Why does Jackson get a free pass?

[110oldeast]

I have seen Diaw and Felton as the players who have "held us back" against the defending Eastern Conference Champs (who won last year without their pg healthy for most of it), with the center position mentioned as being in need of an upgrade. My question is when you look at the 2 games we had a chance in winning, why does Jackson get a free pass from critique. In fairness, Jack shot well in Game 2, but had 7 TOs to 3 assists.

In Games 1 and 3, the 2 games we actually had a shot in Jack's numbers were:

33% fg--6 of 18 in each game

10% 3pt --1 of 10

4 assists/6 TOs

I bring this up again to break away from scripted sports analysis with the usual scapegoating and hero worship.

Stephen Jackson is a very talented player and was HUGE in turning around our season. However, I also think that his persona and bravado has created an inflated sense of how good he is (top 5 SG according to him) and allowed him to take large chunks of credit with minimal to zero criticism. He's the anti-Felton. He can get credit when things go well, while being absolved of critique when they don't.

My point is not in tearing him down (I think we are banging the rest of the team well enough), but in saying that if Jackson is going to receive all the team accolades, he should have some responsibility as well. In the 2 games we had a chance in (and I understand he was pulled and hurt in Game 1), the numbers above don't say to me how he gets credit for carrying us but not having help. His style is a high risk/high reward style. If he is own, he can carry you. If not, his isolations and ball freezing can throw the rhythm of other guys off as they don't know when the ball is coming.

Again, there is no ONE thing we can point to, as much as we want to. Orlando is just a better total team who has had a lot of playoff experience COLLECTIVELY and individually and is doing to a 7 seed what a 2 seed coming off a Finals appearnce does. That said, I really want to win Monday and will scream my guts out for us to do so.

[G Force]

Uhh, he's playing hurt and has been plagued with injuries since March?

Not to mention the hyper extended knee he suffered in Game 1.

[bobcatniners09]

Jackson is not the reason we are losing.

[ajbry]

Jack and Gerald have been playing 2-on-5 against one of the best defenses in the league.

Should we expect more from Jack? Sure. But playoff ball is a different animal, particularly when you're on a team that has struggled so much offensively.

(And Van Gundy's been guarding him with Barnes and Pietrus, a very good defensive wing combo).

[110oldeast]

So 33% from the floor while taking 18 shots and 1 of 10 from 3 is not relevant to us winning or losing? Really?

Again, the 2 on 5 stuff is a nice script, but it's not what's taking place.

The fact is the Magic have a better overall team than we do and have been playing together longer.

Did any of you read what was in the post beyond the title?

There is plenty in there to suggest that Jack is ONE of the the many reasons why we are losing to a superior team. Again, I don't understand how he can take all the credit with no blame.

If you're going to give credit to the guy as being elite and a top 5 SG, then you have to also hold accountable. Furthermore, if your shot is off, you need to be a decoy and keep the ball moving on offense.

[SWedd523]

I think the majority of us get on him for his dumb passes and/or shots. But when you look at the big picture, he's doing much more to help us than he is hurt us. Guys like Ray and Doris are causing more trouble than they are helping the team, therefore they get much more derision than Jack or Crash.

[Felton for Prez]

I think its an excellent point. If he wants to be a the "star" he's supposed to step up. He clearly hasn't. If he's really top 5, he should be able to carry the team.

The part about Jack that gets horribly over looked (although touched on in a recent thread) is that he KILLS any ball movement. He just jabs steps and jab steps and jab steps some more. He is still our best offensive option and I am not here attempting exonerate Felton or Diaw.

Take DWade today. He took over and they won the game. I'm not saying Jax is DWade but a star is supposed to play like one when it counts. Jax hasn't done that. I doubt he disagree with that.

[GoBobs]

His play in this series isn't much different then what he has done all year since he got here. Two 6-18 nights sandwiching a 10-20 night is pretty much what I expected.

Since he got here he has taken the most shots by far and has one of the worst percentages on the team while being a turnover machine.

That said he has had some nice drives to the bucket on some of his made baskets when we needed 2 pts and it's not like we have a ton of other options. DJ and Diaw look gun shy, and nobody is really stepping up aside from the nice things larry hughes did in game 3.

I really hope we trade Jackson this summer though. It might make us a little worse in the short term, but at least I won't have to watch his constant bitching to the refs while the team plays 4 vs 5 on the other end.

[110oldeast]

Bingo. I am not trying to exonerate anyone either as have gotten on Boris and Ray for their lack of assertiveness at points.

My point is that there are a multitude of TEAM reasons why our 7 seed Bobcats are down to the 2 seed, defending champ Magic.


Swedd,

That sounds simple, but where is the evidence? I think everyone is guilty in parts (and have criticized all), but b/c folks are brainwashed by the Jack/Wallace articles, it's like criticism must not be thrown in this direction and thrown everywhere else as we act like they're putting up 30 per game a piece and getting no other help. Here's what's funny to me. I paid attention to the coverage of Game 1 and while all the rippage was on Felton's first half, folks mentioned our comeback, Jack's heart, etc. And yet, no one mentioned that Felton had 14 pts in the 2nd half, including 10 in the 4th while and shooting a high percentage, protecting the ball and holding Nelson to no fgs in that half. It's as if none of that happened and the comeback just sort of happened, much due to "Jack's heart." If the roles were reversed and Felton was the one who was 6 ogf 18 with 5 TOs, do you think it would have gotten covered that way? Like I said, Felton and Jack are antitheses of each other as Felton is only going to get blame and Jack is only going to get credit. I am simply saying everyone should be worthy of blame and praise.

When you have TWO games that you have a chance at winning and the "star" shoots 33% in both of them, putting up 18 shots in both, making 1 of 10 3s and having 2 assists per game compared to 3 TOs per game, he deserves SOME of the criticism. He had a wide open look down 1 in the closing moments. To whom much is given, much is expected.

Again, let's look at the actual games and break away from the script of us having a Jordan/Pippen combo with no help. Jack again is a very talented guy and our most versatile scorer and I am not on a drop Jack crusade. But at the same time his playmaking and scoring are high risk/high reward. Unfortunately, the reward has not outwieghed the risk in this series. Felton and Hughes had 13 and 14 respectively, while Tyrus Thomas had 8, so it's not like there was no help for Jack in the Game 3. Shooting 6-18 1-7 from 3 with 1 assist does not permit you to maintain star status and all the glory with no criticism.

