green
Well-Known Member
Al Jefferson
"Productive big men tend to get their money, and Jefferson certainly has the raw numbers (17.8 points and 9.2 rebounds per game for Utah last season) to make claim to a sizable contract. (He just completed a five-year, $65 million deal.) But market dynamics shouldn’t be confused for prudence; the fact that Jefferson, 28, is likely to get paid big doesn’t mean he necessarily should, especially considering that his weaknesses are so glaring within a team concept.
"The great majority of what Jefferson accomplishes on the court comes in the form of solitary acts. He clears out the left wing to face up his opponent; he plods to the low block to roll out an elaborate sequence of fakes; he attends to his defensive mark without offering much in the way of help. His is an isolated game by its very nature, only effective to a point. If given the ball too often, Jefferson’s focused offense can render those around him a bit meaningless. If played too consistently, opponents will attack his slow feet and lacking defense in general, largely by playing with the expectation that his help will come late or not at all.
"It doesn’t take a deep dive into the film to see Jefferson’s getting victimized in the pick-and-roll; his failure to cover the necessary space and angles leads to surface-level blunders and easy scores. Most opponents are already aware of this, judging by how often Jefferson was pulled in to pick-and-roll scenarios last season, and will look to attack him just as frequently regardless of whether he signs with a new team. A team with an elite back-line defender might be able to address some of the challenges that Jefferson’s very presence creates, but his incorporation into any lineup requires a particular defensive infrastructure."
https://nba.si.com/2013/06/29/2013-...ew-bynum-monta-ellis/?sct=hp_t12_a8&eref=sihp
He had better not be back. Lindsay hit a grand slam last Thursday. He would completely undermine any goodwill he had built up by resigning Al. Any fool can see Al is a terrible basketball player for a team that wants more than to fight for the 8th seed.
"Productive big men tend to get their money, and Jefferson certainly has the raw numbers (17.8 points and 9.2 rebounds per game for Utah last season) to make claim to a sizable contract. (He just completed a five-year, $65 million deal.) But market dynamics shouldn’t be confused for prudence; the fact that Jefferson, 28, is likely to get paid big doesn’t mean he necessarily should, especially considering that his weaknesses are so glaring within a team concept.
"The great majority of what Jefferson accomplishes on the court comes in the form of solitary acts. He clears out the left wing to face up his opponent; he plods to the low block to roll out an elaborate sequence of fakes; he attends to his defensive mark without offering much in the way of help. His is an isolated game by its very nature, only effective to a point. If given the ball too often, Jefferson’s focused offense can render those around him a bit meaningless. If played too consistently, opponents will attack his slow feet and lacking defense in general, largely by playing with the expectation that his help will come late or not at all.
"It doesn’t take a deep dive into the film to see Jefferson’s getting victimized in the pick-and-roll; his failure to cover the necessary space and angles leads to surface-level blunders and easy scores. Most opponents are already aware of this, judging by how often Jefferson was pulled in to pick-and-roll scenarios last season, and will look to attack him just as frequently regardless of whether he signs with a new team. A team with an elite back-line defender might be able to address some of the challenges that Jefferson’s very presence creates, but his incorporation into any lineup requires a particular defensive infrastructure."
https://nba.si.com/2013/06/29/2013-...ew-bynum-monta-ellis/?sct=hp_t12_a8&eref=sihp
He had better not be back. Lindsay hit a grand slam last Thursday. He would completely undermine any goodwill he had built up by resigning Al. Any fool can see Al is a terrible basketball player for a team that wants more than to fight for the 8th seed.
