who knows maybe tonight he shows us that he truly can be more than just a sparkplug 6th man. maybe he can elevate his play and truly be a starter in this league and a quality one at that. he's shown flashes during the season especially after billups went down. he'll have billups mentoring him tonight and i expect to see Douglas play well as a result i feel he has a lot of upside and if he can finesse his PG skills he can be our starter of the future no reason why not.
we find out tonight
I've scouted him.
His strengths include:
*his defense playing the passing lanes etc...
*his speed
*streaky when hot and confident
His weaknesses include:
*poor decisions
*over playing his man on defense, gets caught out of position by being over agressive, has to recover too much
*lackadaisicle passing
*POOR FINISHER AROUND THE BASKET- RESORTS TO UNECCESSARY FLOPPING DURING ROUTINE LAY-UPS
Dear Toney,
I know you won't admit it but I see your issues. They're similar to many undersized shooters. You were caught in between being a point guard and/or a shooter. In college you were a scorer which normally would translate into being a "combo-guard in the NBA.
But in this system, with this coach and our personnel, you are being asked to be more of a facilitator. That's not your strength, nor was your vision of who you would be. I know you are more comfortable with the green light as a scorer. We have seen the same issues with Nate Robinson.
Let me add the psycological aspect to this. Any player including you is better with confidence. Your confidence came when you had the reigns to shoot without looking over your shoulder, and this is the current case. But those pg attributes must be on display tonight. Your passing MUST be crisp! Your decisions, specifically when to shoot, to drive, or to dish, HAVE to be from a floor leader stand point.
To put it best I would say, yes you are now an EXPERT in this system, an EXPERT. By now you should know exaclty how it works, where to go, and the nuances. But that's just it. To take your game to a higher level, YOU MUST REALIZE THE SYSTEM IS A BLUE-PRINT, YOUR BB KNOWLEDGE should superceed the system! That means while playing within the system, IF you see an opening, you take it!
If you see a mismatch, you exploit it, over and over. If the opposition looks tired, you speed up. If they speed up, YOU slow them down. Get your teamates involved, but don't be too passive, look for yur shot, especially during multiple mised possessions. Right the ship.
This is what a Point Guard does. He is in control. You are in control, nothing should dictate how the ball moves EXCEPT YOU! You have the ability to control the show.
You are a soldier, and the military has supplied you with MANY deadly weapons. STAT, Meloand the cast are your weapons, there for you. THE FOCUS SHOULD BE ON YOU.
Once you establish yourself (by being aggressive) and sense the shift and focus, then you implement your weapons! That's what they're there for, to support you and your decisions. When you decide to drive USE YOUR BODY AND QUICKNESS TO PUT A QUALITY SHOT UP RIGHT WHEN THOSE BIG BODIES CAN'T REACT WITHOUT FOULING YOU- and keep doing this until they collapse- then kick it out.
That's the best I can tell you. Be a leader, make a difference. Talk it up, gain your teams confidence, and lastly, a sign of a good pg is...
Makeing sure your team knows YOU SEE EVERYTHING AND EVERYONE EVEN WHEN ITS NOT APPARENT.
God's speed!