Again, NO ONE should get off scott free in this series.



I think its an excellent point. If he wants to be a the "star" he's supposed to step up. He clearly hasn't. If he's really top 5, he should be able to carry the team.

The part about Jack that gets horribly over looked (although touched on in a recent thread) is that he KILLS any ball movement. He just jabs steps and jab steps and jab steps some more. He is still our best offensive option and I am not here attempting exonerate Felton or Diaw.

Take DWade today. He took over and they won the game. I'm not saying Jax is DWade but a star is supposed to play like one when it counts. Jax hasn't done that. I doubt he disagree with that.

[BobcatsAllDay]

Jack is like the gift and the curse for this team.

Take the 3pt shot in game 3: While the ball was in the air, I'm thinking PLEASE GO IN and we're up two but the big picture says attack the basket and something good will happen (especially considering D. Howard was gone). But looking at the entire season w/ Jack, he did this on numerous occasions and we we're on the positive end for the most part.

The TOs: I have no excuse for his ability (yes, ability b/c he does this well) to turn the ball over. I noticed this probably right before the all star break. But Jack would usually have a couple of bonehead plays in the 1st qtr/half and by the second half the TOs scaled back considerably. I mentioned in a post a while back that I couldn't understand why nobody mentions the SG's assist-to-turnover ratio. The PG's ratio is always mentioned in the NBA and that's understandable b/c they have the ball the most. But if your SG averages 30+ minutes a game his ratio must be taking into consideration. This has to get better but I can't see a 9-10 year vet changing so this is a mute point.

Ball movement: I have accepted this part of Jack's game. When he holds the ball and jabs or surveys the court he usually does something aggressive. When Gerald does this it's a disaster the majority of the time. But I know LB has to hate when this is done by anyone on the team.

With all this said I don't want to trade this guy unless the deal is unreal. I'm not sure if the makeup of the team will change greatly this summer. The biggest change could be LB leaving, and the potential exit of Ray & Tyrus. I definitely don't see Tyrus coming back if Boris is here. The guy wants to start (that's basically why he wanted out of Chicago) and as long as LB and Boris are here I don't see it happening. But only time will tell...

[teej]

While Jack certainly has his issues, he and Gerald are the only ones playing with any semblance of success right now. He's pretty much been forced to play point/forward because of Felton's and Diaw's inabilty to play a basic offense. He's just not capable of doing that. It'd be like asking Manu to run the Spurs offense while still shooting a high percentage, playing perfect defense of a bigger/better play, and rebound the ball.

Not possible. Only Kobe, LeBron, and maybe Flash can do that.

[King Taharqa]

Id have more of a problem with Jax's shot selection if we had more proven scorers on our team. The fact is, we dont, we have too many guys who shy away from taking big shots. Jax & Felton are like the only 2 who will be aggressive and take a big shot. Does he turn the ball over too much at times? Yes. Does he take bad shots at times? Yes. But if he doesnt shoot the ball who will? Diaw? Theo? Gerald? Ray? We need more offensive minded guys before we start complaining and want to trade our only "go to guy". Without his 20 PPG, we are not a playoff team and would be even worse offensively.

[BRNC]

Vet players that have proven themselves always have more latitude than unproven players...Jax brings more to the table than he takes away...although I wish the "jawing" at the officials would really be kept to a minimum...and I'm sure he'd like to cut his TOs down...

[Chef]

jack like crash are at best 2nd bananas. neither is a go to consistent scorer. this is what happens when they have to be, playing against the best defense, for 7 straight games. if jack is to excel as a top gunner we need a very strong inside presence to command at least a token double at all times.

[BobCatsFanInTx]

I think the majority of us get on him for his dumb passes and/or shots. But when you look at the big picture, he's doing much more to help us than he is hurt us. Guys like Ray and Doris are causing more trouble than they are helping the team, therefore they get much more derision than Jack or Crash.Ray has somewhat of an excuse. Ray has never been in the playoffs and it is possible the pressure of leading an expansion team in his and it's first playoffs is a lot of pressure. I am tired of people throwing Raymond under the bus. Most of the season he has been quite effective at running Larry Browns system. Has he been a top ten pg? Probably not. That said the NBA is pretty damned deep at the 1 and it not luck Felton sucked either. Our chances of drafting a CP3 type pg or signing a Max FA pg are slim at best. Pg talent is starting to get thin now. Felton has done a pretty frigging good job this season. I am not ready to blame him for a poor showing in the playoffs when more than half the team has been weak at best.

Let us assume our Bobcats do play well on the whole during this playoff series. Do you really think they win this series? I personally think Orlando is too good and too hungry to lose the series. Our guys could have made the series interesting but it is doubtful we overcome Orlando's depth and experience. Nothing is impossible but I just don't think that based on how our team is constructed they win over Orlando in round one.

The good thing about all this is that our team as it is will be stronger next season and they will be hungrier. With a few minor changes our Bobcats should rock. I can't say Felton will be back but I can say that in the last two seasons he has grown under coach Brown and he will have a bright future regardless of where he winds up.

[BobCatsFanInTx]

jack like crash are at best 2nd bananas. neither is a go to consistent scorer. this is what happens when they have to be, playing against the best defense, for 7 straight games. if jack is to excel as a top gunner we need a very strong inside presence to command at least a token double at all times.Chef you are right and I have known this since the inception of the Bobcats. For some reason the ineptitude of the GM's and front office has kept that from happening. I would have thought coach Brown would've realized that but it seems he does not see that. For some reason he is in love with Diaw.

I am excited about TT's promise and high ceiling. If he becomes what I think he will our Bobcats will only need a skilled backup.

[KT#20]

I think its an excellent point. If he wants to be a the "star" he's supposed to step up. He clearly hasn't. If he's really top 5, he should be able to carry the team.

The part about Jack that gets horribly over looked (although touched on in a recent thread) is that he KILLS any ball movement. He just jabs steps and jab steps and jab steps some more. He is still our best offensive option and I am not here attempting exonerate Felton or Diaw.

Take DWade today. He took over and they won the game. I'm not saying Jax is DWade but a star is supposed to play like one when it counts. Jax hasn't done that. I doubt he disagree with that.

The problem is Jackson isn't a star, and he's not a top five shooting guard. He's a very good player, but there's a reason why he's never been an All-Star.

I don't expect him to carry a team one bit in the playoffs, and I don't even expect him to be able to perform like he did in the regular season, because we're now facing arguably the best defensive team in the league for every game.

