Wednesday, November 14, 2012

League Pass Diaries: 11/14/12

New York vs. Orlando: Orlando is finally starting to play to the current level of talent, which is not good enough.  They play admirable basketball, and I can tell Jacque Vaughn knows what he is doing, but there is just not enough talent on this roster to compete with the big boys night in and night out.  The offense from Orlando mostly comes from Arron Afflalo and JJ Redick coming off screens, or Big Baby Davis posting up on someone with a longer wingspan.  New York has yet to be really tested, so I'm not going to go overboard with their start (like saying they're a top 3 NBA team).  They did play Miami, but Miami dedicated that game to Sandy.  Carmelo looked sharp early on and Orlando had no way of stopping him.  You knew early on that no matter how the game progressed towards the end, that NY could score when they want, and they could stop Orlando from scoring when they wanted. 
 
Cleveland vs. Brooklyn: This was a fun matchup because of the game within the game (deron vs. kyrie).  Deron won, but than again, he has more help.  Cleveland made this game about Andy Varajeo.  I've never seen him used so much on the offensive end.  He essentially played point-center.  He was involved in every play from setting screens and rolling, to getting the ball in the high post while other guys ran off him.  What ensued, was Brooklyn ignoring Andy when he had the ball, so screw it Andy scored 35 points.  He got his usual 15-20 off of hustle, but a lot of times he found himself with the ball at the top of the key and nobody guarding him because his man was helping out on all the guards running around.  Cleveland lost this game on defense.  The Nets had a mismatch at just about every position on the floor.  Deron can score on Kyrie.  Joe is too big for Waiters or Alonzo Gee.  Brook Lopez, Humphries, and Blatche had their way in the paint.  Andy can only do so much down there, but you're not getting any help from Tristan Thompson, or (gulp) Jon Leuer down low.  
 
Kentucky vs. Duke: The only pro I see on Duke is Mason Plumlee, and you know what you're getting out of him.  He can rebound and defend, and his offense is improving, although I don't ever think he will make his money with his offense.  For Kentucky, I'm still only completely sold on Poythress.  Alex showed more flashes today, and I expect that to increase as the season goes on.  He's a tweener forward in a good way.  He's got legit size of a 4, but he has the ball skills and athleticism of a 3.  He'll be gold once he develops a consistent jumper.  He does not shy from shooting 3's, so it will come.  Noel played decent, but he's another year away from dominating at this level, because he's kind of weak.   Archie is also too weak for the NBA right now.  He's got game, but his drives are often thwarted by his lack of strength.  He ends up taking a few crazy shots a game. 

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