Karaban Consistency

[FearThePups]

Yeah, that always works.

Karaban didn't carry the team to win his first ring. Karaban didn't carry the team to win his second ring.

There would be no championship in '23 or '24 without Karaban.

Fans have three options:

1) Choose your words very carefully if you wan't to criticize the man who has helped win two championships.

2). STFU and move on to bitch about something else.

3). STFU and leave.

It's not coincidence that the same balloon knot only show up to post after a loss. I can very easily do something about that, and plan to.

It’s a team game. A high tide lifts all boats. We have 1 point guard and he’s at 60%. There were hopes that a couple of the guys brought in play point guard. That hasn’t materialized. Liam out for 8 games, injuries to a few others, including Alex’s concussion, all have resulted in lineup changes, game plans being rescripted, losing 4 guys to the draft and not having enough veterans returning all have contributed to this year’s struggles. Lastly, I will say, I believe last year’s team was one for the ages. We weathered injuries to Clingan, Steph, Cam, Alex, Tristen, and only lost 3 games. This team is not that team. Every player need to step up. It should not be one player’s burden to bear.

 

[Ctrane]

The Karaban situation has me remembering Anthony Rizzo of the Yankees struggling badly after he was cleared to play after a concussion when he was still being effected by it.

 

[NJHusky]

He was never the focus of defenses the 2 years before this and had a lot of very good players around him. It's a different world now. McNeeley being back will help as will Ball breaking out. Teams will have a hard time stopping all 3. Need Diarra healthy and back to the version we saw earlier this season.

^^^ This
He’s the ultimate connector….moving the ball where it needs to be, and highlighting the star players.

Dan Hurley tried to make him the lead dog this year, unfortunately that’s not his strong suit

Most of our struggles (in addition to injuries) are because Dan Hurley calculations were wrong

He banked on Mahaney being a true lead guard and Alex being able to carry the team.
The AM mistake is the far bigger issue IMO.

 

[pick6s]

Karaban is a very valuable role player, but he can’t be the center of the offense because he doesn’t have the ability to create shots for himself or others. Unfortunately, that is the exact skill our current team is in desperate need of. McNeeley and (a healthy) Diarra are really the only guys who can draw the defense and get others open looks, while McNeeley is the only one who can consistently create a shot for himself (though maybe Mahaney could too, if he wasn’t playing point guard). Our team has a bunch of guys who can hit open shots, but being a good spot-up shooter isn’t as useful if nobody can draw the defense to get you open. Our offensive system is incredible and gets us lots of good looks, but without the creators to supplement it, it’s not enough.

Karaban’s lack of ability to create doesn’t mean he isn’t a valuable player. He’s a high-IQ guy who is a good spot-up shooter, excellent passer, good teammate, and has length for rebounding and defense. If Diarra can get healthy and Liam can get back into game shape, this could be a top ten caliber team again. Their ability to create shots will shift everybody back into their natural roles, allowing Karaban and others to go back to the roles they excel at. It is also likely to gradually end Karaban’s shooting slump, which is probably the result of being sped up and forced into a role he isn’t good at (creator).