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Brad Miller

Indiana Forming a Lockout All-Star Squad

by Jared Wade on September 3, 2011 at 11:46 am · 2 comments

Good news for anyone who wants to ease their lockout woes by watching professional players play amateur basketball in Indiana. It’s not the NBA, but it’s better than nothing. (h/t I Am A GM)

This summer, basketball fans have been treated to a number of big games featuring the best players from regions like Los Angeles, Washington D.C. and Baltimore. The Drew League, Goodman League and Melo League have made the lockout tolerable for many basketball fans and given a number of NBA stars something to do with their free time.

Now, it appears more players will have the opportunity to represent their hometown. Seattle and Indiana are among the regions working to put together their own travel teams featuring NBA players. Organizers are trying to assemble rosters and schedule games against the other regional teams.

The team from Indiana hasn’t released a roster, but there are a number of NBA players who were born in the area that could participate. Zach Randolph, Eric Gordon, George Hill, Courtney Lee, Jeff Teague, Mike Conley, Josh McRoberts, Jared Jeffries, Brad Miller and Gordon Hayward were all born in Indiana. Other NBA players such as Luke Harangody and Rodney Carney could also be eligible to play since they attended high school in the area.

Indiana might not have Durant, Melo or Kobe, but they could field perhaps the most well-rounded actual team. Hill and EJ starting in the backcourt with Z-Bo, McRoberts and some third guard starting up front.

Barnstorm away.

Based on the photo of his torso below, I’m guessing George Hill is in.

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How Roy Hibbert Learned to Pass

by Jared Wade on December 11, 2010 at 9:46 pm · 2 comments

At Georgetown, Roy Hibbert played in a Princeton offense so it’s not like he wasn’t a good passer even before he ever entered the NBA. And in his first two years in the league, he showed flashes of brilliance, finding cutters and often making good decisions with the ball under duress.

He was also often sloppy with the rock, however. Especially in the high post, way too many of Roy’s touches were wasted with him just holding the ball and letting the shot-clock dwindle before making a bailout swing pass that did little more than force a guard to re-set the offense.

This season has been very different.

His assist percentage (the amount of teammate field goals a player assists on while he is on the court) so far this year is 19.3%. For reference, only 12 centers in history have finished a season with an assist percentage of more than 19%. Only four centers have done so since 2000 (Shaquille O’Neal, Arvydas Sabonis, Vlade Divac and Brad Miller). And no center has finished above 19% since Miller did so for Sacramento in 2005-06.

(If you open it up to players of any position who are 6’10″ and over — thereby including great passers like Kevin Garnett, Tim Duncan, Pau Gasol, Lamar Odom and Toni Kukoc — there are still only 22 tall guys that have ever maintained an assist percentage better than 19.0% for a whole season. KG has done it an amazing 10 times — with a high of 27.1%.)

He is performing well by other metrics as well. Per-36 minutes this season, for example, Roy ranks fifth in assists among players 6’10 and over — ahead of guys like Pau, KG and Dirk.

How is it that Roy has become so much more adept at passing the ball so quickly?

Like all his improvements this year, his slimmed-down physique and new-found agility are the primary drivers. It’s not that MMA training this summer gave him better court vision, but better stamina and greater quickness have slowed down the game for him, and he now just sees everything that happens on offense better — and sooner.

Also, he just understands the offense better and is more comfortable receiving the ball at the elbow. The trepidation and indecision that was all too familiar last season is now rarely seen. He has a plan from the catch and does something useful with the ball much more quickly. If a guy gets open, he usually gets the ball from Hibbert. This, naturally, incentives movement and helps prevent stagnation. Instead of looking like a QB hurried by a blitz, he stands there calmly, pivoting and scanning the court as if he is checking down receivers and looking for a seam to throw. He is also better at executing the hand-off to a teammate — usually Danny Granger — who curls off his shoulder towards the foul line.

Sport Illustrated’s Ian Thompson recently spoke with Hibbert about his passing. And Roy credits working with Bill Walton this summer as a big reason that his technical proficiency has improved.

Few NBA offenses run as much motion around the post as the surprising 10-10 Pacers, but then few teams have a center who can pass as well as 7-foot-2 Hibbert. It’s no coincidence that Hibbert spent three days last summer working with Bill Walton, the Hall of Famer who was the finest passing center of modern times.

“[Bill] had a drill from the high post,” said Hibbert, “and he was like, ‘Just make passes between your legs, behind your back.’ They were silly passes to the guards while they were moving, and he was like, ‘Don’t be afraid to make those passes.

