Even though everyone seems to want Sarunas...

[WildThing]

Does anyone know how bad his defense is? I hope we're not getting Sarunas if he's basically Mcinnis+better 3 point shooting.

 

[cdt]

If he is the best Euro player, I don't think his defense is really all that bad. I'm not comparing but Steve Nash's D was criticized all year yet he led the suns to the best record the playoffs and got the mvp award. I think scouts pick on his D cuz it's not on par with his offensive ability, the only weakness this guy has been reported to have was his D so thats a good thing but they are going to make as much out of it as they possibly can..

 

[cavincali]

somebody has to come up with a weakness. in a scouting report they will list the best attributes and the worst.

if he doesnt shut down players like artest than they will say his d needs work, thats it.

you cant compare him to j-mac. mac just didnt want to play d, wasnt in him. if sarunas tries to play good d than we will be satisfied.

 

[King]

His D cant be as bad as JMac's. JMac had no effort and no heart on D. Saras has tons of heart and will probably at least try to defend opposing players, unlike Mcinnis that wouldnt even put in any effort on defense.

 

[West Remy]

Sarunas is also a much better passer/leader/playmaker than McInnis. Jeff's actual point guard skills were only developed to an average level. We all remember how many fastbreaks McInnis completely ruined or came close to ruining by either being too selfish to pass to the trailer/wing or by hesistating to make the obvious pass.

 

[CBBI]

Jasikevicius is a great shooter, passer, playmaker, and leader and should be signed soon.

His lack of defense will be covered up by a superior defensive coach in Mike Brown as well as Larry Hughes's defensive capabilities and Eric Snow's defensive prowess backing him up.

 

[PIP]

LeBRON'S defense sucks... but he has everything else at his position to be a successful force.

SJ seems to have all the tools to play the PG position in the nba.. and like the others have said, with a strong perimeter defender in hughes- the rope is a bit longer for SJ..

we'll see how it plays out- but if we get this guy, i'm not too worried, we might be able to just out score people...(although that could spell disaster "SUNS" ? i'm willing to find out... )

 

[cdt]

Lebron's defense doesn't suck, he was 3rd in steals, he mans up fairly well, if you remember against the celts pierce tried to hit a gw fadeaway and lebron rejected him, he is in the passing lanes constantly and disrupt's the pg's decision making. Give him more credit, just cuz a guy isn't Ron Artest Ben Wallace or Bruce Bowen doesn't mean they suck.

 

[PIP]

okay i'll clear it up.. his passing lane insticts are great..

his on ball defense is TERRIBLE..

one play exposed him last year-- TAYSHAUN PRINCE going to his weak side, and throwing down on "THE KING" ..

 

[E-Light]

James lacks lateral quickness right now, as well as a grasp for 'what to do' defensively. James needs a system defensive treacher, that will show him positioning, and system defense, as whether to force a player baseline, or force him into help. As he ages his defense will improve, hopefully his defense is improving as we speak.

James has great athletic ability, and an uncanny ability to anticipate cross court passes. Also has a 7 footers wing span. These gifts are building blocks for him. He has the skill he just needs to continue to put the work in.

And oh yeah, not have to play 48 minutes a game, whilst having to score every basket, and make every play for every team mate to put them in a place to score all game long

 

[PIP]

And oh yeah, not have to play 48 minutes a game, whilst having to score every basket, and make every play for every team mate to put them in a place to score all game long[/QUOTE]

you noticed that too huh ?

 

[Troy Wingate]

Does anyone know how bad his defense is? I hope we're not getting Sarunas if he's basically Mcinnis+better 3 point shooting.

Even if his defense is bad, it's can't be any worse than McInnis' defense, so basically our defense improves.

 

[Kypus]

one play exposed him last year-- TAYSHAUN PRINCE going to his weak side, and throwing down on "THE KING" ..

Prince is left handed and does that to everyone though. Even against Bowen he pulled it off a few times. He's skinny enough to squeeze in weak side when the defender thinks he's sealed off. That's scouting report stuff though, who knows if the coaching staff even got that far prepping them.

Lebron's ball defense will get better. Yeah it is that lateral movement that gets him though, he can be juked pretty easily.

 

[Maximus]

I'm new here, nice board.

I have watched Sarunas play several games in person in Barcelona. I have also watched dozens of games on TV. I don't think his "D" will be much of an issue. He is one of the fiercest competitors I have ever watched play, and he competes harder as the competition gets tougher. JMac he is not.
One of the reason his defense may appear lax at times is b/c of the teams he has been playing on. Maccabi is an "offense first" type of team. They toyed with many of their opponents this year(and last) and at times resembled a team playing in the NBA All-Star game. If the situation didn't require tough "D", frankly they didn't play it. They ran and they entertained the most insane fans I have ever seen.
Rooney has always had his critics. He played out of position at Maryland, so he didn't handle the ball as much and I think this retarded his skills and growth. So when he came out critics said he was a weak ballhandler. How did he respond? He worked on his handle and today he is one of the finest PGs, if not the finest, in Europe. The next rap was his outside shooting. All you need to do is look at his stats to see how he responded to that "weakness".
Today his critics say he can't play in the NBA, his "D" is too weak. How will he respond? My bet is, again, that he takes it personally and proves everyone wrong. He has the speed and he has the athleticism. With Hughes and Lebron as his supporting cast I don't think his "D" will be much of an issue. Hughes will always cover the tougher of the two guards, and if Rooney is having problems with a particular matchup they can always bring in ESnow for defensive purposes.
As for him signing, the Cavs are clearly looking to add 2 more players with the 7.5M they have left. I think Sarunas has to wait until the numbers get worked out for both players. My guess is they are going after Donyell Marshall.
If he signs, you will not be disappointed Cav's fans.

Cheers

GoCavs!

 

[CBBI]

I'm new here, nice board.

I have watched Rooney play several games in person in Barcelona. I have also watched dozens of games on TV. I don't think his "D" will be much of an issue. He is one of the fiercest competitors I have ever watched play, and he competes harder as the competition gets tougher. JMac he is not.
One of the reason his defense may appear lax at times is b/c of the teams he has been playing on. Maccabi is an "offense first" type of team. They toyed with many of their opponents this year(and last) and at times resembled a team playing in the NBA All-Star game. If the situation didn't require tough "D", frankly they didn't play it. They ran and they entertained the most insane fans I have ever seen.
Rooney has always had his critics. He played out of position at Maryland, so he didn't handle the ball as much and I think this retarded his skills and growth. So when he came out critics said he was a weak ballhandler. How did he respond? He worked on his handle and today he is one of the finest PGs, if not the finest, in Europe. The next rap was his outside shooting. All you need to do is look at his stats to see how he responded to that "weakness".
Today his critics say he can't play in the NBA, his "D" is too weak. How will he respond? My bet is, again, that he takes it personally and proves everyone wrong. He has the speed and he has the athleticism. With Hughes and Lebron as his supporting cast I don't think his "D" will be much of an issue. Hughes will always cover the tougher of the two guards, and if Rooney is having problems with a particular matchup they can always bring in ESnow for defensive purposes.
As for him signing, the Cavs are clearly looking to add 2 more players with the 7.5M they have left. I think Rooney has to wait until the numbers get worked out for both players. My guess is they are going after Donyell Marshall.
If he signs, you will not be disappointed Cav's fans.

Cheers

GoCavs!

This is the kind of post that makes me want to see Jasikevicius signed even more.