Is Will Barton actually decent?

Welcome to our community

Be a part of something great, join today!

Register Log in
illmatic99

illmatic99

formerly yuyuza1
Joined
Sep 16, 2008
Messages
57,714
Likes
56,219
Points
113
Obviously, there is going be bias in his favor following that great game yesterday, but that was a bit eye opening. After seeing him get extended minutes to finish out last season, I hated his game. He reminded me of a Crawful kinda player who couldn't shoot. But he looks so much better this season in his limited time. He's still a bit crazy and some of his decisions make me shake my head, but it seems more like controlled chaos this year. I love his athleticism and that he's actually using it to the team's benefit.

I think Stotts needs to expand that 9 man rotation of his to include Will. Getting him 10-15 mpg by taking a few away from Nic/Dame/Wes/Mo shouldn't be too hard.
 
Yes. And players with "chutzpah" are rare, they should be valued.
 
And tbh, I could have just as well made a thread for Victor. Dude can ball. Doesn't look to score, but does everything else. I like his game a lot
 
I still think he is a marginal NBA player who caught fire against an old tired team
 
A decent human being, but I'm more interested in the indecent ones.
 
He has this gangly, Rudy Fernandez kind of quality about him where you never know if he'll dunk or throw a nifty pass or do something utterly retarded. Barton is longer, while Rudy was a more legit three point shooter. But both guys play like they are there to put on a show. When hot it's a thing of beauty. When not, you wonder how the guy even made it into the NBA.

Will "The Thrill" Barton is a perfect nickname for him. I'm a fan, just because Stotts has the luxury of playing him 2 minutes and yanking him if it's not his night. Rudy was frustrating because we had so little talent on the team that you had to play him. And then of course he seemingly lost all his athleticism on that one bad fall.
 
I am not sure how good he is, but I know I want to find out. As mentioned in the game thread by a few, Will possesses some things we need off the bench. For his position at SG, he has good length, pretty good handles, solid passer, solid rebounder, solid shot blocker, solid defender, solid finisher, good at getting to the basket, and runs the floor well.

I would not say he is a solid shooter, but he does find ways to score. Yes he still takes the occasional quick shot and screws up a defensive assignments. But I think his desire to run the floor will help the second unit get easier baskets. And we all know that has been an issue. We keep trying to find someone who can help Mo off the bench. I am not sure if they have the right chemistry together, but we need to figure it out pretty quick.

I like how the second unit of Mo, Will, Claver, and Trob all like to run the floor. The second unit has committed so many turnover as it is this season, they might as well get them while running the fast break. I think with Barton in there they run better.
 
All-time value stat:

Barton and Williams, who are making a combined $3.5 million this season, outscored Brooklyn's entire starting five, which is being paid a combined $68.6 million, by a count of 41-35.
Click to expand...

As a financial professional, that is an embarrassment of ROI. :D

:matrix:
 
First off, we could have brought kids out of the stands and put them on the floor and they would have looked like All-Stars against the Nets last night. With that said, I have to admit that whenever I see Will play I like what I see. For "out of control" as he can be, he controls the ball better than Mo a lot of the time. When he dribbles into traffic during a 1-on-4 fast break he doesn't turn the ball over with the regularity that Mo does. He's also a better and more willing passer. Offensively he reminds me a tiny bit of a scrawny Ruben Patterson - and we've been needing a "Rube" on our team for a while now!
I always thought he was the better option to keep when it was between him and Elliott Whoever at the end of our bench. But I never thought I'd actively want to keep Will. With development and playing time he could become a semi-valuable trade asset - of which we have few. But before that, his energy could be something that really helps in the Playoffs.
 
Barton is a raw, undisciplined player. At best, he can develop into a backup SG (a middle-of-the-pack player on a roster). Right now, he's a #3 SG. However, we have 15 spots on our roster, so he fulfills the #3 role well.

If he really wants to make a niche for himself in this league, he should focus on defense. He has the length, athleticism and energy to become a defensive pest. He's already a terrific rebounder. His offense is binomial; he's either on or off. However, if he can make himself a shutdown wing player while not hurting you on offense, that's a real spot of value on any roster.
 
