Greivis Vasquez can drive people nuts. He led the league in assists just a few years ago, has bounced around between three teams in the past three years, loves to jack up shots from long distance, and carries himself with a confidence that easily crosses over into the realm of arrogance/cockiness.
What drives people nuts though is that his production this year has rarely matched the attitude that he brings to the court. He acts and talks like he is a star, while all the while being just a solid back-up point guard.
This is exactly what caused me to give him a mild review just a few nights ago as I provided the Quick Reaction for January 29th’s game against the Indiana Pacers. Vasquez finished the evening with 7 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 turnover, 2-for-6 from the field, 2-2 from the charity stripe, and was a +9 on the night. I gave him a grade of ‘C’ and had the following to say about him:
I barely noticed Vasquez tonight. Didn’t force his game too much as he is prone to do, but rather spent much of the night in the backseat of the car. Overall, Vasquez played a smart and controlled game, but there has to be a midway point for him stylistically (Note: I wrote this part before Vasquez attempted a sloppy transition three midway through the fourth quarter). Greivis did finish with the best plus/minus within Toronto’s starting line-up, which was largely a result of his opportunity to play more minutes with our bench.
I wasn’t bothered by Vasquez, and didn’t hate the performance…I just didn’t love it. It was adequate at best. He played safe and conservative, and it left me wanting more.
And while reading through the comments, two in particular stood out to me.
AntiVasquez wrote:
Even I have to admit, Matt you are completely wrong on GV tonight. I think this was one of his most effective games of the season. He actually played great defense and was making all the right rotations and rarely got driven by. Who cares if he didn’t score, he played well and despite my name I will give credit to where credit is due.
While Coach agreed:
Lose lose for Vasquez. Shoot more and he’s ‘out of control’ even though he shoots approximately the same percentage as DD, KLow, Lou Will. Play within the flow of the offence (which isn’t set up for him to shine or jack up shots) and he’s ‘invisible’ and he gets a C. If you take basketball seriously at all, you would appreciate what he did this game, which was largely making the right plays and picking his spots. Do you expect this guy to really take over games when he is often on the same line as Lou “I’ma jack every touch” Will, KLow, Demar, Etc..
It left me wondering. What are my expectations of Vasquez? And could my tepid review have been far too severe considering I was disagreed with by someone who hates Vasquez so much, they literally create an account based around their dislike?
But Contrary to what Coach inferred, I have absolutely no expectation for Vasquez to dominate a game. However, I do expect for him to not blend in. Vasquez’ brashness is what makes him the type of player he is. He plays his best when he is emotionally engaged.
Just look at his two games against the Sacramento Kings this year. It’s immediately evident while watching him the Kings that he absolutely hates Sacramento. It’s personal for him. On Wednesday night in Toronto, Vasquez hit a corner three right in front of the Kings bench and immediately turned around to gave the stink-eye to the entire team.
The only thing that could have made his performance more enjoyable for me on Wednesday night would have been if he did the Sam Cassell Big Balls dance.
I enjoyed every moment of the Vasquez experience on Wednesday. He took his shots in rhythm, made quick decisions, found the open man for passes, and chose intelligently when to drive. He was everything that one could hope for from a back-up point guard.
Here’s my issue with Greivis: It often appears as if he is just out to show how good he is, while Tuesday’s game in Indiana felt like Vasquez was just trying not to screw up. But Wednesday felt like Greivis just wanted to add to the destruction in any way he could…he wanted to hurt Sacramento.
Even with all his warts though, the Raptors need Vasquez. They need his cocky attitude, they need his confidence, and above all, the Raptors need him to want nothing more than to step down on his opponent’s throat.
If only he could play Sacramento every game…
