AbeVigodaLive wrote:Don't make me feel bad about critiquing Andrew Wiggins' basketball ability. I try to draw definitive distinction between on-court play and off-court assumptions.
The Internet is a deep, dank, dark terrible place for many.
Ok here is the real test...rank these wolves guys in terms of your dislike:
McCants
Bazz
Wiggins
Why you gotta make me choose like this? Ugh... if I'm being honest...
1. McCants
2. Bazz
3. Wiggins
But I'm stuck with Wiggins for nearly a decade. There's a real good chance this thing is gonna get even messier...
[Note: Wiggins seems less selfish on the court than the other two.]
How does anyone hate Bazz? Thats like hating the easter bunny.
Only if the Easter bunny stole all the candy for himself...
AbeVigodaLive wrote:Don't make me feel bad about critiquing Andrew Wiggins' basketball ability. I try to draw definitive distinction between on-court play and off-court assumptions.
The Internet is a deep, dank, dark terrible place for many.
Ok here is the real test...rank these wolves guys in terms of your dislike:
McCants
Bazz
Wiggins
Why you gotta make me choose like this? Ugh... if I'm being honest...
1. McCants
2. Bazz
3. Wiggins
But I'm stuck with Wiggins for nearly a decade. There's a real good chance this thing is gonna get even messier...
[Note: Wiggins seems less selfish on the court than the other two.]
How does anyone hate Bazz? Thats like hating the easter bunny.
Only if the Easter bunny stole all the candy for himself...
Hey he had 4 assists in his first game in China :)
khans2k5 wrote:I think a different coach could make a big difference for Wiggins. He's just not gonna move much in an iso heavy offense. Get him moving and that's when he can be efficient. Cuts to the rim. Handoffs. Flare screens. Anything other than here's the ball 26 ft from the basket now make something happen. That's not his game. If he gets the ball with a built in advantage of space I think you would see him be more aggressive getting to the hoop. Right now it's just here's the ball. Get to the rim. And that is a hard way to play basketball especially when you don't have a tight handle.
Kahns - I agree with this post and your prior one as well. As I see it, the crux of the problems with Wiggins is his poor handle coupled with Thibodeau's offense. The rest of the League has figured that out and they just swipe at and knock away the ball without fouling him. He's very easy to guard in Thibodeau's iso offense. At this point, Wiggins is who he is. A coaching change is the only hope for getting decent value from Wiggins on the court.
While I agree that Thibs isn't the answer... the blame for Wiggins' plateaued or regressed play for 5 seasons now MUST first be put at his feet.
A new coach can make nominal changes (battering Wiggins in the head with a mallet when he dribbles in for a contested 18-22 footer). And he can move him into more favorable positions where he's on the move.
But the guy literally runs less than almost every other player in the league per the statistics. Maybe this is by design. Or, simply how he plays. Or, most likely, some combination of the two.
I saw some analysis that revealed Wiggins isn't all that great in catch-and-shoot situations behind the arc. I don't really know the stats on that though...
So to summarize: A new coach can help in a few ways (for everybody). But coaching shouldn't be at the top of the list for 4+ years of Wiggins' inefficiency. This is where the players must take ownership.
Are the coaches not telling him about his about his shot selection or is wiggs not listening.
Hes been brutal on those long 2's and he seems to be attempting more per game. Under flip, wiggs was strictly an interior guy working his way out; post work and attacking the rim. Under thibs, its gone mostly midrange and out to the 3 pt line. I remember reading one of those nba scouting reports on wiggins that they sometimes do at SI, and the scout mentioned that wiggins is a monster going down hill and in the post, but now hes abandoned that style under thibs making him an easy cover and inefficient.
crazy-canuck wrote:Are the coaches not telling him about his about his shot selection or is wiggs not listening.
Hes been brutal on those long 2's and he seems to be attempting more per game. Under flip, wiggs was strictly an interior guy working his way out; post work and attacking the rim. Under thibs, its gone mostly midrange and out to the 3 pt line. I remember reading one of those nba scouting reports on wiggins that they sometimes do at SI, and the scout mentioned that wiggins is a monster going down hill and in the post, but now hes abandoned that style under thibs making him an easy cover and inefficient.
Design or wiggins choice?
I think Wiggins choice mostly because Thibs loves guys that put pressure on the rim (even if inefficient). That's why D. Rose has played such an outsized role for this team as compared to what most coaches would play him.
One of the problems with Wiggins is that he has not done anything to advance his "downhill" game since his rookie year. Spin move = same; still can't go left; never uses change of pace moves; stopped dunking for some strange reason, etc. The result is that teams know how to guard him, and they will happily give him the open long 2 or let him go left (which usually results in a jumper since he has a lot harder time getting to the basket when going left).
I've never seen someone with so much physical talent make such little improvement from his rookie year. Amazing. Only the T-Wolves!
