James Young Summer League

[JBcat]

Hunter looks way better then Young IMO.

To be honest both IMO haven't been impressive at all in the first 2 games.

[knuckleballer]

Young's problem is that he doesn't have wing skills. He can't create off the dribble because he has no right hand whatsoever so everyone knows where he's going when he puts it on the floor and they just slide over easily. In any sport, when you know which direction your opponent is going every time, it makes defending them easy. His shooting is mediocre at best. His defense is laughable. He has no confidence.

Just don't see him as an NBA player

I think confidence and aggresiveness is his biggest problem right now.  He shot 44% on 8.6 3's per game in 19 games in the D League.  He can shoot.

[csfansince60s]

Young is fine. He problem is a lack of NBA reps. This is due to the Celtics being  horrendous at developing talent and JamesYoung youth.

You think Stevens is horrendous at developing youth?  You might have a point if Rivers was still coaching.

I think this roster and the turnover of players is making it difficult to give young players consistent roles / minutes to aid in their development.

I agree with this, which is why, in my opinion, Stevens should've force-fed Young minutes for the last month and a half of the season, even at the expense of giving Jerebko/Gigi minutes and the expense of consequently potentially winning.

If Stevens did that, it would've been a win-win for us. If Young developed with the reps, great, even if we won. If he didn't, we probably don't win as many games and get to draft Winslow or Turner or have a better chance of moving up.

[feckless]

Young's problem is that he doesn't have wing skills. He can't create off the dribble because he has no right hand whatsoever so everyone knows where he's going when he puts it on the floor and they just slide over easily. In any sport, when you know which direction your opponent is going every time, it makes defending them easy. His shooting is mediocre at best. His defense is laughable. He has no confidence.

Just don't see him as an NBA player

I agree!

[csfansince60s]

Young's attitude/motor concern me a lot.

I was at a '6er game at the Garden during the last month of the season.

It was a blowout, Gino-time affair, and Young only played 2:57, with a stat line of all 0s except 1PF with a -2 +/-, and Young was one of only 3 players (himself, Randolph and Pressey) to have a minus associated with his name.

http://www.nba.com/games/20150316/PHIBOS/gameinfo.html?ls=eref:google:1b:post

I hope his attitude isn't a  concern. I was at that game and not only did he look lost out there, it looked like he didn't give a crap.

I was sitting down the end (the opposite end from their bench)  where the Cs where warming up prior to the 2nd half.

His body language and casualness concerned me.

Prior to the 2nd half, he was taking threes from the right corner, and I think he made one of about 8 and just seemed to be going through the motions, shoulders slumped, just heaving them up, no lift from his legs at all, like he wasn't even trying. Then some short, bald guy in a suit (don't know who he was) seemed to be instructing him on the court, and it didn't seem like Young gave a crap, as he missed about 4 more as he moved slightly around the 3 pt arc, but he did elevate a little more.

Just my impressions, and I no doubt could be wrong. I hope that I am.

EDIT: Again, as others have said, it could be his age, and I have used this excuse before, defending him in the past myself. Maybe if Smart and his work ethic and tenacity wasn't here to compare him to, I'd be a lot more understanding.

[LooseCannon]

I just get the feeling that part of Young's problem is that he isn't spending enough time studying film.

[KeepRondo]

Young is too trigger happy right now. When i see him shoot, he is not in balance 80 percent of the time.

He needs to take the ball to the basket more at 1st. Get some ft in that will help him with his stroke

Good observation. Young rarely gathers himself before jacking up these shots. He needs to get some better footwork so he could actually make a basketball move instead of shooting all these off balanced threes. Whether thats better footwork into his catch and shoots or gathering himself and using a jab step or step back or something. I just want him to show us he has some game.

[Tr1boy]

I just get the feeling that part of Young's problem is that he isn't spending enough time studying film.

I disagree. His ability to get open is not the real issue. Hunter is having this issue or the other players are not locating him

Young is getting off quality shots. Just shooting the ball off balance. He needs to learn to utilize head fakes. Make sure his feet are set before shooting. Stop shooting off balance and fadeaways.  In practice im sure and  his workout videos last season  he barely missed

[Atzar]

I just get the feeling that part of Young's problem is that he isn't spending enough time studying film.

I disagree. His ability to get open is not the real issue. Hunter is having this issue or the other players are not locating him

Young is getting off quality shots. Just shooting the ball off balance. He needs to learn to utilize head fakes. Make sure his feet are set before shooting. Stop shooting off balance and fadeaways.  In practice im sure and  his workout videos last season  he barely missed

Agree, somewhat.  I do think he struggles to get open when asked to create his own offense.  But I've mentioned elsewhere that I think his footwork is poor, so I think that's a good point.  I'd even go so far as to say that it's the biggest thing keeping him from contributing on both sides of the ball right now.  Bad footwork has a negative influence on shot consistency and ability to create space with the dribble, gets him knocked off of screens on defense (strength isn't the main problem), and leaves him prone to being caught out of position in on-ball defense. 

Also, keep in mind that gaining 20 pounds of muscle absolutely can have an impact on your shot mechanics and rhythm.  It will probably take him some time to adjust to his new weight and strength. 

I haven't been encouraged by his performance in the summer league, but I still think it's way too early to write him off.  But I also think he has a mountain of work to do before any sort of bulb comes on. 

