Thoughts on today's game

[playoffs...PLAYOFFS?]

What do you guys think about our performance tonight?

I was pretty glad to see us compete. Only watched half of the third quarter and the fourth quarter. It seemed that we were down earlier in the game and managed to come back. Big props to the team for this.

I think our lack of depth was exposed when we had the bench come in. This is where Diop would help us a lot by providing some defense. It doesn't help either that DJ is out. I felt that the ball movement when the bench was out was pretty stagnated..Maybe part of it due to Singletary playing point guard and the fact that maybe these players haven't been playing together for a while. With Diop/DJ in the second string line up I hope that we do a better job controlling the game.

Anyone change their mind about Felton? He made poor decisions towards the end. He took the first shot to tie the game too quickly, LB was pissed. I was upset as well, there should have been more ball movement. The second time around, I couldn't tell, but I read in a game recap that he did try to pass the ball to Bell, is this accurate? That would have been the right play, since Bell was having a good shooting night. I think Felton did the right thing when the play broke down. He tried to driven in and hopefully draw a foul, he ran out of the room and shot a floater I thought would have gone in. However, I still like to see Felton as our PG. Finally, I couldn't blame Diaw for not making that shot.

Since I didn't watch the game, what happened to GW?

Overall, I'm still happy we showed up, wish we would have won this game, if we are to make it to the playoffs we have to close on these games.

[MattD]

this loss stung me pretty badly. not because of anything but raymonds need for heroics at the end again. how hard is it for him to understand he doesnt need to take the game winning shot every time? he simply is not that player. yeah he hit it against detroit, but i can think of dozens of times where he has missed that exact step back fade from inside the three in crucial situations.

RAJA WAS SO HOT but we stopped feeding him the ball. I even mentioned to my friend after raja had 7 straight, now raymond will decide its his turn to get hot rather then feed the hot hand. he then proceeded to drive and get blocked. HE IS TERRIBLE.

if he is an average pg 40% stellar 10% and terrible 50% of the time, the 50% kills everything we build upon. I would rather have a fully mediocre pg then one who messes up the rhythm of the game so badly.

the bobcats used to play the who will be the top scorer tonight games last year when consistency was 0. good basketball teams are built on consistency. rayray is the opposite of that.

[MattD]

and just for clarification, i have disliked feltons game since i joined this board, so it isnt a spur of the moment frustration. I think this team would be better without him period. whether or not we got anything in exchange

i will give him he is a hardworker

[playoffs...PLAYOFFS?]

and just for clarification, i have disliked feltons game since i joined this board, so it isnt a spur of the moment frustration. I think this team would be better without him period. whether or not we got anything in exchange

i will give him he is a hardworker

I specifically pointed out the second time around, RF did the correct thing and passed to Bell

"So they played on. Felton raced into the frontcourt and whipped a pass to Bell, who had nowhere to go. Bell threw it back to Felton, who quickly drove the lane past Manu Ginubili"[/URL]
[url]http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/recap;_ylt=Arx81kTC8GKoZHE_9EbW2Ac5nYcB?gid=200901 1930 (http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/players/3380/;_ylt=Am3SnVdZRHgdSigjuS_8UFOQvLYF)

Also, what do you guys think about LB not calling a time out?

While I think it benefits us in the long run (it's good that our starters know how to play with each other in a game situation like this), I think we could have benefited tonight, it might have made a difference and allowed us to have a better job.

LB justified it though

“I didn’t want to call a timeout because maybe they substitute (defensive ace Bruce) Bowen and talk about switching everything,” Brown said.

[Robertpel9]

We lost primarily because our bench absolutely sucked, they really could not have played any worse.

We now have a decent starting unit that can compete with most of the league but we lack depth. Outside of DJ and Howard it is pretty much non existent. Until we address the depth issue it will be difficult to really move to contender status in big games

Still it is nice to be able to feel you have a shot going into most every game. The team is on the upswing, between now and October 2009 I expect the FO will address the depth issue

[Keetch]

The bad: This was a hard loss; because it looked like we had destiny on our side when Mek blocked the Spurs last shot. But then we couldn't score on the other end.

Our bench seemed very weak next to San Antonio's. I was yelling at LB to please take the 2nd stringers out; but what can he do. He can't play the starters 48 minutes.

