Mike D'Antoni Discussion: post in 7 seconds or less

revgen wrote:

Lakerjones wrote:I think he's being a bit of a jerk towards Pau. Not cool in my book.

I don't think he was being a jerk. He was simply telling the truth. He benched Pau because he wanted to win the game. Plain and simple.

432J wrote:why would anyone be mad that dan tony benched pau?

pau was sucked hardcore so what else would any decent coach do? leave him in the game?

of course not, great move to bench pau. hopefully pau is relegated to the bench soon since he's been just awful this season

revgen wrote:

Lakerjones wrote:I think he's being a bit of a jerk towards Pau. Not cool in my book.

I don't think he was being a jerk. He was simply telling the truth. He benched Pau because he wanted to win the game. Plain and simple.

JGC wrote:

432J wrote:why would anyone be mad that dan tony benched pau?

pau was sucked hardcore so what else would any decent coach do? leave him in the game?

of course not, great move to bench pau. hopefully pau is relegated to the bench soon since he's been just awful this season

I wish I was sucked hardcore after watching these last two games.

432J wrote:

JGC wrote:

432J wrote:why would anyone be mad that dan tony benched pau?

pau was sucked hardcore so what else would any decent coach do? leave him in the game?

of course not, great move to bench pau. hopefully pau is relegated to the bench soon since he's been just awful this season

I wish I was sucked hardcore after watching these last two games.

i mean to say he sucked hardcore but i'd welcome your thought as well after these atrocious past few games

Lakerjones wrote:

revgen wrote:I'm okay with him benching Pau and giving Jamison more minutes.

I'm not okay with him benching Hill though. I thought he could have helped us out. I know Dwight's 26 years old, but he's coming off back surgery. A few more minutes to Hill at C could have helped.

Agreed about Hill - he should've got some burn at the 5, but D' Antoni doesn't seem to be too high on Hill.

Benching Pau for Jamison was a great move. I have no problem with it. What I don't like is D' Antoni saying that stuff at the end - I think he's being a bit of a jerk towards Pau. Not cool in my book. Benching - not a problem, Jamison deserved the nod. I just didn't need to hear him saying things the little jabs at Pau and then saying if guys can't fit then they are going to get traded.

karacha wrote:I actually liked his criticism of Pau. Remember PJ punching him in the chest? That was good too, but unfortunately it did not help.

revgen wrote:

Lakerjones wrote:I think he's being a bit of a jerk towards Pau. Not cool in my book.

I don't think he was being a jerk. He was simply telling the truth. He benched Pau because he wanted to win the game. Plain and simple.

7secondmess wrote:D'Antoni creates a lot of unnecessary drama. He likes to be provocative, a good quote but disregards how his words effect his team. Not playing Hill and Pau is worrisome because of his preference for small ball and not playing d. Can't believe he is already creating drama and at the same time talking about how guys need to get into shape to run his offense. The guy doesn't like to practice, holds short practices when he holds them and his NY teams came out of training camp not prepared and lost a lot of games to start the season every year he was there. I was a little worried when Kobe waved him off with 2 fouls in his first game. I am a lot more worried now. His arrogance and ego seem to have not been humbled by his struggles in NY. It is worrisome when a coach is more worried about his system working and being successful then giving the guys on the team the best chance to be successful. Phil was the right hire or your stay with Bernie.

JGC wrote:Anyone think this is some kind of revenge thing on Nash and D'antonis part? Like, if you cant beat em, screw em? I wouldnt be surprised if Stern is up to this as his last hurrah.

Lakerjones wrote:

revgen wrote:

Lakerjones wrote:I think he's being a bit of a jerk towards Pau. Not cool in my book.

I don't think he was being a jerk. He was simply telling the truth. He benched Pau because he wanted to win the game. Plain and simple.

It came out at the end of that interview and I felt like a couple of his facial expressions told the story as well - he was irritated with Pau and it came out. There was another verbal jab in there I felt, too. Plus he kept saying "I don't know - ask Pau . . ." over and over. I'm not a fan of this guy. I feel like his own impatience and quick temper rub off on the players. I've seen them bicker more in the past two games than all year. He needs to cool down I think. I've been trying to give him the benefit of the doubt, but he makes that impossible by losing his own cool.

wcsoldier81 wrote:MDA isn't the best coach out there but our struggles are more personal related than anything else ... keep blaming the coach all you want

Pau Gasol is 32 years of age, so it's natural for his production to start tailing off a bit as he heads into his mid-30s. Still, though the Los Angeles Lakers forward is a fine athlete overall that had some "in yo face"-moments during his first few seasons, Gasol's game was never predicated on jumping over other big men or streaking past helpless defenders. Because of his touch, length, and smarts Gasol figures to play capable and even All-Star level basketball at an age that most hit the skids.

