Minnesota Sports Forum

I feel the need to add a little balance to the negative Belly talk. I think he's a guy you need to watch live to truly appreciate. He (along with Aldrich and Dunn) adds a certain toughness that is sorely lacking throughout most of our roster. That's why I endorse Thibs' continuing to go to him...even when the game is on the line. We need more toughness out there, and he provides it.

Unfortunately all three tough guys I cite are also offensively challenged...they are brutal to watch in different ways at times. Belly's shooting and sloppiness with the ball have been major disappointments for me, and not at all what I expected based on his Euro experience. I still hold out much more hope for him over the other two to figure it out and become an offensive force more like he was in Europe, but I admit the passing of time makes that less and less likely. I think he is mentally (not physically) intimidated by the NBA, and it seriously impacts his offensive play. If he could figure it out, it would really help this club. I hope he can.

Belly is a bad player who gets playing time because he plays for a bad team with no better option than him. There is only 1 thing that I can point out that he does well and that is rebounding the ball. The rest of his game is average to below average.

He was touted as a point forward. The modern nba 4 who can handle the ball, make plays and shoot. The reality is that he is a turnover machine when he handles the ball and try to run anything. He is a stretch 4 who is only labeled as such because he has zero post game, no dribble drive game, no runner, dont draw fouls but he has a good looking shooting form but dont make those 3's anyways. He has been a disappointment.

worldK wrote:Belly is a bad player who gets playing time because he plays for a bad team with no better option than him. There is only 1 thing that I can point out that he does well and that is rebounding the ball. The rest of his game is average to below average.

He was touted as a point forward. The modern nba 4 who can handle the ball, make plays and shoot. The reality is that he is a turnover machine when he handles the ball and try to run anything. He is a stretch 4 who is only labeled as such because he has zero post game, no dribble drive game, no runner, dont draw fouls but he has a good looking shooting form but dont make those 3's anyways. He has been a disappointment.

Is he even that good of a rebounder?

He's at only 6.7 rebs per 36 minutes. That is by the far the lowest for any "big" on the roster.

Bjelly was brought in to be able to make 3's, put the ball on the floor, and get other guys open looks. The latter two areas are made possible by being able to do the former well. If he can't make 3's, he is pretty useless to us and should be replaced eventually.

He shoots 38% from 3 last year and is now sub-30%....so frustrating!

Q12543 wrote:Bjelly was brought in to be able to make 3's, put the ball on the floor, and get other guys open looks. The latter two areas are made possible by being able to do the former well. If he can't make 3's, he is pretty useless to us and should be replaced eventually.

He shoots 38% from 3 last year and is now sub-30%....so frustrating!

I don't think Belly is completely limited if his 3 isn't falling. His success on drives and finishing around the rim on those has been a nice development this year. Part of that is he is taking the shot near the rim more than passing away although he still does that. In some ways he really is a big version of Rubio except he thankfully actually has the ability to put the ball in the basket. The problem offensively is he is skilled but not crazy skilled and he isn't crazy athletic so he can't just do whatever he wants. He has to play smart, pick his spots to be successful. What helps him is that he has legit height and length with his skill set. Last year there were large chunks of time he didn't do a lot with his diverse skill set and he would pass up 3's. This year his 3 rate is up and he is driving the ball more. The guy has a good looking shot and he has to take long 3's in Europe so I have a fair amount of faith he will hit an acceptable percentage at this level. His FT percentage actually has been a pleasant surprise. He is a unique player and really he is like a 6'10" shooting guard offensively. That could come in handy when you have a guy like Bazz who is more like a 6'6" PF.

I don't think Belly will ever be a starter. Even in Europe he would have one bone headed play in a game. That doesn't mean he can't be a really nice rotation player. i said it last year and I still think it's true his value will increase when he is surrounded by better players who know how to play. That sounds like a guy that isn't good but some guys like him with a diverse skill set can do a lot more when they have more good stuff around them. Flip getting him for his contract is still pretty amazing even if he hasn't played all that well. I think he has made strides as a player from last year and I glad Thibs seems to think the guy can play and plays him. It's possible a year from now we are talking about how nice of a rotation player he is. He has to get better though and the people that don't believe have plenty of reason to feel that way.