Mohammed blocked himself with the bottom of the backboard.

The refs just wouldn't let the game move. Lots of cheap calls. After the bad call to end the 1st half; LB spent quite a long time on the court talking to the refs before the 2nd; while the players were shooting around. It seemed cordial. Lo and behold, right away in the 2nd half it seemed like the refs were our best friends; making weak calls against the Spurs. Good grief, I guess they just want a little love.

Diop showed up on the bench after halftime. I was worried because he seemed to be talking alot to Sean May and Nazr Mohammed. Otherwise, he was busy checking his text messages.

The coaches really need to refine Diaw's finishing skills. Boris has a maddening habit of working his butt off to get the basket and then (if he doesn't pass...please pass) chucking up some half-hearted shot. DUDE if you're going to work so freaking hard getting to the basket, don't waste the effort on a butterfly shot. Put the damn thing in.

The good: as you said Playoffs...WE COMPETED...against the Spurs. The Spurs ARE a very good team. We weren't losing by 25 points in the 3rd quarter; and man there were times I thought we could have been....followed by times I figured we could win. There's definitely a toughness brewing right now, that was missing just a few games ago (Wizards).

Bell was awesome. In the first half, when Pops subbed Bowen in to smother Bell; Raja shook him and popped a jumper. Pops immediately called Bowen over and started chewing at him. Pops was unhappy. I was laughing. Reminds me of the Blazers game. Raja got a bad call in the 1st half from the youngest ref; and goes over and stands right in front of him (sort of looking down on him) and starts "schooling" him right there about refereeing. It was sweet. All I actually heard during the conversation was "did you SEE the foul, or did you HEAR it" lol

Back to the Spurs. I thought Felton played a good game. Tony Parker is one hell of a tough cover, he moves constantly. Parker is a very, very good point guard. Felts did a pretty good job on him I thought.

Before the last play, Ray took a good shot at the basket but missed. He was wide open. I don't fault him for that shot. It was there.

When the coach decides to not call time out, there's 10 seconds on the clock, no 9 seconds, oops 8 seconds....he's putting the game in his point guards hands. He doesn't have a hell of a lot of options. My first impression was that Ray held the ball too long; but I wasn't upset at Ray. For this time; I "felt" it was his to win or lose. No shame in losing.

[TattoodCatswife]

All around it was just a bad loss but we kept up with them very nicely. Bell was on fire this game and I really feel that ball movement towards the end would have been key and that Bell could have possibly tied it up for us to go into OT.

[BobcatsAllDay]

The coaches really need to refine Diaw's finishing skills. Boris has a maddening habit of working his butt off to get the basket and then (if he doesn't pass...please pass) chucking up some half-hearted shot. DUDE if you're going to work so freaking hard getting to the basket, don't waste the effort on a butterfly shot. Put the damn thing in.

Before the last play, Ray took a good shot at the basket but missed. He was wide open. I don't fault him for that shot. It was there.

The weak attempts by Boris need to be addressed. I'm not asking for thunderous dunks but I do want to see a strong layup. It's very frustrating to see point blank misses and no foul shots at the end. We can't miss shots in the paint when we are shooting under 40% from the field.

If I had to choose between my PG having the guts to take the final shot or searching for someone else to do it I would take the first option. He was the hero versus the Pistons but if he comes up short everybody has a "should have" comment. Contrary to popular belief everybody does not want the ball at the end of the game. We have a guy who has no fear at the end of games. Does that mean he makes the right decision every time? No. But who does? The press gave Lebron hell for passing on the last shot in the playoffs a couple of years back. If you have the ball at the end of the game this goes along with the territory. I hope we take our frustration out on Memphis.

[TattoodCatswife]

I hope we take our frustration out on Memphis.

I hope we do too..let's blow them out again

[chabber]

If only Boris knew it's legal for him to shoot with his left hand. Maybe someone played a sick joke on him when he first entered the leauge and no one has ever told him otherwise. LB should talk to him about that. Although he may find it as amusing as I do seeing all the different ways Boris can contort his body so that he can get his shot off with the that right hand.

