There’s a lot of talk about Scottie needing a much improved shot to be a productive half-court scorer and PG. Although I want to see him improve his shot, I totally disagree that it’s required for him to take a leap.
This compilation of clips shows him beating defenses that play off him hoping to shoot, and he beats them by gaining a head of speed going to the basket. He does it against top-tier rim protectors such as Brook Lopez and JJJ too.
There are also clips where high level defenders such as Klay Thompson, Kevin Durant and Ben Simmons play him high hoping to prevent him from getting a head of steam, but he uses his strength and speed to blow by and get into the paint anyway.
Well, why didn’t he do this more? Notice all these clips are from the 4th quarter, where Scottie did a lot of his damage. He was candid after the season in admitting his conditioning wasn’t good enough to compete on both ends of the floor. He had to severely limit his offensive game to carry an enormous defensive load, often covering opposing offensive players well above the 3 point line. With improved conditioning and less exhausting defensive scheme, Scottie will be able to utilize his athleticism in the half court more often this year.
tercet
You realize he had 52% True shooting last year?
The_Living_L
he needs better spacing and shooters around him which he doesn’t have still. that’s why I always wanted raptors to get a big man like Porzingis or a Myles Turner or Karl Anthony Towns maybe to space the floor.
awwwyeahaquaman
I love how he goes at KD everytime. Even if you are low on Scottie you cannot deny this man loves the challenge and wants to make the biggest possible play
ExtremeNo1952
love the fact that most of the highlights in this clip are against some of the best defender in the league
lillithfair98
These clips are flashes but the fact is he was equally inefficient at finishing near the rim relatively speaking.
The archetype you’re thinking of is Giannis, or Ben Simmons before he forgot how to play basketball. It’s true you don’t need to be a great shooter to be effective but in order to do so, you need to be an absolute monster at the rim.
Barnes, although he has shown some touch, does not appear to have the physicality or explosiveness that Giannis or Simmons have, I’m not sure he’s ever going to be that guy.
More likely IMO is that he hones in on his short floater type game. That to me is his differentiating skill, his ability to finish roughly from 3-10 feet, if he can become elite at that i think it’s his path forward to effective offence.
jc1890
Scottie on his first year went toe to toe with LBJ. He has the ability to go get it but last year, they went away from him and he was being experimented on between SF, PF, and C.
JimmerAteMyPasta
That boi is so long
Big_Albatross_3050
When he gets aggressive, he’s borderline unstoppable in the paint. The problem is he wasn’t consistently aggressive. He’d normally try going for the assist and kick it out for a 3pt. attempt, that anyone not named Gary Pascal, or Fred constantly bricked
After-Contribution27
This is where I push back against the take where losing Fred is a death sentence for the offense. If we try to play the exact same way as last year minus Fred of course we fail. Trying to get Scottie to this point consistently is the only way to have a meaningful ceiling as a team and that’s with or without Fred
10 Comments
There’s a lot of talk about Scottie needing a much improved shot to be a productive half-court scorer and PG. Although I want to see him improve his shot, I totally disagree that it’s required for him to take a leap.
This compilation of clips shows him beating defenses that play off him hoping to shoot, and he beats them by gaining a head of speed going to the basket. He does it against top-tier rim protectors such as Brook Lopez and JJJ too.
There are also clips where high level defenders such as Klay Thompson, Kevin Durant and Ben Simmons play him high hoping to prevent him from getting a head of steam, but he uses his strength and speed to blow by and get into the paint anyway.
Well, why didn’t he do this more? Notice all these clips are from the 4th quarter, where Scottie did a lot of his damage. He was candid after the season in admitting his conditioning wasn’t good enough to compete on both ends of the floor. He had to severely limit his offensive game to carry an enormous defensive load, often covering opposing offensive players well above the 3 point line. With improved conditioning and less exhausting defensive scheme, Scottie will be able to utilize his athleticism in the half court more often this year.
You realize he had 52% True shooting last year?
he needs better spacing and shooters around him which he doesn’t have still. that’s why I always wanted raptors to get a big man like Porzingis or a Myles Turner or Karl Anthony Towns maybe to space the floor.
I love how he goes at KD everytime. Even if you are low on Scottie you cannot deny this man loves the challenge and wants to make the biggest possible play
love the fact that most of the highlights in this clip are against some of the best defender in the league
These clips are flashes but the fact is he was equally inefficient at finishing near the rim relatively speaking.
The archetype you’re thinking of is Giannis, or Ben Simmons before he forgot how to play basketball. It’s true you don’t need to be a great shooter to be effective but in order to do so, you need to be an absolute monster at the
rim.
Barnes, although he has shown some touch, does not appear to have the physicality or explosiveness that Giannis or Simmons have, I’m not sure he’s ever going to be that guy.
More likely IMO is that he hones in on his short floater type game. That to me is his differentiating skill, his ability to finish roughly from 3-10 feet, if he can become elite at that i think it’s his path forward to effective offence.
Scottie on his first year went toe to toe with LBJ. He has the ability to go get it but last year, they went away from him and he was being experimented on between SF, PF, and C.
That boi is so long
When he gets aggressive, he’s borderline unstoppable in the paint. The problem is he wasn’t consistently aggressive. He’d normally try going for the assist and kick it out for a 3pt. attempt, that anyone not named Gary Pascal, or Fred constantly bricked
This is where I push back against the take where losing Fred is a death sentence for the offense. If we try to play the exact same way as last year minus Fred of course we fail. Trying to get Scottie to this point consistently is the only way to have a meaningful ceiling as a team and that’s with or without Fred