Overall, we're just dealing with a more talented, experienced ball club. Outclassed, to put it in one word.

[Plowright]

Jax is hurt man, he has not been what we expected but dam i respect him...he came from Golden State Warriors and in my eyes is an Warrior. Stop this jax hating, makes me feel sick...

[Felton for Prez]

I'm shocked this hasn't been bumped by now. I'd like to make a few, likely unpopular comments about Jax. He was awful last night and acted like my 2yr old. I've been to 80% of the home games and see how he acts that can't be seen from TV feeds and let's just say I'm disappointed.
1. He's not a warrior, he's a martyr. Outside of Tyson and Nazr everyone on this team fights thru injuries. Crash, Felts, Tyrus and look at DJ last night. His desire to play is not any greater than others.
2. He claims no one plays harder than he does. After watching him for all these games, that isn't even close to true. Crash, Felts, Tyson and DJ all play harder than Jax. If Jax is having a good game, he doesn't take plays off. If he's not, you can see in his face that he has checked out. Last night it was quite clear he was somewhere else.
3. Any shot he misses is someone else's fault. I think Bonnell said something like this in the past but its true. Last night he even faked a shoulder injury to claim he got fouled.
4. I don't have a problem with getting a technical in the heat of the moment. I don't like it, but I get it. You gotta drop it though and move on. Getting t-ed up last night during a timeout from halfway across the court is inexcusible, particularly in a close playoff game. It reminded me of a baseball manager who trys to get tossed. I honestly think Jax feels that getting t-ed up shows he cares and wants to demonstrate to everyone that he does, which is another reason he's a martyr.

I know why everyone likes Jax, he was the main reason we turned our season around. I certainly credit him with the turnaround. I think that is why I am so disappointed in him at times because he can be so good if he actually plays like he claims he does. I had such high expectations for him in the playoffs and he failed. There is no debate on that. Just like Ray failed. If we're going to be pointing fingers for the sweep, you need to point at Jax as much as anyone else.

[walkerl]

Jack gets a pass, because he is the reason we are talking about the playoffs plain and simple.

[walkerl]

I'm shocked this hasn't been bumped by now. I'd like to make a few, likely unpopular comments about Jax. He was awful last night and acted like my 2yr old. I've been to 80% of the home games and see how he acts that can't be seen from TV feeds and let's just say I'm disappointed.
1. He's not a warrior, he's a martyr. Outside of Tyson and Nazr everyone on this team fights thru injuries. Crash, Felts, Tyrus and look at DJ last night. His desire to play is not any greater than others.
2. He claims no one plays harder than he does. After watching him for all these games, that isn't even close to true. Crash, Felts, Tyson and DJ all play harder than Jax. If Jax is having a good game, he doesn't take plays off. If he's not, you can see in his face that he has checked out. Last night it was quite clear he was somewhere else.
3. Any shot he misses is someone else's fault. I think Bonnell said something like this in the past but its true. Last night he even faked a shoulder injury to claim he got fouled.
4. I don't have a problem with getting a technical in the heat of the moment. I don't like it, but I get it. You gotta drop it though and move on. Getting t-ed up last night during a timeout from halfway across the court is inexcusible, particularly in a close playoff game. It reminded me of a baseball manager who trys to get tossed. I honestly think Jax feels that getting t-ed up shows he cares and wants to demonstrate to everyone that he does, which is another reason he's a martyr.

I know why everyone likes Jax, he was the main reason we turned our season around. I certainly credit him with the turnaround. I think that is why I am so disappointed in him at times because he can be so good if he actually plays like he claims he does. I had such high expectations for him in the playoffs and he failed. There is no debate on that. Just like Ray failed. If we're going to be pointing fingers for the sweep, you need to point at Jax as much as anyone else.

Part of Jax problem is the lack of respect he gets from the NBA officials. There is no arguing the fact that he does not get a lot of calls. And I really think it gets the better of him. And DJ stinks...

[110oldeast]

WRONG. He is ONE OF the reasons we were in the playoffs just like he is ONE OF the reasons that we lost to a better team in Orlando. Ultimately, we ran into a better more experienced team, the same way Orlando did when they got SWEPT by Detroit 3 years ago.

3 Games where we had any semblance of a chance in: 1, 3, and 4.

Shooting Numbers: 6-18, 6-18, and 2-11 = 14-47 = 29.7% from the floor in the 3 games we had a shot in. 1-13 = 7.7% from 3 in those games.

Break away from the script. Just b/c a guy PROCLAIMS HIMSELF as the hardest working player on the team, top 5 SG who raises his game for the playoffs doesn't mean it occurred here. Just b/c a guy talks about "making love to pressure" doesn't mean he is the guy in crunch time who gets it done (even TNT listed Felton--team goat--as closer). Jackson is a VERY TALENTED player who has sold himself to Charlotte folks as more than he is and the city has bought it hook, line and sinker.

Bonnell laid it out nicely before it started and it became a self-fulfilling prophecy. He said that the losing of the team would come down to Diaw and Felton being exposed and everyone has watched the entire series through that lens. I think all the video game dismantling of our team is premature, but I also am sick of people who were designated for the fall before the series taking it ALL while someone who has taken ALL THE CREDIT while having a horrendous series bearing no responsibility.

Bamboozled.


Jack gets a pass, because he is the reason we are talking about the playoffs plain and simple.

[walkerl]

Let's be real about this, Do you HONESTLY believe that if this team did not have Jax, they would have made the playoffs?? This team is 10th in the east at best without Jackson...Now, I'm not saying he is perfect..every guy on this team has their flaws, but he is the reason this team made it to the post-season. End of Discussion.

[DY_nasty]

I can't believe some people are going after Jax's head in all of this. Even though his shooting was off, he still managed to keep Vince quiet for the majority of the series as well as get guys involved throughout the series. Meanwhile, Raymond Felton and Boris Diaw get outplayed by Larry Hughes of all people.

Stephen Jackson was hurt, and has been hurt for a while. If he wasn't injured, he probably would've won game 1 for us in spite of Felton making Jameer look like an MVP candidate.

You want someone to blame? Look at Boris Diaw for treating the playoffs like an exhibition game. Look at Felton for taking that beating and NEVER making his own personal adjustments (Ray, MOVE YOUR FEET AND STOP LOOKING AT THAT MIDGET FROM 10 FT AWAY), blame him for continuing to turn the ball over in the most embarrassing ways game after game. Look at Larry Brown for not playing Tyrus enough, no doubt his length and overall athleticism would've bothered Lewis and helped slow down the layup line. Look at DJ for his selfish play in each game.

