2013 CB Draft: Northwest Division Press Conferences

[Who]

I really like Nate McMillan for Minnesota. Very good coach. Only team in the division I gave extra credit to for their Head Coach.

Scotty Brooks was a solid enough choice for Portland.

I didn't like Mike Brown or Pat Riley. Mike Brown for his poor in game coaching and inability to man-manage star players. Pat Riley because I think he is a burnout who has no interest in coaching anymore.

Philly has Coach K who has no interest in coaching Pro.
Memphis has JVG who has no interest in coaching at all.
Chicago has Phil Jackson who as of now, is also not interested in coaching.

They get docked too, right?

Yeah, Coach K and Phil Jackson will never be NBA head coaches (again in PJ's case).

Yep, Coach K and Phil Jackson got docked. Chicago had a badly built roster for Phil Jackson's Triangle offense too. Double trouble. So I ranked Chicago last in the East for their head coach. Coach K was put in the rookie head coach category along with Brad Stevens, Mike Budenholzer and Kevin Stallings.

I didn't dock JVG though. I think he could return to coaching in the NBA someday. I rated him highly. Alongside Nate McMillan.

[Lucky17]

I really like Nate McMillan for Minnesota. Very good coach. Only team in the division I gave extra credit to for their Head Coach.

Scotty Brooks was a solid enough choice for Portland.

I didn't like Mike Brown or Pat Riley. Mike Brown for his poor in game coaching and inability to man-manage star players. Pat Riley because I think he is a burnout who has no interest in coaching anymore.

Brown wasn't my pick, I inherited him. If I could have chosen a different head coach, I probably would have.

Was Nate McMillan really the 25th coach taken? Wow.

[Lucky17]

Question for Minnesota: can you elaborate on your rotations/minutes breakdown? Will you feature LeBron at the 3, or at power forward?

And a few of us have expressed some skepticism about Monta Ellis being an effective and efficient component in a LeBron-led offense, due in large part to Monta's history of poor field goal percentages on jump shots. What would you say to help alleviate those concerns?

[Who]

I really like Nate McMillan for Minnesota. Very good coach. Only team in the division I gave extra credit to for their Head Coach.

Scotty Brooks was a solid enough choice for Portland.

I didn't like Mike Brown or Pat Riley. Mike Brown for his poor in game coaching and inability to man-manage star players. Pat Riley because I think he is a burnout who has no interest in coaching anymore.

Brown wasn't my pick, I inherited him. If I could have chosen a different head coach, I probably would have.

Was Nate McMillan really the 25th coach taken? Wow.

And Stan Van Gundy wasn't selected. Or Jerry Sloan. Two of top ten coaches in the league for my money.

Anyway, even with Mike Brown, I still have OKC in the top two in the West along with the LA Lakers (Thibs). OKC are in great shape. Terrific team.

[pearljammer10]

I really like Nate McMillan for Minnesota. Very good coach. Only team in the division I gave extra credit to for their Head Coach.

Scotty Brooks was a solid enough choice for Portland.

I didn't like Mike Brown or Pat Riley. Mike Brown for his poor in game coaching and inability to man-manage star players. Pat Riley because I think he is a burnout who has no interest in coaching anymore.

Brown wasn't my pick, I inherited him. If I could have chosen a different head coach, I probably would have.

Was Nate McMillan really the 25th coach taken? Wow.

And Stan Van Gundy wasn't selected. Or Jerry Sloan. Two of top ten coaches in the league for my money.

Anyway, even with Mike Brown, I still have OKC in the top two in the West along with the LA Lakers (Thibs). OKC are in great shape. Terrific team.

Almost picked Stan Van with my selection but thought I would get crap for making the pick.

[Lucky17]

I really like Nate McMillan for Minnesota. Very good coach. Only team in the division I gave extra credit to for their Head Coach.

Scotty Brooks was a solid enough choice for Portland.

