Sporting News Ranks Best CBB Centers: #8 Amida Brimah

[UCbcm]

Also, I'm not contesting that dunks are inferior to other 2-pt FGs. I never said that and didn't mean to imply it if I even did.

 

[Leebo]

There's a shot chart on this page. It doesn't break it down by dunks or other types of shots, but clearly outside of about 3 feet it gets dicier.

http://ncaa-basketball-players.pointafter.com/l/2492/Amida-Brimah

 

[Onions]

I agree with this whole-heartedly. IMO, he is leaps and bounds better than Thabeet ever was offensively (yes a very low bar, but comparable in terms of experience playing the game at a similar stage).

Thabeet averaged 6.2, 10.5 & 13.6 in his three years. Amida is 4.1 , 9.1 so far. AB is .622 from the line, Thabeet was .625. AB is shooting at a .662 clip, Thabeet was .611. In what universe is Amida "leaps and bounds" better than Thabeet?

 

[WhereistheDove?]

Thabeet averaged 6.2, 10.5 & 13.6 in his three years. Amida is 4.1 , 9.1 so far. AB is .622 from the line, Thabeet was .625. AB is shooting at a .662 clip, Thabeet was .611. In what universe is Amida "leaps and bounds" better than Thabeet?

I think the point is more about offensive skillset (ie. taking out dunks). That does remove the value Brimah brings with how fluid of an athlete he is (Thabeet could not complete a lot of the lobs that Brimah does) but Thabeet (at least by his Junior year) did have better moves and was more developed offensively. I don't think this is a contentious statement but I'm sure I'll get killed by someone on here for it.

 

[intlzncster]

My guess is that the writer responsible for the rankings has watched college basketball since the "one and done" rule went into effect and realizes that there's a good chance the highest rated Centers coming into college basketball are going to be amongst the best Centers in college basketball this year.

And this actually makes complete sense if you think about it. A big takes much longer to develop than, for example, a guard, who generally has ready made college game. Players used to stay longer, especially big men. So, with so many kids jumping early, no world class athletic bigs remain in college for their Jr/Sr and even soph years. The average guy, who is likely more limited athletically due to size, continues to get better until he's an upper classmen, but his talent level is so much lower, that the young guy can match up.

I know this is common sense, but I feel like this 'formula' holds for big men, more than any other position.

 

[CallMeBruce]

But you need to take into consideration that 90% of his FGA were dunks. He may have missed 4 dunks all of last year (generous number) so essentially all of his misses were on non-dunk FGA.

Anyone have an idea of what his FG% was on non-dunk FGA? My guess is probably closer to 40-45%, which, for a big man, is bad.

Hey, I was just talking with the other nerds; you're not allowed to use stats anymore.

 

[Rocktheworld]

Yes, much easier to get credit playing for a historical basketball powerhouse like Maryland...

The point






























Your head

 

[Rocktheworld]

Since there are no stats available then remove them from consideration. Instead answer this: How are you confident in him backing down an opponent, making a move, and scoring without dunking the ball? We all know he will attempt a move and then flail as soon as he gets touched.

Blaming that on his injury causing him to miss the offseason is perfectly acceptable in my mind. And I honestly hope that now that he has had a full offseason that he got stronger and developed his post game more.

And again, just because I brought this up doesn't mean I don't think he contributes or that he isn't good enough. I'm only bringing this up because I hope he improved in his weaker areas, i.e. post moves. We saw flashes of potential to be a low post scorer last season. This year, I expect him to be more consistent and stronger against is opposition in the post.

I just may go in to the play-by-plays tonight and compute the stats. Because I made the same exact sequence of arguments not long ago and was met with essentially the same responses

 

[CallMeBruce]

I just may go in to the play-by-plays tonight and compute the stats. Because I made the same exact sequence of arguments not long ago and was met with essentially the same responses

What responses? "You're not allowed to just make up stats?"

 

[Huskybass]

I don't think Amida is that bad offensively. He averaged 9.1 points last season and seems to have a decent touch. Heck, he scored 40 against Sisters of no Defense AKA Coppin State in mid December.

His two biggest weaknesses are rebounding and getting into foul trouble. If he can average 5 more minutes per game and grab 2-3 more boards per game, it will help the team immensely.

