Nate the Closer

[Michael Anthony]

Two more thoughts:

If Nate can play cornerback for a Division 1 program, he can play defense in this league - as many have said, the tools are there.

I also picked up this little nugget from Holinger: Nate scores more points per minute than any current member of the Celtics.

[BballTim]

They could conceivably do an offense/defense lineup at ends of games, and if they have the last shot at quarters they could put Nate in.  As Collins repeated said last night, when you have Perk and Rondo in at the same time, it's like going 3 on 5 offensively, and for strictly offensive possessions we could have Nate and Sheed in.

  Rondo's offense was a little off last night but he's been averaging about 17 a game since Xmas and hitting his jumpers consistently. I doubt Collins watches the team regularly.

Rondo's jumper has improved, but I wouldn't exactly call it consistent.  Nate would be a better option in a last possession scenario.

  It's still a work in progress, but from 15 feet and in he hits a higher percentage of his jumpers than Paul or Ray. I wasn't commenting on whether you might want Nate in for the last shot, more that it's no longer the case that defenses ignore Rondo. Especially the Lakers after he carved them up for 21/12 a few weeks ago.

[Mencius]

They could conceivably do an offense/defense lineup at ends of games, and if they have the last shot at quarters they could put Nate in.  As Collins repeated said last night, when you have Perk and Rondo in at the same time, it's like going 3 on 5 offensively, and for strictly offensive possessions we could have Nate and Sheed in.

  Rondo's offense was a little off last night but he's been averaging about 17 a game since Xmas and hitting his jumpers consistently. I doubt Collins watches the team regularly.

Rondo's jumper has improved, but I wouldn't exactly call it consistent.  Nate would be a better option in a last possession scenario.

  It's still a work in progress, but from 15 feet and in he hits a higher percentage of his jumpers than Paul or Ray. I wasn't commenting on whether you might want Nate in for the last shot, more that it's no longer the case that defenses ignore Rondo. Especially the Lakers after he carved them up for 21/12 a few weeks ago.

You're right, it's a work in progress, but the real test of whether teams actually regard him as a threat on the perimeter will be when they stop *always* going underneath the pick and roll. 

I'm happy to see he's improved it some this year though.  If he ever does get it consistent, he'll be right there with Chris Paul and Williams.  The rest of his game is top-notch, though I think he gambles a little too much on D vs staying in front of his man.  A minor quibble though.  He's one of my favorites.

[celticinorlando]

nate will be our jamal crawford. i just watched his highlights of him torching atlanta off the bench for 41. there is no doubt he will help the long lapses in scoring for this team

[BballTim]

They could conceivably do an offense/defense lineup at ends of games, and if they have the last shot at quarters they could put Nate in.  As Collins repeated said last night, when you have Perk and Rondo in at the same time, it's like going 3 on 5 offensively, and for strictly offensive possessions we could have Nate and Sheed in.

  Rondo's offense was a little off last night but he's been averaging about 17 a game since Xmas and hitting his jumpers consistently. I doubt Collins watches the team regularly.

Rondo's jumper has improved, but I wouldn't exactly call it consistent.  Nate would be a better option in a last possession scenario.

  It's still a work in progress, but from 15 feet and in he hits a higher percentage of his jumpers than Paul or Ray. I wasn't commenting on whether you might want Nate in for the last shot, more that it's no longer the case that defenses ignore Rondo. Especially the Lakers after he carved them up for 21/12 a few weeks ago.

You're right, it's a work in progress, but the real test of whether teams actually regard him as a threat on the perimeter will be when they stop *always* going underneath the pick and roll. 

I'm happy to see he's improved it some this year though.  If he ever does get it consistent, he'll be right there with Chris Paul and Williams.  The rest of his game is top-notch, though I think he gambles a little too much on D vs staying in front of his man.  A minor quibble though.  He's one of my favorites.

  One difference between Rondo and Paul and Williams is that he gets to the rim better than they do. He could improve his jumper and still have people give him the outside shot because they are so concerned about his penetration.

[Mencius]

They could conceivably do an offense/defense lineup at ends of games, and if they have the last shot at quarters they could put Nate in.  As Collins repeated said last night, when you have Perk and Rondo in at the same time, it's like going 3 on 5 offensively, and for strictly offensive possessions we could have Nate and Sheed in.

  Rondo's offense was a little off last night but he's been averaging about 17 a game since Xmas and hitting his jumpers consistently. I doubt Collins watches the team regularly.

Rondo's jumper has improved, but I wouldn't exactly call it consistent.  Nate would be a better option in a last possession scenario.

  It's still a work in progress, but from 15 feet and in he hits a higher percentage of his jumpers than Paul or Ray. I wasn't commenting on whether you might want Nate in for the last shot, more that it's no longer the case that defenses ignore Rondo. Especially the Lakers after he carved them up for 21/12 a few weeks ago.

You're right, it's a work in progress, but the real test of whether teams actually regard him as a threat on the perimeter will be when they stop *always* going underneath the pick and roll. 

I'm happy to see he's improved it some this year though.  If he ever does get it consistent, he'll be right there with Chris Paul and Williams.  The rest of his game is top-notch, though I think he gambles a little too much on D vs staying in front of his man.  A minor quibble though.  He's one of my favorites.

  One difference between Rondo and Paul and Williams is that he gets to the rim better than they do. He could improve his jumper and still have people give him the outside shot because they are so concerned about his penetration.

Yes, they could still go underneath the picks even though he might improve his jump shot more in the future (very probable), but that's not why they're backing off now.  They know it's the smart play, and virtually all teams play him that way.

