Posts Tagged ‘Dion Waiters’

< Older Entries

Rick’s Tips: Hurting Over Kyrie

March 11, 2013  ·  3:00PM



a



The hits just keep on coming from the injury bug.

NBA.com/FantasyOver the weekend, we heard that Amar’e Stoudemire needs a procedure to fix his knee that will cost him 6-8 weeks. And here on Monday, we learn that Kyrie Irving’s season is likely over due to a left shoulder sprain that will sideline him for the next 3-4 weeks.

As a proud Irving owner in League Freak, let me just say that I am in fantasy mourning as I peck away at this article. My slim hopes of winning my first League Freak title just took a serious hit.

Unfortunately, this is a recurring theme for Kyrie, who missed significant time earlier this season with a broken hand, and more recently due to a knee injury. If the Cavs decide to shut him down to rest that pesky shoulder, Irving will finish this season with a measly 49 games. Last year, Irving appeared in 51 of 66 games due to a myriad of injuries. In his one-and-done year at Duke, Irving played only 11 games, starting eight of them, thanks to a toe injury.

Going forward, there are two ways to look at Irving the fantasy player. If you have not owned him in either of his two seasons, you will probably try to go bargain shopping for him in next year’s draft. And if you have owned him, then he may have scorned you to the point of passing on him for lesser talent due to the injury risk.

I have owned Irving in each of his two pro seasons, and while I believe in the player (huge fan, actually), I no longer believe in the body of the player. There aren’t too many guys who average 23 points, 5.7 assists, 1.9 threes, and 1.6 steals, with shooting percentages of 47-41-84. However, given the parade of injuries over the past three years, it appears those numbers may be Fool’s Gold.

Moving on, one of the main fantasy beneficiaries of Irving’s injury is Shaun Livingston. Yep, the same Shaun Livingston who survived one of the worst knee injuries in the history of sports a few years back. Livingston recently started three games for Irving, averaging 13.3 points on 50+ percent shooting in exactly 33 minutes each game. Buyer beware: Livingston doesn’t hit threes or steal the rock, so his upside is limited.

Look for Dion Waiters and C.J. Miles to play more minutes and jack up more shots without Irving in the lineup. Of the two, look for the biggest spike in fantasy value from Waiters, who averaged 21.7 points in 34 minutes in three recent games without Kyrie.

Miles is averaging 13.4 points, 2.4 threes, and 1.8 steals in 22.6 minutes in five games this month. Assuming his minutes creep toward 30, even if he comes off the bench, it’s not hard to see Miles scoring 15+ with plenty of goodies every night.

Rick Kamla is an anchor on NBA TV. You can follow him on Twitter at @NBATVRick.

Tags: , , , ,
Posted in Fantasy / Comments (4) /

Film Study: The Cavs’ Bad Defense

November 14, 2012  ·  5:20PM

HANG TIME NEW JERSEY – When Kyrie Irving and Dion Waiters combined for 52 points in a road win over the Los Angeles Clippers last week, we started to see some real potential in the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Since then, the Cavs have lost four straight games. And on Tuesday night, they took over as the worst defensive team in the league, having allowed 107.8 points per 100 possessions, eight more than the league average.

The Cavs’ defense actually ranks in the top eight in forcing turnovers and defensive rebounding. But it has major holes on the interior, despite the presence of Anderson Varejao, an excellent defender.

Highest opponent FG%, restricted area
Team OppFGM OppFGA OppFG%
Cleveland 152 199 76.4%
New York 76 116 65.5%
Chicago 114 178 64.0%
Boston 120 189 63.5%
Sacramento 140 222 63.1%

Through Tuesday, 11/13

Through Tuesday’s loss in Brooklyn, the Cavs are allowing their opponents to shoot a ridiculous 76.4 percent in the restricted area

Now, you will notice that teams 2, 3 and 4 in the table to the right all finished in the top five in defensive efficiency last season. And there’s more to defense than keeping your opponent from shooting a high percentage near the basket.

But you will also notice how big of a difference there is between the Cavs and every other team when it comes to defending the rim. Their opponents are shooting almost 11 percent higher than any other team’s opponents and more than 18 percent higher than the league average (58.2 percent).

To make it clear how bad that is, note that only one player (Dante Cunningham) took at least 100 shots from the restricted area last year and shot better than 76.4 percent. He was 89-for-116 (76.7 percent).

On Tuesday, the Nets shot an amazing 24-for-28 in the restricted area, recording 60 points in the paint, their highest total since April of 2010.

A look at the film makes it easy to see why, because the the Cavs’ defensive breakdowns were obvious, plentiful, and almost comical…

Problem: No hustle. Spotlight on: Alonzo Gee

The Cavs are allowing 19.7 fast break points per 100 possessions, second only to Milwaukee. Part of the problem is turnovers, and part of the problem is … well, just watch Alonzo Gee after Irving misses a shot in the paint…

 

 

When Kris Humphries grabs the rebound for Brooklyn, Brook Lopez is at the foul line and Gee is at the 3-point line. And when Lopez scores on the opposite end of the floor, Gee has barely cross the mid-court line.

