For those of you who value analytics, Anfernee Simons is having one of the worst seasons of all time

[UKRAINEFAN]

but isn't that the problem?

if he can't play PG, what is his role on a team that has CJ, Trent, & Jones? Does Portland really need another undersized-no-defense-SG? What we saw last night is Portland lose ground when Dame sat and Simons was supposed to run the offense. Simons doesn't appear to have anywhere close to the court vision a PG needs. He plays eyes-ahead like Jarret Jack in his first couple of seasons

this Blazer team seems torn apart by the competing needs of win-now-for-Dame's-prime and clearing the roster of alternative options for playing time for Olshey's favorites. To make a Dame-CJ-Ant rotation work, Portland needs to completely change the wing rotation...and dump Trent.

I think they might actually dump Trent some time; watching his facial and body language, I think it's possible he is not happy here. And he is not working as hard as he used to; his total rebounding % has fallen from a low 5.3% his first year to a dismal 3.3% this year.

 

[wizenheimer]

I think they might actually dump Trent some time; watching his facial and body language, I think it's possible he is not happy here. And he is not working as hard as he used to; his total rebounding % has fallen from a low 5.3% his first year to a dismal 3.3% this year.

could be

but a Dame-CJ-Simons rotation might be the worst defensive 3 guard rotation of all time. Good luck with that

 

[Natebishop3]

I think they might actually dump Trent some time; watching his facial and body language, I think it's possible he is not happy here. And he is not working as hard as he used to; his total rebounding % has fallen from a low 5.3% his first year to a dismal 3.3% this year.

Because he could easily be a starter for another team. I don't think he wants to be CJ's backup forever.

 

[RoseCityRebel]

Am I crazy here? Simons looks noticeably bigger to me this year. Taller and stronger.

I’ve noticed the same thing. There was a photo on ESPN last week with Ant standing next to Dame and he looked at least 2” taller than Dame and just as thick, if not as muscular. Then again, Dame is 30 and has grown man strength now.

 

[RoseCityRebel]

I think they might actually dump Trent some time; watching his facial and body language, I think it's possible he is not happy here. And he is not working as hard as he used to; his total rebounding % has fallen from a low 5.3% his first year to a dismal 3.3% this year.

He’s a poor man’s Wes Matthews without the effort on defense.

Signing with Klutch has gotten into his head it seems. Really bad body language all year. Maybe he thinks he’s accomplished more than he actually has in the NBA? He’s a great spot-up shooter and an average defender. He’s not a playmaker and won’t ever be one.

 

[Darkwebs]

Am I crazy here? Simons looks noticeably bigger to me this year. Taller and stronger.

Yes, with a wardrobe change, he now appears one inch taller.

 

[jlprk]

Am I crazy here? Simons looks noticeably bigger to me this year. Taller and stronger.

To me, he looked like 6-5 his rookie year, 6-4 last year, and 6-3 this year. This explains why people can't see improvement, which I hope occurs while we can see him.

 

[wizenheimer]

To me, he looked like 6-5 his rookie year, 6-4 last year, and 6-3 this year. This explains why people can't see improvement, which I hope occurs while we can see him.

more like this

 

[RoseCityRebel]

 

[illmatic99]

He's figuring it out, even with that damn minutes restriction.

 

[Rastapopoulos]

He's figuring it out, even with that damn minutes restriction.

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Although the team is still not doing well when he's on the court:

 

[wizenheimer]

He's figuring it out, even with that damn minutes restriction.

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in 5 of the 7 games since that 26 point showing, he scored 51 points on 53 shots. Overall, in those games, he scored 77 on 70 shots. That's 1.1 points a shot, which is fairly poor efficiency. He really needs to finish better as he's only shooting 37% on two's. He also has to find a way to get to the FT line; he's only made 11 FT's in 20 games. A 69% 3ptFGA rate is probably too high; he's good enough on dribble-drives to significantly increase his FT rate

Although the team is still not doing well when he's on the court:

yeah, the Blazers are 19.9 points/100-possessions better when Simons is off the court than when he's on. Melo is the next worse at -10.2

that's a crazy number, but he may spend less time on the floor with Dame than any other Blazer. That will skew the numbers a bit

 

[Scalma]

Still not a point guard. Never has been. I think the only guy that still thinks he is is the one person whose opinion matters. Cool cool.

 

[B-Roy]

I heard the two he made last night was only his second 2PT field goal in like 9 games. That is a crazy stat. One trick pony, but at least shooting threes is the one skill you want.

I'm more concerned with him defensively. The effort is there but the fundamentals are all completely wrong. He's the guy you show to to tell them how not to play defense. May be the worst defensive player on the team, and that's saying a lot considering who else is on it....

 

[Scalma]

Olshey better be willing to put him in a trade because he’s got more value there for Portland than on the court. He’s a SG and we’re set there.

 

[illmatic99]

I heard the two he made last night was only his second 2PT field goal in like 9 games. That is a crazy stat. One trick pony, but at least shooting threes is the one skill you want.

I'm more concerned with him defensively. The effort is there but the fundamentals are all completely wrong. He's the guy you show to to tell them how not to play defense. May be the worst defensive player on the team, and that's saying a lot considering who else is on it....

