Batum: I'm working on my offense; want to be another Tayshaun Prince

[SodaPopinski]

Just a couple of the items from Casey's most recent interview as he's traveling through Europe visiting Blazer players (the lucky SOB ).

Batum video interview

 

[RickyRubio]

Cool vid. I am glad Nic is working on his shot!

 

[axs88]

Wow, I'm impressed how much his English improved in one season -- A LOT! I mean he was talking alright and relatively fluently before the season, but his thick French accent made it so hard to understand him. From his translated interviews and blog entries, he strikes me as one of the most intelligent players in the league. Sky's the limit for him!

 

[Sug]

If you are going to send someone to Europe with a camera, please send them with a $40 tripod.

 

[esperanzafleet6969]

hahah thats funny... because i think tayshaun has a really weird shot.. but i understand what hes sayin.. but if he wants to be a lot like tayshaun he should develop a good back to the basket game..

 

[axs88]

If you are going to send someone to Europe with a camera, please send them with a $40 tripod.

It looks like he doesn't even have a camera, he just put a phone up in Nic's face real close.

 

[Idog1976]

If you are going to send someone to Europe with a camera, please send them with a $40 tripod.

Zing!

 

[SodaPopinski]

If you are going to send someone to Europe with a camera, please send them with a $40 tripod.

Or, we could be fans of other teams who don't give a shit about letting their fans know what their players are up to in the offseason.

Personally, I could care less if they shot the damn thing with iPhone or the same technology used in Charlie Chaplin flicks, I'm just stoked we're fortunate enough to be fans of an organization that does this kind of thing.

 

[illmatic99]

If Nic can make any sort of improvement like Aldridge did coming into his second season, we can all easily forget about KP's faux pas at the deadline. Come on, Nic. Make it happen.

 

[Freshtown]

The more I think about, the less I want a veteran SF.

Face it, we're not going to win the 'ship this year. Our window isn't open yet. There's no point in sacrificing our young talent to 'win now' (which isn't a guaranteed thing anyways). Batum is our SF of the future. He needs more minutes next season. I will be pissed if he is buried on the bench playing scrap minutes again next year, veterans or not.

 

[RickyRubio]

It looks like he doesn't even have a camera, he just put a phone up in Nic's face real close.

Jesus...

Or, we could be fans of other teams who don't give a shit about letting their fans know what their players are up to in the offseason.

Personally, I could care less if they shot the damn thing with iPhone or the same technology used in Charlie Chaplin flicks, I'm just stoked we're fortunate enough to be fans of an organization that does this kind of thing.

I know right? Is there anything Blazer fans are happy about?

 

[Reep]

Batum underestimates his potential. He aims at Prince, and talks about Pippen being on another level. I don't see any reason why Batum couldn't end up being as good as Pippen. He as the basic tools, just needs to develop the confidence. Batum seems much more athletic than Prince.

 

[gatorpops]

Batum underestimates his potential. He aims at Prince, and talks about Pippen being on another level. I don't see any reason why Batum couldn't end up being as good as Pippen. He as the basic tools, just needs to develop the confidence. Batum seems much more athletic than Prince.

I too believe he is going to better than Prince. I think he has a very good chance of being another Pippen. He is very intellegent and he is very athletic. "If" he can add a consistent a shot or two each year, he can very well be that kind of player. He very likely will become a do it all type of player. Here's hoping anyway.

g

 

[Freshtown]

Batum underestimates his potential. He aims at Prince, and talks about Pippen being on another level. I don't see any reason why Batum couldn't end up being as good as Pippen. He as the basic tools, just needs to develop the confidence. Batum seems much more athletic than Prince.

I agreed with you until you starting talking about Pippen. I think YOU'RE the one underestimating Pippen. We're talking about one of the 30 greatest players of all time here. Batum has unlimited potential, yes, but at this time is nowhere close to the ball-handling, point forward skills that Pippen possessed.

 

[Minstrel]

I agreed with you until you starting talking about Pippen. I think YOU'RE the one underestimating Pippen. We're talking about one of the 30 greatest players of all time here. Batum has unlimited potential, yes, but at this time is nowhere close to the ball-handling, point forward skills that Pippen possessed.

