Pelicans @ Hornets 1/7

[CarolinaPanthers8789]

I've been saying it since when he was signed that he didn't make since here and didn't fit the current players.

Actually he did originally fit with the roster but once McBob was traded he became a liability because Marvin isn't good enough defensively to mask his deficiencies.

Just because there is a give and take doesn't mean that a player doesn't fit. A player doesn't fit when all parties on the floor look bad when together (i.e. Al, Kemba, Lance, Marvin, MKG).

[Dexterity]

Kemba

PJ

MKG

Zeller

Monroe

Roberts

Neal

Marvin

Vonleh

Biz

[CarolinaPanthers8789]

Kemba

PJ

MKG

Zeller

Monroe

Roberts

Neal

Marvin

Vonleh

Biz

PJ hasn't shown me anything that makes me think he should start and at this point I don't know if I want Neal back.

[Dexterity]

PJ hasn't shown me anything that makes me think he should start and at this point I don't know if I want Neal back.

That's just what I wanted this past offseason.

[CarolinaPanthers8789]

That's just what I wanted this past offseason.

Oh.

Well I still want Monroe, hopefully we can get him this offseason.

[Proudiddy]

PJ is struggling because he is a go to scorer who has only been given a handful of minutes a night. Give him the same minutes and leeway that Neal gets, and I guarantee he's shooting 40+ and at least 35+ from three...

[CarolinaPanthers8789]

PJ is struggling because he is a go to scorer who has only been given a handful of minutes a night. Give him the same minutes and leeway that Neal gets, and I guarantee he's shooting 40+ and at least 35+ from three...

He has the most leeway on the team in my opinion. Heck he pulled up for a three on a fast break in the game against Denver a while back. Most player would get benched for that.

He's just not in a good place right now. Next year he'll most likely get a chance to take over Neal's role. But right now he's not a good option as a reliable shooter or scorer.

Simply put, averaging 5.8 pts per game on 5.9 shot attempts per game is horrendous. He's literally shooting less than 2-6 from the field. You can't put a chucker out there shooting 31% for too long because he has the ability to shoot you put of the game.

P.J's role is right where it needs to be for now. 10-15 minutes a game depending on how he is playing

[Dexterity]

Oh.

Well I still want Monroe, hopefully we can get him this offseason.

But as far as PJ is concerned...

He's a pure 3pt shooter. He needs consistent minutes & shots. Otherwise he's always gonna be crap & pretty much useless. It's all about rhythm, & confidence.

IE...

My Sr year of HS I averaged over 25 PPG & shot 45% from 3. I was a prolific 3pt shooter & set several state records. Unfortunately, that was about the only thing I did well & I was an undersized & unathletic SG at 6ft 170lb.

I played on scholarship at a D2 school & rode the bench only playing sporadically. DNP coaches decision one night, 15 minutes the next. I averaged 4 ppg on 19% 3pt.

It's hard to sit on the bench & come in & effeciently score from 3.

[CarolinaPanthers8789]

But as far as PJ is concerned...

He's a pure 3pt shooter. He needs consistent minutes & shots. Otherwise he's always gonna be crap & pretty much useless. It's all about rhythm, & confidence.

IE...

My Sr year of HS I averaged over 25 PPG & shot 45% from 3. I was a prolific 3pt shooter & set several state records. Unfortunately, that was about the only thing I did well & I was an undersized & unathletic SG at 6ft 170lb.

I played on scholarship at a D2 school & rode the bench only playing sporadically. DNP coaches decision one night, 15 minutes the next. I averaged 4 ppg on 19% 3pt.

It's hard to sit on the bench & come in & effeciently score from 3.

I agree but you can't put a chucker out there like P.J for too long because he'll quickly shoot you out of the game. Either he needs to learn self control (i.e. you don't have to shoot upon every touch) or he needs to start hitting his shots. He averages 6 shots per 15. which is roughly 19 attempts per 48 (we're talking Kemba numbers here).

Like I said before, he either needs to learn to play in the system or start knocking down shots. Right now he is doing neither so there is really no argument to be made. In fact he got 27 minutes of action against OKC including a lot of time against back ups (which he should exploit) and he only shot 22% from the field on 9 attempts.

He's just not in a good spot right now. If Neal was just a chucker I'd say, sure play PJ. However, Neal can also attack the rim and distribute. Even though PJ has shown the ability to attack the rim, he's still pretty one-dimensional right now and one-dimensional players tend to do more harm than good unless they are really excelling at what makes them a good player. Right now PJ is not excelling at much of anything.