I didn't like Mike Brown or Pat Riley. Mike Brown for his poor in game coaching and inability to man-manage star players. Pat Riley because I think he is a burnout who has no interest in coaching anymore.

Brown wasn't my pick, I inherited him. If I could have chosen a different head coach, I probably would have.

Was Nate McMillan really the 25th coach taken? Wow.

And Stan Van Gundy wasn't selected. Or Jerry Sloan. Two of top ten coaches in the league for my money.

Anyway, even with Mike Brown, I still have OKC in the top two in the West along with the LA Lakers (Thibs). OKC are in great shape. Terrific team.

It would have been hard to pass up Nate at my selection, if he were still on the board. He's a coach I usually target in these exercises.

Considering the defensive makeup of the team, I wonder if I might have gone after another D-minded coach, or gone after one who's more geared towards offense for greater balance. Flip Saunders, for instance.

Byron Scott, Larry Drew and Dwayne Casey might have been considered too, if Nate were unavailable.

[riah32]

[Portland
Your team features a lot of high-usage players without a true facilitator. Do you expect enough shots for everyone on your team? Will certain players have to concede for others? Will that minimize their effectiveness on the court? Also - regarding the true facilitator - how deeply, if it all, were you engaged in trade discussions to acquire a top facilitator?

How can you say I dont have a true facilitator? Melo and Joe Johnson can facilitate as can Brandon Jennings and Darren Collision. There will be plenty of shots for everyone to be taking. Like I have said before I believe all of these guys will be much much more effective defensively because they will be able to use some of their energy on the defensive end because they will have other scorers on the floor. I wouldnt say I was trying to trade for a true facilitator because I wasn't but I was actively shopping Jennings along with Johnson and Melo. However I think my team fits together nicely.

All four are selfish players offensively. High usage guys who don't thrive in off the ball situations.

They facilitate by passing after breaking down the D or dribbling the ball a bunch. All prone to isolation type positions and shots.

I have to agree I don't see the four of them fitting together.

Agreed, Fafnir.

The only player I can see playing effectively off the ball is Joe Johnson in a spot-up three-point shooting role. Jennings and Bynum both need the ball frequently. Melo needs it more than both of them. I do not like the fit of this team. I think the talent is there to make the playoffs, but not much more than that.

Like I have said before I think they will play fine together just like the Celtics Big 3. Jennings played along side Ellis there was no complaining, Johnson's played with Derron Williams and Nash and no complaining, bynum with Kobe and no complaining. Melo played for team USA and he didnt complain about not getting enough shots. 

[Lucky17]

[Portland
Your team features a lot of high-usage players without a true facilitator. Do you expect enough shots for everyone on your team? Will certain players have to concede for others? Will that minimize their effectiveness on the court? Also - regarding the true facilitator - how deeply, if it all, were you engaged in trade discussions to acquire a top facilitator?

How can you say I dont have a true facilitator? Melo and Joe Johnson can facilitate as can Brandon Jennings and Darren Collision. There will be plenty of shots for everyone to be taking. Like I have said before I believe all of these guys will be much much more effective defensively because they will be able to use some of their energy on the defensive end because they will have other scorers on the floor. I wouldnt say I was trying to trade for a true facilitator because I wasn't but I was actively shopping Jennings along with Johnson and Melo. However I think my team fits together nicely.

All four are selfish players offensively. High usage guys who don't thrive in off the ball situations.

They facilitate by passing after breaking down the D or dribbling the ball a bunch. All prone to isolation type positions and shots.

I have to agree I don't see the four of them fitting together.

Agreed, Fafnir.

The only player I can see playing effectively off the ball is Joe Johnson in a spot-up three-point shooting role. Jennings and Bynum both need the ball frequently. Melo needs it more than both of them. I do not like the fit of this team. I think the talent is there to make the playoffs, but not much more than that.