I have a hard time believing that a guy can come into an NBA game put up 20pts, 11reb and 4 assists and be only a marginal NBA player. Now I get it once in a while a marginal player will have a decent scoring night, but Will Barton has done it more than once. His per 36 numbers and PER are really pretty impressive for a bench player. At his age with his skill I think he will be considered a solid rotational guy once he gets consistent minutes.
 
blue9 said:
First off, we could have brought kids out of the stands and put them on the floor and they would have looked like All-Stars against the Nets last night. With that said, I have to admit that whenever I see Will play I like what I see. For "out of control" as he can be, he controls the ball better than Mo a lot of the time. When he dribbles into traffic during a 1-on-4 fast break he doesn't turn the ball over with the regularity that Mo does. He's also a better and more willing passer. Offensively he reminds me a tiny bit of a scrawny Ruben Patterson - and we've been needing a "Rube" on our team for a while now!
I always thought he was the better option to keep when it was between him and Elliott Whoever at the end of our bench. But I never thought I'd actively want to keep Will. With development and playing time he could become a semi-valuable trade asset - of which we have few. But before that, his energy could be something that really helps in the Playoffs.
Click to expand...

I disagree. I think the Nyets came out and competed for the first quarter and a half. We were just better than they were last night. We showed them we wanted the game more than they did, and they packed it in and decided to save their energy for the next game against Denver.

It ended up being a blowout, but the first 18 minutes of that game was a test of wills. We wanted it more. They wanted to slow it down and we wanted to speed it up. We kept attacking and attacking and attacking until we broke them. It certainly had nothing to do with their talent level. If you've seen them lately, they had been playing very well, especially Williams.

You shouldn't minimize what we did as a team last night.
 
I didn't get to see the game last night, but weren't most of Barton's points off dunks? I'd give most of the credit for those types of plays to the guy making the assist or even to the Nets' crappy defense.
 
Good point: for the first time in I don't know how long, we imposed our will on the game, and forced the other team back on its heels.
 
e_blazer said:
I didn't get to see the game last night, but weren't most of Barton's points off dunks? I'd give most of the credit for those types of plays to the guy making the assist or even to the Nets' crappy defense.
Click to expand...

He hit a couple of jumpers and a couple of threes as well. I think he only got five dunks :lol:
 
e_blazer said:
I didn't get to see the game last night, but weren't most of Barton's points off dunks? I'd give most of the credit for those types of plays to the guy making the assist or even to the Nets' crappy defense.
Click to expand...

He had a few dunks, but he made a lot of Js. He was impressive last night. Really impressive. He was a monster on the boards and also made some beautiful passes. In fact, his no look pass to Nico for the easy layin I think was the highlight of the night.
 
e_blazer said:
I didn't get to see the game last night, but weren't most of Barton's points off dunks? I'd give most of the credit for those types of plays to the guy making the assist or even to the Nets' crappy defense.
Click to expand...

Two of them from what I remember were in deed nice passes from Mo. And they were in traffic. But you still need someone to cut to the basket and finish. Barton (like Rudy before him) does a great job of that. Everyone points out that the Blazers are a jump shooting team........don't we desperately need more shots at the rim? Will helps with that. Maybe teams will adjust to his game, but he seems to be in constant motion. He is a tough cover because of it.
 
If he can master the fundamentals of the game (defense, spacing,...) he is a starter in this league. His 3-pt shooting seems to have improved from last year.

Somehow, if we could combine the best of Claver and Barton into a single player, that player would be an all-star.
 
That he's passing on purpose and getting a couple of assists speaks well to his growth mentally as a player. I hold out hope he can be a good rotation player for us.
 
Like everyone was saying when Robinson has had a few huge games based off hustle, bringing energy like that off the bench can be infectious. They both seem capable of giving you either a huge boost in momentum, or completely sucking the air out the room with boneheaded plays.

Barton's a bit like Crawford, let him go wild and do whatever he wants, and you'll be pulling your hair out. But put him in a structure, with players and a coach he has to follow/respect and he can make the occasional big play while not comletely killing you the rest of the time. He's a heat check guy, I'd throw him in for Wes or Nic for maybe a 4min stretch. If he's on keep him out there and give those guys the rest, if not have him sit and play the regular rotations.

maxiep said:
He had a few dunks, but he made a lot of Js. He was impressive last night. Really impressive. He was a monster on the boards and also made some beautiful passes. In fact, his no look pass to Nico for the easy layin I think was the highlight of the night.
Click to expand...

Highlight to me was Will blocking Plumlee's dunk/layup off the alley-oop with about 2:20 left then driving fullcourt to draw FTs, he was just playing his ass off, barely got up there but got all ball on a very athletic big. Came right after Claver hit the 3, but they didn't credit him with the block.
 
