I believe shot blocking is one of the best defensive skills one can have, steals being the other. A player can stick to his man like glue, however, if he doesn`t possess the timing to block a shot or the anticipation and timing to make a steal he can be scored on at will. On the other hand block shots usually come from big's, and the defense you are describing comes from guards and SF`s. I am just biased, I think a couple of blocks gives an offensive player something to think about when he tries another shot similar to the one that came back at him.
ABC ran a great story about Rip and his mask before the game. If you missed it, you can check it out at www.need4sheed.com
ahb - Why do you consider Prince a soft player? He does not back down from anything. Yes he is quiet but thats not to be confused with his on court play.
Jammer, that video is hilarious. I advise everyone to check it out if you missed the pre-game. I'm not sure who is funnier. Rip Hamilton or Dominick Hasek.
Lemme qualify this... there's no doubt that shot blocking is a valuable defensive quality... however shot blocking can also be a weakness... case in point Dalembert (to a lesser extent Darko)... he's constantly being pump faked off his feet and getting burned or in foul trouble. Ben OTOH, has much better timing of when to comit...leaving the offensive player guessing.. efficient blocking goes a long way towards intimidation. Let's please not mention Rasho with anything remotely resembling a good defensive player... there's a couple reasons he gets pulled often... defense & foul trouble from lack of mobility.
had to watch the game late on my DVR...2nd funniest moment of the season...Amir's slam from Darko was first!!
Re: Merc we kicked their @$$ and watching davis cap it off with a 3-pt attempt was awesome. 45 bench points!! even if we don't use mo or delfino in the playoffs, we should be fine. imagine if we had delk last year and had another offensive option and an 8th guy off the bench.
Re: Merc I think Linwood was just pointing out that the term "African-American" doesn't exactly make sense when applied to people who aren't American.
Re: Merc Parker, Diaw, and Pietrus are all French, so maybe a term for guys like them could just be "les freres" ("brothers").
If academy award winner Charlize Theron, a native of South Africa, ever decides to become an American citizen, she would be the "lightest" African-American to win an Oscar
Not to mention the hottest one! Yow! Well, I guess Halle Berry's right there as well. She also won an Oscar, and obviously she's also insanely hot.
LOL! Look what I've started! I like the idea of Les Freres for Parker and Diaw. Good stuff, gentlemen.
Ok, I feel you.......what you should say is the player blocking the shot is weak, or an undisciplined shot blocker, the act of shot blocking is not a weakness..........Agree?
I agree with your post overall that there are plenty of International (aka Euro) players that can defend, but Beno Udrih absolutely sucks ass defensively. Just ask Spurs fans. Their defensive system hides him well enough, but it's still obvious.
I see Merc's point. I also see Dlev's point. I'd still take Bruce Bowen or Ron Ron over a shotblocker like Darko or a steals artist like Larry Hughes. Gambling is addictive (and harmful). There is something to be said for fundamental and hard nosed defense. The type that doesn't show up on a stat sheet unless you look at the numbers of the man being checked.
I would like players with both defensive traits on my team Micro. Wouldn`t it be nice if our Pistons had someone of the Bruce Bowen or Ron Ron defensive mold?
