Mark Price: expect Rondo's shooting to be better by April

[pengaloo]

Here are some interesting snippets from an article on Mark Price's work with Rondo's shot.

On what was wrong with Rajon's shot:

"I've had guys whose shots looked a whole lot worse," said Price. "It wasn't a total remake of his shot."

But Price immediately noticed few flaws.

Rondo starts shooting the ball almost on top of his shoulder, which is too far back. And, he takes too long to release the ball.

"Rajon brings the ball back behind his head a little bit. Good shooters should keep the ball out in front a little bit," said Price. "The other thing is his elbow has a tendency to fly out a little bit. We tried to keep his elbows in. He also has a tendency on 'the catch' to throw his elbows out. When you do that, you have to move them back in to get the shot up. That was one of the things slowing down his release a bit."

Another issue Rondo has is shooting off the dribble.

"He has a tendency to play standing straight up," said Price. "You want to be in playing position, more in ready position."

On learning from Ray Allen:

The irony is that Rondo has spent the last 15 months playing right beside Allen, one of the greatest jump shooters of this generation.

"When I'm working with guys I mention Ray Allen a lot," said Price. "Ray's footwork, particularly before he gets the ball is as good as it gets. That's why his release is so quick. He's ready to shoot the ball before he has it ... It really wouldn't have done much good last year, because Rajon wouldn't know what to look for. Now he does. He'll learn a lot watching Ray."

On patience:

Price said that it will take patience for the fans and, especially, Rondo, to wait this transformation out.

Just like when Tiger Woods changed his golf swing in 2005.

"The hardest thing is you miss a shots and struggle for a while. The temptation is to go back to the old way," said Price.

"I like Rajon because he's a worker and he wants to be great," said Price. "He tried to implement the stuff we talked about. It's going to take time. The next step is taking it from the practice floor into the game and sticking with it."

http://www.eagletribune.com/pusports/local_story_314002241.html?keyword=secondarystory

[Cman]

I would like to hold Mark Price to this.

A cool CB feature would be if you could bookmark a topic to reappear on a certain date.  Say, April 1, 2010 for this topic.

[greenwise]

Here are some interesting snippets from an article on Mark Price's work with Rondo's shot.

On what was wrong with Rajon's shot:

"I've had guys whose shots looked a whole lot worse," said Price. "It wasn't a total remake of his shot."

But Price immediately noticed few flaws.

Rondo starts shooting the ball almost on top of his shoulder, which is too far back. And, he takes too long to release the ball.

"Rajon brings the ball back behind his head a little bit. Good shooters should keep the ball out in front a little bit," said Price. "The other thing is his elbow has a tendency to fly out a little bit. We tried to keep his elbows in. He also has a tendency on 'the catch' to throw his elbows out. When you do that, you have to move them back in to get the shot up. That was one of the things slowing down his release a bit."

Another issue Rondo has is shooting off the dribble.

"He has a tendency to play standing straight up," said Price. "You want to be in playing position, more in ready position."

On learning from Ray Allen:

The irony is that Rondo has spent the last 15 months playing right beside Allen, one of the greatest jump shooters of this generation.

"When I'm working with guys I mention Ray Allen a lot," said Price. "Ray's footwork, particularly before he gets the ball is as good as it gets. That's why his release is so quick. He's ready to shoot the ball before he has it ... It really wouldn't have done much good last year, because Rajon wouldn't know what to look for. Now he does. He'll learn a lot watching Ray."

On patience:

Price said that it will take patience for the fans and, especially, Rondo, to wait this transformation out.

Just like when Tiger Woods changed his golf swing in 2005.

"The hardest thing is you miss a shots and struggle for a while. The temptation is to go back to the old way," said Price.

"I like Rajon because he's a worker and he wants to be great," said Price. "He tried to implement the stuff we talked about. It's going to take time. The next step is taking it from the practice floor into the game and sticking with it."

http://www.eagletribune.com/pusports/local_story_314002241.html?keyword=secondarystory

Good article, TP for the find

[Roy Hobbs]

I hope he's right. 

For whatever it's worth, Marquis Daniels worked with Price before the '07-'08 season.  That season, he set a career high in 3PT%, but a career low (to that point) in FG% and FT%.  Since that time, his numbers haven't really changed appreciably from his seasons prior to working with Price.  In other words, it hasn't seemed to really help, and Daniels' shot has never really improved.

I have no idea how much time each player put into practicing their shot, how many hours they worked with Price, if other consults were (or are) scheduled, etc.  However, it's one example, at least, of Price not being a difference maker.

[Bankshot]

I'm not holding my breath.  So far this season, I haven't seen any change whatsoever in Rondo's shooting or free throw shooting.

[cordialb]

I hope he's right. 