There is PLENTY of blame to go around before you get to Stephen Jackson. A guy who was playing hurt for weeks and is the sole reason that the Bobcats made it into the playoffs to begin with. Don't forget that we were 3-8 before he got here.

[BobCatsFanInTx]

I'm shocked this hasn't been bumped by now. I'd like to make a few, likely unpopular comments about Jax. He was awful last night and acted like my 2yr old. I've been to 80% of the home games and see how he acts that can't be seen from TV feeds and let's just say I'm disappointed.
1. He's not a warrior, he's a martyr. Outside of Tyson and Nazr everyone on this team fights through injuries. Crash, Felts, Tyrus and look at DJ last night. His desire to play is not any greater than others.
2. He claims no one plays harder than he does. After watching him for all these games, that isn't even close to true. Crash, Felts, Tyson and DJ all play harder than Jax. If Jax is having a good game, he doesn't take plays off. If he's not, you can see in his face that he has checked out. Last night it was quite clear he was somewhere else.
3. Any shot he misses is someone else's fault. I think Bonnell said something like this in the past but its true. Last night he even faked a shoulder injury to claim he got fouled.
4. I don't have a problem with getting a technical in the heat of the moment. I don't like it, but I get it. You gotta drop it though and move on. Getting t-ed up last night during a timeout from halfway across the court is inexcusible, particularly in a close playoff game. It reminded me of a baseball manager who trys to get tossed. I honestly think Jax feels that getting t-ed up shows he cares and wants to demonstrate to everyone that he does, which is another reason he's a martyr.

I know why everyone likes Jax, he was the main reason we turned our season around. I certainly credit him with the turnaround. I think that is why I am so disappointed in him at times because he can be so good if he actually plays like he claims he does. I had such high expectations for him in the playoffs and he failed. There is no debate on that. Just like Ray failed. If we're going to be pointing fingers for the sweep, you need to point at Jax as much as anyone else.Feltonforprez, I do think you make some valid points but after our team achieved a goal we all have been hoping for I can not start placing blame on any one or two players for a playoff failure. Does getting swept suck? Of coarse, but I would rather our team get swept in their FIRST playoff appearance than to have gone another season being irrelevant.

At the end of the day there were several players who just did not fully show up during the playoffs. That could in part be because we ran into a team that believes in offense AND defense!!!

No excuse but also our guys have shown signs of wearing down for quite some time. While Orlando was kicking the shit out of the New Jersey Nets, Philadelphia 76ers and the other non playoff contenders our team was barely beating them. Sometimes our guys even LOST to these weak ass teams.

The Lakers are struggling with the Thunder because the Lakers lost focus heading into the playoffs. It was obvious the Lakers were not the same team the last month of the regualr season. OKC is good and may one day be great but LA is a veteran ball club who should be playing better. I guess what I am saying is that it helps to be playing well or great as the regular season comes to a close. Our Bobcats did neither.

Orlando is a really good ball club and in order to even compete our team would have had to come into the playoffs with a head of steam and confidence. I don't see where they had either.

Chalk this up as a learning experience and expect better from the team next season.

[GoBobs]

Jackson shot just over 35% in the playoffs while taking by far the most shots. Only DJ had a worse % but he took 17 shots to Jackson's 67.

He shot just over 16% from the three point line. Only Diaw was worse from behind the arc. His combination of fg% and 3pt% is by far the worst looking on the team.

Diaw (fg).50 (3pt).11
Felton (fg).40 (3pt).30
DJ (fg) .29 (3pt).33
Wallace (fg).47 (3pt).45
Hughes (fg).47 (3pt).40
Nazr (fg).57 N/A
Tyrus (fg).62 N/A
Jackson (fg).35 (3pt).16

DJ has a bad fg% and Diaw has a bad 3pt%, but Jackson has two horrible numbers by his name all while leading the team in turnovers. Jackson had 4.25 turnovers per game. Diaw had 3 and everyone else was under 2.

All those missed shots and turnovers equal a lot of empty possessions. You could actually make a really good argument Jackson killed any chance we had in this series with his play. We would have been better off with Hughes. Hell, Hendo would have been hard pressed to turn in a worse performance then this.

As far as Jackson being the reason this team is in the playoffs, nothing could be more misleading. He is one of the reasons but this team would have gotten there with a healthy Raja Bell. Felton and Diaw have been better players all year then Jackson. Luckily for us there is a popular perception in the media that he took our team to the next level. We need to trade him while we have a chance to get out of his suck ass contract.

[spectre]

Tex has it right. This was a much needed experience...so instead of just ignoring the body of work all these players did all season we should instead chalk it up to being their first time in the big dance together (didn't Jordan himself point out that this squad hasn't had a lot of time together?) and there's something to grow with.

We have so few options I can't imagine this team changing much if at all from now to the opening game in 2010/2011. Besides...I'd like to think the FO isn't as knee jerk as a lot of fans seem to be... :rolleyes:

And to think I first thought Tex was a troll showing up in the game threads with all this "Katy" stuff! :p

[CatNation]

cause he played defense at least

[spectre]

cause he played defense at least

Who didn't play defense? Did you see some of the shots Nelson was making? Did you see what LB said, what Jax said, what TC said and what SVG said about the PG matchup?

Are you just ignoring all that and have it in your mind that it was really a 1 v 1 battle and there was nothing else happening on the court?

You do understand what it means to defend the screen right? Did you watch last night when DJ was on Nelson in the 2nd quarter and what happened when Nelson wanted to be aggressive?

On another note...we have sucked against the screen all year long. What defense did the Magic use against us? What did they do when Crash or Jax got the ball every possession?

Seriously...why did anyone think we'd suddenly succeed against a zone defense when we've sucked against it all year?

[walkerl]

Jackson shot just over 35% in the playoffs while taking by far the most shots. Only DJ had a worse % but he took 17 shots to Jackson's 67.

He shot just over 16% from the three point line. Only Diaw was worse from behind the arc. His combination of fg% and 3pt% is by far the worst looking on the team.