Agreed. Pippen is absolutely a much higher level. It isn't literally impossible that Batum could become a Pippen-level player, but it's like saying Roy could become a Jordan-level player. Nothing is impossible, but it's definitely a bad bet.

Batum doesn't have the passing skills and court awareness of Pippen. Also, while Batum has the tools to be a brilliant individual defender, Pippen was probably the greatest team defender in history (outside of the best defensive big men). He was the only perimeter player I've seen who was capable of disrupting the offenses of other teams, rather than just one player. Projecting that for Batum is wish-casting.

That said, I see Prince as Batum's 50-60th percentile projection. I think Batum's ceiling is higher than Prince.

 

[Freshtown]

That said, I see Prince as Batum's 50-60th percentile projection. I think Batum's ceiling is higher than Prince.

Yes. The only people that claim otherwise are other team's fans who only watched 0-5 blazer games this year and looked at stat sheets, only to come on here and gloat about how us fans overrate him "because he only averaged 5 points per game" or something ignorant like that.

It's kind of fun, because he's sort of our little secret. No one else except for us hardcore fans have seen him play 80 games this season; beat writers and tv analysts can't analyze him properly yet.

But for us, the real fans, the fans who watched him grow and show flashes of his brilliances, we're the ones that are really excited. Watching this guy play, even for the brief time that McMillan gave him, is sometimes awe-inspiring. Batum is truly special.

 

[RoyToy]

Batum is a little more Marion than Prince imo. Prince can play a little point forward while Marion is just a freak with a weird looking 3pt shot, which seems more like Batum to me.

 

[RickyRubio]

Batum is a little more Marion than Prince imo. Prince can play a little point forward while Marion is just a freak with a weird looking 3pt shot, which seems more like Batum to me.

Dead on man. Dead on... :smh:

 

[Reep]

I'm not saying Batum will be equal to Pippen, but that it is a better goal than Prince (too low).

I do disagree with you on Batum's vision. When he has the ball in his hands, he makes good decisions and delivers good passes.

Don't compare Batum to Pippen in his prime. Pippen entered the league at 22, Batum was about two years behind (20?).

Pippen's first year (adjusted to 36 minutes):
13.6 pts; 3.7 asst; 2.9 T/O; 6.5 reb; 2.0 stl; 1.1 blk; shooting 46%; 3pt 17%; FT 58%

Batum's first year (adjusted to 36 minutes)
10.5 pts; 1.8 asst; 1.2 T/O; 5.4 reb; 1.0 stl; 1.0 blk; shooting 45%; 3pt 37%; FT 81%

FWIW, as a Senior (at 21), Pippen averaged 3.5 asst/game. Batum (at 19) averaged 3.6 asst/game in the French league, where assists are harder to come by.

I would bet that Batum's numbers in two more years are better than Pippen's at 22. Any takers? Batum is already a better shooter than Pippen was then. Also, Pippen was used as a point forward early on, so his assists (and turnovers) are going to be higher. Do you realize it too Pippen eight seasons before he shot over 33% from three?

People remember Scottie at his peak, but he didn't arrive that way. Batum does have a chance to be the same kind of player given the time. Scottie developed his skills to their max potential--which is why he was so great. If Batum does the same thing, then I think he can be do almost as well.

 

[Minstrel]

Don't compare Batum to Pippen in his prime. Pippen entered the league at 22, Batum was about two years behind (20?).

Pippen's first year (adjusted to 36 minutes):
13.6 pts; 3.7 asst; 2.9 T/O; 6.5 reb; 2.0 stl; 1.1 blk; shooting 46%; 3pt 17%; FT 58%

Batum's first year (adjusted to 36 minutes)
10.5 pts; 1.8 asst; 1.2 T/O; 5.4 reb; 1.0 stl; 1.0 blk; shooting 45%; 3pt 37%; FT 81%

I would bet that Batum's numbers in two more years are better than Pippen's at 22. Any takers?

The problem with this kind of comparison is that Pippen vastly outperformed reasonable expectations. His numbers at 22 did not remotely indicate the sort of player he would become. Therefore, comparing Batum to a raw Pippen and saying, "He's ahead of Pippen early on," is fairly irrelevant unless you believe Batum will also develop at a completely unexpected rate.