For whatever it's worth, Marquis Daniels worked with Price before the '07-'08 season.  That season, he set a career high in 3PT%, but a career low (to that point) in FG% and FT%.  Since that time, his numbers haven't really changed appreciably from his seasons prior to working with Price.  In other words, it hasn't seemed to really help, and Daniels' shot has never really improved.

I have no idea how much time each player put into practicing their shot, how many hours they worked with Price, if other consults were (or are) scheduled, etc.  However, it's one example, at least, of Price not being a difference maker.

Boo!  Always killing all our green tinted spin and optimism with your facts based in reality.

Boo to you dreamkiller.  = p 

Heres hoping this is the one time you're wrong.

[Jon Niednagel]

I hope Mark did more than show Rondo what was flawed in his mechanics. I have a hard time believing that nobody pointed those flaws out to Rondo before Price. He should have been receiving that feedback from coaches all along. Any middle school coach and half the people on Celtics Blog could have told him the same.

[footey]

TP for this gem, OP.

[twinbree]

Just like when Tiger Woods changed his golf swing in 2005.

I was semi-willing to give Price a chance till I got to this. Great golfer changes swing and continues to be a great golfer. I believe that would be the equivalent of Ray deciding to change his release.

I'm sure Rondo's shooting will improve but I'm not expecting much this season. Solid FT shooting and keeping our offense humming smoothly is what I'd like to see improve over the season.

[Rondo2287]

Just like when Tiger Woods changed his golf swing in 2005.

I was semi-willing to give Price a chance till I got to this. Great golfer changes swing and continues to be a great golfer. I believe that would be the equivalent of Ray deciding to change his release.

I'm sure Rondo's shooting will improve but I'm not expecting much this season. Solid FT shooting and keeping our offense humming smoothly is what I'd like to see improve over the season.

Or Ray putting on his shooting sleave haha

[BballTim]

Just like when Tiger Woods changed his golf swing in 2005.

I was semi-willing to give Price a chance till I got to this. Great golfer changes swing and continues to be a great golfer. I believe that would be the equivalent of Ray deciding to change his release.

  He was slightly off, Tiger changed his swing in 2004. He didn't win any majors in 2003 or 2004 and only won once on the pga tour in 2004 while he was adjusting his swing. In 05-06 he won a combined 14 tournaments and 4 majors.

[youcanthandlethetruth113]

I hope he's right. 

For whatever it's worth, Marquis Daniels worked with Price before the '07-'08 season.  That season, he set a career high in 3PT%, but a career low (to that point) in FG% and FT%.  Since that time, his numbers haven't really changed appreciably from his seasons prior to working with Price.  In other words, it hasn't seemed to really help, and Daniels' shot has never really improved.

I have no idea how much time each player put into practicing their shot, how many hours they worked with Price, if other consults were (or are) scheduled, etc.  However, it's one example, at least, of Price not being a difference maker.

Thanks Debbie the Downer (whoops, I mean...Roy )

[Roy Hobbs]

I hope he's right. 

For whatever it's worth, Marquis Daniels worked with Price before the '07-'08 season.  That season, he set a career high in 3PT%, but a career low (to that point) in FG% and FT%.  Since that time, his numbers haven't really changed appreciably from his seasons prior to working with Price.  In other words, it hasn't seemed to really help, and Daniels' shot has never really improved.

I have no idea how much time each player put into practicing their shot, how many hours they worked with Price, if other consults were (or are) scheduled, etc.  However, it's one example, at least, of Price not being a difference maker.

Thanks Debbie the Downer (whoops, I mean...Roy )

Hey, that whole post was full of hope.  Read the first sentence.

[LarBrd33]

A few trips to work with Price probably isn't going to do that much for Rondo.  I'm not sure what Price could possibly have told Rondo in those 3 trips that professional coaches haven't been telling Rondo for years.   Don't the Celtics have a shooting coach?  They have to, right?  They must have someone like Mark Price on the team full time just working with Rondo on a daily basis, right?  It would be pretty stupid not to seeing as Rondo is such a huge investment.  I mean Perkins has essentially had his own private coach for 5 years (Cliff Ray). 

I don't expect much.   How many shooting coaches has Shaq worked with over the years?  How much has his free throw shooting improved?

[incoherent]

A few trips to work with Price probably isn't going to do that much for Rondo.  I'm not sure what Price could possibly have told Rondo in those 3 trips that professional coaches haven't been telling Rondo for years.   Don't the Celtics have a shooting coach?  They have to, right?  They must have someone like Mark Price on the team full time just working with Rondo on a daily basis, right?

I'm sure one of the greatest shooters in NBA history giving advice would be somewhat more helpful then just a shooting coach.  But you're right, how much can he really help if he's not with the team or with Rondo on a daily basis during the season like real coaches.