Karaban Consistency

[JohnFSilver]

He isn’t getting open and is tentative. Also, we need to set better screens .

 

[Palatine]

He is shooting 13.3% (4-40) from the arc for the last six games. He better figure something out.

Stewart is shooting 55.5% (10-18) from the arc in the last six games

 

[Huskydog45]

Teams key on him defensively and try to take him out of the game offensively every game. Watch him as he is being defended and he gets face guarded, bumped, grabbed, doubled, bumped again off screens and his man stays on him up tight on offensive sets. And not having guards who penetrate means there is no need to help defend on drivers to the hoop. Also Liam being out removes a key weapon for us from the outside and who does drive to the hoop and require defenders to help.

Also, since our offense is constant movement, due to his lack of physical ability, not only are defenders being physical with him constantly when he moves, I think he gets tired from the constant movement and he also plays 40 minutes! Also I think he is also impaired by that ankle injury.

So he is worn down during games which obviously affects his shooting. I think these are the reasons that explain his shooting percentage. Working too hard to get open and he just rarely gets clean looks any more with this team.

Hoping Liam’s return changes things and Hurley really needs to get him 8 - 10 minutes of rest during games.

 

[RuffRuff]

Teams key on him defensively and try to take him out of the game offensively every game. Watch him as he is being defended and he gets face guarded, bumped, grabbed, doubled, bumped again off screens and his man stays on him up tight on offensive sets. And not having guards who penetrate means there is no need to help defend on drivers to the hoop. Also Liam being out removes a key weapon for us from the outside and who does drive to the hoop and require defenders to help.

Also, since our offense is constant movement, due to his lack of physical ability, not only are defenders being physical with him constantly when he moves, I think he gets tired from the constant movement and he also plays 40 minutes! Also I think he is also impaired by that ankle injury.

So he is worn down during games which obviously affects his shooting. I think these are the reasons that explain his shooting percentage. Working too hard to get open and he just rarely gets clean looks any more with this team.

Hoping Liam’s return changes things and Hurley really needs to get him 8 - 10 minutes of rest during games.

Could part of it be because they know Hurley makes him keep shooting even if he can’t throw it in the ocean, just maybe?

 

[superjohn]

So AK is playing poorly because of a concussion he had in November, a rolled ankle, his complexion caused by anemia, his beard? Wondering if I covered all the excuses people are coming up with.

AK rolled his ankle last season in early February and sat out against St. John's and then averaged 18 ppg his next three games on 61% shooting. Jordan Hawkins had a concussion to start his sophomore season and then shot 39% from three for the season and shot 50% from three in the tournament. McNeeley just missed 5 weeks with a high ankle sprain and was our best player in the second half last night.

AK is struggling so badly because he no longer plays on teams where everyone else in the starting 5 are NBA players. He's no longer wide open all the time. He's having to do things he's uncomfortable doing and he's pressing.

 

[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.

DH 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 DH 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).