Paul Millsap is the 8th worst defender in the entire NBA
- Thread starter r_u_s_t_b_u_c_k_e_t
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Ben Wallace. That would be awesome. He might be the next Bismack Byambo. It is worth a shot.
i'm still waiting to see your stats.
//r00t 4 Jazz
Well-Known Member
And Trout is still waiting to see his wang, neither likely to happen anytime soon.
I heard this on the radio yesterday and while some of them may have acted surprised I know from me watching the games I thought Millsap would be low but not that low on the list. Some games it reminded me a lil' of Harp or Booz where you could almost see the offense was specifically targeting whoever Millsap was guarding, his P&R D was surprisingly bad this year but other then that it seemed the effort was there (before he gets in foul trouble anyway) but he just doesn't have the height.
The open 3s come from an ancient defensive philosophy of ALWAYS protecting the lane at the cost of an open 3, for starters. I don't know what period of basketball everyone on this ****ing site watches, but running a play to hit some big in the post so that he can methodically grind his man down and score doesn't happen very often because it's rarely effective and players of that mold don't exist as much as they used to. Millsap does suffer from his size disadvantage and also playing extensive minutes, sure, that is nothing new. But I could make just as much of a case that the perimeter D was so bad that it left Millsap with little he could do if he had to step over and sacrifice a potential drop-off pass.
Millsap hasn't been as good this year defensively, but you and rustbucket seem to believe that there IS a single metric that is the end-all of the most difficult measurement you can try to make in basketball (and by citing an article that STARTS from that premise!!!). The fact that you two seem to believe there is one way to measure the totality of a players defensive aptitude tells me that your opinions should be thrown in the trash. THAT is my point.
For the record, I think the way you maximize Millsap is by having him come off the bench and be insanely efficient for 26 minutes a night (roughly) and closing games depending on matchups and performance. Millsap knowing how much the team needed him on the floor because the team has been short-handed all year and having no one that knew the system as a big meant he had to be more strategic and less all-out as he used to be. I've always thought that and this year bore that out to some degree. I'd prefer the Jazz keep him since I KNOW he knows defense, can play it, and plays the game for the right reasons and the right way. Unlike many on this board who wildly swing between Boozer hating/Millsap boosting and Millsap hating/Jefferson worshipping, my opinion has not changed on he guy. He's a seriously good player, unique, and a great guy in a way that matters.
And YOUR point about our point is wildly exaggerated. Rust post some Locke article on stats that raises some interesting points that can be used for discussion. And that's all we did. We did not say we were taking a shotgun down to the jazz offices to make KOC trade sap for a bag of doritoes before sundown. Chill, dude.
The broader point is that the stats confirm, CONFIRM (not prove beyond any doubt or discussion), that Sap and AJ are very weak on D. Put the two together and you really have issues. Did we not see that this year?
And what are you trying to say, that Sap because he is so wonderful on O should be excused for being bottom 8 on D? If the Jazz go forward accepting that, we will not see any success in the playoffs for a long long time.
Jazz4ever
Well-Known Member
No he is helping the guy that just blew past Miles, Jefferson, or Harris. Thus his man is open and often scores. Locke, and you, don't understand defense is 90% team oriented.
Did what? Did not agree with you? Sorry, hope it is not your first time.
I like Sap alot also. He should be our 6th man and get about 30 mpg to avoid wearing down. Depending on matchups, maybe he could play a little Sf, but his main role ought to be as our Big Baby, the backup PF.
That said, the stats show what we all saw: Sap and AJ stink as defenders, at least they did this year as a duo. Nevermore.
If you have some stats or a serious analysis that will indicate that Sap is actually at 6'6" a really great defender, please show them. He is just too small to be a good starting defensive PF.
Here's a stat, also from 82games.com:
Jazz give up 110.7 points per 100 possessions with Millsap on the floor, but 112.7 when he's off the floor. Locke's tip-off feature today similarly talks about how well Millsap shows with team defensive stats, rather than just individual defensive stats.
Jazz give up 110.7 points per 100 possessions with Millsap on the floor, but 112.7 when he's off the floor. Locke's tip-off feature today similarly talks about how well Millsap shows with team defensive stats, rather than just individual defensive stats.