 

[Rocktheworld]

What responses? "You're not allowed to just make up stats?"

Talking about what he has been getting "it's still 2 points" "it's the most efficient way to score" "he should be doing that"

Basically people missing the point

 

[Onions]

I think the point is more about offensive skillset (ie. taking out dunks). That does remove the value Brimah brings with how fluid of an athlete he is (Thabeet could not complete a lot of the lobs that Brimah does) but Thabeet (at least by his Junior year) did have better moves and was more developed offensively. I don't think this is a contentious statement but I'm sure I'll get killed by someone on here for it.

I think many posters here are forgetting how good, besides the blocks, Thabeet was by his junior year. Over 13 points and over 10 rebounds a game. If AB gets anywhere near those numbers we will be hard to beat. AB is more graceful than Thabeet, but Hash was much stronger in his base and could finish through contact down low. The idea that using Hash as an offensive model is "setting the bar low" is an absurd statement.

 

[CallMeBruce]

Talking about what he has been getting "it's still 2 points" "it's the most efficient way to score" "he should be doing that"

Basically people missing the point

No, the people bitching about style points are the ones who are missing the point. If "dunking all the time" were so easy, more guys would do it. And, again, this "40-45%" number came out of thin air. Saying "Brimah isn't a good offensive player if you take out most of his baskets because of this stat that is really just a complete guess on my part" is the shoddiest analysis I've ever seen. If you say you were criticized for saying the same thing, then I say good. That means we still have a pulse.

 

[WhereistheDove?]

I think many posters here are forgetting how good, besides the blocks, Thabeet was by his junior year. Over 13 points and over 10 rebounds a game. If AB gets anywhere near those numbers we will be hard to beat. AB is more graceful than Thabeet, but Hash was much stronger in his base and could finish through contact down low. The idea that using Hash as an offensive model is "setting the bar low" is an absurd statement.

He was definitely more skilled offensively and stronger during his Junior year. I will say though, I don't miss having a center who brings a rebound down to his waist and gets it stripped constantly. While Brimah doesn't rebound as well, he does more with what he gets IMO.

 

[WhereistheDove?]

The point






























Your head

Believe me, I'm quite aware that I wasn't responding to the point that the poster was trying to make.... Doesn't exactly change the fact that my statement was correctly pointing out a flaw in the logic. Thanks for your genius clarification.

 

[Rocktheworld]

No, the people bitching about style points are the ones who are missing the point. If "dunking all the time" were so easy, more guys would do it. And, again, this "40-45%" number came out of thin air. Saying "Brimah isn't a good offensive player if you take out most of his baskets because of this stat that is really just a complete guess on my part" is the shoddiest analysis I've ever seen. If you say you were criticized for saying the same thing, then I say good. That means we still have a pulse.

I'm not missing anything; I'm the one making the point. I can't miss my own point.

And I didn't say any of those quotes. i'm not making any guesses. I did say I'm going to calculate his non-dunk FG percentage to see what kind of production he is getting without getting easy alley-oops set up by his team mates. I did predict earlier that there is a big disparity between the overall and non-dunn FG% and that's why some may say he is limited offensively.

 

[Rocktheworld]

Believe me, I'm quite aware that I wasn't responding to the point that the poster was trying to make.... Doesn't exactly change the fact that my statement was correctly pointing out a flaw in the logic. Thanks for your genius clarification.

But that's not the logic he was using. Thus the missed point. No need to get angrily sarcastic.

 

[Pudge]

Non-dunk %?

I think my head is going to explode. WTF. I judge Brimah better on O than Thabeet. That has a lot to do with movement & flow. I can't understand why he isn't a better rebounder. Confounding.

 

[Kitaman]

All I know is Bazz was ranked #5 a couple of years ago. We all know he was the best point guard in the nation. Oh and Harrison of uk was ranked higher.

So take that for the value of these lists and SN's cred. Linky

 

[CallMeBruce]

I'm not missing anything; I'm the one making the point. I can't miss my own point.

And I didn't say any of those quotes. i'm not making any guesses. I did say I'm going to calculate his non-dunk FG percentage to see what kind of production he is getting without getting easy alley-oops set up by his team mates. I did predict earlier that there is a big disparity between the overall and non-dunn FG% and that's why some may say he is limited offensively.

