CoolBreeze44 wrote:BloopOracle wrote:Jim Pete talked bad about Rubio so he is on Teamricky's shit list
Agreed. And the thing is, Jim Pete pulls for Ricky as much as anybody. He just doesn't see him as the prototypical PG in today's NBA. It's an opinion shared by others including Trent Tucker.
Trent Tucker's concurrence doesn't really add any credence to Jim Pete's analysis. I've met Trent Tucker. He's one of the nicest guys you'll ever meet. But he may be the worst NBA analyst I've ever heard.
Nevertheless, you're right that Jim Pete really pulls for Ricky. And he actually stopped short of saying Ricky needs to go. As you mentioned, he just pointed out the fact that Ricky's not the prototypical PG in today's NBA. Not an earth-shattering observation. The more challenging question is whether the Wolves can make the playoffs and eventually contend for a championship with Ricky as our starting PG. Jim stopped short of saying we can't, but the question is a legitimate one.
I have no doubt we can make the playoffs with Ricky as our starting PG. If we can't, then we have far bigger problems than questions surrounding Ricky. The tougher question is whether we can ever be a real championship contender down the road with Ricky as our PG. Some have already decided we can't and that's fair. I believe we can if Ricky sustains the shooting improvement he displayed consistently after last season's all-star break. We've seen the Celtics win a championship with Rondo as their PG and the Nets contend for a championshiop with Jason Kidd running the point. Neither PG was much of a shooter.
The Wolves have at least two 25+ PPG scorers at other positions and a potential 3rd 20+ PPG scorer in Zach. Gorgui has a very reliable jump shot and can probably put up 15 points per game if needed. I don't accept that you can't win in today's NBA without a scoring PG just because most of the top teams in the League today have scoring PGs if, like the Wolves, you have elite scorers at multiple other positiions. Rondo and Kidd were great floor generals and very good rebounders. That's what Ricky brings. His defense and rebounding are particularly important given the defensive weaknesses of our other players and Andrew's poor rebounding. I think Andrew and KAT will ultimately become excellent defenders and I believe Ricky's shooting will pick up where it left off this past season with some further improvement on his 3-pointer. Put all that together and the future looks bright.