I'm not knocking Rondo.  I love his game, but that's how teams play him at this point.  He's not a consistent threat from the outside, and everybody knows it.

[Mike-Dub]

nate will be our jamal crawford. i just watched his highlights of him torching atlanta off the bench for 41. there is no doubt he will help the long lapses in scoring for this team

That would be great.

[rav123]

Everyone pretty much agrees that Nate will add value as a backup point guard - he is capable of bringing the ball up, defending the position and knocking down open shots.

I think he might be a major asset in end-game scenarios, when we have a lead and the offense is sputtering. He scores with solid efficiency (55% True Shooting) and knocks down his free throws (78%). Plus, his ability to space the floor will help open things up for Pierce.

I he cappable of playing defense? 

He has never shown the effort.

And name the last time a 5'8 guy was a good defender in the NBA.  (and remember, there is a difference between a high steal rate and good defense)

Well, name the last time there wasa 5'8" player in the NBA. There are so few of them, that even if only one or two are good at defense then the percentage of them who are good at defense is probably similar to players of any other height, or the league average.

To answer your question though, Calvin Murphy (who also had a good steal rate), was known as a lockdown defender (he's in th HOF).

[KG Living Legend]

Everyone pretty much agrees that Nate will add value as a backup point guard - he is capable of bringing the ball up, defending the position and knocking down open shots.

I think he might be a major asset in end-game scenarios, when we have a lead and the offense is sputtering. He scores with solid efficiency (55% True Shooting) and knocks down his free throws (78%). Plus, his ability to space the floor will help open things up for Pierce.

  Tp to you bro. Great point, that's are team's biggest proble. OFFENSE!!! We need someone to Score!!!

[snively]

Everyone pretty much agrees that Nate will add value as a backup point guard - he is capable of bringing the ball up, defending the position and knocking down open shots.

I think he might be a major asset in end-game scenarios, when we have a lead and the offense is sputtering. He scores with solid efficiency (55% True Shooting) and knocks down his free throws (78%). Plus, his ability to space the floor will help open things up for Pierce.

Eh... I'm not sure I want to open things up for Pierce.  We only scored 11 pts in the 4th quarter and Rondo was primarily responsible for 7 of them (4 pts scored, Perk's 3-pt play assisted).  Pierce struggled to generate anything positive offensively in the 4th. 

Rondo is our best bet for closing games unless it's a foul situation.  He's the only guy who can consistently generate good looks for his teammates.

[Who]

I think Rondo's playmaking + overall game adds more to the Celtics towards the end of games than Nate Robinson's superior scoring/shooting does.

I expect Rondo to be the finisher but Nate will surely get an opportunity here and there when Rondo hasn't been playing well because Nate is a solid option late in games.

[Fafnir]

  It's still a work in progress, but from 15 feet and in he hits a higher percentage of his jumpers than Paul or Ray.

A much larger percentage of his jumpers are uncontested.

I'd be curious to see what his "wide open" jump shooting percentage is compared to Ray and Paul. (I know they track stats on that for coaches but not for the public)

[BballTim]

  It's still a work in progress, but from 15 feet and in he hits a higher percentage of his jumpers than Paul or Ray.

A much larger percentage of his jumpers are uncontested.

I'd be curious to see what his "wide open" jump shooting percentage is compared to Ray and Paul. (I know they track stats on that for coaches but not for the public)

  It's not that unusual for quick point guards to getreasonably open looks. People don't play them tight because they want to slow/stop their penetration. On top of that, most of the jumpers people take aren't terribly contested. KG takes a ton of wide open shots from 20-22 feet. And hoever contested the shots are, he's still hitting a little over half of them which isn't bad (or at least isn't inefficient).

[Fafnir]

  It's still a work in progress, but from 15 feet and in he hits a higher percentage of his jumpers than Paul or Ray.

A much larger percentage of his jumpers are uncontested.

I'd be curious to see what his "wide open" jump shooting percentage is compared to Ray and Paul. (I know they track stats on that for coaches but not for the public)

  It's not that unusual for quick point guards to getreasonably open looks. People don't play them tight because they want to slow/stop their penetration. On top of that, most of the jumpers people take aren't terribly contested. KG takes a ton of wide open shots from 20-22 feet. And hoever contested the shots are, he's still hitting a little over half of them which isn't bad (or at least isn't inefficient).

Absolutely, which is why he should keep taking them. I just like the wide open makes percentage as a measure of a shooter's "stroke".

When Peja was killing the league he hit something like 70% of his open 3 point looks. How crazy is that!?

[wdleehi]

Everyone pretty much agrees that Nate will add value as a backup point guard - he is capable of bringing the ball up, defending the position and knocking down open shots.

I think he might be a major asset in end-game scenarios, when we have a lead and the offense is sputtering. He scores with solid efficiency (55% True Shooting) and knocks down his free throws (78%). Plus, his ability to space the floor will help open things up for Pierce.

I he cappable of playing defense? 

He has never shown the effort.

And name the last time a 5'8 guy was a good defender in the NBA.  (and remember, there is a difference between a high steal rate and good defense)

Well, name the last time there wasa 5'8" player in the NBA. There are so few of them, that even if only one or two are good at defense then the percentage of them who are good at defense is probably similar to players of any other height, or the league average.

To answer your question though, Calvin Murphy (who also had a good steal rate), was known as a lockdown defender (he's in th HOF).

Exactly.  You had to go all the way back to the 70s to find one. 


There is a limitation when defending when so much shorter then the guys you are defending.


Nate is here to play offense.   He was not brought here to be a defender.