[TheBeagle]

Bell was awesome. In the first half, when Pops subbed Bowen in to smother Bell; Raja shook him and popped a jumper. Pops immediately called Bowen over and started chewing at him. Pops was unhappy. I was laughing. Reminds me of the Blazers game. Raja got a bad call in the 1st half from the youngest ref; and goes over and stands right in front of him (sort of looking down on him) and starts "schooling" him right there about refereeing. It was sweet. All I actually heard during the conversation was "did you SEE the foul, or did you HEAR it" lol
We needed Raja on this team so bad in comparison to JRich it's not even funny. As far as I know, nobody has the carriage of Raja in the entire league; he's just fucking bad-ass, quite frankly. I can't think of a guy I'd rather battle with in a basketball game than Raja; I know he's got my back, and he's leaving it all on the floor.

And what you quoted him saying to the ref, Keetch....that is so classic, I may just have to use it as my signature.....that is priceless! :biggrin:

[Ampsportsduo]

If Felton wasn't the primary ball handler, he wouldn't receive nearly as much criticism. LB draws up many of the plays that the team executes in those late game situations (today an obvious exception) and he keeps putting the ball in Ray's hands. If the last second play doesn't work, it's Ray's fault according to some. What these last second plays illustrate is the lack of Ray's teammates ability to create their own shot. Boris can do it, but he's still a hesitant scorer. Larry'd love more options, but the team doesn't have them at the moment (particularly with DJ out).

Ray is by no means flawless, he has games where he turns the ball over a lot more than any coach would like, but if this team lost him, who is going to penetrate to create open looks?

[spectre]

Playoffs, you're becoming one of my favorites posters...and this is another great thread.

1st, Crash's quotes after the game:


But at the same time, I’m kind of happy and it’s a positive because it shows the improvement that this team is making. I was telling Juwan (Howard), a couple of years ago this would have easily been a blowout for them after the first half when things didn’t go right for us at the start of the third quarter. By the time the fourth quarter started, we probably would have been down by 30 (in past years). It just shows the improvement of this team, the way we fight and keep ourselves in the game and keep competing. We make plays when we need to make plays, tonight we just didn’t get stops when we needed to get stops. Other than that, everything else was good."

Raja:


"We played hard. We were resilient tonight and we came to fight, unfortunately we didn’t get over the hump and get a win. For a team that’s going through a transition right now, it’s a good sign. If we can compete like that every night and maybe knock down a few more shots or make some free throws, we’ll give ourselves a chance to win a lot of games."

Larry Brown:


"We did a good job defensively on some of their key players. (Tim) Duncan is going to get everybody in foul trouble anyway. They do such a good job going to them. We had a bad matchup in the third quarter. We just had some matchups that weren’t in our best interest. With that being said, Raja said it best after the game, ‘As long as we keep competing like this we’ll make progress and get better."

Reminds me of the Fast And Furious line by Paul Walker after he had just lost his first race to Vin Diesel:

"Dude...I almost had you!" (said with a very shit eating grin).

If you read Bonnell's observations the team was VERY pissed about the officiating. I mentioned in the game thread that it looked like Crash was being abused in the paint:



There was plenty of frustration around the Bobcats locker room with the officiating – in particular, how the referees let the Spurs get away with excessively rough play in the fourth quarter. Gerald Wallace was knocked to the floor late in the game on a play that never drew a foul.


Yet we STILL almost pulled out the win!

I'm VERY proud of this team and the way they fought. They should hold their heads up high after this one.

[spectre]

From QCH:



The Bobcat starters played 27 minutes and 3 seconds together tonight and during that time, Charlotte beat the Spurs 56-51. The starting five out-rebounded the Spurs 24-19, matched them on turnovers, 4-4, and had an offensive efficiency of 119.1. Very impressive offense...so how did the Bobcats manage to not crack an efficiency of 100.0 for the game. Without the starters - 38 possessions, 28 points.


Larry Brown (via Bonnell):



The Bobcats made up a nine-point first-half deficit to lead by eight with 42 seconds left in the third quarter. And then they ran out of bodies. Substitutes Shannon Brown, Adam Morrison and Juwan Howard couldn't manage the lead, forcing Larry Brown to reinsert the starters faster than he preferred.

“We had a really bad period where we had some bad matchups,” Brown said.