(more…)

Tags: , , , , , , ,
Posted in Film Study, NBA.com/Stats / Comments (5) /

Waiters Serving Up Tasty Dish

November 6, 2012  ·  3:04AM





The Cavaliers have heard it all.

They reached to take Dion Waiters with the No. 4 pick in the draft.

He was never even a starter in his two seasons spent at Syracuse.

He has never been the catch-and-shoot-type scorer the Cavs need.

He promptly got injured at the Las Vegas Summer League because he was overweight.

Well, as Matt Damon famously said in Good Will Hunting, how do you like them apples? (more…)

Tags: , , , , , , , ,
Posted in HT News / Comments (17) /

Irving For MVP in 2017?

October 31, 2012  ·  12:51AM

Opening night and there were enough MVP awards inside two arenas that if you laid them end-to-end they might stretch all the way from American Airlines Arena in Miami to Staples Center in Los Angeles, which is where we’ve already got the 2013 NBA Finals scheduled for next June. Don’t we?

There was LeBron James with his three trophies, Steve Nash with his two, then Kobe Bryant and Kevin Garnett with one apiece. Toss in Dirk Nowitzki recovering from knee surgery back in Dallas and there were eight MVP seasons represented in the two marquee games that everybody was watching.

But if the parlor game was to pick out an opening night candidate to be named MVP five years from now, maybe it was little ol’ Kyrie Irving hiding in the shadows of Cleveland. (more…)

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in 2012, HT News / Comments (38) /

Wizards’ Beal Has Early Chance To Shine

October 30, 2012  ·  12:30PM
 

HANG TIME WEST – Among the opening-night games: Wizards at Cavaliers. Perfect.

Not perfect for the senses as a 20-46 team last season visits a 21-45 club, but a very good beginning for a rookie class coming off a much-hyped draft, with Washington’s Bradley Beal facing off against Cleveland’s Dion Waiters. Both shooting guards, both taken in the top four in June, both projected to become major offensive threats, and both in the same building tonight, head-to-head with the chance to make a good early impression.

It is an opportunity for Beal in particular, and not just for one game. Try several of the early days of the season. Maybe the entire first month.

With John Wall scheduled to be sidelined until late-November by a knee injury and Nene doubtful for at least the season opener while continuing to work back from a foot problem that has plagued him for months, Beal will get more scoring chances now than at any other time in his rookie campaign. He has a clear path to the forefront unlike most first-year players, considering A.J. Price, Trevor Ariza, Trevor Booker and Emeka Okafor is the projected opening lineup if Nene sits, with Jan Vesely and Chris Singleton as the top two reserves. That’s a lot of non-scorers, creating an even bigger opening for Beal. (more…)

Tags: , , , , ,
Posted in 2012, HT News / Comment (1) /

Five Teams On The Rise

September 19, 2012  ·  12:32PM


HANG TIME HEADQUARTERS – The start of training camp is just days away.

There are 30 teams that believe deep down this is the year they do it. This is the year that it all comes together. This is the year that they win it all again in Miami, finally win it in Oklahoma City or finally break through and make the playoffs in places like Sacramento, Detroit and New Orleans.

The power of positive thinking will be on full display around the league when players convene for the initial stage of the 2012-13 season.

Not all of those hoop dreams will be realized, though, and there will no doubt be teams that are convinced they are prepared to take that next step this season when they simply are not.

But we’re focusing on the positives today, peering into our crystal ball and trying to identify the teams with the goods to make good on whatever promise they’ve shown in recent seasons, Drafts and in the offseasons (in free agency and trades).

There are no guarantees, of course. Injuries and other unforeseen issues can alter the fate of a team at any time.

We’ve checked the radar, though, and the skies are clear for HT’s Five Teams On The Rise … five lottery teams with a chance to move into the realm of playoff contention:

CLEVELAND CAVALIERS, 21-45 last season

They were supposed to go away for five or six years after the departure of Lebron James and rebuild quietly. Then Kyrie Irving showed up and forced us all to reconsider. The roster is slowly but surely being fortified to surround a budding star like Irving with a supporting cast capable of making a little playoff noise at some point in the near future.

Anderson Varejao looked like his usual pesky self in London during the Olympics and Tristan Thompson showed significant promise last season as well. They’ll form the foundation of a frontcourt rotation that will include rookie center Tyler Zeller and rugged workman Samardo Samuels.

The only thing that worries us about the Cavaliers is whether or not rookie Dion Waiters is ready to assume his role as Irving’s backcourt sidekick. We were a bit surprised to see him picked where he was in the June Draft, but we were forced to reconsider when a handful of coaches and two league executives we trust gushed about him after the Draft.

Bottom line: With the fearless Irving as the ringleader (he learned from the best in Las Vegas this summer), the Cavaliers have a fighting chance this season.

MILWAUKEE BUCKS, 31-35 last season

Bucks general manager John Hammond was the league’s Executive of the Year in 2010 for a reason. If he believes that the Monta Ellis-Brandon Jennings combo is the key to getting this team back to the playoffs, we’ll ride with him. And it’s not like we needed to be convinced. Ellis has always been on our most underrated list and Jennings continues to do his thing without the respect he deserves for the improvements he’s made since entering the league.