[SouthernCeltic]

After watching Young for two games, I think its ok to evaluate him on what we see NOW, instead of the potential we hope to see.  He does not seem to have improved his basketball IQ.  I think that's his main problem.  Running, jumping and shooting well are all within his capabilities.  But, he clearly isn't comfortable with the ball in his hand, making decisions, or taking his opponent off the dribble.  I think these two Summer League games have made it difficult to trade him this off season.  Further, I don't know how he's going to earn time on the court to value to other teams.  I think they sat Marcus Smart yesterday to simply give Young a chance to shine, because Marcus had been so aggressive in the first game.  Young should have been a shining star on the court for us, but he looked lost against rookies and NBA hopefuls.  Its time to get value for him and move on before he has no value.

[nickagneta]

I just get the feeling that part of Young's problem is that he isn't spending enough time studying film.

I disagree. His ability to get open is not the real issue. Hunter is having this issue or the other players are not locating him

Young is getting off quality shots. Just shooting the ball off balance. He needs to learn to utilize head fakes. Make sure his feet are set before shooting. Stop shooting off balance and fadeaways.  In practice im sure and  his workout videos last season  he barely missed

You are aware that players use game film to see what they did wrong and try to correct those things, how to correct their shot, their positioning on defense, etc. He needs to get in the film room to watch his shot and correct his balance problems, see how much that is causing problems. Also, he needs to watch defensive game film to ensure his positioning is correct and that he isn't ball watching which is making him lose his man for easy shots. Game film tells you a lot more than just positioning and flow on the offensive side.

[Tr1boy]

I just get the feeling that part of Young's problem is that he isn't spending enough time studying film.

I disagree. His ability to get open is not the real issue. Hunter is having this issue or the other players are not locating him

Young is getting off quality shots. Just shooting the ball off balance. He needs to learn to utilize head fakes. Make sure his feet are set before shooting. Stop shooting off balance and fadeaways.  In practice im sure and  his workout videos last season  he barely missed

Agree, somewhat.  I do think he struggles to get open when asked to create his own offense.  But I've mentioned elsewhere that I think his footwork is poor, so I think that's a good point.  I'd even go so far as to say that it's the biggest thing keeping him from contributing on both sides of the ball right now.  Bad footwork has a negative influence on shot consistency and ability to create space with the dribble, gets him knocked off of screens on defense (strength isn't the main problem), and leaves him prone to being caught out of position in on-ball defense. 

Also, keep in mind that gaining 20 pounds of muscle absolutely can have an impact on your shot mechanics and rhythm.  It will probably take him some time to adjust to his new weight and strength. 

I haven't been encouraged by his performance in the summer league, but I still think it's way too early to write him off.  But I also think he has a mountain of work to do before any sort of bulb comes on.

I agree ,it is too early. But if a decent trade offer was made (not even a great one) , I would trade Young. 

CBS if you read after 2 , is not happy with Young. Criticized his defense and inability to make the open J. 

[JHTruth]

I just get the feeling that part of Young's problem is that he isn't spending enough time studying film.

I disagree. His ability to get open is not the real issue. Hunter is having this issue or the other players are not locating him

Young is getting off quality shots. Just shooting the ball off balance. He needs to learn to utilize head fakes. Make sure his feet are set before shooting. Stop shooting off balance and fadeaways.  In practice im sure and  his workout videos last season  he barely missed

Agree, somewhat.  I do think he struggles to get open when asked to create his own offense.  But I've mentioned elsewhere that I think his footwork is poor, so I think that's a good point.  I'd even go so far as to say that it's the biggest thing keeping him from contributing on both sides of the ball right now.  Bad footwork has a negative influence on shot consistency and ability to create space with the dribble, gets him knocked off of screens on defense (strength isn't the main problem), and leaves him prone to being caught out of position in on-ball defense. 

Also, keep in mind that gaining 20 pounds of muscle absolutely can have an impact on your shot mechanics and rhythm.  It will probably take him some time to adjust to his new weight and strength. 

I haven't been encouraged by his performance in the summer league, but I still think it's way too early to write him off.  But I also think he has a mountain of work to do before any sort of bulb comes on.

But James can't create his own offense, that's his problem. He can't dribble with his right hand at all. So when he puts it on the floor, the defender easily slides over and cuts him off, thereby ending the threat. Imagine playing pick-up basketball the the guy you were guarding received a pass and said "I'm going to dribble to your left right now". And then tried to dribble to your left. That's James Young on the floor right now. Jab steps, fakes, etc only work when the defender believes you're actually a threat to do something other than throw up a brick. He's always off-balance because it's the only think he can do without getting stuffed.

The ONLY way Young can score is a wide-open three and often not even then..

[Tr1boy]

I just get the feeling that part of Young's problem is that he isn't spending enough time studying film.

I disagree. His ability to get open is not the real issue. Hunter is having this issue or the other players are not locating him

Young is getting off quality shots. Just shooting the ball off balance. He needs to learn to utilize head fakes. Make sure his feet are set before shooting. Stop shooting off balance and fadeaways.  In practice im sure and  his workout videos last season  he barely missed

You are aware that players use game film to see what they did wrong and try to correct those things, how to correct their shot, their positioning on defense, etc. He needs to get in the film room to watch his shot and correct his balance problems, see how much that is causing problems. Also, he needs to watch defensive game film to ensure his positioning is correct and that he is ball watching which is making him lose his man for easy shots. Game film tells you a lot more than just positioning and flow on the offensive side.

Well little changed from sl game 1 or 2. Or actually how he shot the ball from last season

You could also blame the coaching staff on this matter

[walker834]

He's 19