That style of play hasn't hit thus far, in 2012-13. In fact, even after entering the season knowing that this had to be a bounce-back year for the former All-Star, Gasol has disappointed with his play in his 12th NBA season. And observers inside (one teammate, in the midst of an MVP-season, his head coach) and outside (this guy, watchin' his tee-vee) of the Lakers organization are wondering whether or not Gasol's conditioning might be a factor.

From the Los Angeles Daily News:
"Pau is used to laboring up the floor and coasting a little bit," Kobe Bryant said. "In this offense, we have to put the motor on the first few steps we move up the court."

That didn't happen.

Kings center DeMarcus Cousins beat Gasol on two consecutive drives in the second quarter. The Lakers forward looked frustrated after defensive breakdowns. And as coach Mike D'Antoni noted afterward, "Pau didn't have his legs" after logging 37 minutes.

Those 37 minutes in the loss to the Sacramento Kings came one night after Pau played a hectic and fast-paced 38 minutes in a win over the Brooklyn Nets. And though Gasol's defensive struggles against the Kings could be blamed on the second night of a back-to-back, it's worth noting that he was strung up pretty badly by Brook Lopez the night before against Brooklyn.

Overuse of starters was one of the stronger criticisms lobbed at former Lakers coach Mike Brown. It's true that Brown never had much of a bench to work with in his 71 games as Lakers head man, but he often kept his veterans in games well past the point in which the game was probably decided. Gasol's minutes this season under Brown were the same as they were under interim coach Bernie Bickerstaff, though, and after 75 minutes with D'Antoni over two games Gasol is averaging 37:17 minutes per game on the season.

That's a lot for anyone, much less a 7-footer. Amongst bigs, only Chicago's Joakim Noah plays more; but Bulls players don't count, because Chicago coach Tom Thibodeau is unique amongst NBA coaches in not caring whether or not his players are playing entirely too many minutes, or through injury.

Apologies for the aside.

Even fresh as a daisy, though, after a few days' rest or a summer off, Gasol has looked lacking. Mark Medina's notebook, quoted above, discussed his defensive woes. What stands out to me is his inability to knock in the sort of looks he's made for years.

After eight seasons in a row of making more than half his shots, Gasol is shooting 43 percent from the field in 2012-13. He's had his shot blocked eleven times this season through 12 games, and he appears to be fading on both his jumpers, and short hooks. The quick, improvised hooks or finger-rolls he puts up after an offensive rebound or extra pass? He's even leaning on those, and not following through. Gasol is so good that you'd hardly call him a millstone, he's kept the Lakers in several games with his brilliant overall play, but you look up that "43 percent" number after three weeks of Laker basketball, and it hardly surprises you.

Of course, we're only three weeks into the season. Statistically, for as long as the league has been around, offenses and shooting percentages improve as the year moves along and players re-acclimate to NBA speed. Pau is no different, in this regard, but a fall-off like this — this big, and with this many games under his belt — can't be characterized in the same way that you would write off a big slugger batting 2-for-12 in his baseball team's opening three-game homestand.

And, again, Pau's no ordinary professional.

His summers are spent doing massive amounts of charity work for UNICEF and other organizations, with heaps of frequent flyer miles under his belt, to places that badly need his presence and the exposure that comes with it. It's probably not true that Gasol barely touched a basketball between last May and training camp, but it's also probably a safe bet that he didn't play as many games to 21 as your typical NBA player during the last offseason — while doing fantastic work for people in need.

In all, it adds up. And again, this team has 70 games to go. The wheels, more than likely, will come back.
And also, Laker fans? Atlanta Hawk forward Josh Smith is shooting 42.7 percent, worse than Gasol, on the season. And he's shot over 50 percent — exactly 50.5 percent, in 2009-10 — just once in his career. Be careful not to take your 7-footer for granted.

hypotenuse wrote:So no one else is disgusted by mike calling out his own players? Even if it was the 12th man on the roster it would be a huge infraction as far as locker room ettoquette. The fact that it was your starting of makes it that much worse

Q: On what he can do for Pau Gasol’s game:
D’Antoni: I just want him comfortable in what he does. You try to coach and scheme against him and it’s not easy. I think Pau is going to be great. I can’t’ wait to work with him. He’ll play some four he’ll play some five, we’ll try to open it a little bit more for him. We’ll move him around and get him comfortable in all kinds of elements. I know players are critical a lot about not being tough enough. I don’t buy into that. He’s a tough guy and a skilled guy. Sometimes you get outside of what you do. What he does is great and I’m going to get him do what he does.

Q: On fitting all the pieces in together:
D’Antoni: Easily, easily. First of all, Pau (Gasol) can go out there 15-20 feet and he can make shots. There’s no reason why he’s not a great 20-foot shooter. There’s no reason whatsoever. If he doesn’t hesitate and he’s comfortable, there’s no reason. He’s spacing the floor.