Hammond wasn’t afraid to recognize that Andrew Bogut wasn’t the right fit for the franchise, a move that will either look like a disaster or pure genius depending on how things for turn out for Bogut and the Golden State Warriors this season. The Bucks, instead, are opting for the big-man-by-committee approach this season with Sam Dalembert, Drew Gooden, Larry Sanders, Ekpe Udoh and rookie John Henson manning the paint.

Ersan Ilyasova was a bit of a revelation last season and should give Bucks fans another dose of hope about this season and the future of the franchise. It’s not often a team stumbles onto a gem like Ilyasova, an unselfish worker bee who is effective on both ends of the floor with the range to shoot from deep and the size and versatility to guard as many as three different positions.

Bottom line: The pressure is on and Bucks coach Scott Skiles usually does some of his best work in those situations.

(more…)

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in HT News / Comments (62) /

Plenty To Look Forward To With Release Of 2012-13 Schedule

July 26, 2012  ·  7:01PM





HANG TIME,  New Jersey – With The Finals, the Draft and most of free agency in the rearview mirror, it’s really time to start getting ready for the 2012-13 NBA season, a return to the standard 82-game schedule.

That schedule, all 1230 games, was revealed Thursday on NBA TV.  And, of course, it gets started with a ceremony on Biscayne Bay.

LeBron James will get his ring and the Miami Heat will raise their second championship banner on Tuesday, Oct. 30, on TNT. Then, they’ll open the 2012-13 season by hosting the Boston Celtics, the team that had them down 3-2 in the conference semifinals this past June. This was already a fierce rivalry, and it will only get more interesting with Ray Allen‘s defection to South Beach.

(more…)

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in 2012, HT News / Comments (46) /

Las Vegas Summer League: Day 2 Recap

July 15, 2012  ·  12:54AM

By Drew Packham, NBA.com



Vegas, Baby: Fans in Las Vegas apparently missed their Summer League action.

Saturday’s action at Cox Pavilion sold out midway through the day, with officials cutting off ticket sales for the day.

“This is the strongest start we’ve ever had,” said Gail Hunter, the NBA’s Sr. Vice President of Events. “Usually it builds, but we started really well.”

Hunter says the lack of a Summer League last year (due to the lockout) could be a reason for the increased excitement.

“There’s nothing like the intimate feel,” Hunter said. “The fact fans can see players in the stands and get so close to the game is so unique.”

Fans shouldn’t have a problem Sunday, with seven games throughout the day going simultaneously in both Thomas & Mack and Cox Pavilion. The arenas are connected and fans can alternate freely between the two venues.

Non-rookie of the day: Golden State’s Charles Jenkins was impressive, racking up 24 points on 9-for-12 shooting and had three steals in the Warriors’ 95-74 win over the Nuggets. “I love Charles’ game,” said teammate Klay Thompson, who had 17 points himself. “He’s one of the best mid-range shooters I’ve seen, and that’s no fabrication. He’s automatic and he’s developing into a great point guard. He’s gonna be a great player in this league for a long time.”

(more…)

Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in 2012 Summer League / Comment (1) /

Draft Night Redux: No Blockbusters?

June 29, 2012  ·  1:35PM





HANG TIME HEADQUARTERS – We waited all night on that blockbuster deal, only to walk away from another Draft night without any of the rumored mega deals taking place.

(Houston, we have a problem … and it includes that red and white No. 12 Dwight Howard jersey  that won’t get worn this season)

That’s fine, we’re just hours away from the start of free agency. And the Draft class of 2012 offered up plenty of mild surprises (Dion Waiters to Cleveland with the fourth overall pick, Jared Sullinger and Perry Jones III lasting until near the end of the first round, etc.), as always.

Ah, the joy of the Draft night drama that was …

BERNARD JAMES, AMERICAN HERO!

It’s not often the 33rd pick in any draft absolutely steals the show from the other 59 guys selected. But Florida State’s Bernard James got the loudest roar from the crowd in Newark last night.

(more…)

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in 2012 NBA Draft / Comments (30) /

Draft Comparisons: Barnes, Lillard, Drummond and Waiters

June 27, 2012  ·  11:50PM





HANG TIME NEW JERSEY – As Draft time rolls around and we learn about the next class of NBA rookies, there’s a desire to compare each to players we’re already familiar with.

No two players are exactly alike and some players are more unique than others. But you can find comparisons by watching video, crunching stats or matching measurements. For this exercise, we did the latter two.

Listed below are four of the top picks, along with the current NBA players they compare with most. For this exercise, we looked at 10 stats from each player’s last season in college, and eight measurements taken at the annual pre-draft combine.

Because we used college numbers and combine numbers, the only current players we could compare this year’s prospects to were the ones who played in college (so no LeBron James or Dwight Howard) and participated in the combine since 2000 (Rajon Rondo is one notable name missing in that respect).

The following comparisons aren’t gospel, of course, but they’re one way to get read for the draft on Thursday (7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN). (more…)

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in 2012 NBA Draft / Comments Off /

< Older Entries