Diaw (fg).50 (3pt).11
Felton (fg).40 (3pt).30
DJ (fg) .29 (3pt).33
Wallace (fg).47 (3pt).45
Hughes (fg).47 (3pt).40
Nazr (fg).57 N/A
Tyrus (fg).62 N/A
Jackson (fg).35 (3pt).16

DJ has a bad fg% and Diaw has a bad 3pt%, but Jackson has two horrible numbers by his name all while leading the team in turnovers. Jackson had 4.25 turnovers per game. Diaw had 3 and everyone else was under 2.

All those missed shots and turnovers equal a lot of empty possessions. You could actually make a really good argument Jackson killed any chance we had in this series with his play. We would have been better off with Hughes. Hell, Hendo would have been hard pressed to turn in a worse performance then this.

As far as Jackson being the reason this team is in the playoffs, nothing could be more misleading. He is one of the reasons but this team would have gotten there with a healthy Raja Bell. Felton and Diaw have been better players all year then Jackson. Luckily for us there is a popular perception in the media that he took our team to the next level. We need to trade him while we have a chance to get out of his suck ass contract.

Please don't take this personally, but you are talking out of your ass, if you believe that Felton and Diaw have played better than Jackson all year. Diaw has sucked all year, and I'm sure the rest of the board will second that. As far as felton, he has been so damn up and down, one game he looks like a legit PG, the next he looks like he should be coming off the bench for an NBDL team

And the team had a healthy Bell, and did not make the playoffs. Raja BEST season is 13ppg!!! Give me a break, You may not like Jax, but lets keep it real here. If not for Jax, you would not have any post season numbers to analyse.

[DY_nasty]

Not only that, but Jack was the one initiating the offense the majority of the time. Even though his shot was off, he was still one of the few players with a pulse on offense for this team. Trying to scapegoat JAX is like blaming the debt on Obama...

[Felton for Prez]

Not only that, but Jack was the one initiating the offense the majority of the time. Even though his shot was off, he was still one of the few players with a pulse on offense for this team. Trying to scapegoat JAX is like blaming the debt on Obama...

If by initiating you mean jab stepping for half the shot clock, then ok.

I wasn't trying to scapegoat JAX just addressing the thread title. He's clearly getting one and he should shoulder as much of the blame as anyone else.

Let's not go the political route. That is a conversation for another forum.

[Chrystos]

WRONG. He is ONE OF the reasons we were in the playoffs just like he is ONE OF the reasons that we lost to a better team in Orlando. Ultimately, we ran into a better more experienced team, the same way Orlando did when they got SWEPT by Detroit 3 years ago.

3 Games where we had any semblance of a chance in: 1, 3, and 4.

Shooting Numbers: 6-18, 6-18, and 2-11 = 14-47 = 29.7% from the floor in the 3 games we had a shot in. 1-13 = 7.7% from 3 in those games.

Break away from the script. Just b/c a guy PROCLAIMS HIMSELF as the hardest working player on the team, top 5 SG who raises his game for the playoffs doesn't mean it occurred here. Just b/c a guy talks about "making love to pressure" doesn't mean he is the guy in crunch time who gets it done (even TNT listed Felton--team goat--as closer). Jackson is a VERY TALENTED player who has sold himself to Charlotte folks as more than he is and the city has bought it hook, line and sinker.

Bonnell laid it out nicely before it started and it became a self-fulfilling prophecy. He said that the losing of the team would come down to Diaw and Felton being exposed and everyone has watched the entire series through that lens. I think all the video game dismantling of our team is premature, but I also am sick of people who were designated for the fall before the series taking it ALL while someone who has taken ALL THE CREDIT while having a horrendous series bearing no responsibility.

Bamboozled.

I have to agree with walker on this one. Do you really believe that the cats could have made the playoffs with Raja Bell ( Who has no offensive game unlike Jackson ) and Vladimir Radmonivic as their backup pf ?

[ajbry]

A few things:

- Jack played poorly. However, I don't really understand how some of you expected the Bobcats to reasonably compete with the Magic in a 7-game series. The Magic are Finals contenders. They ain't no joke. Without Jack, the Bobcats franchise wouldn't even be thinking about the playoffs, lol.

- Jack outplayed his individual matchup, another marquee player, Vince Carter.

- Jack is clearly in the discussion as a top 5 SG... the only players I'd feel comfortable grouping with him are Manu (healthy version), VC (healthy and aggressive version), and Ellis (ultra efficient version). Of course the top 4 (Kobe, Wade, Roy, JJ) are set. Aside from that I don't comprehend all of the animosity toward his self-worth. He's a very, very good player who is paid quite reasonably, too.

- I don't think anyone here is rationalizing Jack's series, but the perspective is severely lacking here. Y'all weren't expected to be relevant this time of year. Enjoy the fact that your team made it to the playoffs, made it on TNT, and managed to compete with an elite team during 3 of the 4 games in the series.


The day after always sucks, but damn, just calm down.

[King Taharqa]

Some people mistake "likeability" for "talent" in this town. Some of our fans DONT LIKE Jax, dont like the way he plays or feel he's too demonstrative or their still stuck on his past mistakes. Some dont like the fact he's gotten more recognition as our leader this season than other players on the team. And thats cool, but to act like this guy isnt the reason we had any prosperity this year is going overboard. Jax brought a swagger and toughness to this team that we never had before. We are a lottery team without him, and Gerald Wallace is not an all star without him. Chances are G-Force would've got beaten up and injured if he had to carry the entire offensive load without Jax (like he did every season prior to this one).

[etothet]

A few things:

- Jack played poorly. However, I don't really understand how some of you expected the Bobcats to reasonably compete with the Magic in a 7-game series. The Magic are Finals contenders. They ain't no joke. Without Jack, the Bobcats franchise wouldn't even be thinking about the playoffs, lol.

- Jack outplayed his individual matchup, another marquee player, Vince Carter.

- Jack is clearly in the discussion as a top 5 SG... the only players I'd feel comfortable grouping with him are Manu (healthy version), VC (healthy and aggressive version), and Ellis (ultra efficient version). Of course the top 4 (Kobe, Wade, Roy, JJ) are set. Aside from that I don't comprehend all of the animosity toward his self-worth. He's a very, very good player who is paid quite reasonably, too.

- I don't think anyone here is rationalizing Jack's series, but the perspective is severely lacking here. Y'all weren't expected to be relevant this time of year. Enjoy the fact that your team made it to the playoffs, made it on TNT, and managed to compete with an elite team during 3 of the 4 games in the series.


The day after always sucks, but damn, just calm down.


Key word is discussion.