“We watched tape on Hakeem [Olajuwon], we watched Pau Gasol and David Robinson and how they were able to see guys [cutting] and they didn’t think twice about making those passes. It just came natural to them, and Bill said I have that [ability] so I should do it.”

Perhaps even more importantly, Walton helped instill confidence in Hibbert.

Since last season, Hibbert has … developed confidence that is on display during the pregame introductions, when he raises both hands high at the sound of his name, whether at home or away. That last bit comes from Walton.

“He said you have to love yourself,” said Hibbert. “He was like, ‘You have to be all about yourself!’ I told him, ‘Basically what you’re telling me is swag.’ Come out like this.”

He raised both arms.

“All eyes on me,” said Hibbert. “I do it now because of Bill, that’s why I come out like that.”

I’m not sure that Bill Walton knows what “swag” is, and I’m almost certain he hasn’t ever listened to to Tupac’s multi-platinum-selling double-album All Eyez on Me, but nevertheless, it seems as though the universal language of beautiful passing was not lost in translation.

Here’s a gorgeous pass from Roy Hibbert to Darren Collison from Friday’s win over Charlotte. I don’t believe he could have done this last year. Note the Walton-inspired, All Eyez on Me arms at the end.

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Game #30 Recap: Pacers Play the Heel

by Jared Wade on December 30, 2009 at 12:27 pm · 0 comments

Pacers	@	Bulls
95	Score	104
2	Largest Lead	19
100.0	Offensive Efficiency	109.5
46.1%	eFG%	56.9%
41.1% (37/90)	FG%	52.8% (38/72)
37.5% (9/24)	3PT%	60% (6/10)
66.7% (12/18)	FT%	91.7% (22/24)
31 (8)	Rebounds (Off.)	47 (7)
11 (7)	Turnovers (Points Led To)	21 (17)
30	Points in the Paint	20
11	Fast Break Points	11
27	Assists	24
6	Steals	4
1	Blocks	6

It was another ugly one, folks.

The Pacers came out missing everything and dug themselves a 19-point deficit by the end of the first quarter. Improved accuracy, better defense and an impressive-as-hell Josh McRoberts cameo in the second cut the lead to 4 at the half, and Indy even managed to thief the lead momentarily in the third quarter. But that house of cards was quickly blown down by the sonic boom left in the wake of Derrick Rose — and, oddly, Brad Miller — as they continually got by defenders and scored easily in the final 12 minutes.

More than anything, this game felt like a lot of the undercard wrestling matches I watched as a kid. On Saturday afternoon (or whenever these shows used to be on before the whole Monday Night Raw thing took off in primetime), there would only ever be one or two matches that were actually interesting (much like how last night in the NBA only Cavs/Hawks and perhaps Rockets/Hornets were marquee match ups).

But they still had an hour to fill. So, early in the show, someone like Jake the Snake would square off with an also-ran like The Brooklyn Brawler just to kill 10 minutes in between Cocoa Pebbles and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle action figure commercials.

Jake the Snake would come out to much fanfare and quickly start pounding away on the Brawler. A few punches to the face, a clothesline, a body slam and maybe even a supplex or two. Then, out of nowhere, the Brawler would catch Jake with a nutshot that turned the tide. He would pick Jake up, give em an eye gouge and throw in off the ropes before slamming him to the canvas. He would work Roberts over in the corner for a while, pummeling away on his skull until it looked like we might actually have a legitimate fight on our hands.

But, of course, that was all a ruse. The Brawler was never going to win that fight.

Jake got up, landed a few punches, swept the leg and then waited for the Brooklyn Brawler to get up before unleashing the match-ending DDT to put the lights out.

1-2-3.

Jake the Snake wins. Play the music.

The Pacers did an admirable job of keeping the game close last night during the middle portions, but the beginning and the end all belonged to the Bulls. And I don’t think anyone in the building really thought the Pacers were ever going to seize enough control of the game to take it over and win — even during the brief stretch in the third quarter when they took a 70-68 lead.

In fact, that was the exact moment the wheels fell off as quickly as it inevitably did for the Brooklyn Brawler.

John Salmons, a guy who had recently shot his way out of the Bulls starting lineup by going 26/81 (32.1%) in his last 8 games, hit a three. Dahntay Jones answered with a bucket of his own but the Bulls came back with a flurry of jumpers and free throws that fueled the 16-2 run over the final 6 minutes of the third quarter that ended Indy’s slim chance at a comeback win.

