Durrant & AK
- Thread starter idiot
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InGameStrategy
Well-Known Member
Except that he has never shot 50% FG in a regular season (much less so in his sole playoff cameo), and he's shot 40% treys and 90% FTs only once each--and in different years.
(I love hyperbole. So much so that I want to marry it.)
As has been stated, to defend Durant (or Kobe or Odom or Gasol, for that matter), you body up on them a little bit and/or get in their faces a little bit, and they'll wilt like a millionaire flower. I'm surprised that Sloan (or most other coaches) haven't taken this strategy much. Even though Harpring's not around, such pesky defense by committee isn't that hard to implement.
I'm not calling for serial hacking; just box 'em out hard on the RBs, deny them the lanes when they have the ball, and selectively let them know that you are there when you can't alter their shots clean. Maybe Bell can set the tone for such intensity, although the height difference might not make him a good candidate to defend Durant directly.
Kirilenko is probably not the best player to go physical; perhaps the purportedly bigger CJ is (lol). But at least Kiri can get in opponents' heads--including Durant's--if he is able to stay in position to make them worried about him when they shoot. Fortunately Kobe and Odom ("Old-em"?) are getting older, but Durant is still in his prime.
Not 50/40/90 prime, but very dangerous. And OKC got better in the off-season, too.
Huh? Durrant plays the 3 in the NBA most times. That is why he is so tough to guard. He has 4 height yet has the quickness of a wing and can shoot the ball. AK has had some very good games against Durrant, but admittedly Durrant is "figuring" him out. The problem with Bell is that he is giving up like 5-6 inches. Ak only gives up about an inch.
Zerol
Active Member
No one will be able to shut down Durant. His confidence is sky hight now and his shooting combined with his length and speed makes him a nightmare. He will be slowed down by a good team defense or certain players, but I doubt he will have any single-digit games barring any injuries. The best defense on him probably is to attack him when he's playing defense to wear him down. So you might see that LeBron will have the best head-to-head numbers against Durant since not only he plays good defense, he will go at Durant on the other end too.
chemdude1232
Active Member
Ah. It's so simple now. Just body them up. Yes. That's why no one has ever scored 40+ points in a single game against the likes of Artest, Bowen, Ben Wallace, and others who body guys up. Mmmhmm.
And the 50/40/90 thing is feasible. Sorry. He's only getting better. Hyperbole be damned.
I dunno wtf you're talkin bout...
GVC
Well-Known Member
Durant is perhaps the biggest beneficiary of biased NBA officiating. 75% of his shots are jumpers, 16.2% of his attempted shots result in a drawn foul (Kobe can only wish he were officiated like that...). It will be interesting to see how Durant and the Thunder are officiated this season, and how they fare when they finally experience a few injuries. In my mind, Durant's supporting cast is ridiculously overrated (notably Westbrook and Green), and, if luck evens out this season (injuries, officiating, etc.), the Thunder won't be any better this season than last, and will have to fight until the end of the season just to make the playoffs.
Dude in the NBA Durrant plays the 3 mostly. In the world championship he played the 4. So what are you talking about? Your previous post indicated you thought Durrant is a 4.
//r00t 4 Jazz
Well-Known Member
I was trying to think of a way of saying this without sounding like I'm whining, thanks. I like Durant and want to like him more but similar to Wade (especially in the Finals) the refs just make it really hard to enjoy when they bail/help them out. They're superstars they don't need it that's why they're called superstars and if they can't and do need the help then they're truly not a superstar in the first place.
Yes I think Durant is a true future superstar.
With the Lebron comment earlier the first thing that popped in my head is if they match up against each other wonder how they ref the game. If they use the super star offensive rules then it will just be a race to see who can foul the other out faster, or will they use the super star defense rules and try to keep them in the game and Lebron would have the bigger advantage their because of his strength/size and being a better defensive player.
GVC
Well-Known Member
Lebron James drawing fouls 17.7% of the time he attempts to shoot makes a hell of a lot more sense than Kevin Durant drawing fouls 16.2% of the time he attempts to shoot (Dwight Howard draws fouls 29.9% of the time he attempts to shoot...).
GVC
Well-Known Member
Just to compare Durant to Kobe, here are Kobe's numbers over the last 8 seasons and Durant's over the last 3 (courtesy of 82games.com):
Bryant (year - jumper %, fouls drawn %)
02/03 - 78%, 12.3%
03/04 - 66%, 14.8%
04/05 - 71%, 16.0%
05/06 - 79%, 11.9%
06/07 - 77%, 14.3%
07/08 - 75%, 15.5%
08/09 - 79%, 11.7%
09/10 - 77%, 12.8%
Durant (year - jumper %, fouls drawn %)
07/08 - 74%, 12.1%
08/09 - 73%, 13.1%
09/10 - 75%, 16.2%
ridiculous.
Bryant (year - jumper %, fouls drawn %)
02/03 - 78%, 12.3%
03/04 - 66%, 14.8%
04/05 - 71%, 16.0%
05/06 - 79%, 11.9%
06/07 - 77%, 14.3%
07/08 - 75%, 15.5%
08/09 - 79%, 11.7%
09/10 - 77%, 12.8%
Durant (year - jumper %, fouls drawn %)
07/08 - 74%, 12.1%
08/09 - 73%, 13.1%
09/10 - 75%, 16.2%
ridiculous.