One thing that has been surprising to me this season is the play of Dorell Wright. He has been more than just a three point shooter, which was a pleasant surprise, but his shooting has been off lately. It doesn't seem to me that he gets that many wide open threes. Has anyone else noticed this? I've seen him drive a lot, and that doesn't usually end well. I thought he'd be another James Jones for us, but I'm really not seeing the similarities. Over the last five games, he's shot: 1-2 0-2 0-3 0-1 1-4 Is he in a slump, or is it something else? I thought we'd see him post up on the three point line and just wait for the ball, but because he's been more active in rebounding and trying to drive, I haven't really seen that from him. Does this surprise you? Last year he averaged 4.6 3PA per game. The year before that he averaged 4.8 attempts, and the year before that it was 6.3 attempts from beyond the arc. This year he's only averaging 2.7 attempts. I just wonder if he's doing what he's being paid to do. It looks, to me, like he's trying to be like Nic, when really I just want to see him fulfilling a James Jones type role. We need that three point threat out there. Anyway, just something that I've noticed lately....
His minutes are down though, quite a bit, so I'm sure that has a lot to do with his overall attempts.
I notice it is a point of emphasis for the other team to chase him off the 3-pt line. He gets that much respect and they want him to put the ball on the floor. He's a good all-around player it seems.
They definitely don't leave him as much, but I wonder if that's something that can be addressed by how we space the floor.
I'm a little disappointed he isn't making more 3s. Ptd is a 3 pt shooting tam and the scouting report is probably to take the 3 pt shot away from the 3 its shooters, Wright being one. So maybe he isn't getting as many looks as years past. I don't think the expectations should be too high on Wright. Not that you have said so Nate, but there was talk about trading Batum because Wright can fill in at his spot. While Wright was sought after this summer by several teams, he did sign for 3M yr for 2 yrs. No team willing to offer him the full MLE or even close. I hope Wright starts hitting 3s like early in the season (he looked automatic from 3), but I'm glad he brings other things to the game. His hustle is what has been the pleasant surprise for me . . . hope that isn't just a product of this hot start.
Last night was not his fault. He was open several times on the perimeter and did not get the ball early enough. By the time he did get it, he had to rush it. He will get in a groove at some point, but he needs help from Mo..... His D is as good as advertised. (Not great, but pretty good)
I think as the season wears on we'll see his production go up in conjunction with his minutes. It's important to get the bench some heavier, meaningful minutes in my opinion. Knowing that he has more weapons at his disposal I imagine Stotts will be more willing to balance things out later down the road assuming our winning ways continue. Batum will need the rest, and if he sees a reasonable increase in playing time I think you'll see Wright have a more efficient game as he can find a groove. As it stands right now he's in and out of the game so quick he really just never has a chance to build much.
Well, and that's what I'm wondering.... is it his fault? It doesn't seem like he's getting many open threes, so I'm wondering if that's the team not getting him the ball when he's open, or if he's passing up open shots.
I don't think he is passing up open shots. I think the unit he plays with needs to improve. Maybe it is a matter of more time together in order to gel. What ever it is they don't get as many easy shots as the first unit.
Mo is just horrible at running the offense. It took forever for him to find Dame during that third quarter stint. I really wish we had a decent backup point guard, OR we actually gave Watson some burn.
Ooh - that's something I noticed with Wes last night, too. There were several possessions where he was wide open, hopping around waving his arms trying to get the ball, and never got it. Really hope they watch film last night to see that the ball was "sticking" rather than moving, and get back to really swinging the ball around. I guess it didn't help that whenever we passed the ball OKC stole the pass - need to work on making quick, crisp passes.
I saw that play from Wes as well. Sometimes I think Dame gets tunnel vision, and misses an open man on the perimeter or a guy flashing under the basket for an easy layup. If Dame has tunnel vision, Mo has black hole vision. The guy just drives me nuts. He stands at the top of the key, dribbling for 15 seconds and then struggles to find someone to pass to. How he's averaging so many assists is beyond me.
If CJ comes back and forces his way into the lineup because Stott's can't afford to keep him on the bench (which I'm not super confident about) then maybe there's a move to be made for a more traditional backup point-guard at the deadline. I doubt Olshey makes many moves though unless the team falters in December and/or January; tough to justify risking a disruption to team chemistry when you're rolling.
I would LOVE to have Andre Miller back, running the second unit. He would make Wright and Robinson look infinitely better.
I really like Wright, especially on the defensive end. He is doing things that aren't necessarily showing up in the stats. I'm confident that the shooting will come back. He just needs to adjust to his role AND concentrate on his shooting. He wasn't asked to do this on the other team he played for.
Yeah. One question though, how has he been playing this year? I haven't really kept up as much with the rest of the league this year.
