Andrew Bynum Discussion: Out for the season, 2x knee surgery

Sam Amico ‏@SamAmicoFSO 18 Mar
League-wide whispers say Andrew Bynum could end up with Hawks next season. As for Sixers ... man, who knows?

darren rovell ‏@darrenrovell 17h
Insurance will pay $6.76M of Bynum’s salary according to @JasonChadWolf. Which leaves the 76ers with a $10.1M bill for Bynum’s season.

Andrew Bynum Not Remembered Fondly By Former High School Coaches



By Dave D'Alessandro/Star-Ledger Columnist

The labels still follow him around, like a dishonorable discharge from a club he never wanted to join in the first place.

When Andrew Bynum was traded from Los Angeles to Philadelphia, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar bashed him before he got across the Continental Divide, asserting that his prized student always wanted to take shortcuts and "didn’t want me to bother him (by) constantly going over the fundamentals."

About that time, an anonymous Lakers player created untold internet hits by suggesting that "I’ve never met another player in the league who likes basketball less" than Bynum.

More recently, Magic Johnson condemned him as "a guy who (cannot) tolerate pain. When he was injured, he wasn’t a guy who worked hard to get back. This doesn’t surprise me."

And in response to this character assassination, all you hear from Team Bynum is a chorus of crickets.

So figure this might be a good time to forage his home state for someone who might advocate for the Plainsboro native, on the chance that the folks who nurtured him at St. Joseph of Metuchen might declare these Angelino echoes just a grotesque distortion, or perhaps shield their favorite son from the bombardment of media bile coming out of Philadelphia lately.

As it turns out, you can’t really depend on that happening, either.

"Everyone here at school says the same thing: What’s wrong with him? Why does he act like that?" says St. Joe’s athletic director Jerry Smith. "He went from someone we’re proud of to someone whose name we don’t even mention anymore."

Bynum’s coach during his Falcons years — that would be 2003-05, his junior and senior seasons — sounds as though he is under no urgent obligation to defend him, because he’s gone seven years without even being asked to give an assessment of any kind about his former center.

"Yeah, I never respond to that kind of request, because Andrew has chosen not to stay in touch for whatever reason, so I just don’t get involved with it," says Mark Taylor, who now coaches the St. Benedict's Prep powerhouse. "I don’t dislike him, and he’ll continue to do well if he can stay healthy, but I’m sure he’s got people who will guide him in times like this."

Getting a little frosty in here?

Make no mistake. Both men like Bynum personally, and wish the 25-year-old Sixers center a rapid recovery in his long struggle to rehab a knee that’s been locked up with a bone-on-bone scrape that threatens what should be an illustrious career.

Even in the aftermath of yesterday’s news that Bynum will undergo season-ending surgery today on both knees, the severity of his condition probably won’t elicit much public sympathy. Indeed, he is most often portrayed as a feckless clod victimized by his own negligence.

His "sins" are well known by now. He hurt his left knee while bowling in November, when he was already sidelined by his right. Then he announced on Feb. 18th that he’ll "definitely be back sometime this year" — a terrible PR mistake, organization people admit privately. And one week later, he experienced swelling in his right knee after dominating his second scrimmage with his team, which now has him facing surgery.

By then, the Sixers were in free-fall (they’re 24-39 now), fan irritation already had boiled over when the team put Bynum’s face on a billboard announcing "single game tickets available," and the media rightfully pointed out that this might be the worst trade the old town has seen since the one proffered by Susan Finkelstein.

Much of the frustration is justified. Coming off its first playoff series triumph in nine years, the Sixers surrendered their best player (Andre Iguodala), a top-five rebounder (Nikola Vucevic), a promising rookie (Moe Harkless), and a No. 1 draft pick to acquire Bynum and his $16.1 million salary.

But he hasn’t played a game. Mostly, he’s seen a lot of doctors and lifted a lot of weights, bulking to 300 pounds. And for this, he’s been characterized as self-serving and unwilling to play through pain.

That, however, is an absurd premise; by sitting out, Bynum has vanquished any leverage he’s had. Some NBA GMs can quantify it: They say Bynum has literally lost two digits on his next contract by sitting out this year, as his value probably shrank from five years and $100 million to probably one year and $8 million.

That doesn’t sound very selfish.

But nobody seems to make that point. Bynum’s bat-like resistance to the spotlight prevents him from speaking up for himself, as he withheld comment through a Sixers publicist. His agent, David Lee, has been mute. Neither his brother nor his AAU coach — Corey Thomas and Larry Marshall, the two who choreographed his rise from St. Joe’s to the NBA at age 17 — return calls, either.

So you start at St. Joe’s, where you learn that this smart and talented kid — who has had knee issues since his first surgery at age 12 — never was one to make much of a fuss anyway.

Which might be why he’s such an unsympathetic fellow.

Even to the guys who helped put him where he is today.

"Like most big guys with big expectations, he seemed uncomfortable with them," says Wendell Alexis, the former Syracuse star who was Taylor’s assistant in 2004-05. "And subsequently, he seemed leery of people around him — coaches, or agents, or could be anybody. He had a very serious nature for a 17-year-old, actually, whereas most people that age — with that talent — would think the world was their oyster."

"This is why I get frustrated with handlers and agents and people who get to these kids when they’re young: If you have a great foundation, you do well later when problems arise," says Taylor, who had Bynum practically hand-delivered to Jim Calhoun and UConn in the spring of 2005, before the teen’s stunning decision to turn pro.

"Yes, it’s really hard to argue that point when a kid is drafted at No. 10. But I still ask: Are you truly ready? I don’t mean physically — though Andrew was not physically ready — it’s about maturity. Are you worldly enough to deal with being a professional? With setbacks? With injuries?"