While the defensive lapses that allowed threes/long jumpers to Salmons, Brad Miller and Luol Deng were disheartening, it was the Pacers inability to put up any points up on the other end that all but determined the final outcome before the third quarter even ended. How an offense can so often go so long looking so inept, I’ll never understand, but, sure enough, the Pacers once again managed to go 6 minutes and 51 seconds without making a single field goal. (Two Earl Watson free throws were the only points Indy put up during the 16-2 run.)

The stretch just featured too many wasted possessions for me to recount. Too much standing around. Too many useless dribbles (I’m looking at you on that one Luther Head). Too many non-advantage creating swing passes (I’m looking at you, Coach).

Ultimately, too many bad shots.

And after that futility, all it took was a DDT from Derrick Rose in the form of his 11 fourth-quarter points (on an easy as Sunday morning 5/5 shooting) to complete the predetermined outcome that we all knew was coming even in the first quarter.

My advice to Pacers fans: Eat your vitamins and say your prayers, brother.

Five Bright Spots

(1) Josh McRoberts had a stellar second quarter and a good game overall. His alley-oop/three-pointer/alley-oop sequence was perhaps the highlight of the season. I really wish I was kidding, but I’m not even sure that I am. (OK, the Boston game was the highlight, I suppose, but this was certainly top five.)

(2) DUNKS. There were a bunch of them. Like, to the point Indy looked like a normal NBA team in terms of athleticism and getting easy buckets even. Unfortunately, dunks in the this league are often seen by fans more as signs of flashy, highlight reel decadence than what they really are: Easy shots to make. I’m not saying you can’t win if you can’t dunk (just ask Gregg Popovich how that is done), but those extra 5-6 dunks most teams other than the Pacers seem to get each night equal 10-12 points. That’s a big deal, particularly since guys like TJ Ford and Jeff Foster seem to miss so many layups — layups that many of the other players in the league would be dunking. As far as the Bulls game specifically, the two aforementioned McRoberts oops were the marquee ones, but Roy had a few and so did Solomon Jones. Speaking of…

(3) Solomon Jones. He looked good in his first-ever Pacer start. Only 3 rebounds in 23 minutes is Hibbertesque bad, but 6/9 shooting for 13 points is more than expected. Particularly since he didn’t seem to blow as many defensive assignments as usual, and he actually looked comfortable catching and shooting without hesitation (something that still eludes Tyler and Brandon Rush). Hopefully this endorsement from Coach O’Brien will give him a little confidence and keep him more engaged out there going forward.

(4) Pump fakes. I’m not sure whether it was just the fact that, as Tim Donahue tweeted during the game, “the Bulls are long on stupid,” but they sure did fall for a ton of shot fakes. Dunleavy had a few effective ones, Murph — per usual — did as well and Luther Head had one that just embarrassed the defender. Even Hibbert had some nice little up-and-under thing that I don’t really support him doing since he’s, ya know, 7 foot 2, but was nonetheless productive. I suppose most of this can just be attributed to Chicago employed Tyrus Thomas, but it might have been the best skill I’ve seen the Pacers master so far this season over a 48-minute stretch.

(5) There is no five. Sorry for lying, but I like round numbers. OK … here’s something: We got to see former Pacer fan favorite Brad Miller go by someone off the dribble on multiple occasions for the first time since, let’s say, 2006. Thanks for instigating some nostalgia, Roy Hibbert. And while I’ve got you here, please stop having nights where you miss 60% of your shots, please and thank you. You’re 7’2″, dude.

the brooklyn brawler

He even dresses like Josh McRoberts.

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Game #30 Preview: 2 Teams, 1 Cup

by Jared Wade on December 29, 2009 at 5:09 pm · 0 comments

Indiana Pacers @ Chicago Bulls
Tuesday, December 29
8:00 PM EST
United Center
Chicago, Illinois

Pacers	@	Bulls
9-20 (13th)	Overall Record	11-17 (9th)
3-12	Home / Road Records	9-6
3-7	Record Last 10 Games	4-6
Lost 6	Current Streak	Won 1
5-5	Last 10 Head-to-Head	5-5
-5.34 (27th)	Avg Scoring Margin	-6.68 (28th)
96.7 (23rd)	Points Per Game	91.0 (29th)
99.8 (26th)	Offensive Rating	98.3 (29th)
43.0% (28th)	FG%	42.8% (29th)
46.9% (26th)	eFG%	44.9% (29th)
102.0 (22nd)	Opponent's PPG	97.7 (14th)
105.3 (12th)	Defensive Rating	105.5 (15th)
44.7 (11th)	Opponent's FG%	44.6% (9th)
48.0% (5th)	Opponent's eFG%	48.7% (13th)
96.9 (2nd)	Pace	91.9 (23rd)

Off Rating: pts / 100 possessions Def Rating: pts allowed / 100 possessions
eFG%: FG% accounting for 3PA being worth more Pace: avg possessions per game

When the two worst shooting teams in the entire league who aren’t from New Jersey square off, it’s probably going to be pretty ugly. And despite our constant harping around here. I’m still not sure that many Pacer fans realize the depths to which this offense has fallen.