You've missed the point of basketball, which is to score baskets. Brimah is an efficient scorer on offense, in large part because of how good he is at finishing on lobs near the rim. You're acting like this is something that anyone can do, and that Brimah isn't very good because he only scores on some made-up percentage of other shots.

 

[Leebo]

No one would ever deny that Brimah is efficient. No one would ever make the case that he doesn't play above the rim with great athleticism and agility.

But it's okay to say that one of his weaknesses is creating his own shot and playing with his back to the basket.

There are other centers who can do these things, and Brimah is surely working on it.

 

[CallMeBruce]

No one would ever deny that Brimah is efficient. No one would ever make the case that he doesn't play above the rim with great athleticism and agility.

But it's okay to say that one of his weaknesses is creating his own shot and playing with his back to the basket.

There are other centers who can do these things, and Brimah is surely working on it.

I agree. But that doesn't mean that an assessment of his overall offensive value should ignore the things at which excels while focusing only on his areas of weakness. He's a good offensive center because of how good he is at finishing around the basket, how well he runs the floor, and how good he is at catching a lob pass (which you'd think would translate to rebounding, so wtf?). He would obviously be much better if could also roll defenders like Olajuwon, but that he can't doesn't make him bad.

 

[WhereistheDove?]

But that's not the logic he was using. Thus the missed point. No need to get angrily sarcastic.

"Even if he was the best, he'd never get credit here at uconn". Spot on there.

 

[jibsey]

There's a new Brimah model out this year. It rebounds, makes 15 footers, and even has a baby hook shot. Buy or lease.

 

[Rocktheworld]

You've missed the point of basketball, which is to score baskets. Brimah is an efficient scorer on offense, in large part because of how good he is at finishing on lobs near the rim. You're acting like this is something that anyone can do, and that Brimah isn't very good because he only scores on some made-up percentage of other shots.

He is efficient at finishing wide open lobs from a great passer. I'm going to see his efficiency with layups and jump shots.

I never used the word "bad" or "isn't very good." I said it may be revealed that he has limitations (in a particular aspect of a Center's game) or at least a significant disparity. And again, I'm not making stats or percentages up. The numbers do that for me.

I'm done with this

 

[Rocktheworld]

I can't understand why he isn't a better rebounder. Confounding.

Doesn't have great hands, often already/forced out of position when the ball hits the iron

 

[Rocktheworld]

Stand corrected. Brimah on the season was good for 48.7% from layups, jumpers, and "two point tip ins." And was quite consistent at that mark throughout the year. Still fairly efficient.

 

[BigErnMcCracken]

Is Stone really that good? This is not bitterness talking, because I was never that excited about him when we were in on him, because I think guards and wings are much more important and you can (obviously) win with serviceable bigs. I won't quibble with Skal (although it's bananas to me that he might actually play college basketball) but I guess I just haven't seen enough of Diamond Stone because from what I've seen he doesn't look like an instant impact guy to me.

And yes, I will eat it if he gets 20-15 against Brimah in NYC.

 

[aceboon]

Is Stone really that good? This is not bitterness talking, because I was never that excited about him when we were in on him, because I think guards and wings are much more important and you can (obviously) win with serviceable bigs. I won't quibble with Skal (although it's bananas to me that he might actually play college basketball) but I guess I just haven't seen enough of Diamond Stone because from what I've seen he doesn't look like an instant impact guy to me.

And yes, I will eat it if he gets 20-15 against Brimah in NYC.

Early reports are he will either come off the bench or his time will probably be limited because of his defense, which is what a lot of us were arguing when it was discussed how a possible Brimah/Stone frontcourt would work.

 

[Palatine]

I'm not missing anything; I'm the one making the point. I can't miss my own point.

And I didn't say any of those quotes. i'm not making any guesses. I did say I'm going to calculate his non-dunk FG percentage to see what kind of production he is getting without getting easy alley-oops set up by his team mates. I did predict earlier that there is a big disparity between the overall and non-dunn FG% and that's why some may say he is limited offensively.

You have betrayed your bias.

Is it "easy alley-oops set up by his teammates" or is it Brimah working his butt off to get great position inside to make the alley-oop easy for his teammates?

My guess is there was good work by both Brimah and his teammates.