UConn in the NBA Jan '25

[CardiacAndre7]

Who are these guys who improved their game and helped their team by emphasizing 3 point shooting? I’d like to see this list.

If you can shoot, that’s great. But if you can’t shoot but do other things well, you shouldn’t go out your way to prove you can shoot. You’re better off leaning into what you’re good at. Especially when you’re so young.

This is an archaic way of thinking. Virtually every player is better when they improve their outside shooting lol. Keeps the defense honest and they actually have to play you on the perimeter. It’s evident even with the Spurs. The Bucks threw Lopez on him because Steph isn’t a shooter and they clogged the paint. Teams did this against us last year with Steph. This isn’t rocket science.

 

[Chin Diesel]

AJ just passed out of an alley-oop to a shooter at the 3point line in the corner behind him. Impressive display of athleticism/creativity, but dude dunk the damn ball. Bucks ended up getting a Giannis layup out of the possession but I will never understand him passing out of clear dunks/layups

Hopefully he doesn't do that in the dunk contest. That would be super weird.

 

[HuskyWarrior611]

This is an archaic way of thinking. Virtually every player is better when they improve their outside shooting lol. Keeps the defense honest and they actually have to play you on the perimeter. It’s evident even with the Spurs. The Bucks threw Lopez on him because Steph isn’t a shooter and they clogged the paint. Teams did this against us last year with Steph. This isn’t rocket science.

It’s a luxury. I’ve already gave you examples of players who can’t shoot and excelled/are currently breaking out.

Fox and Ant are also examples of star players that once they went on their 3 point shooting journey has hurt both their individual and team success. Both went from 2 seeds and being All-NBA to the Kings not making the playoffs since and the Wolves currently being in the play in. 3 point shooting is overrated and overvalued.

Steph also had 22 and 15 in the Final Four. It did not stop him from being a great efficient scorer when it mattered lol.

Meanwhile I’m not sure if you can give examples of guys who have elevated their games and teams by adding and emphasizing 3 point shooting.

 

[CardiacAndre7]

It’s a luxury. I’ve already gave you examples of players who can’t shoot and excelled/are currently breaking out.

Fox and Ant are also examples of star players that once they went on their 3 point shooting journey has hurt both their individual and team success. Both went from 2 seeds and being All-NBA to the Kings not making the playoffs since and the Wolves currently being in the play in. 3 point shooting is overrated and overvalued.

Steph also had 22 and 15 in the Final Four. It did not stop him from being a great efficient scorer when it mattered lol.

Meanwhile I’m not sure if you can give examples of guys who have elevated their games and teams by adding and emphasizing 3 point shooting.

Well Ant is a better player because he is a better shooter now, so that’s an odd example. The TWolves are worse because thay made a bad trade.

Fox and Shai have gradually improved their outside shot. Jrue Holiday has extended his career and is a better player, Derrick White made the USA Team and is a much better player because of his shot. Darius Garland, Jalen Brunson, DiVincenzo, Jerami Grant, I mean even LeBron lol. Not to mention all the bigs who have extended their careers by adding an outside shot like Brook Lopez, Al Horford, etc.

The Celtics were the best team in the league last year and won the Championship and they CHUCKED 3s…

Like, I could listen dozens more, IDK what your argument is here.

 

[HuskyWarrior611]

AJ just passed out of an alley-oop to a shooter at the 3point line in the corner behind him. Impressive display of athleticism/creativity, but dude dunk the damn ball. Bucks ended up getting a Giannis layup out of the possession but I will never understand him passing out of clear dunks/layups

He’s so unselfish that it can be considered selfish.

 

[HuskyWarrior611]

Well Ant is a better player because he is a better shooter now, so that’s an odd example. The TWolves are worse because thay made a bad trade.

Fox and Shai have gradually improved their outside shot. Jrue Holiday has extended his career and is a better player, Derrick White made the USA Team and is a much better player because of his shot. Darius Garland, Jalen Brunson, DiVincenzo, Jerami Grant, I mean even LeBron lol. Not to mention all the bigs who have extended their careers by adding an outside shot like Brook Lopez, Al Horford, etc. Like, I could listen dozens more, IDK what your argument is here.

Ant was All-NBA 2nd team last year. Let’s see if he gets it this year. He’s shooting almost 50% of all his shots from 3 this year (yuck).

Already explained how it hurt Fox and Shai isn’t leaning into it like the former two.

Everyone else you named are role players except Brunson and Lebron who combined hit that 35% of attempts mark that Steph is at once in their careers.

I’m talking about things Steph needs to do to develop into a star. Not extend his career as a role player. He can do that later. Right now there’s no reason for 35% of his attempts to be from 3 as someone who is not a good 3 point shooter.

He's better off mastering something he can be elite at, not focusing on things that he’s going to be feasible at.

 

[CardiacAndre7]

Ant was All-NBA 2nd team last year. Let’s see if he gets it this year. He’s shooting almost 50% of all his shots from 3 this year (yuck).

