Hayward's horrific leg injury in his 2017 debut as a Celtics player remains one of the most saddling and reverie-inducing moments in NBA history in recent years. Hayward established himself as an All-Star at the time — a player who averaged 22 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists per game and could defend four positions. He never returned to his pre-injury level.
How strong can the Celtics be with that Hayward and Irving — who joined the team that year — ?If Hayward stays healthy, how long will it take Tatum and Brown to fully blossom?How much does Hayward's presence affect Irving's comfort with the Celtics — and what does it mean for the idea that the Celtics might pursue a thick eyebrow that never progressed to substance?You can imagine forever.
Hayward is still a good offensive and defensive player — averaging 15 points and 5 assists per game — and can help competitive teams with smaller scenes. But before the Nets' 22-point run, he slowly looked like a remnant of the past — a crisis of self-confidence in full view. His signature skill now is to turn around and dodge confrontations, even when he has a breakout route, and then shoot a step-back jumper around the pivot.
According to CTG, almost 60% of Hayward's shots are mid-range. He's near a career-low percentage of frame-to-frame percentage, and he's rarely shot three-pointers. After a great start, Hayward has failed to score more than 10 points in five of his last eight games.
He's still useful as an offensive connector, but sometimes the right round requires him to be a little "greedy." Hayward still has the game feel and the energy to do it — and has plenty of long-range shooting — but he needs to shake off the psychological haze of injury.
Bane's offense on the court never stops — even when there is no hope, even when the Grizzlies are hollowed out of all the players around Bane and have to put four players on the court that only die-hard NBA fans know.
According to Second Spectrum, Bane played 31 pick-and-rolls per 100 rounds, double that of last season. That's a relatively low number for the team's number one ball-handler — a role Bane was in Morant's absence — but it's the limit for Bane. He and the team seem to be aware of that — and know there are other ways to take advantage of Bane's shooting threat.
Like many fluid running shooters, Bane understands the pressure he puts on opponents by covering off the ball. He's a physical cover guy who is full of physical confrontations, and he's creative with his flashing movements behind the screen
Bane relied on his body to resist Norman Powell, forcing Powell's defender, Mann, to finally start shooting three-pointers again!- Switch to Roddy. Mann executed the switch, and Powell got into a tougher job;Bane tricked Powell into a more top-arc position and then suddenly turned his head to the basket.
I'm tired of watching this round. Tactical coordination is too rich!Bane lunged towards Biyombo to take over the handover, but braked early to see if he could get rid of Mann and then slowly shot an open three. The move almost worked, but Mann moved quickly along the edge of Biyombo's body to deny Bane a three-pointer.
Bane faked a shot and then leaned to Biyombo's side, looking like he was going to play a mechanical pick-and-roll round. Not really. Bane paused again. Biyombo slowly moved away. Bane put his head up again, looking like he was going to shoot. Mann lunged at him. And Mann's body movement momentum is just what Bane needs. Those 5 seconds put too much of Bane's playing talent into it.
The Grizzlies are 29th in offensive efficiency. When Bane was on the floor, the Grizzlies scored 107 points per 100 possessions, and when he was on the bench, he could only score an extremely bad 988 points. Without Morant to play a deep break to twist the defensive formation, Jalen Jackson also struggled.
Morant was back soon after. The Grizzlies are four wins away from the play-in tournament. But even when the season proved irretrievable, Bane did his job.
It was a forgotten moment in the Warriors' crash against the Kings on Tuesday — a game that dropped the Warriors from No. 8 to No. 10 and raised the stakes once again about whether the core roster could find balance: With 17 seconds left in the third quarter and the Warriors leading by 10 points, Moody grabbed a rebound from Curry's front rebound, and the Warriors could almost run out of time.
Moody passed to Klay Thompson, who hit a three-pointer with 16 seconds left. He lost it. The basketball god punished him for his arrogance, after which Fox drew a shooting foul with 1 second left. Fox made one of two free throws. The Kings won by 1 point.
It's a restless "I'm going to kill you right now!".Thompson sometimes feels like he's more than qualified to shoot. Thompson is a legend, and if Thompson doesn't get back to where they once were, the Warriors will never get where they want to be — and where they still think they can go. Thompson has room to shoot that kind of ball.
Curry can still be the big man on a championship team. Wayne Rooney did his job. But the three starters around them — Thompson, Andrew Wiggins and Draymond Green — haven't done their job so far. And that's the simplest reason why the Warriors have a mediocre start. If that doesn't change, the Warriors won't have a chance to make a big deal this season, at least not with the current team structure.
Moody has been given more time, even when the team is back on the full roster. According to a report from my colleague Kendra Andrews, Wiggins missed Thursday's game after his finger was pinched in the door. Moody's started in his place. Paul and Payton are also recovering from injuries. Warriors coach Kerr should keep Moody on the court at the end of the game against the Kings. One potential solution is to swing small, with Curry, Thompson, Moody, Wiggins and Green.
The five-member group has only played together for 33 minutes in the last two years. The Warriors are desperate to find a small lineup that will play center with Green and survive for a long time. Paul's lineup to replace Wayne Rooney is too small. With Payton's or Kuminga's version, there would be two non-shooters in the five-man lineup.
The combination of Green and Saric sounds fascinating, but the defensive end lacks dynamism. Brandon Podemsky is emerging as an interesting x-factor.
Moody is a proven goalscorer and can guard against players who are 1.98m taller than him. He didn't have many fouls and turnovers, and those were two of the Warriors' fatal flaws.
The Warriors' true level may be closer to their 6-2 start than to a downward spiral that followed. Their schedule is the toughest in the league, and a more detail-oriented approach can at least mitigate fouls and turnovers.