basket is helping Grizzlies guard Bonzi Wells become more productive....

..."He's very coachable," Wissel said. "But he came to me and said, 'I'm not a shooter, I'm a scorer.' That's a negative to me. I want to keep it all positive. . . . So we thought the chair drill would really help him."

Wells sought Wissel's advice after a horrid six-game stretch Jan. 9-19. He shot poorly (27 percent) and averaged 8.5 points in 21 minutes.

Then came the chair.

"It's all good," Wells said. "It helps you get back to the basics. It's basic stuff that guys kind of forget about doing. Guys can forget about what got them here. That's what I needed to do - get back to the basics and focus on the things I've always done growing up. Besides, we were still winning when I wasn't scoring. Individual stuff doesn't matter when you're getting a team W."

 

[dkap]

Sitting on a chair under the basket helps him shoot?

Eh?

Dan

 

[Dan]

Originally posted by <b>dkap</b>!
Sitting on a chair under the basket helps him shoot?

Eh?

Dan

I think it's like what Geoff Petrie did with Rod Strickland when he was here..

You set out folding chairs on the court, and you have to run around and shoot behind them, like they're players.

 

[ABM]

Originally posted by <b>Hap</b>!


I think it's like what Geoff Petrie did with Rod Strickland when he was here..

You set out folding chairs on the court.....

In Bonzi's case, boxes of crackers.

 

[mook]

Originally posted by <b>Hap</b>!
You set out folding chairs on the court, and you have to run around and shoot behind them, like they're players.

ahh, I see. I think Portland does something similar, except as a defensive drill. they get in position in front of the chair and try to prevent the chair from getting off a good shot. I've heard that Damon has defied all expectations and at times holds the chair to under 15 points.

 

[ABM]

Actually, according to the article, this is how the exercise is employed:

....A week ago, Wells was talking about his scoring slump with assistant coach Dr. Hal Wissel when the shooting guru grabbed a folding chair. Wissel asked Wells to sit at the arc that's used to determine charging calls in the paint.

Wells appeared wide-eyed and a bit apprehensive before he began launching shots from his squat.

"I had never done that before," Wells said Tuesday after again working overtime following a Griz practice. "Now it's something I can use at my camp in the summertime."

The exercise is designed to improve concentration and lift, and the result has been a more productive Wells. His last three outings measured up to the offensive efficiency the Grizzlies expect.

 

[dkap]

The exercise is designed to improve concentration and lift

And to put yourself in Damon's shoes.

Very odd. Has anyone else heard of such a drill being beneficial? I remember the Petrie and Strickland summer Hap is referring to, but this one is completely new to me.

An old school Hubie trick, recently dusted off by anthropologists? What's next, practicing on a peach basket?

Dan

 

[The Professional Fan]

Good 'ole Bonzi. Saying all the right things. His honeymoon in Memphis will not last forever. I have no doubt about that.

 

[ABM]

Originally posted by <b>theWanker</b>!


ahh, I see. I think Portland does something similar, except as a defensive drill. they get in position in front of the chair and try to prevent the chair from getting off a good shot. I've heard that Damon has defied all expectations and at times holds the chair to under 15 points.

Remember this quote?

According to Steve Patterson, the general manager of the Portland Trail Blazers, he couldn't trade troubled and expensive ex-Raptor Damon Stoudamire "for a chair." ...

 

[Fork]

Originally posted by <b>theWanker</b>!

ahh, I see. I think Portland does something similar, except as a defensive drill. they get in position in front of the chair and try to prevent the chair from getting off a good shot. I've heard that Damon has defied all expectations and at times holds the chair to under 15 points.

Is this the chair?

With a shiny quarter for easy reference.

 

[mook]

Originally posted by <b>ABM</b>!
Remember this quote?

yup. I think Nash is probably confident he could make that trade now, if only we could find a chair making $14 million a year to match salaries.

maybe we're aiming too low. perhaps we should look more towards barcoloungers.

 

[ABM]

Originally posted by <b>theWanker</b>!

