Bazz's last 10 games

[thedoper]

He's been a beast. 57% eFG 61%TS 48% FG 56%3pt +6 net rtg

After a slow start and being shit on here regularly he's really playing well. I hope the best for him if he moves on. I'm not sure we'd get much for him. But he's certainly been doing a lot of good things lately.

[BloopOracle]

for the first time in his career I'm actually happy when he attempts a 3 pointer

[Camden [enjin:6601484]]

God bless Bazz, but I still hate watching him play despite his consistently high effort level. We need to have a much better player than him as our third wing.

[kekgeek]

I've hated watching Bazz also this year but I think he has improved a lot on d. If he continues to knock down his 3's he is a net positive but he hasn't done that consistently his whole career

[worldK]

God bless Bazz, but I still hate watching him play despite his consistently high effort level. We need to have a much better player than him as our third wing.

Exactly.

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

Bazz and Bjelly are both weird statistical cases this year. In terms of things like PER and Win Shares, both are down compared to last year. They just aren't as productive and efficient. However, of our 9 regular rotation players, they are the only two with a positive net rating. Why? Defense. They have two of the better defensive ratings on the team. And good defense doesn't always show up in box score stats (which is what Win Shares and PER is largely based off of).

So I have to give credit where credit is due - both these guys have definitely improved defensively. Not just by the On/Off numbers, but my eyes tell me the same thing. Does that mean they could step into a starting role and do just as well against opposing team's starters? Probably not. But they have held their own defensively in important bench roles.

My biggest pet peeve with Bazz is his tunnel vision and pathetic floor vision. I complain about Wiggins and LaVine's elemental passing skills, but Bazz is at a completely different level of incompetence. .7 assists per 36 minutes! That is amazing for a guy that gets a fair amount of touches. I haven't checked, but it might be borderline NBA record low level for a guy that plays on the wing.

[Monster]

I like how Bazz has improved every year from the FT which is key since pat of his value as a player is getting to the line.

[Lipoli390]

God bless Bazz, but I still hate watching him play despite his consistently high effort level. We need to have a much better player than him as our third wing.

Cam -- I know exactly what you mean when you say you hate watching him play. He drives me nuts watching him get the ball and just attack the basement with tunnel vision as the entire arena knows he's going to shoot no matter what's going on around him. :). On the other hand there are times when I love watching him play. His constant, relentless effort (on both sides of the ball) is a pleasure to watch. He has the toughness Thibs wants from these guys. He crashes the boards, takes contact and never backs down. Imagine if Wiggins had his motor.

But at the end of the day, you're right about our need for a better third wing. I had higher hopes for Bazz, but like you, I don't see him as the level player we need in that role.

[Monster]

I'm a guy that has some believe in Bazz and I am a fan however he has a lot of work to do to legitimately get most folks to believe he can be more than what he has been so far in his career. That's fair.

I'll say this though IF IF IF IF Bazz can hit 3 pointers relatively consistently especially if he can hit those elbow 3's....that would change a lot about how he would be perceived. Without a reliable 3 point shot AND not being able to handle the ball he would pretty much have to become a much better than average defender to be more than sort of a gadget player in this league off the bench. We will see. Hopefully the Wolves shooting coach is actually making some progress with him. Its not like he has a bad looking shot. I'm not holding my breath but its significant for him going forward no matter what team he plays on. Again he has to prove it and do it over a pretty significant chunk of games going forward to convince people to some extent it isn't some fluke. He also needs to keep playing solid defense he can't fall off there.

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

I'm a guy that has some believe in Bazz and I am a fan however he has a lot of work to do to legitimately get most folks to believe he can be more than what he has been so far in his career. That's fair.

I'll say this though IF IF IF IF Bazz can hit 3 pointers relatively consistently especially if he can hit those elbow 3's....that would change a lot about how he would be perceived. Without a reliable 3 point shot AND not being able to handle the ball he would pretty much have to become a much better than average defender to be more than sort of a gadget player in this league off the bench. We will see. Hopefully the Wolves shooting coach is actually making some progress with him. Its not like he has a bad looking shot. I'm not holding my breath but its significant for him going forward no matter what team he plays on. Again he has to prove it and do it over a pretty significant chunk of games going forward to convince people to some extent it isn't some fluke. He also needs to keep playing solid defense he can't fall off there.

Yeah, it's interesting, while Bazz and Bjelly are the only two guys in our 9-man rotation to have positive net ratings, they also have the two lowest offensive ratings. Fortunately, their defensive rating is lower, so they end up positive. But it is ironic that two players largely known more for their offensive skills lead the team in defensive rating and lag the team in offensive rating.

I agree that the 3-ball is huge for Bazz. It makes him much more useful and diversifies the ways he can impact the offense. But regardless if his outside shot is going down or not, there are so many times he sabotages ball movement, both in half court sets and fast breaks, because he puts his head down and just plows toward the rim, often resulting in a bad shot, a charge, or a missed wide open team mate (or all of the above!).