John Paxson delivered for the Bulls last night. He got the guys he wanted. Some people aren't too thrilled. The picks may turn out to be busts. But those that write and comment on such things should at least have some facts or maybe even watch the games.
Mike Downey shows again today he'd rather continue trying to be witty than actually have his facts straight.
"First of all, maybe he can rebound like Rodman, but he also shoots like Rodman. Many of the points he gets—and he doesn't get that many—seem to come on putback rebounds. He has absolutely no range I have seen."
First, Thomas averaged 12.3 points per game while playing an average of 25.9 minutes and didn't even start the first nine games. Do the math. I would not be surprised if Mike Downey saw Thomas only in the UCLA game. And all reports speak of Thomas' soft touch. If he had even watched some highlight clips, he'd see Thomas does indeed have a midrange game.
"I feel more comfortable facing the basket and on the perimeter," Thomas said. "Once again, the critics don't know. LSU was the first time I've played in the post. A lot of guys don't know that. They'll say, 'He didn't shoot the ball.' Well, I didn't shoot the ball because I didn't shoot. They'll say, 'He didn't put the ball on the floor well.' Well, the offense didn't let me put the ball on the floor. A lot of people make assumptions and don't really look at the games. I have a little bit to prove and show what I can do."
Exactly.
4 comments:
I was pleased Pax addressed the need for a big guard, which I was harping on in previous posts--though I have to admit, when I saw they had drafted Carney, I got real excited, he's a guy I was hoping they'd get at 16. And then I heard about the trade and was a bit deflated. But having already drafted Thomas, getting someone with more ball-handling guard skills--which is what Thabo has on Carney, based on the reports--makes more sense.
Overall, as I've been saying, I would have liked to come away with more known quantities; Thomas is just too inexperienced to project confidently--even Pax says it's like drafting a high schooler; and Thabo is just a foreigner in highlight films at this point. But I'm trusting this regime until I have reason not to.
In the end, opinions and thoughts aside, I went to bed wishing the season could start tomorrow.
It's totally not like drafting a high schooler. I understand the analogy but you can't discredit a full year at LSU and the competition in the tourney.
I'm not understanding what everyone is saying about "known quantities". Who are they?
Known Quantities is an art-rock trio from Portland--think Jawbox meets Portoise.
Seriously, it is a relative term, you're right, because we are talking about a draft, and heck even in life (cue the Coach), it's hard to say what's a "known quantity". But a player who's played 3-4 years in college, a lot as a starter, and established a level of play, is MORE of a certainty than a 19 yr-old with one year of experience; and certainly a guy I've actually seen play in the U.S. of A. is more known than a Swiss guy. That's all.
And hey, Pax said the line about a high schooler, not me.
I hear ya. But there weren't many of those Junior/Senior type players with the exception of Shelden and BRoy.
And speaking of Jawbox, I was listening to Burning Airlines on the way in today.
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