That led to foul trouble for Emeka Okafor; he committed his fifth with 21/2 minutes left.

This loss is squarely on the bench. Not that we should be blistering them with contempt...but "it is what it is". As QCH notes tho with DJ coming back soon and Diop now here..."help is on the way".

The starters had one bad stretch defensively (after we lost our lead) in the 4th that ended up dooming us...from QCH:



A little bit of a play by play before we get to numbers: Late in the 4th, about 3:30 left, and the Bobcats up 1. Tim Duncan gets the ball in the post, and Raymond leaves his man at the top of the key to come and double...but he was on Manu Ginobili at the time. Duncan quickly tosses it to a now wide-open Manu, up for 3, net. Spurs 80-78. Following a missed layup by Diaw, Manu Ginobili curls around a screen by Duncan - and Gerald either gets knocked down by the screen or pretends to. Either way, Manu gets the ball on the wing, with Gerald still on the floor - up for 3, net. Spurs 83-78.

Now, I am not blaming Gerald and Raymond for these plays: Maybe Raymond had been instructed to double by Larry Brown, and someone forgot to rotate. For Gerald, he may well have been fouled on the screen - but was it a hard enough foul to stay on the ground as long as he did? In a tight game against a great team, it was an unfortunate time for the Bobcats to have what appeared to be mental lapses on defense on consecutive plays.

Crash:



We had a chance, but we had two defensive breakdowns on two huge threes by (Manu) Ginobili. That changed the momentum of the game.

[spectre]

We needed Raja on this team so bad in comparison to JRich it's not even funny. As far as I know, nobody has the carriage of Raja in the entire league; he's just fucking bad-ass, quite frankly. I can't think of a guy I'd rather battle with in a basketball game than Raja; I know he's got my back, and he's leaving it all on the floor.

And what you quoted him saying to the ref, Keetch....that is so classic, I may just have to use it as my signature.....that is priceless! :biggrin:

I'm right there with ya Beagle...major Raja homer here!

From the start of the franchise we have NEVER had a legit player with an attitude. Raja talks it and backs it up. We have sorely needed a guy just like him on this squad and I'm extremely happy to have him. Not only that, he's become a leader for this team on the court and (according to LB) off the court as well.



I can't think of a guy I'd rather battle with in a basketball game than Raja; I know he's got my back, and he's leaving it all on the floor.


That my friend is sig worthy.

[spectre]

Lastly...from Along's article by Bill Ingram:



You know you've playing the Spurs when . . .

Manu Ginobili grabs you, pushes you out of bounds, then grabs you and falls down as you try to get back on the court . . .and the foul is on YOU . . .you know you're playing the San Antonio Spurs.

It's funny to watch players on teams that don't see the Spurs very often. They play hard and they play dirty, but they're very good at making the sneaky plays that get you out of rhythm but don't draw the attention of the refs. You see a lot of players with raised eyebrows and frustrated expressions when they play the Spurs for the first time in a while - they just don't appreciate how hard this team plays.

When you steal the ball by slicing between two Spurs on the break and get shoved out of bounds in the process . . .only to be called for traveling . . .you know you're playing the San Antonio Spurs.



BTW, this and the other Hoopsworld articles by Bill Ingram aren't the regular "he said she said" type; Ingram has actually been in Charlotte with the team. IMO his latest articles are at least as credible as Bonnell's.



Charlotte had a nice third quarter lead building on the Spurs thanks to some marvelous play from Raymond Felton, but the closer it got to the end of the period, the more intense the Spurs became, and by the start of the fourth it was only 68-63 Bobcats.



That's for those trying to pin everything on Felton. Sure he missed those last two shots at the end (the one on the drive I think was ok), but it also needs to be realized that his play in the 3rd helped to keep us in the game in the first place.