Like I have said before I think they will play fine together just like the Celtics Big 3. Jennings played along side Ellis there was no complaining, Johnson's played with Derron Williams and Nash and no complaining, bynum with Kobe and no complaining. Melo played for team USA and he didnt complain about not getting enough shots.

While true, each of these players only had to share the ball with just one other high-usage player.

I think the problem becomes exponentially greater when you've got three or four such players on the floor at any given time.

Also, the Big Three dynamic involved aging players making a last run at a championship, a goal that had eluded them for their entire careers. Slightly different scenario when the players are younger, I think.

Lastly, didn't Ray Allen leave the Celtics because he wasn't getting enough touches?

[Roy H.]

Lastly, didn't Ray Allen leave the Celtics because he wasn't getting enough touches?

Off-topic, but I think it had more to do with being constantly included in trade rumors than it did with not getting touches.

[Lucky17]

Lastly, didn't Ray Allen leave the Celtics because he wasn't getting enough touches?

Off-topic, but I think it had more to do with being constantly included in trade rumors than it did with not getting touches.

True. That might be the real reason, even if Ray often publicly cited a "greater role in Miami" as a key criterion in heading south.

[McHales Pits]

Question for Minnesota: can you elaborate on your rotations/minutes breakdown? Will you feature LeBron at the 3, or at power forward?

And a few of us have expressed some skepticism about Monta Ellis being an effective and efficient component in a LeBron-led offense, due in large part to Monta's history of poor field goal percentages on jump shots. What would you say to help alleviate those concerns?

Obviously specific rotations are subject to be altered depending on the opponent, but I believe I have assembled the most versatile lineup in the league with the ability to go big or small.

My standard rotation regardless of opponent would likely be something like this...

1 - Ellis (24), Chalmers (16), Farmar (6), Bradley (2)
2 - Bradley (22), Ellis (12), Korver (10), Battier (2), Miles (2)
3 - James (18), Battier (18), Korver (10), Crowder (2)
4 - Ibaka (18), James (20), Davis (10)
5 - Jordan (24), Ibaka (18), Davis (4), Stiemsma (2)

...with Crowder, Miles, or Stiemsma being the scratch.

In regard to Monta's fit with LeBron - I believe that Monta is not cut out to be a primary scoring option. It causes him to become over aggressive, take poor shots, and make poor decisions. If you look at his stats from earlier in his career, he was posting FG%s in the 45-48% range. With LeBron being the dominant scorer, I belive it will allow Monta to pick his spots to contribute scoring wise. In real life, Wade is not a great shooter either - but in fact makes his "money" by slashing to the hoop. Monta's game is similar as he loves to drive to the hoop. By utilizing LeBron and Monta as co-facilitators on the floor, they will be able to play off of the space that they create for each other. When LeBron cuts through the paint handling the ball he will attract attention and pick up defenders allowing Monta to use his quickness to cut through the seams of the defense where LeBron can find him for easy layups.

[Lucky17]

Monta may have the ability to slash and drive to the hoop, but over course of his career, he's overwhelmingly preferred to shoot jumpers: over the last half-decade, an average of 70% of his fields goals each year have come from jumpers, to less than stellar efficiency:

Wow. Last season, when he was paired with another ball dominant player (Jennings), Monta Ellis' eFG% on jump shots was 0.379.

The prior season, next to Stephen Curry, it was 0.429. That was actually a pretty good year for Monta (his career best was 0.436).

For sake of comparison, Mo Williams' eFG% on jumpers during that 2008-09 season: 0.545. Mario Chalmers, last season, hit jumpers at an eFG% of 0.535.

All stats via 82games.com.

Adding to this, Ellis shot just 38.5% on spot-up jumpers last season. I really don't like his fit alongside Lebron on the offensive end.

I'm still skeptical that Monta can change his spots.

