You might be onto something here. I believe Eurobasket 2011 was in Lithuania so he was playing right in his home country.Quote:
Puffer wrote:
Val doesn't seem to think so.Quote:
I don't believe there is any choking going on at all.
http://www.basketnews.lt/paveikslelis-49188-bg2.jpg
how scared were you when you saw him go down grabbing his throat because of kobe's elbow - at least he's getting experience in attacking wing players going at him
I think this is great actually. I've felt since he was drafted that the fans around here have been setting themselves up for disappointment. He's very young, he has a lot to learn and it's going to take time to put it all together. Hopefully this will lower expectations a little to a level where there won't be that many "trade JV" threads in the fall... Although I'm banking on a couple before the new year...
I can understand your opinion, but what I don't get is why then, is Jonas still starting? The coach must not like what Jonas is doing, or else he'd give him more of a chance. And has Jonas really ever played many of these NBA players? I'm not certain, but at the last Olympics, wasn't he only 16? I know he's played Euro Cup and such, but still, there must be something that he's not doing right.Quote:
Puffer wrote:
well Kemzura is starting Valanciunas for couple of reasons:Quote:
10 000 Hours wrote:
1. JV has potential to have 1 great game. if he starts rolling 1 time - coach will milk everything from him - however, that didn't happen yet. he had couple of decent games back in EU championship last year - and he got to play over 20 mins because of that.
2. JV is the only decent C we got. Kavaliauskas is low lvl player and Songaila is veteran PF - and you can throw Songaila in any time - because he doesn't need to get rolling - he is expierenced enough to play good whenever you put him on the court.
3. JV is young - young players tend to lack confidence - if you want to build that confidence up for 1 game - what do you do? you start the youngster.
so basicly what Kemzura is doing all this time - is trying to find that one game for JV that he can play a lot. but JV just doesn't perform this year at all for whatever reason. so when Kemzura sees that JV is not doing well - he benches him - tries it again at third Q. and if it doesn't happen - benches him again ad waits for next game to try out JV. coach can't let JV play trough his mistakes - these games are way too IMPORTANT.
so please stop blaming the coach. he is doing the best he can with this squad. and he did fairly good work vs USA.
Today Valanciunas was benched after interaction with Kobe in 3rd Q (see video bellow). Kobe just sent a message : welcome to NBA.. kick in the balls and elbow to the neck.
The only thing i don't understand why coach does not let him play again in 4th Q..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t7cb001u5ps
Come on, you don't build confidence by taking a young kid out of the game after a just a few minutes. Jonas is not stupid, if you were him, would you feel confident by starting each game only to be benched after a foul or two?Quote:
Skaloon wrote:
I'm not saying that the coach isn't trying his best. Just seems like he should give Jonas a little bit more of a chance. At least once, you have to let young players play through mistakes, otherwise they will be so worried about being benched that they are bound to make more mistakes.
Ultimately, I think if the coach has the mentality that you say he has, Jonas must be feeling so much pressure to dominate early on and not screw up, that he forgets to play the game the way he knows how.
Sure, he's young, but it's not like letting him play through a couple of fouls is going to dramatically alter the destiny of his national team.
Off topic trivia about Kavaliauskas: "During his first year at school he gained 45 pounds eating McDonald's double cheeseburgers, bringing his weight to a more athletic 245 pounds." Source
He only did a good job coaching against USA. The other games were some of the most poorly executed games I've ever seen by a good team in any league. All JV stuff aside, because the team played great yesterday without him, which I think accentuates my point, I think the coach really had no clue what kind of game plan to execute coming into the tournament. I've followed Lithuania as one of my favorite random international teams ever, and one thing that has stood out with them is how well prepared they are. THey are always a well oiled machine, executing as efficient/effective a gameplan as they can. Most times when they lost, it was really because the other team had to out-execute them. This was not the team I saw most games last week. I never remember seeing them look so out of sorts and chaotic. If they fall back to that form instead of building off the USA game, I would not be surprised to see the guy fired.Quote:
Skaloon wrote:
The olympics isn't a developmental league for the Raptors. For some of these guys its there last or only shot to win on the biggest stage the world has to offer as a representative for their nation. Its not Lithuania's coaches responsibility to 'give Jonas a chance'. Its Jonas responsibility to earn it and maintain it. So far he hasn't.Quote:
10 000 Hours wrote:
my theory is that he's starting as sort of a showcase of lithuania's future and possibly it's biggest nba star, then they give the rest of the minutes to more experienced guys who have put in time on the national team
+1. Guys like Kleiza and Scola are FIBA beasts, but just OK in the NBA. Even the great Tim Duncan ("FIBA sucks") was a bust in international competition. Absolutely no correlation to FIBA play and NBA success. Not concerned one bit about JV's performance.Quote:
Puffer wrote:
Stephen Brothersten seems to think differently... http://www.hoopsworld.com/jonas-vala...-limited-time/
Pretty good article.
Yeah not bad. A lot more informative than looking at the box score and/or blaming the coach.
Scola is more than just OK in the NBA. His energy is inspiring. He was amnestied because of contract and Houston's youth movement. He has landed on his feet in Phoenix.
Dan Bickley of The Arizona Republic:Quote:
Scola's attitude has been known to inspire teammates. He plays relentlessly, grabbing and fighting for every loose ball. He has great hands. He sticks up for teammates. He does the stuff that isn't always glamorous. That's not an easy mentality to sustain. ... A longtime nemesis of the Suns, Ginobili is well aware of Scola's new franchise. He was asked to give a candid assessment to fans in Phoenix. "I've been playing with him for 15 years, I know him very well," Ginobili said. "He's definitely a hard worker, a hard-nosed player. He's going to run on every single possession. Up 20, down 20 or tied, he's going to play. He's going to try to play every game possible. He's not going to rest five games because he's tired." Translation: He won't be complaining about fatigue, using the Olympics as an excuse to report late or ease into his new surroundings. "He's going to try to play 82 (games), and he's a hell of a scorer," Ginobili said. "He has so many trick shots and mid-range shots. He became just lethal from the free-throw-line area. He can give you a lot."
It is very hard to get a read on him. No one is writing him off.Quote:
Risk Mgmt wrote:
His bread and butter appears to be screen and roll (no surprise there). He rolls well into a sweet spot and does a good job of using his size to seal off opponent. The problem thus far has been Lithuania has not had anyone capable of making a decent pass to him once he gets position.
He took some stupid fouls and we all have to hope he will understand the NBA game quicker so that gets stopped sooner.
Moves and jumps really well - will be a vacuum around the rim I think.
JV is a project, but he has absolutely no hops.
Are you disappointed in Chandler's play? He's averaging 5 pts per game.
Val doesn't have much chance to do well, not only is he getting benched early and not even getting a chance to give his teammates a breather but nobody is looking for him out there. In the Nigeria game he was wide open off the pick and roll at least three times but they didn't get him the ball.
Am I upset with Jonas Valanciunas's performance at the London Olympics? No, but I am not impressed either and I am starting to think he is far less ready and maybe more of a project than I assumed.
I can't see him averaging 24 mpg this year if he plays at the same level he is playing at the Olympics.