...maybe we're aiming too low. perhaps we should look more towards barcoloungers.

I thought they were most successful in zone sets?

 

[Zeus]

Re: Bonzi Stuff From The Blog....

Originally posted by <b>ABM</b>!

Did Bonzi Wells really just say that? Why was that so hard to do in Portland?

probably because he didn't respect the coach. it's easy to listen to a guy you respect and do what he asks/tells you to. the respect the players have for Hubie is also reciprocal.

 

[Dan]

Re: Re: Bonzi Stuff From The Blog....

Originally posted by <b>Zeus</b>!


probably because he didn't respect the coach. it's easy to listen to a guy you respect and do what he asks/tells you to. the respect the players have for Hubie is also reciprocal.

that could be part of it, cept if you don't respect Maurice for what he did in the NBA, (winning a title, all time (at one point) steals leader, one of the best PG's to play the game)..you are a punkass.

I think the players respect hubie in the sense that he has jerry west backing him. Maurice, up until this year, really didn't have our GM backing him 100%

 

[Ed O]

Re: Re: Re: Bonzi Stuff From The Blog....

Originally posted by <b>Hap</b>!

that could be part of it, cept if you don't respect Maurice for what he did in the NBA, (winning a title, all time (at one point) steals leader, one of the best PG's to play the game)..you are a punkass.

Players respect what coaches have done on the court to a certain extent, but if the guy can't coach then it's only natural there would be some lack of respect. Even if they CAN coach, but they lack maturity, respect is going to be lost. We've seen that with coaches like George Karl and I think we've seen it with Mo Cheeks.

About the chair exercise: I think it makes sense in that it focuses the shooter's upper body movements. Bonzi and other players who don't have a "good" release (you can see he shoots a knuckle ball quite often, and that's not a good thing) can aim and use their legs properly but if there's a hitch or some sloppiness in their release, then it screws everything else up (even if it's textbook). Keeping the player seated lets them focus on one thing at a time and when there's a problem it helps isolate it so it can be corrected.

Ed O.

 

[dkap]

Ed, that explanation makes sense. However, since all it's really based on is theory (diagnosing human mechanics isn't the most exact of sciences), wouldn't it make sense that any potential benefits would be more than countered by the ill effect of aiming at the wrong level? Shoot on a 9' hoop or with a women's ball for long and it gets pretty hard to switch back effectively.

Dan

 

[ABM]

Originally posted by <b>dkap</b>!
Shoot on a 9' hoop or with a women's ball for long and it gets pretty hard to switch back effectively.

For a neat effect, try playing billiards, then switch to a snooker table, then back.

(In fact, if you want to impress/beat your friends, play on a snooker table for a few months, then challenge them to a billiards match, or two.)

 

[Ed O]

Originally posted by <b>dkap</b>!
Ed, that explanation makes sense. However, since all it's really based on is theory (diagnosing human mechanics isn't the most exact of sciences), wouldn't it make sense that any potential benefits would be more than countered by the ill effect of aiming at the wrong level? Shoot on a 9' hoop or with a women's ball for long and it gets pretty hard to switch back effectively.

Maybe, but (again, just theorizing here) since the legs aren't involved, the body as a whole might not get thrown out of whack the way that it does when one shoots at a lower basket or with a smaller ball.

I'm certainly no expert on this, but it reminds me of batting drills in baseball where parts of the swing are broken down... I think that similar stuff is done in golf, and it would make sense to try to do it with basketball, too.

Ed O.

 

[dkap]

I can buy that. Just seems odd.

Maybe part of my problem with picturing the effectiveness is my own background as a coach (sprints). I'm very big on every practiced movement being directly beneficial to the desired goal, i.e. running fast. No wasted motions, no over-emphasized extensions. Focus in on individual movements to make them as explosive as possible, but not at the expense of counter-forces and counter-movements which bring the whole thing together. Gotta swing your left arm back if you want your right leg to fire forward. Isolate one and you throw off the other.

I never thought of trying sprint drills while seated on a chair...

Dan