My first thoughts while watching this game… are we allowed to ever watch our team play good basketball? Like ever? Like, whats it like to just be able to sit and enjoy a stretch of entertaining ball, feeling confident in the skills and execution of simple plays. To feel that the team has a good chance to win.
I enjoy good defense, good offense. Even good free throw routines. I don’t even need every game to be a win. I’d take every other game as a win at this point.
But to feel miserable from the jump, then to feel stupid for feeling miserable. Then feeling hope because they’ve finally woken up and get back in the game…only to get crushed by another run because of stupidity. Doesn’t matter the coaches, the players, the GM’s, the owners, the same feelings happen every time except maybe 3 times the last 25 years.
I know the easy solution is to be able to walk away. But basketball is my favorite sport by far, I’m a junkie. I like the pros better than the college game. And I only like my local team, don’t care about anybody else.
I don’t even need a championship at this point. Just give me some nice, average Pacers or Hawks basketball every year, at least they win a playoff series every few years. They even are able to achieve consecutive winning seasons sometimes. What’s that Hornets and Panthers? C-O-N-S-E-C-U-T-I-V-E.
The 3 point defense is inexcusable. I play pickup ball now in my old age, when someone is cooking from 3, I stay attached to them. Chasing them around every screen, denying an easy catch in rhythm, and never, ever, ever, ever, ever helping off of him to cover a driver. Take all the contested layups you want, you’re not going to get easy 3s.
But no, our professional team with professional coaches don’t understand this simple concept. The 3s actually seemed to get more wide open as the game wound down. Switch every pick, go over screens, don’t help, use your peripheral vision to keep your eye on the ball and man, don’t get too far into the lane on the back side. Just stop fucking sagging into the lane, they are not going to shoot inside, they’re hunting for the open 3.
And of course all the tricks teams use to get open 3s on us, we don’t know how to ever get a wide open look. Every shot we take is contested whether it’s in the lane or from 3. I’m a long leash kinda guy, but I’ve already read the Cliff story a few years ago, it never improves. Volume 1, Volume 2, Volume 3, its the same stupid story every time.
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