[Yoki_IsTheName]

[Portland
Your team features a lot of high-usage players without a true facilitator. Do you expect enough shots for everyone on your team? Will certain players have to concede for others? Will that minimize their effectiveness on the court? Also - regarding the true facilitator - how deeply, if it all, were you engaged in trade discussions to acquire a top facilitator?

How can you say I dont have a true facilitator? Melo and Joe Johnson can facilitate as can Brandon Jennings and Darren Collision. There will be plenty of shots for everyone to be taking. Like I have said before I believe all of these guys will be much much more effective defensively because they will be able to use some of their energy on the defensive end because they will have other scorers on the floor. I wouldnt say I was trying to trade for a true facilitator because I wasn't but I was actively shopping Jennings along with Johnson and Melo. However I think my team fits together nicely.

All four are selfish players offensively. High usage guys who don't thrive in off the ball situations.

They facilitate by passing after breaking down the D or dribbling the ball a bunch. All prone to isolation type positions and shots.

I have to agree I don't see the four of them fitting together.

Agreed, Fafnir.

The only player I can see playing effectively off the ball is Joe Johnson in a spot-up three-point shooting role. Jennings and Bynum both need the ball frequently. Melo needs it more than both of them. I do not like the fit of this team. I think the talent is there to make the playoffs, but not much more than that.

Like I have said before I think they will play fine together just like the Celtics Big 3. Jennings played along side Ellis there was no complaining, Johnson's played with Derron Williams and Nash and no complaining, bynum with Kobe and no complaining. Melo played for team USA and he didnt complain about not getting enough shots.

Jennings wasnt complaining because even with Chucker Monta on the team, he's still getting a ton of shots.

Joe Johnson doesnt complain, and I believe he won't with this team either, but less shots means less production for him. He's a scorer, ergo he needs to shoot.

Melo never complained in the USA team, why would he, he was taking most of the shots from that team.

And as for Bynum, well...

http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/8753097/andrew-bynum-philadelphia-76ers-says-kobe-bryant-stunted-development-los-angeles-lakers

[Roy H.]

I think some of the complaints about riah's team are overblown.

I think that Kanter and AK47 will end up starting most games.  Those two are relatively low-usage guys.  They're good enough to see the ball more than they will in Portland, but I don't see them as complaining.

Johnson has shown he can take a backseat to others.  He doesn't strike me as an issue, either.

So, it's Carmelo and Jennings.  Carmelo has played alongside Iverson, and Jennings has played with Monta.  Neither has been a big problem.

Bynum should be coming off the bench as the leader of the second unit.

So, touches and chemistry aren't a huge issue for me.  The separate issue of whether Portland will rely too much on isolation plays is legit, but I think they'll work it out to be at least as good as the Real Knicks.

[Yoki_IsTheName]

I think some of the complaints about riah's team are overblown.

I think that Kanter and AK47 will end up starting most games.  Those two are relatively low-usage guys.  They're good enough to see the ball more than they will in Portland, but I don't see them as complaining.

Johnson has shown he can take a backseat to others.  He doesn't strike me as an issue, either.

So, it's Carmelo and Jennings.  Carmelo has played alongside Iverson, and Jennings has played with Monta.  Neither has been a big problem.

Bynum should be coming off the bench as the leader of the second unit.

So, touches and chemistry aren't a huge issue for me.  The separate issue of whether Portland will rely too much on isolation plays is legit, but I think they'll work it out to be at least as good as the Real Knicks.

Bynum is already pouting about not getting any shots. I wonder how loud the pouting would be if he comes off the bench.

Don't get me wrong, I think it's a great role for Bynum. I just don't think it will sit well.

And I agree with Joe, but still, you can't have JJ averaging 17 a game by giving him just 10 shots. I understand he's taking a backseat, but that's a role issue and not touches issue. He won't have a problem being second or third fiddle, but you still gotta give him enough touches to be productive, unless Portland is fine having Joe only scoring 12 a game. Which may happen seeing as Melo, Bynum and Jennings will take most of the shots.