Is the coach suggesting that these are specific issues that Bynum is still ill-equipped to deal with?

"Yeah," Taylor replies. "Like any other teenager."

Smith, who arrived in Metuchen during Bynum’s junior year, is just frustrated he can’t get his former player to answer his snail mail.

"He went from being one of our favorite sons here — right below Jay Williams — but they don’t talk about Bynum like they do about Jay," the AD says. "For a lot of reasons, there’s been a disconnect."

Smith said he once took a busload of kids to a Nets-Lakers game in East Rutherford, and Bynum — reluctantly, he thought — did come out to say hello to the students.

"But he hasn’t exactly been a warm presence," Smith says. "We thought he’d be a lot different, that’s all. We all understand sports figures — wary of people asking for money and all that — but we don’t need money, we raise our own. It would just be nice if he came by now that he’s so close. It would be great for our kids to see him. But I’m not holding my breath."

last stand wrote:Lol no he isn't. Aldridge, pau, Duncan all are much better than Bynum.

Finwë wrote:

last stand wrote:Lol no he isn't. Aldridge, pau, Duncan all are much better than Bynum.

No they aren't.. Aldridge might be, but I wouldn't call him "back to the basket center". LMA has a better shooting touch, but he plays more like Dirk without the 3pt range (he is a little more athletic though). He faces up a lot and plays a lot of pick and pop and pick and roll.

Pau, are you kidding? He's been a shell of himself since 2011, he can't back down anybody, his FG% is constantly dropping, he misses gimmies not unfrequently, he settles for turnaround Js that aren't really effective..

Duncan's got the moves, but he is old, and his quickness and strength are clearly not what they used to be. Duncan also like Aldridge does a lot of screen and roll / pop action, and he faces up frequently. It'd be interesting to see what % of his points actually come from back-to-the-basket action. I'd bet it's not high.
He's performing at a high level because he's a true all-time great, he's very dedicated and he happens to play in a system that really brings out the best from each guy. However, I wouldn't say he's a better back to the basket center than a healthy Bynum.


Bynum was an all-star last season, and he could've had a lot more touches in a team that prioritized him (not saying he didn't get enought touches here), which would've boosted his stats.
His touch around the basket was very good, he was very strong, he made his FTs, and his game was only getting better (developing a couple of counter moves, such as a shot turnaround J that was quite good).

I agree with Roos

last stand wrote:

Finwë wrote:

last stand wrote:Lol no he isn't. Aldridge, pau, Duncan all are much better than Bynum.

No they aren't.. Aldridge might be, but I wouldn't call him "back to the basket center". LMA has a better shooting touch, but he plays more like Dirk without the 3pt range (he is a little more athletic though). He faces up a lot and plays a lot of pick and pop and pick and roll.

Pau, are you kidding? He's been a shell of himself since 2011, he can't back down anybody, his FG% is constantly dropping, he misses gimmies not unfrequently, he settles for turnaround Js that aren't really effective..

Duncan's got the moves, but he is old, and his quickness and strength are clearly not what they used to be. Duncan also like Aldridge does a lot of screen and roll / pop action, and he faces up frequently. It'd be interesting to see what % of his points actually come from back-to-the-basket action. I'd bet it's not high.
He's performing at a high level because he's a true all-time great, he's very dedicated and he happens to play in a system that really brings out the best from each guy. However, I wouldn't say he's a better back to the basket center than a healthy Bynum.


Bynum was an all-star last season, and he could've had a lot more touches in a team that prioritized him (not saying he didn't get enought touches here), which would've boosted his stats.
His touch around the basket was very good, he was very strong, he made his FTs, and his game was only getting better (developing a couple of counter moves, such as a shot turnaround J that was quite good).

I agree with Roos

No. If its about moves then those guys destroy Bynum. If its about effectiveness in terms of numbers then guys like Howard, aldridge also win that out

Can't have it both ways. I'm a Bynum fan but you have people saying Bynum is better because of his moves not numbers. Well aldridge, Duncan, gasol all have better moves, by far

If its about numbers well Aldridge and Howard have consistently out performed Bynum in the post.

So which is it. Either way it's false

Finwë wrote:It's obviously a combination of both. Pau has nice moves, nobody disputes that, but how long has it been since he made something happen with them? like 2 full years...

I already explained that while Aldridge may post better numbers, but he is NOT a "back to the basket center". He plays too much pick and roll and he faces up too frequently for him to be categorized as such. I'm sure the % of his points coming from real back to the basket action is much lower than Bynum's (based on watching games, don't really know if I can find a stat for this.. "post-up" points don't really tell the story, since after you post-up you can face up and shoot, and that's not what we're talking about here)
Same goes for Duncan..

Regarding Howard, again, how effective is he really playing back to the basket? Most of his FG makes are spoon fed or off offensive boards and that. A LOT of his touches in Orlando came from P&R, and he's playing a lot of P&R now.. How many times does he actually score with his back to the basket, using either a hook shot or an up and under move or a turnaround J? Not many..
Bynum had waay better touch around the rim and was less prone to getting the ball stripped. His offensive repertoir in the regard we're talking about was more polished.
Ask around LD, "would you guys prefer having Howard play with his back to the basket more or would you prefer most of his touches coming from P&Rs, drive and dish from perimeter players, offensive boards, lobs?". I bet no one suggests the former..

KareemTheGreat33 wrote:He should have secured an extension before the season. Bad calculation again from gumbygld

KareemTheGreat33 wrote:He should have secured an extension before the season. Bad calculation again from gumbygld