Pippen was an outlier, so his early numbers didn't indicate what his prime would look like. Unless Batum ends up being an outlier too, his early numbers can't really be compared to Pippen's in terms of predictive value.

 

[hasoos]

Batum underestimates his potential. He aims at Prince, and talks about Pippen being on another level. I don't see any reason why Batum couldn't end up being as good as Pippen. He as the basic tools, just needs to develop the confidence. Batum seems much more athletic than Prince.

Well that is because you don't see the one thing that obviously separates those players. The drive to play at that level. A lot of folks on this board marvel about Batum and what he might become. The one thing I don't see him having, is the drive to make that level. He seems much more like the "I am really enjoying the ride, and I can't believe they pay me this much to play basketball." You will note that when talking about playing against great players this year, he didn't talk about going at them. He just talked about how there was no pressure because he wasn't supposed to succeed against them. That IMO, shows the difference between a Pippen type and a Batum type. Pippen would compete emotionally, even when he was losing the battle.

 

[Minstrel]

Well that is because you don't see the one thing that obviously separates those players. The drive to play at that level. A lot of folks on this board marvel about Batum and what he might become. The one thing I don't see him having, is the drive to make that level. He seems much more like the "I am really enjoying the ride, and I can't believe they pay me this much to play basketball." You will note that when talking about playing against great players this year, he didn't talk about going at them. He just talked about how there was no pressure because he wasn't supposed to succeed against them. That IMO, shows the difference between a Pippen type and a Batum type. Pippen would compete emotionally, even when he was losing the battle.

This seems way too pop-psychology to me. What a player says to reporters is not the same as how he actually feels and what drive he has. It's interesting that you mention Pippen, since he was criticized in his first few years about not being competitive enough, not being competitive like Jordan. People claimed that Detroit's "bad boys" got into his head. Of course, as he got older and better, it was clear he had massive drive and will to win/dominate.

We really don't know anywhere near enough about Batum to know how much drive he has. Wanting to dunk on Gasol, dominate him, showed a lot of competitive fire, IMO.

 

[hasoos]

This seems way too pop-psychology to me. What a player says to reporters is not the same as how he actually feels and what drive he has. It's interesting that you mention Pippen, since he was criticized in his first few years about not being competitive enough, not being competitive like Jordan. People claimed that Detroit's "bad boys" got into his head. Of course, as he got older and better, it was clear he had massive drive and will to win/dominate.

We really don't know anywhere near enough about Batum to know how much drive he has. Wanting to dunk on Gasol, dominate him, showed a lot of competitive fire, IMO.

You know if he does, then he should back it up with his play. Amazingly enough I think I saw him show up offensivly in about 3 or 4 games out of 82 last year. Maybe when he actually shows up to half of them in a season, I will start to give him some credit. I think that in itself says a lot about his determination. He seems more to me like a defensive minded "Luol Deng"(raw but athletically gifted) than an NBA great.

 

[Reep]

We really don't know anywhere near enough about Batum to know how much drive he has. Wanting to dunk on Gasol, dominate him, showed a lot of competitive fire, IMO.

Agreed. Batum has a competitive side. Nate told him he had to work on his jump shot to bring his offense up to his defense. Batum has been working on it and evidently Monte was impressed with the results (according to Batum).

I just wish they would give him more ball handling opportunities. I loved his decision making on the break when he would bring the ball up--not pass off to Blake, and then downshift and blow by the defender for a dunk. Batum needs to be more aggressive on his drives (drive more often) and on offense in general. I think he will be more confident this year and may really take control of that SF spot.

 

[Minstrel]

You know if he does, then he should back it up with his play. Amazingly enough I think I saw him show up offensivly in about 3 or 4 games out of 82 last year. Maybe when he actually shows up to half of them in a season, I will start to give him some credit.

You're confusing "raw offensive game" with "no drive." By "drive" I thought you meant "will to succeed" not slashing ability.

He was 19-20 years old last year. He wasn't a particularly good player last year, merely decent. That's very different from having little drive to get better.