Already explained how it hurt Fox and Shai isn’t leaning into it like the former two.

Everyone else you named are role players except Brunson and Lebron who combined hit that 35% of attempts mark that Steph is at once in their careers.

I’m talking about things Steph needs to do to develop into a star. Not extend his career as a role player. He can do that later. Right now there’s no reason for 35% of his attempts to be from 3 as someone who is not a good 3 point shooter.

He's better off mastering something he can be elite at, not focusing on things that he’s going to be feasible at.

They need him to shoot 3s. They need everyone to be able to space the floor so teams can’t fully key on Wemby. This is why he and Sochan literally never play together, because they both are not shooters at this point. They are definitely 2 of the teams top-5 players, but they cannot be on the floor together. The best teams in the league, ones that win championships, incorporate a ton of 5 out offense. Again, I agree he shouldn’t be taking so many 3s at this point, but he will NEED to be a competent shooter to take his game to higher levels. I can’t spell it out anymore, analytics support it, recent Champion history supports it, it’s as simple as that.

 

[superjohn]

Clingan has been awesome in the 4th quarter. He only played 4 minutes all game until the 4th. He's just so damn good on defense and the passing and rebounding is great.

 

[aceboon]

 

[HuskyWarrior611]

They need him to shoot 3s. They need everyone to be able to space the floor so teams can’t fully key on Wemby. This is why he and Sochan literally never play together, because they both are not shooters at this point. They are definitely 2 of the teams top-5 players, but they cannot be on the floor together. The best teams in the league, ones that win championships, incorporate a ton of 5 out offense. Again, I agree he shouldn’t be taking so many 3s at this point, but he will NEED to be a competent shooter to take his game to higher levels. I can’t spell it out anymore, analytics support it, recent Champion history supports it, it’s as simple as that.

Spacing the floor does not mean shooting 3s. The old spurs had some of the best floor spacing ever with Tony Parker.

It’s a very lazy way of spacing the floor and telling guys they’ll be fine as long as they can shoot 3s is a lazy way of development that involves no actual basketball knowledge.

Yes, Steph needs to becomes a competent 3 point shooter at some point. But it’s frustrating to see that’s so much of his focus and not other things that can help him elevate his game more and play to his strengths.

We’ll agree to disagree but I have high expectations for Steph’s career and hope he gets developed correctly to be another great alum for us.

 

[caw]

Jeez he makes Lopez look small

 

[Kenny11]

Looking into this more and it’s kind of crazy the percentage of shots Steph takes from 3s that is unnecessary. I didn’t know it was this bad.

He takes 35% of all his shots from 3.

SGA in his career has never had a season where he shot above 30%

Fox last two years have been the only times he has at 37% and 31% (and both he and his team regressed these years)

Amen is shooting 14% of his shots from 3.

Whoever is telling him he needs to take that many 3s is giving him bad advice.

I agree but I’ve watched several Spurs games this season and steph is obviously being told to shoot 3’s without hesitation when he is open

 

[JohnFSilver]

Spacing the floor does not mean shooting 3s. The old spurs had some of the best floor spacing ever with Tony Parker.

It’s a very lazy way of spacing the floor and telling guys they’ll be fine as long as they can shoot 3s is a lazy way of development that involves no actual basketball knowledge.

Yes, Steph needs to becomes a competent 3 point shooter at some point. But it’s frustrating to see that’s so much of his focus and not other things that can help him elevate his game more and play to his strengths.

We’ll agree to disagree but I have high expectations for Steph’s career and hope he gets developed correctly to be another great alum for us.

The 20 foot shot sucks. You have to shoot from deep to space floor.

Teams like Celtics take too many 3s, but it is because they are being lazy and not driving the ball.

Do the math. At high volume the outcomes on 3s are better.

 

[Dibbie]

Nice line from AJax except the 3 turnovers, yet he had the worst +/- on the team. I don’t watch the NBA, is there much weighting on the +/-?

 

[RuffRuff]

Nice line from AJax except the 3 turnovers, yet he had the worst +/- on the team. I don’t watch the NBA, is there much weighting on the +/-?

Hard stat to weigh, usually more meaningful over the aggregate, but will always be subject to multiple factors. NBA advanced stats:

Players Advanced Leaders | Stats | NBA.com

The top 10 leaders in advanced stats categories.

www.nba.com

You’ll see Cling atop two categories.

 

[HuskyWarrior611]

The 20 foot shot sucks. You have to shoot from deep to space floor.

Teams like Celtics take too many 3s, but it is because they are being lazy and not driving the ball.

Do the math. At high volume the outcomes on 3s are better.

Here are the numbers for the teams that shoot the most 3s per game this season.

There’s not a lot of correlation to winning outside of the teams with obviously great rosters (Cavs and Celtics).

Teams Traditional | Stats | NBA.com

A table featuring traditional information for each team in the league based on selected filters.

www.nba.com

 

[CardiacAndre7]

Here are the numbers for the teams that shoot the most 3s per game this season.