[DY_nasty]

Let me clarify, I do not like Stephen Jackson.

But like I said earlier, you have to go down a long list of people that screwed up on our team before you get to him. He's not Kevin Durant - he actually contributes to the game outside of just scoring. He shutdown Vince entirely and managed to get decent assist numbers considering his role. And lets be honest, a Stephen Jackson jab-step followed by a fadeway is still a better scoring option than most of the crap we attempt (Theo Ratliff jumpshot party, etc). At least he was seen as enough of a threat that the Orlando Magic actually deemed him worthy of guarding, unlike the rest of our team.

[ajbry]

The Magic basically geared their defense toward holding Stack Jack in check. He was always defended by Barnes or Pietrus (their stoppers) and whenever he would try and get deep post position, their center would literally rotate over to get right behind him. After Game 1 it was apparent that their defense shifted 5 sets of eyes to him whenever he got the rock.

They did everything they could to get him out of his spots and make sure he didn't get any one-on-one opportunities. Still would've liked to see him play better, but it's not like the Magic are defensive slouches and they stuck to their gameplan.

Jack and Gerald need some help. It's really that simple.

[110oldeast]

We don't make it without Jax, just like we don't make it several other of our players.

People are treating him like Kobe or Lebron, which is off base to me, especially when there is not the delivery to back it up.

For the record, this thread is not about wanting to rip Jack as much as it is about saying how there are a MULTITUDE of reasons we made the playoffs and a MULTITUDE of reasons we are going home. His play was ONE OF the reasons we went to the playoffs and his play is ONE OF the reasons we are going home.

I think that there are way too many knee jerk reactions about dismantling things across the board and I created this thread to show some of the flaws in the discourse.


Let's be real about this, Do you HONESTLY believe that if this team did not have Jax, they would have made the playoffs?? This team is 10th in the east at best without Jackson...Now, I'm not saying he is perfect..every guy on this team has their flaws, but he is the reason this team made it to the post-season. End of Discussion.

[ajbry]

No offense, but Jack being a Bobcat in turn alleviated a lot of pressure on the other players which made them better. It wasn't as if the Bobcats were playoff-bound before the trade, lol.

Do you really think Gerald Wallace becomes an All-Star this season if Jack wasn't scoring 21 a night and letting Gerald do his thing? Do you really think Felton raises his shooting percentages by a healthy margin? I could go on and on...

[110oldeast]

Let me try to clarify this thing, because I think many folks are missing the point, as my goal is not to create a Jack shitfest, as much as it is to say that his play while being a part of us making the playoffs, was also part of why we were swept.

This TEAM has played off EACH OTHER. Jack certainly helped things on this team and is a large part of why we made the playoffs, as he made it easier for others. They also made it easy for him to come in and integrate into the team as they deferred to him (at times too much). Again, Jack is a large part of why we made the playoffs. Wallace is a large part of why we made the playoffs. Felton playing the way he did is a large part of why we made the playoffs. LB's coaching was a large part of why we made the playoffs. The thing is that these things coming TOGETHER helped us make the playoffs, not Jack by himself. Jack by himself was not going to the playoffs before he came here the same way we with a banged up Raja Bell at the 2 were not likely going to the playoffs. Put them together and we made the playoffs as A TEAM. He helped us, but going to this team HELPED HIM TOO.

My point is that folks are trying to sacrifice everyone else and saying that there was no help for Jack when the reality is that he like others did not play at the level he was needed to play for us to win. In several of the games, there was help, but he could not do what he needed to. Diaw and Felton's shortcomings in the series have been well highlighted. LB's decision to double Dwight and ignore their shooters continually burned us, but was ignored. I am simply saying that there don't need to be any KNEEJERK reactions and that the scapegoating of players was done by a tone that was set before this series even started.

Sports analysis nowadays is typically one person saying one thing, and everybody parroting it without thinking independently or doing deeper research. Rick Bonnell wrote before this series that this series would expose Felton and Diaw and set the tone for folks to view things through that lens. There also was a spread done with Jackson and Wallace that made it seemed like they had carried us this far and could continue to carry us with a just a little help. People were pissed that we got swept and went right back to what was said early, despite much evidence that challenged portions of it.

I have heard folks repeatedly write about all of Felton's turnovers and whatever and he had a 20 to 6 assist to turnover ratio for the entire series. In other words, that's 3.33/1 a/t ratio and 1.5 TOs per game. I agreed with everyone that I wanted more aggression from him and less deferring to Jack, but I also could tell many folks were just parroting what they thought or expected when talking about all his "turnovers and poor decisions." Furthermore, talks of inconsistency this year would be off base, as he has been pretty darn consistent since the Jackson trade and as consistent as anyone else on the team. But this again is my point about breaking away from the script.

My point with Jackson is not that I want to rip him. My point is that IF you are going to have low expectations for his play in a series against the defending Eastern Conference Champs who have owned us, then instead of wanting to dismantle everything, it should just be accpeted that what happened was destined to and we need to get ito together.


No offense, but Jack being a Bobcat in turn alleviated a lot of pressure on the other players which made them better. It wasn't as if the Bobcats were playoff-bound before the trade, lol.

Do you really think Gerald Wallace becomes an All-Star this season if Jack wasn't scoring 21 a night and letting Gerald do his thing? Do you really think Felton raises his shooting percentages by a healthy margin? I could go on and on...

[110oldeast]

I can give you games where there was help and we just didn't get it done.

Game 3, there were 3 other double figure scorers, Felton had just had 2 back back drives and scores and we were down by 1 and LB decided to run a play for Jackson to hit a shot to put us up, which was wide open and the shot wasn't close.

Again, it's not ALL about nobody else helping, but if I buy that script then I will look at everything through that lens.



The Magic basically geared their defense toward holding Stack Jack in check. He was always defended by Barnes or Pietrus (their stoppers) and whenever he would try and get deep post position, their center would literally rotate over to get right behind him. After Game 1 it was apparent that their defense shifted 5 sets of eyes to him whenever he got the rock.

They did everything they could to get him out of his spots and make sure he didn't get any one-on-one opportunities. Still would've liked to see him play better, but it's not like the Magic are defensive slouches and they stuck to their gameplan.

Jack and Gerald need some help. It's really that simple.

[DY_nasty]

Let me try to clarify this thing, because I think many folks are missing the point, as my goal is not to create a Jack shitfest, as much as it is to say that his play while being a part of us making the playoffs, was also part of why we were swept.

