NorthCoastBias
Hall-of-Famer
- Joined
- Feb 14, 2009
- Messages
- 15,195
- Reaction score
- 22,783
- Points
- 135
As soon as Rose left the lineup, Love’s usage went up. It was disgusting to see Rose use up possessions like he was a still a star. It seems our best offense often comes when we’re actively looking to free up KLove for a barrage of threes like he did last night in the 2nd quarter that finally gave the team a lead it would not relinquish.
Last 15 games per 36: 26/12.8 on 50.5/43/84 shooting.
PER isn't a good stat for roleplayers. Or really all that useful at all as a matter of fact. It's a neat thing to look at but it doesn't even come close to showing the true value of a player.Just looking at the PER of the role playing starters.
Crowder 9
JR 8.1
Calderon 6.7
The Pacers, Celtics, Wizards, Raptors, and Sixers, don't have a player in their rotation with a PER under 10.
Pistons only have 1 and thats Stanley Johnson (bust)
He's currently taking less shots per 100 than he did last year with Kyrie around. Lue can stagger LeBron and IT as much as possible however. I think Love + IT should work well because Isaiah is very good off the ball and love functions extremely well as a hub.I just hope we can continue to get Love going while integrating IT. That is the biggest Hurdle IMO. Maybe more important than the defense at this point.
He's currently taking less shots per 100 than he did last year with Kyrie around. Lue can stagger LeBron and IT as much as possible however. I think Love + IT should work well because Isaiah is very good off the ball and love functions extremely well as a hub.
He doesn't look all fancy dribbling on the perimeter so that he can hoist a 20 footer. People severely underestimate how good Kevin Love is.I'm amazed that people are talking about Love's "poor" fit against the Warriors, and his bad defense, after last night's game.
Love's ability to operate in all three main offensive spaces - behind the three-point line, the elbow, and the post - make him a matchup problem for every team in the league, including the Warriors. The Warriors just have versatile defenders who try and keep Love out of the elbow and post, which is why he seems to do poorly offensively in those series.
Ultimately, having a guard like IT who is not nearly as gifted as Kyrie one-on-one, but is a more versatile cutter and secondary playmaker, may open up the elbow for Kevin Love against the Warriors in a way Kyrie could not.
Also, Love has really worked on going in the post against length. I have not seen him do what he did to Ingram last night - i.e., destroy him in the post - against long defenders during his entire NBA career. He has done this to Ingram, Simmons, Blake, etc. all season. I do not think Durant will be as good of a defensive option against Love, mainly because of this improvement, during the 2018 Finals.
Either way, Love makes the East incredibly easy to advance through. He is the perfect player to put next to LeBron because of how much Love can warp the defense. He is a top-20 player. I honestly do not understand all of the complaining.
I'm amazed that people are talking about Love's "poor" fit against the Warriors, and his bad defense, after last night's game.
Love's ability to operate in all three main offensive spaces - behind the three-point line, the elbow, and the post - make him a matchup problem for every team in the league, including the Warriors. The Warriors just have versatile defenders who try and keep Love out of the elbow and post, which is why he seems to do poorly offensively in those series.
Ultimately, having a guard like IT who is not nearly as gifted as Kyrie one-on-one, but is a more versatile cutter and secondary playmaker, may open up the elbow for Kevin Love against the Warriors in a way Kyrie could not.
Also, Love has really worked on going in the post against length. I have not seen him do what he did to Ingram last night - i.e., destroy him in the post - against long defenders during his entire NBA career. He has done this to Ingram, Simmons, Blake, etc. all season. I do not think Durant will be as good of a defensive option against Love, mainly because of this improvement, during the 2018 Finals.
Either way, Love makes the East incredibly easy to advance through. He is the perfect player to put next to LeBron because of how much Love can warp the defense. He is a top-20 player. I honestly do not understand all of the complaining.
The beatings he takes is worth monitoring. There are some powerforwards that are even more bruising than centers. There's been a couple times i've really felt he's taken a pounding, but that's in the minority. We can protect him in those matchups throughout the year.Certainly a good fit next to LeBron offensively... even more so than Bosh was. Still lacking length to defend particular players on a regular basis, but if thrown into a series with one of them (like Joel Embiid), I have faith in the coach and the team in game planning against it.
The real issue I have is if he can make it through the season in one piece. He's not the tallest, longest, nor built the toughest. His health can dictate how well we finish the year as we transition to the Trade Deadline. Our team has always had an issue with health, historically. One injury could ruin the whole season. At the same time, preventing an injury could lead to the primary goal: the Championship.