There’s not a lot of correlation to winning outside of the teams with obviously great rosters (Cavs and Celtics).

Teams Traditional | Stats | NBA.com

A table featuring traditional information for each team in the league based on selected filters.

www.nba.com

The top 15 has 4 of the top 5 teams in the league currently…

 

[HuskyWarrior611]

The top 15 has 4 of the top 5 teams in the league currently…

That’s one way to look at it.

Could also look at it like the top 10 has 3 non play-in playoff teams and the bottom 10 has 6. Add in the play-in teams and it’s 5 to 8.

Condense it even further and only 2 of the top 5 are non play-in playoff teams to 4 of the bottom 5 being that.

 

[CardiacAndre7]

That’s one way to look at it.

Could also look at it like the top 10 has 3 non play-in playoff teams and the bottom 10 has 6. Add in the play-in teams and it’s 5 to 8.

Condense it even further and only 2 of the top 5 are non play-in playoff teams to 4 of the bottom 5 being that.

Now you’re just changing it up. There are probably 5-6 teams in the league that can realistically win a championship. Two are in the top 5 and 3 in the top 11.

 

[HuskyWarrior611]

Now you’re just changing it up. There are probably 5-6 teams in the league that can realistically win a championship. Two are in the top 5 and 3 in the top 11.

We aren't going to know who’s who until playoff time.

Who’s to say teams like Denver, the Knicks, and Rockets aren’t as serious a championship contender as teams like OKC, Cavs, and the Celtics?

I’m not a Cavs believer personally and I think the Knicks are coming out of the East (bottom 6) so.

OKC are probably my faves out the West and overall. But they also have the main player that is carrying the midrange game on his back and showing how important it still is and can be.

 

[CardiacAndre7]

We aren't going to know who’s who until playoff time.

Who’s to say teams like Denver, the Knicks, and Rockets aren’t as serious a championship contender as teams like OKC, Cavs, and the Celtics?

I’m not a Cavs believer personally and I think the Knicks are coming out of the East (bottom 6) so.

OKC are probably my faves out the West and overall. But they also have the main player that is carrying the midrange game on his back and showing how important it still is and can be.

That’s why I said 5-6 lol. The Rockets are definitely not contenders, they’re a good team though. The Knicks are but they don’t beat the Celtics in a series and I don’t think they beat the Cavs either. I don’t think you should compare Steph to Shai, it’s unfair to expect that.

I don’t want to argue this anymore, it’s obvious we disagree.

 

[HuskyWarrior611]

That’s why I said 5-6 lol. The Rockets are definitely not contenders, they’re a good team though. The Knicks are but they don’t beat the Celtics in a series and I don’t think they beat the Cavs either. I don’t think you should compare Steph to Shai, it’s unfair to expect that.

I don’t want to argue this anymore, it’s obvious we disagree.

Don’t think Steph needs to be Shai but there’s a path to his own form of stardom that others have shown doesn’t involve an emphasis on 3 point shooting this early.

I’d rather him follow that path than the one of older role players looking to extend their careers.

You’re right though we’re just going to agree to disagree.

 

[superjohn]

Steph #1 in rookie of the year rankings.

Kia Rookie Ladder: Stephon Castle, Jaylen Wells take hold of Top 2 spots | NBA.com

San Antonio's Stephon Castle supplants Washington's Alex Sarr for No. 1 in this week's rankings.

www.nba.com

 

[ToolzieFan]

Not to completely revive the “Is Castle a PG?” discussion, but he is a lot better this year when paired with another true PG, whether it’s Chris Paul or Tre Jones. While acquiring Fox might decrease Castle’s role this year, he might actually pair great with Fox down the road. Since offense is currently Castle’s biggest question mark, I like the idea of paring him with a lead guard who can score like Fox.

Sam Vecenie - who loves Castle and said if there was a redraft of the 2024 draft he might very well take Castle #1 - definitely likes the idea of Castle playing alongside Fox more than the idea of Casytle as the primary PG.

I really, really hope they don’t include him in a Fox trade. I don’t think they will.

De’Aaron Fox trade scenarios: Could Kings star team up with Victor Wembanyama?

 

[CardiacAndre7]

Not to completely revive the “Is Castle a PG?” discussion, but he is a lot better this year when paired with another true PG, whether it’s Chris Paul or Tre Jones. While acquiring Fox might decrease Castle’s role this year, he might actually pair great with Fox down the road. Since offense is currently Castle’s biggest question mark, I like the idea of paring him with a lead guard who can score like Fox.

Sam Vecenie - who loves Castle and said if there was a redraft of the 2024 draft he might very well take Castle #1 - definitely likes the idea of Castle playing alongside Fox more than the idea of Casytle as the primary PG.

I really, really hope they don’t include him in a Fox trade. I don’t think they will.

View attachment 106616

De’Aaron Fox trade scenarios: Could Kings star team up with Victor Wembanyama?

Exactly.