This TEAM has played off EACH OTHER. Jack certainly helped things on this team and is a large part of why we made the playoffs, as he made it easier for others. They also made it easy for him to come in and integrate into the team as they deferred to him (at times too much). Again, Jack is a large part of why we made the playoffs. Wallace is a large part of why we made the playoffs. Felton playing the way he did is a large part of why we made the playoffs. LB's coaching was a large part of why we made the playoffs. The thing is that these things coming TOGETHER helped us make the playoffs, not Jack by himself. Jack by himself was not going to the playoffs before he came here the same way we with a banged up Raja Bell at the 2 were not likely going to the playoffs. Put them together and we made the playoffs as A TEAM. He helped us, but going to this team HELPED HIM TOO.

My point is that folks are trying to sacrifice everyone else and saying that there was no help for Jack when the reality is that he like others did not play at the level he was needed to play for us to win. In several of the games, there was help, but he could not do what he needed to. Diaw and Felton's shortcomings in the series have been well highlighted. LB's decision to double Dwight and ignore their shooters continually burned us, but was ignored. I am simply saying that there don't need to be any KNEEJERK reactions and that the scapegoating of players was done by a tone that was set before this series even started.

Sports analysis nowadays is typically one person saying one thing, and everybody parroting it without thinking independently or doing deeper research. Rick Bonnell wrote before this series that this series would expose Felton and Diaw and set the tone for folks to view things through that lens. There also was a spread done with Jackson and Wallace that made it seemed like they had carried us this far and could continue to carry us with a just a little help. People were pissed that we got swept and went right back to what was said early, despite much evidence that challenged portions of it.

I have heard folks repeatedly write about all of Felton's turnovers and whatever and he had a 20 to 6 assist to turnover ratio for the entire series. In other words, that's 3.33/1 a/t ratio and 1.5 TOs per game. I agreed with everyone that I wanted more aggression from him and less deferring to Jack, but I also could tell many folks were just parroting what they thought or expected when talking about all his "turnovers and poor decisions." Furthermore, talks of inconsistency this year would be off base, as he has been pretty darn consistent since the Jackson trade and as consistent as anyone else on the team. But this again is my point about breaking away from the script.

My point with Jackson is not that I want to rip him. My point is that IF you are going to have low expectations for his play in a series against the defending Eastern Conference Champs who have owned us, then instead of wanting to dismantle everything, it should just be accpeted that what happened was destined to and we need to get ito together.

Without Jackson, we got blown out by the Celtics in one of the most humiliating defeats I've ever seen in NBA history. Doc Rivers said at one point that the Bobcats would be a tough team to beat HOWEVER you can simply play zone against them and shut them down completely. Raymond Felton's numbers were crap for years, then all of a sudden when the eyes aren't on him as a primary scoring option his stats mysteriously increase. Gerald Wallace would be dead by now in any other season, the reason that he's even able to walk is because he doesn't have to do everything for the team to be in games.

I think many people have become so used to seeing subpar players perform, that they like to clump in actual quality players with those that wouldn't get off the bench on a 50 win team. If Stephen Graham goes 2-12, feel free to throw him under the bus because he's got no business ever taking those shots. If Stephen Jackson does it (and its not that Clippers game where he absolutely loses his mind, and Larry as well for not benching him), then excuse it - because when he gets the ball, teams actually have to guard him and give him respect. Stan van Gundy said it himself during the series, the only players on the Bobcats that were necessary to guard were Jack and Wallace. Its real easy to shoot a high percentage when people double off of you...

Now, back to Larry Brown. He's the coach and he brought this team to the playoffs. But lets not act like he's been perfect all season, he's had plenty of faults throughout. His shining beacon of failure during this series is the fact that whenever the Bobcats got Howard out of the game, the Bobcats NEVER capitalized. Thats like knocking Peyton Manning out of the game and still losing to the Colts. Also, he no doubt had an integral part in dealing Flip for Tyrus. Lets just be real, we wouldn't have gone 8+ minutes without a field goal with Flip. At the very least, he'd give us plenty of chances for rebounds. On top of that, whats the point of bringing in a high energy, long, athletic guy like Tyrus if you're not going to give him meaningful minutes against a team thats running a layup line on you? When exactly was he going to have the team prepared to open up the game? He's had his faults too, and as the coach you're going to have to take some of the blame.

Felton... Its hard for me torch him like I should because he came to my high school games and he's really a good guy but he's gotta do something. At some point he's going to actually have to show some self-improvement. He plays like an old and busted Andre Miller, expect he's not nearly as good on offense, ever. Maybe a gassed up Eric Snow? Naw, he's not as smart with the ball. There're are turnovers and there are completely idiotic, careless, how-the-hell-is-he-a-starter turnovers. In an offensive tempo this slow, the dumb turnover stick out a lot more. Just for comparison's sake, if Russell Westbrook or Darren Collison made put up 8 turnovers in their respective systems, it wouldn't look nearly as bad as 4 turnovers in ours. This team simply can't win if it turns the ball over. So when Felton does give it away, or deliver a pass late, or make a poor read, or crap up the shot clock, its devastating. After 5 years in the league, I, and everyone else, should expect more out of the #5 pick.

Doris, boo. I don't see how anyone can like him anymore. Welcome is worn out, trade his bum a**, etc.

I blame those 3 guys because they had expectations that they just didn't come close to meeting this series. Stephen Jackson... if you want to blame him for anything, blame him for not jacking up 30 shots a game to save this anemic offense and not begging Larry Brown to let him run point after game 2.

[110oldeast]

Jack wasn't going anywhere near the playoffs before he came here either. That's the part folks keep ignoring.

Felton's numbers weren't "crap for years." His perception here was crap and will always be crap as long as he is here. There's not really much he will be able to do about that, as folks will always hold it against him that he "kept them from getting Chris Paul." What he does well will get minimized and what he fails to do will get magnified. That's a simple fact.

As to the turnovers, Felton averaged around 2 per game this year and had 6 in the entire series in comparison to 20 assists or 5 assists per game. The guy having 4.25 TOs a game was not Felton. Felton's issue in the series was not failing to play smart, it was deferring too much and not being more aggressive, as whether folks want to admit it or not, he was typically a necessary component in us beating good opponents all year. His problem was not fully embracing this as we went into this series and instead trying to defer.

Zoning the Bobcats has as much to do with lack of pure jumpshooting on the wing as everything else. We need some WING jumpshooting options on the team.

