Re:Mishra/Jessen/Walker

[Kim Malo <kmalo19@idt.net>]

At 11:40 AM 11/2/98 +0100, j.hironaka@unesco.org wrote:
>Icarus wrote:
>>DJessen33@aol.com <DJessen33@aol.com> wrote:

>> >Like I've stated before, Walker is more of a tweener between the 3
>> >and 4. He doesn't shoot well enough outside to be a 3 and doesn't
>> have the bulk, height, or jumping ability to be the best 4 in basketball.
>>
>> Walker has adequate bulk to play the 4, he is taller than Oakley and
>> weighs almost as much. I don't hear anybody in his right mind calling
>> Oakley a tweener. Regarding jumping ability, he may not be a leaper
>> like Mercer but the last time I saw him in person he has an adequate
>> vertical. His speed is what makes him formidable against other 4's.

>For what it's worth and as usual, I agree wholeheartedly with Mishra
>that height alone does not determine whether you can play the 4 in the
>NBA. It's all about strength (FYI, Antoine's got it) and fury (Antoine's
>got it). If you can work the paint for 11+rpg per game, then I don't
>care if you are 6-5 (Barkley), 6-7 (the Worm) or 6-8 (Cowens). BTW, I
>think everyone would agree that Vin Baker, Googs and Karl Malone are not
>good leapers even compared to Antoine. Neither were Kevin McHale and
>Larry Bird  :-)

Don't totally agree. The reason I think AW is more of a 3 (although I really
agree that he's more of a hybrid 3/4), is that it's still not JUST a
function of height, strength, etc -i.e. physical attributes. A lot of it has
to do with basic game. To take an example the other way, anyone remember
Adrian Dantley? Almost a pure 4 on offense, even though his size would more
naturally slot him as a 2/3. But his offensive game centered around post up
and paint/baseline play, put-backs and banging his way to the hoop: PF 101.
And if you watch the way AW plays, it's clear that he sees his game as
primarily a 3. The rules aren't hard and fast on what makes a 3 vs a 4, but
usually the 3s are more the ones that share the ball handling and
playmaking, shoot from outside more, and just generally mix more perimeter
play with the post and paint work. AW rebounds like a 4, but he certainly
doesn't play defense well at the 4 and stays outside/lets himself get pushed
outside the paint too much to really be a 4 on offense. So whether he has
desireable physical assets to play the position isn't really the key issue.
You can slot him there, but he's made it clear he's not going to play there
because of how he sees his game. Better to just think of him the way we
think of some guards -neither a 1 or 1 2, just a guard. AW's just a forward.

<snip>
-Kim
Kim Malo
kmalo19@idt.net