Jayps15 said:
Highlight to me was Will blocking Plumlee's dunk/layup off the alley-oop with about 2:20 left then driving fullcourt to draw FTs, he was just playing his ass off, barely got up there but got all ball on a very athletic big. Came right after Claver hit the 3, but they didn't credit him with the block.
Click to expand...

That was a great play! I forgot about it. What was so impressive to me was how he snagged the rebound after blocking the shot.
 
We have him on contract for <$1mil next year as well. Great contract. He's our lowest paid player this year ($788k)

Crazy that a guy with that kinda salary gave you 20-11-4 in a game. Even if it was against the scrub Nets team.
 
maxiep said:
If he really wants to make a niche for himself in this league, he should focus on defense.
Click to expand...

Will Barton is offense off the bench, and why would anyone want to limit that? There are very few players who can create the way he does, and yes he is raw, but he has all the tools. Scoring, passing, ball handling, rebounding.

When given the chance, he has performed. You can't overlook what he does for the players around him, when given the opportunity....They feed off his energy. Look what he did for Claver last night.

When given the opportunity....Work on the turnovers, and I'm more than happy with a sixth man putting up these numbers.

Apr 17 GS 48:00 7 19 36.8 1 7 4 3 15
Apr 16 LAC 39:55 8 14 57.1 6 5 6 17
Apr 14 Den 34:17 5 8 62.5 9 5 3 17
Apr 12 OKC 38:14 8 19 42.1 7 0 3 18
Apr 10 LAL 29:25 4 12 33.3 1 2 3 9
Apr 7 Dal 32:27 7 11 63.6 13 6 0 22
Apr 5 Hou 20:46 4 9 44.4 6 4 1 9
 
Jayps15 said:
L
Highlight to me was Will blocking Plumlee's dunk/layup off the alley-oop with about 2:20 left then driving fullcourt to draw FTs, he was just playing his ass off, barely got up there but got all ball on a very athletic big. Came right after Claver hit the 3, but they didn't credit him with the block.
Click to expand...

That was one of my favorite plays as well. Because if we get that out of him on the defensive end, the leash gets a lot longer from the coach.
 
bemac said:
Will Barton is offense off the bench, and why would anyone want to limit that? There are very few players who can create the way he does, and yes he is raw, but he has all the tools. Scoring, passing, ball handling, rebounding.

When given the chance, he has performed. You can't overlook what he does for the players around him, when given the opportunity....They feed off his energy. Look what he did for Claver last night.

When given the opportunity....Work on the turnovers, and I'm more than happy with a sixth man putting up these numbers.

Apr 17 GS 48:00 7 19 36.8 1 7 4 3 15
Apr 16 LAC 39:55 8 14 57.1 6 5 6 17
Apr 14 Den 34:17 5 8 62.5 9 5 3 17
Apr 12 OKC 38:14 8 19 42.1 7 0 3 18
Apr 10 LAL 29:25 4 12 33.3 1 2 3 9
Apr 7 Dal 32:27 7 11 63.6 13 6 0 22
Apr 5 Hou 20:46 4 9 44.4 6 4 1 9
Click to expand...

We have other players that offer instant offense better than Barton. What we're missing is a disruptive wing defender off the bench. Robinson has shown he can bring that energy off the bench in the front court. We don't have it in the backcourt. Mo can bring offense. CJ can bring offense. Wright can bring offense. Who can bring the defense?

To put it in Ricardian economic terms, it's not about absolute advantage, rather it's about comparative advantage. That's how Barton can carve out time for himself on the court.
 
maxiep said:
We have other players that offer instant offense better than Barton.
Click to expand...

I agree about the need for a wing defender off the bench....or anywhere for that matter. :D As for instant offense off the bench, when Barton is on, I don't see anyone on the Blazers that can touch him. The two most efficient bench production games in the last two years in the entire league are both from Barton.

That doesn't mean he doesn't need to work on consistency among other things but he is so multi-dimensional in a way no other outside of Nic is and he is so much more consistently aggressive and fearless than Nic will ever be. He combines some of Nic's skills with Lillard's brashness and if he can harness that more often, he is a threat anytime he is one the floor.

:matrix:
 
Hmmm... better at instant offense? I think the best stat on that is the good ole per 36 stat maybe layerd with USG and ORTG

PLayer: Pts - USG - ORTG - PER
Barton: 16.7 - 21.5 - 110 - 16.4
Williams: 13.9 - 20.4 - 102 - 11.9
McCollum: 16.0 - 21.0 - 98 - 10.0

Will also has a better DRT than the other 2
 
hWill LOVES playing, you can see it on his face, and that will prove to be invaluable.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top