[Robertpel9]

We have a solid starting 5 right now, our depth is terrible and the bench lost this game. I think we have all see Juwan contribute and hopefully Diop can get back to his playoff from from a couple of years ago under Brown. I wish Morrison and May had some trade value and we do have an open roster slot. I am hoping we can make some type of move to strengthen the bench before the deadline some more. I know i'll probably get blasted for this but the real weak link of the starting 5 is Okafor. He is not terrible but we all know he is not a true center and I really don't see ball movement and cohesion happening if he and Diop are on the court at the same time. I wish it was earlier in the season and we could see how much Diop can or cannot contribute under browns system as who knows, look at what Diaw has done for us. Mayeb the best way to move some people would be Okafor and Morrison / May for some quality in return

Just a thought. I really like seeing what our starter are doing right now. We need tremendous help with depth and the bench, hopefully we will get some with Diop but we will need more to really be contenders

[krazyrumpshaker]

I was wondering why Diop didnt play, while Hollins and Carroll both played for Dallas. Hollins even played like 20 minutes, but thats for another discussion. Diop could have been very helpful yesterday.

[Slam]

I didn't know until watching the game last night when I got home that Manu ate Crash's lunch all of the 1st half. He had him on toast - at both ends. We were lucky that Manu's shots (all good shots) just weren't dropping. He frustrated Crash and got into his head. He had Crash going left when he should have gone right and right when he should have gone left.

After that Bell played on Manu and did a sensational job. He didn't fall for any of his tricks and hung with him really well.

Tony Parker might be the most under appreciated player in the NBA today.

Howard didn't play as bad as the play-by-play would have appeared he had played.

It was good that we hung with them. There were some bad old habits that I saw creep into the game that I hadn't seen in a while, but all in all it was a good showing.

Good to see EO50 attacking the rim and rolling HARD off the pick. Now he knows there is a chance the ball might be coming to him, he seems to be working harder for it.

That give and go side line inbound play when Crash missed the open dunk because he lost the handle.............it's nice to have a real coach who designs and impliments real plays!!

[chabber]

Raja got on Raymond after he doubled down on Duncan. Hopefully he'll remember that next time we play them.

[dnbman]

Raja got on Raymond after he doubled down on Duncan. Hopefully he'll remember that next time we play them.

Yeah, but that's pick your poison. Do you want Duncan one-on-one with Diaw ten feet from the basket? Felton is quick enough to gamble for the steal. Duncan is simply good enough to find the open man.

On most NBA bigs in the league, I like that play. San Antonio is just one of those teams that knows what how to handle the pressure.

[chabber]

It was a soft double though. Did absolutely nothing. And from me if I have a choice let Timmy do what he wants, at least someone is on him. Screw getting Manu hot and knocking down wide open 3's.

[dnbman]

It was a soft double though. Did absolutely nothing. And from me if I have a choice let Timmy do what he wants, at least someone is on him. Screw getting Manu hot and knocking down wide open 3's.

I feel you. I don't think Felton was going to double him hard, but was just hoping to knock the ball loose. I haven't watched it again since the game though.

Either way, you have to learn that stuff through situations.

This is where Brown's desire for veterans will help the team. Raja has been in just about every defensive situation imaginable.

[spectre]

I'm with Chabber...I hate pulling off your man to double, ESPECIALLY when we're talking Ginobli!

BTW, why was Felton on him anyway? Switch?

[chabber]

Felton and Wallace both were watching Duncan and not their men and had to switch. Manu went from the corner 3pt line all the way to overtop Duncan. Felts picked him up about midway but almost immediately decided to slowly double down and let Manu continue his jaunt uninhibited. Not trying to rag on him but overall it was very poor awarness. He could have been expecting some kind of rotation though.

[dnbman]

Not trying to rag on him but overall it was very poor awarness. He could have been expecting some kind of rotation though.

Since he did it twice in a short period, I'm guessing that it was a defensive plan. But, it could have just been bad awareness.

[spectre]

Felton and Wallace both were watching Duncan and not their men and had to switch. Manu went from the corner 3pt line all the way to overtop Duncan. Felts picked him up about midway but almost immediately decided to slowly double down and let Manu continue his jaunt uninhibited. Not trying to rag on him but overall it was very poor awarness. He could have been expecting some kind of rotation though.

Where in the hell was Raja? :g:

Nah...I don't want to know! :p

In our system we have doubled with the PG for sooo long, and like you mentioned (somewhere) I love it when we can D up and have an advantage man to man. Duncan on Diaw? Duncan's pretty darn good and can finish like everything, but I'd take that gamble any day over letting Ginobli lose. That is what he does.

Hopefully as time goes on we get better at that. We've been improving already.