I'm in the Stuckey PG - and really good one - category. Three-pointers: Rodney Stuckey shows quality decision-making on dribble penetration in return to starting lineup | MLive.com Since this is a constant topic around here, I figured it needed its own thread. IMO, he's off to a great start this season.
His numbers are off to a great start.... but sorry his first 5 games (all loses, it was still the same old stuckey... drive and not look to pass/dish) didn't do anything to impress me for him being the PG going forward. Last night, if he can do that and improve on it, then yes he has a future at the PG, was it just because of being sat for a game? will he revert back to the old stuckey? will we have more issues with him and not listening to the coach? If its a 1-100 scale on where i sit on him being the PG of the future I started the season at 50, and now I am at a 51.... alot to be determined on how he progresses forward. I think he can be the guy, but don't know if he'll be or not.
A large part of Stuckey's distributing the ball and having assists is having guys knock down open shots and catch and convert his interior passes. Last year, ALL - every single frigging one of his shooters was crippled or a rookie who wasn't ready to handle a shooting role. He didn't have a single interior player worth a dang to pass to, either. This year, Gordon, CV, Daye are all excellent outside shooters. Rip is healthy again. Monroe has really good hands and he's starting to convert better - although it's also clear that he's nowhere near the player now he'll become over the next few years. Too bad about JJ, but he'd have really helped too - I like his offensive game and potential a lot. As time goes along, I hope to see fewer plays where we're asking Tay to knock down key outside shots - in favor of these other guys who are much better offensive talents. My point here is that Stuckey will look a lot more like a PG and will have the improved stats proving this, as he's playing with better players, and with guys who are more complimentary to his style (like Gordon, Monroe, CV and Daye).
Yes lets revisit this later on. I don't think anyone here wants him to fail - just tired of being dissapointed.
I think people are letting the box score determine that Silver Spoon is a PG. If Rip has a high assist total we wouldn't come in here and call him a PG, he would simply be passing the ball. A PG organizes and leads the team. The Pistons collectively moved the ball as a team. That is coaching. Lastly, not plowing into 3 guys and passing the ball to an open guy does not a PG make. That just shows you're not a moron.
There's no winning for Stuckey with you, is there? Seriously, the guy played an undeniably outstanding game last night regardless of what the boxscore said, and the boxscore was also very complimentary to him. He's in the top 10 at PG in PER for the season. We're all wondering if he'll keep up the good work, and you're debating about whether he can play the position at all. I don't get the hate.
I can't speak for others, but the "hate" (I actually don't hate Stuck) for Stuckey can sorta be justified. IMO, Stuckey was PREMATURELY ANOINTED to be the Pistons PGOF (point guard of the future). ...and this isn't Stuckey's fault. Joe saw Stuck as the PGOF and shipped his captain and team leader outta town without having a solid plan in place. He then overvalued Stuck to the point that he passed on a trade that would have brought Rajon freaking Rondo to the D to be our PG for the next 10 years. Joe basically said, Stuck, you're my man and I'm gonna roll wit' cha. I for one am frustrated. I like Joe. I want the moves that he makes (or doesn't make) to be justified. So far, Rodney Stuckey has done nothing to justify his "anointment". We could have either Rajon Rondo or Chauncey Billups as our starting PG right now. Yeah, Chauncey is old and blah blah blah but he's still an upper echelon PG who could be running the show while teaching Will B or Terrico White how the hell it's done! It's not hatred for Stuckey. It's frustration that we've got three seasons invested in a guy who has only slightly improved. ...all while Rajon Rondo is averaging 15 dimes and taking the initiative to lead a team of veteran HOF players.
I didn't say he didn't play well, I just said I don't look at him having 9 assists as proof of learning the PG position. He had high assist games when he played the 2 last year. That wasn't him showing he was a PG, it was him passing the ball. People are raving that Stuckey wasn't forcing his drives and was passing to open players. This to them is proof of him becoming a PG. To me it is just common sense and basic basketball. I wouldn't say Monroe or some other player was learning how to run the floor well just because they stopped running into the basket support continually either. It is the bare minimum of expectations. Wasn't it you who was always saying that the Pistons don't employ a traditional PG and we shouldn't judge Silver Spoon on those standards? Now you are talking like he's Bob Cousy.
This....... The worst thing Joe ever did IMO for Stuckey is when he made the statement that everybody but Stuckey was on the block.
Yeah, it doesn't matter if we gave up Wade, Bron AND Durant for Stuckey or if we got him for free when we are evaluating Rodney Stuckey. It only matters when we are evaluating Joe et al. Stuckey is what Stuckey is and how we got him is a sunk cost.
Another thing people resent about Rodney is that we gave up Darko for him...in a way the odds were just stacked against him from the start.
All right, that's it. I need a scorecard for all this stuckey naming stuff. Can someone make up a nice Excel spreadsheet with all the names and maybe their provenance and date? Maybe with links to the first post using the name.
At that point in Rondo's career, I didn't think that he was going to become one of the best PG's in the NBA. Since he was available, I think that it's safe to say that Joe didn't think so and either did a lot of others. He had a weak jump shot and wasn't the assist king that he is now. Here is his year by year improvement in some key categories: Assists/36 min: 1) 5.8 2) 6.1 3) 9.0 4) 9.6 5) 13.1 (through 7 games) Stuckey's career average is 5.3. They started at a similar point and diverged from there as Stuckey stayed constant. So far this year though, Stuckey is above 7. eFG% 1) .424 2) .496 3) .514 4) .517 5) .515 Stuckey's career average is .427, which is very poor IMO. However, that is where Rondo was at the start of his career. Again, Stuckey is showing no long term improvement and Rondo is getting better. Fouls committed per 36 1) 3.6 2) 2.9 3) 2.6 4) 2.4 5) 1.4 Stuckey started at 3.8 and has improved every year down to 2.6 currently. So, they were both over-gambling a bit and not getting respect when the entered the league and have both improved on D. Rondo has a pretty good supporting cast though, so tough to compare them on paper. Choosing between Rondo and Stuckey 5 years ago was a coin flip. Stuckey had physical strength and a good attitude and Rondo had length and a good attitude. Expert fund managers buy losing stock on a regular basis. In this case, we just got one that is treading water.