You have seen Enes Kanter play, yes? The angles he takes while guarding P&R action in drop coverage makes me throw stuff at my TV

 

[wizenheimer]

You have seen Enes Kanter play, yes? The angles he takes while guarding P&R action in drop coverage makes me throw stuff at my TV

Kanter is bad, although I don't think he's quite as bad as you are saying. But at least Kanter carries a defensive rebound rate of 31.4%. That's a big component of overall defense. Simons doesn't provide anything like that

Simons is obviously bad at defense. Less obvious, but just about as bad on defense as Simons, has been Trent

 

[B-Roy]

You have seen Enes Kanter play, yes? The angles he takes while guarding P&R action in drop coverage makes me throw stuff at my TV

Yeah, it's more obvious with Kanter because as a big you're going to be in every action. But the way Anfernee tries to "navigate" around screens is just baffling. He purposely runs himself into screens that he can see coming a mile away. Then half the time he will overreact and barrel through the screener or expend a ton of effort to go careening into the ball handler. This is basic shit. The coaches are probably not helping.

But like others have mentioned, you can probably pick any one of Melo, Kanter, Ant, Gary, or Hood on any given night. They're all worse than bad and any one player can give up 10+ points by themselves in a single game. Dame isn't helping in that regards either.

 

[Scalma]

You have seen Enes Kanter play, yes? The angles he takes while guarding P&R action in drop coverage makes me throw stuff at my TV

I don’t get how a seven footer is so bad at protecting the rim. He’s not the only center with average to below average athleticism yet he looks so much worse than anybody else. And his footwork on the offensive end is elite. Idk what it is, his instincts and fundamentals are zero.

 

[AldoTrapani]

I been saying it. Other than 3s he occasionally hits this guy gives you literally nothing productive whatsover.

 

[illmatic99]

I don’t get how a seven footer is so bad at protecting the rim. He’s not the only center with average to below average athleticism yet he looks so much worse than anybody else. And his footwork on the offensive end is elite. Idk what it is, his instincts and fundamentals are zero.

i really wonder who taught him to play this way. how can a guy who is so tenacious on the offensive glass and has perfect instincts on rebounding on that end be so poor on the other? his rim protection stats are easily amongst the worst in the league.

 

[Labinot41]

Neil better put his ass on the trade Block. It’s painful to watch him on defense

 

[mook]

I feel like Stotts is finally reading the handwriting on the wall:
1. Simons absolutely is not a point guard.
2. Hood can basically do the same job at pretending to be a PG that Simons can, and he's a vet so you are giving him minutes anyway.
3. If the above two things are true, what is the argument for playing Simons over Little? Little is bigger, a better defender, more aggressive at driving, has more upside, and is an even better three point shooter.

Simons played 9 minutes last night and Little got 19, even while Little wasn't shooting that well (2-8).

 

[wizenheimer]

I feel like Stotts is finally reading the handwriting on the wall:
1. Simons absolutely is not a point guard.
2. Hood can basically do the same job at pretending to be a PG that Simons can, and he's a vet so you are giving him minutes anyway.
3. If the above two things are true, what is the argument for playing Simons over Little? Little is bigger, a better defender, more aggressive at driving, has more upside, and is an even better three point shooter.

Simons played 9 minutes last night and Little got 19, even while Little wasn't shooting that well (2-8).

CJ returning will solve the Hood/Simons puzzle....until CJ is traded for Harden, Durant, and three 1sts because, you know, the first 12 games of the season (is that how it's done?)

 

[bobf]

I heard the two he made last night was only his second 2PT field goal in like 9 games. That is a crazy stat. One trick pony, but at least shooting threes is the one skill you want.

I'm more concerned with him defensively. The effort is there but the fundamentals are all completely wrong. He's the guy you show to to tell them how not to play defense. May be the worst defensive player on the team, and that's saying a lot considering who else is on it....

I was just checking his stats for the past 10 games. Still at two made 2-pointers.

20/45 3PT 44%
2/11 2PT
5/6 FT
27 REB = 6.0 per 36
0.588 TS%
0.667 TS% on 3’s

Besides his 3 point shooting he’s grabbing a lot of rebounds. I think that’s a good sign.

 

[MickZagger]

I call bullshit. He’s been helpful. We need CJ back though

 

[RoseCityRebel]

I heard the two he made last night was only his second 2PT field goal in like 9 games. That is a crazy stat. One trick pony, but at least shooting threes is the one skill you want.

I'm more concerned with him defensively. The effort is there but the fundamentals are all completely wrong. He's the guy you show to to tell them how not to play defense. May be the worst defensive player on the team, and that's saying a lot considering who else is on it....

I absolutely feel the same about Gary Trent Jr on defense. He moves well, he has good size, has great effort, but he lacks instincts or something. I can’t figure it out. If he figures it out, he’s a Wes Matthews but much younger into his career.

He’s only 22. Simons is only 21.

As for Simons, is there a real reason he’s still playing point instead of being a taller version and much more athletic version of Seth Curry? What’s going on there?

 

[UKRAINEFAN]

i really wonder who taught him to play this way. how can a guy who is so tenacious on the offensive glass and has perfect instincts on rebounding on that end be so poor on the other? his rim protection stats are easily amongst the worst in the league.

Would a real big man coach help?

 

[wizenheimer]

As for Simons, is there a real reason he’s still playing point instead of being a taller version and much more athletic version of Seth Curry? What’s going on there?

count the PG's:

 

[bobf]

I been saying it. Other than 3s he occasionally hits this guy gives you literally nothing productive whatsover.

Scoring points efficiently is a big deal. His defense is still bad but getting better. He rebounds well for a guard, especially for such a light-weight. In fact he grabs more rebounds per 36 than Carmelo and 2x as much as Gary. His rebounding is a good sign of bball savvy and anticipation.

Overall he’s nothing special... yet... but IF he can ever learn to finish around the rim I expect he will become a special player. He’s actually a very good passer, but having zero ability to finish around the rim, he can’t draw the defense to himself, so he has no one to pass to.