As has been the case all year long, the defense is middle of the road, but the team just can’t score with enough regularity to get wins. Somewhat fortunately, the Bulls are pretty much the same team in that regard. Very unfortunately, that means we’re probably going to see a ton of missed shots this evening and shooting percentages hovering around 40%.

Or not. Who knows? Weird things happen every day in the NBA and season trends can seem pointless on any given night.

Still, here are a few extra info tidbits I dug up earlier today when I was previewing tonight’s game for Hardwood Paroxysm. (You can see my quick previews of all the Association’s games tonight if you follow the link).

Indiana Pacers @ Chicago Bulls – 8:00 pm EST

A good game to watch if you want to see some really good defense a ton of missed open jumpers. The Bulls, for example, shoot an embarrassing 36.2% on shots taken between 16-23 feet (which ranks them 27th best in the league from that location) yet they opt to lead the league in attempts with 29.8 FGAs between 16-23 feet per night. (For perspective, only two other teams take more than 25 attempts per game from that range. And Orlando only takes 13.2 per from this notoriously inefficient distance.). The Pacers, on the other hand, like to miss from further out. They attempt 20.8 three-pointers per outing despite only shooing 31.8% from there as a team and only having one healthy member of the rotation (Troy Murphy) shooting above 34% from behind the arc. I suppose none of this should come as a surprise since these two teams rank 28th and 29th in the NBA in FG% (Indy is 43.0% while Chi-Town shoots 42.8%), but these really are some staggering numbers. Get amped for this one, sports fans.

So the poor shooting thing is definitely the macro theme for both teams tonight.

For some more Bulls-specific stuff, read on.

Five Other Things

(1) Vinny Del Negro is by most accounts a walking lame duck right now. Chris Broussard of ESPN is reporting him as already fired, with the Bulls simply waiting on a replacement. Barring a major turnaround in the very, very near future, Vinny of the Black will likely be shown the door by early 2010 at the latest. I’m not a professional basketball player, so I’m not sure how all this effects the team precisely, but it must have some impact.

(2) Tyrus Thomas will come off the bench tonight for his second game since breaking his arm earlier this year. He scored an impressive 21 points on 10/17 shooting to go along with 9 boards in his first game in nearly two months against the Hornets on Sunday.

(3) With 10.9 ppg, 12.4 rpg and 1.9 bpg so far this season, Joakim Noah has gotten himself on the radar for this year’s Most Improved Player award. He still needs to work on shooting better (only 47.7% this season, which is down from last year’s 55.7%), but a lot of his inaccuracy can probably be attributed to the overall futility of Chicago’s offense as a whole. He’s more of a finisher by trade and since the whole system is broken, he isn’t getting as many easy looks as he should be. Still, he will be a good guy for Pacers fans to focus on tonight, as he does a lot of the things that Larry Bird and company are hoping Tyler Hansbrough can become adept at, albeit in a smaller frame and, hopefully, with a little more scoring ability.

(4) Derrick Rose hasn’t met the high expectations many people (including me) had for him this season. Again, some of this is just the Bulls offense being terrible, but seeing as he is the point guard and all, obviously a lot of that is on him. And even if that’s not fair, it comes with position regardless. Some of his struggles can be attributed to an early season ankle injury. He has also seemed a little hesitant to become the team’s primary scorer at times, instead distributing. But he is calling his number a lot more of late to the tune of 20.6 FGAs per game in his last 10 outings. He is still shooting just 45.1% during this stretch, but if he gets hot (or more likely, he drives by Indy’s guards at a high rate and finishes at the hoop) he’s liable to score 24 or more tonight — just like he has in 3 of Chicago’s last four games.

(5) Former Pacer Brad Miller has only made 1 shot in his last 5 games despite playing a around 17 mpg during what has easily been he worst year of his career. Somehow the 7-footer is shooting 39.7% for the season, which, for perspective, is almost as bad as Brandon Rush’s 38.6%.