OT: Battier - The no-stats All-Star

[Fez Hammersticks]

Batum, take notes:

Battier has routinely *guarded the league’s most dangerous offensive players — LeBron James, Chris Paul, Paul Pierce — and has usually managed to render them, if not entirely ineffectual, then a lot less effectual than they normally are. He has done it so quietly that no one really notices what exactly he is up to.

Battier’s game is a weird combination of obvious weaknesses and nearly invisible strengths. When he is on the court, his teammates get better, often a lot better, and his opponents get worse — often a lot worse. He may not grab huge numbers of rebounds, but he has an uncanny ability to improve his teammates’ rebounding. He doesn’t shoot much, but when he does, he takes only the most efficient shots. He also has a knack for getting the ball to teammates who are in a position to do the same, and he commits few turnovers. On defense, although he routinely guards the N.B.A.’s most prolific scorers, he significantly *reduces their shooting percentages. At the same time he somehow improves the defensive efficiency of his teammates — probably, Morey surmises, by helping them out in all sorts of subtle ways. “I call him Lego,” Morey says. “When he’s on the court, all the pieces start to fit together. And everything that leads to winning that you can get to through intellect instead of innate ability, Shane excels in. I’ll bet he’s in the hundredth percentile of every category.”

LINK​

I hope one day that Nicolas Batum could become a Shane Battier. He certainly has a very similar skill set. With all the talk about Amare/Jefferson/Carter, do you think KP has inquired about Battier?

 

[KingSpeed]

Ech.. if he's so great, why hasn't he ever been out of the first round?

 

[craigehlo]

Battier is as consistent as winter rain in the Northwest — if by consistent you mean consistently mediocre. Despite playing nearly 37 minutes per game, he averaged only nine points and five rebounds last season. For a player whose consistency and fundamentals are constantly praised, he shoots a miserable 43 percent from the field and a below-average 72 percent from the charity stripe. The former Duke star has been a bigger beneficiary of his past reputation than any other player in the league. The fact that he was asked to represent the USA as one of the best 15 players is reason enough to call him the most overrated player in the game.

http://msn.foxsports.com/nba/pgStory?contentId=8455178#sport=NBA&photo=8455158

 

[Fez Hammersticks]

Haters. The guy does so much more than what shows up on a stat sheet. Defense and intangibles. I can only hope Batum can develop to be as good as Battier.

 

[B-Roy]

Ech.. if he's so great, why hasn't he ever been out of the first round?

If Roy is so great, how come he's never made the playoffs?

 

[anonymous gambler]

He may suck, but I'd take him in exchange for any of our 3s!!! (I'd rather have Rudy Gay than him, though.)

 

[hasoos]

Call me a hater if you want. I have watched when it comes to playoff time, and when push comes to shove, teams make him a shooter every year, and it works, Houston loses.

 

[craigehlo]

6 points (38% FGs, 36% 3-pt FGs), 5 rebounds, 2 assists and makes $7 million for another 2 seasons? Oh wait there's all the "intangibles" right? If by intangibles people mean "chronic ankle problems" I agree.

 

[Karl Malone's Elbows]

That picture WTF? That's how good Kobe is. You think he's shooting, but sneaky, sneaky, he dribbles and drives.

 

[mook]

Really nice article. Thanks for posting it.

Imagine if you put a giant stack of statistics about Kobe in front of Outlaw.....

Battier is a pretty good player. The guy has a career +/- of 6+, and he seems to be in there year in and year out. He and Bruce Bowen are quintessential examples of guys with limited talent made up for with tenacity and a true thinking-man's game.

 

[mook]

6 points (38% FGs, 36% 3-pt FGs), 5 rebounds, 2 assists and makes $7 million for another 2 seasons? Oh wait there's all the "intangibles" right? If by intangibles people mean "chronic ankle problems" I agree.

Read this paragraph and then think back to how many times LeBron and Kobe have destroyed this team:

When Bryant is in the game and Battier is on him, the Lakers’ offense is worse than if the N.B.A.’s best player had taken the night off. “The Lakers’ offense should obviously be better with Kobe in,” Morey says. “But if Shane is on him, it isn’t.” A player whom Morey describes as “a marginal N.B.A. athlete” not only guards one of the greatest — and smartest — offensive threats ever to play the game. He renders him a detriment to his team.

I'd gladly have a small forward putting up Battier's stats if we could just contain those guys.