I absolutely love how you say that Jack who shot one of the lowest percentages and took the most shots should have jacked up more shots and how he should have run point while turning the ball over over 4 times per game.

I'm not going to spend time breaking down your post as it only reiterates my point about folks parroting things whether evidence backs it up or not.



Without Jackson, we got blown out by the Celtics in one of the most humiliating defeats I've ever seen in NBA history. Doc Rivers said at one point that the Bobcats would be a tough team to beat HOWEVER you can simply play zone against them and shut them down completely. Raymond Felton's numbers were crap for years, then all of a sudden when the eyes aren't on him as a primary scoring option his stats mysteriously increase. Gerald Wallace would be dead by now in any other season, the reason that he's even able to walk is because he doesn't have to do everything for the team to be in games.

I think many people have become so used to seeing subpar players perform, that they like to clump in actual quality players with those that wouldn't get off the bench on a 50 win team. If Stephen Graham goes 2-12, feel free to throw him under the bus because he's got no business ever taking those shots. If Stephen Jackson does it (and its not that Clippers game where he absolutely loses his mind, and Larry as well for not benching him), then excuse it - because when he gets the ball, teams actually have to guard him and give him respect. Stan van Gundy said it himself during the series, the only players on the Bobcats that were necessary to guard were Jack and Wallace. Its real easy to shoot a high percentage when people double off of you...

Now, back to Larry Brown. He's the coach and he brought this team to the playoffs. But lets not act like he's been perfect all season, he's had plenty of faults throughout. His shining beacon of failure during this series is the fact that whenever the Bobcats got Howard out of the game, the Bobcats NEVER capitalized. Thats like knocking Peyton Manning out of the game and still losing to the Colts. Also, he no doubt had an integral part in dealing Flip for Tyrus. Lets just be real, we wouldn't have gone 8+ minutes without a field goal with Flip. At the very least, he'd give us plenty of chances for rebounds. On top of that, whats the point of bringing in a high energy, long, athletic guy like Tyrus if you're not going to give him meaningful minutes against a team thats running a layup line on you? When exactly was he going to have the team prepared to open up the game? He's had his faults too, and as the coach you're going to have to take some of the blame.

Felton... Its hard for me torch him like I should because he came to my high school games and he's really a good guy but he's gotta do something. At some point he's going to actually have to show some self-improvement. He plays like an old and busted Andre Miller, expect he's not nearly as good on offense, ever. Maybe a gassed up Eric Snow? Naw, he's not as smart with the ball. There're are turnovers and there are completely idiotic, careless, how-the-hell-is-he-a-starter turnovers. In an offensive tempo this slow, the dumb turnover stick out a lot more. Just for comparison's sake, if Russell Westbrook or Darren Collison made put up 8 turnovers in their respective systems, it wouldn't look nearly as bad as 4 turnovers in ours. This team simply can't win if it turns the ball over. So when Felton does give it away, or deliver a pass late, or make a poor read, or crap up the shot clock, its devastating. After 5 years in the league, I, and everyone else, should expect more out of the #5 pick.

Doris, boo. I don't see how anyone can like him anymore. Welcome is worn out, trade his bum a**, etc.

I blame those 3 guys because they had expectations that they just didn't come close to meeting this series. Stephen Jackson... if you want to blame him for anything, blame him for not jacking up 30 shots a game to save this anemic offense and not begging Larry Brown to let him run point after game 2.

[spectre]

Bumping this thread to see if there are any reactions to Larry Brown's end of season news conference, specifically about Jax:

Larry Brown loves coaching, feels pull of family (http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2010/04/30/1407674/larry-brown-talks-about-coaching.html)

Larry Brown – 2009-10 Season Recap – 4/30/10 (http://www.bobcatsbreak.com/?p=2423)


-- On Stephen Jackson:
"I think…he needs to lose a lot of weight if he’s going to play shooting guard for us or small forward. At Golden State he had to play everywhere – play upfront at the (power forward) position. Now, as he gets older, the most important thing for him is to get lighter again. But he can play a lot of spots and does things you can’t teach."
-- On Jackson’s Alpha Male persona offensively:
"I tried to talk to him a lot about deferring to his teammates early so that they can make a shot or make a play. That gives them a lot of confidence. Then, late in the game, when (others) do have to make plays, the fact that they’ve been involved makes it easier.
"You want guys with that sense of responsibility, but you need to channel that in the right direction."
-- On the season-long struggles to score, highlighted in the sweep by the Orlando Magic:
"We don’t have guys who command double-teams and I think we have people on our roster who could do that. But they’ve got to be committed to giving up the ball earlier" to punish an opponent for double-teaming.
"If you watched the series, they didn’t guard our point guard, they didn’t guard our centers and they guarded Boris (Diaw) only when he had the ball. That made it difficult even if we did move it quickly and the end result was usually taking a jump shot.
"I don’t think we had the patience to move the ball from side-to-side enough."


In his end of season presser LB seemed to make the most negative comments about Jax by far...particularly about not giving the ball up when he's double teamed.

Given that...does that make this thread more legitimate?

[davcbow]

-- On Stephen Jackson:
"I think…he needs to lose a lot of weight if he’s going to play shooting guard for us or small forward. At Golden State he had to play everywhere – play upfront at the (power forward) position. Now, as he gets older, the most important thing for him is to get lighter again. But he can play a lot of spots and does things you can’t teach."


Oh no he isnt going to turn into our new Sean May is he?:facepalm:

[Felton for Prez]

Given that...does that make this thread more legitimate?


Technically, this makes the thread less legitimate. LB isn't giving Jax a free pass.

As long as everyone is accountable, which LB does a MUCH better job than fans and the media, I'm good.

[teej]

I totally with everything LB said, and I don't see it as criticism, only encouragement for helping the team, and I'm sure Jack sees it in the same way.

[DY_nasty]

About the top 5 thing... He was, until Ginobli got healthy.

Wade
Kobe
Roy
JJ
Ginobli

Really hope I'm not forgetting someone...

[spectre]

I totally with everything LB said, and I don't see it as criticism, only encouragement for helping the team, and I'm sure Jack sees it in the same way.

I wonder if he does. He certainly thinks he's a great passer (which he sometimes is) and I doubt he thinks he's the one stopping ball movement.

It's hard to get that GSW "chunk at first opportunity" mindset out of a player. If LB comes back I expect him to become a much better team player next season. I think he definitely wants to be.