[Dexterity]

PJ has the ability to do pretty much anything. His big, strong & has shown he can drive. He settles for jump shots. He's lazy.

Pisses me off. If I had his size & athleticism I'd be driving & trying to rip the rim off the backboard.

[CarolinaPanthers8789]

PJ has the ability to do pretty much anything. His big, strong & has shown he can drive. He settles for jump shots. He's lazy.

Pisses me off. If I had his size & athleticism I'd be driving & trying to rip the rim off the backboard.

This is exactly why his current role is where it needs to be.

Give it time, Rodney Hood isn't even averaging 20+ minutes per game on a bad Jazz team. In fact, Hood is pretty much putting up the same stats as PJ.

Sure, it would be nice to see our rookies play but one thing I've learned from hockey that is starting to be applied to basketball is that there is nothing worse than playing a player before they are ready physically, mentally, and skillfully. Heck, in hockey you can be a top 10 pick and you might not see the roster until two years down the road. This is one reason why I think Charlotte needs their own D-League team. Any who, back to PJ.. Physically, PJ is there. He still has some work to do regarding his skill and mental preparation.

[Proudiddy]

Cp, I get what you're saying, but I'm with Dex on this one... I am speaking from experience as well.

In juco my first season, I had a similar experience as he did in hs. Difference was, I knew my strengths and I couldn't use them efficiently because of the lack of minutes. I was a guy that could go 2-9 or 9-9 if the night was right. I was streaky I guess... But I had the ability to light it up and take over if I felt it that night. I loved to handle and drive more than anything and was super quick, but I got limited minutes bc I was the new guy and he had sophs who were established, team captains, etc. So they got the run.

So, I didnt want to step on too many toes... I'd go in, shut my man down defensively and then play off the ball and wait for the shots that the established guys would give me, basically as a spot up, 3 and d guy. That was NOT my role. I ended up shooting around 30% from three because of it. I hated it... I just couldn't establish myself or ever get comfortable in a game because I wasn't getting the minutes consistently enough to do it, so then I started pressing when I did.

The second year was a different story, but thats why I believe PJ would benefit from more minutes.

[CarolinaPanthers8789]

Well I don't have personal expereince because I rode the bench in high school. However, I'm very adamant about the coaching side of sports due to the simple fact that it's my minor.

As you guys know, I'm a huge fan of metrics and apply it to a lot of things (think Chip Kelly).

Personally, to me... these sound like totally different scenarios. The difference is that PJ isn't worried about stepping on toes. I said earlier that he is averaging 6 shots per game per 15 minutes and his per 40 is just under 16 attempts per game. In comparison, Walker's per 40 is just under 18 shots per game.

Now as a volume chucker with a low shooting percentage, that's not really the type of player that should be getting 24 minutes per game. Not to mention, it's not only his three point shooting. Hairston shoots 34.6% from two point range and even more troubling, he only shoots 33.3% from inside the paint (one of the worst %'s in the NBA).

The P.J. we are seeing this year is the same P.J. we saw in Chapel Hill his freshman year. He needs to practice and focus on the little things while letting the offense come to him. This means not shooting to just shoot.

Simply put, he's just not ready for the big minutes yet as he hurts us more than helps us when he's on the court.

If he wants to get minutes, he needs to focus on rebounding and defense, and finding his role in the team. But right now, until he learns self control Clifford is making the right call... 10-15 minutes per game depending on how he's playing.

[Proudiddy]

Yeah, those are all valid points, but getting your rhythm is an intangible thing that there is no metric for, and that's what I feel is at the root of the horrible shooting.

As in the scenario I described in my situation, I think he's chucking so much because he's pressing to make something happen because he doesn't know when he's coming out. That's what I ended up doing... I hit some huge shots for us that first year in that niche role, but I was so unhappy with it and wanted something bigger, so I felt if I did something incredible or caught fire quick, then he had no choice but to keep me in the game. I think that's what PJ is doing. I don't see him chucking shots like that playing with the starters or if he's assured of his playing time every night.

Neal sucks right now, and being that he and PJ are struggling horribly shooting, why not let PJ get the minutes and let him play out of it? The other thing is, we've seen PJ make some awesome, and I mean awesome defensive plays that Neal is not capable of making. We've also seen glimpses of that incredible offensive ability. I am convinced it's the mindset that's causing the poor shooting, and when your minutes are inconsistent you are caught up in getting the shots up and hoping they start dropping, so you just keep chucking.

I am almost certain if he got more minutes, his game would look totally different... He would defer quite a bit more, make plays for others as well as himself, take better shots, and fewer rate-wise.