Dwyer Knows Best?

Nice job, Black..

From looking at some stats and just remembering their games, Hill comes off to me as a cross between Leandro Barbosa and Lindsey Hunter..looking at those 2 guys' seasons 3rd seasons in the NBA(they both didn't get enough PT in their 2nd seasons for various reasons..I didn't want to use their rookie seasons for obvious reasons), if you adjust for pace, they have pretty similar numbers to Hill..

All 3 of them have almost identical rebound%s, assist%s, turnover%s(Barbosa has the most, but he also had almost 3% more of his team's individual possessions, so he gets a pass for extra turnovers over them)..

Hunter is clearly the best defender and more of a PG than both, but he was also significantly less efficient from a scoring standpoint..

Hill and Barbosa got to the FT line at the same rate, have very similar assist/turnover numbers once adjusted for pace..Hill is obviously the better defender and Barbosa was the better shooter though, so that's accounted for..

I think that's a fairly accurate comparison..Hill has more upside than that though IMO, he has better physical tools than those guys, but I think a hybrid of that is the least I would expect out of him..

Nice write up.

In general, Hill is still a mystery. I think people here are putting his ceiling too high. I don't think he has a great basketball mind, but with his work ethic he could excel in a few areas.

This year his offense has improved but his defense and rebounding are perhaps worse, and because of that, he might need one more year to fully write a verdict on him.

Floor, ceiling, whatever - he has the work ethic that would allow him to be a useful player on a good team. One thing to keep in mind is that playing on the Spurs often makes players play worse, so if he was on an average team he might be able to play more freely and not fret over decisions in the same way.

Not saying the Spurs are holding him back, but his learning curve might be longer while on the Spurs, but the payoff down the road could be bigger.

Hill's stats while Parker out injured?
23 pts (7-16), including clutch free throws
9 ast, 3 TO
41:35 mins

Hill certainly seemed like he had all-star potential tonight. We needed him to step up and he made big plays all the way.

Watching Hill improve is fun. He and Blair make for some interesting storylines.

Granted, you've got to consider the competition, but good players look good against bad teams; George looked like a good young point guard tonight.

You've really got to be impressed with the way both he and Blair have been able to excel amongst the amount of inconsistency surrounding them. They're two special young players. :tu

i would take on Lakers be great in triangle if 3 balll continues to improve ...

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Originally Posted by Blackjack

Granted, you've got to consider the competition, but good players look good against bad teams; George looked like a good young point guard tonight.

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I think this is a good game for gauging Hill. He defended bigger players all night, like Evans, except for a little against Sergio Rodriguez. He had a big load to carry on that end yet torched them on offense for an efficient near double double. He provided leadership and scoring in Parker's absence and just had an all around great game.

Tomorrow will be an even bigger test.

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You've really got to be impressed with the way both he and Blair have been able to excel amongst the amount of inconsistency surrounding them. They're two special young players. :tu

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AND they've been doing it under Pop's rule, a rare feat for young players, and he's had almost nothing but good things to say about both of them.

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Originally Posted by Blackjack

Recently, the higher-ups implored the "raising of the bar" and asked for help from the masses. Well, I did the polite thing and offered to lend a hand, but it was really a token gesture; no good deed goes unpunished, huh? :smokin So from here on out, SpursTalk's got their own columnist (a very poor-man's version; it's free, deal with it) covering random topics/threads that pique his interest.

Without further adieu:

Dwyer Knows Best?

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guys, Ima little confused, would you please help? I read another thread parently by Dwyer about George Hill being ovarated. ...Blackjack, which are your articles besides this one? You're not Dwyer, right? Or Are You?This wuz a good article tho.

Not sure why so many are so defensive about George Hill. It's mad cool to back up yo playa. Props fo dat. Specially since so many Spurm fanz love to trash talk they own playas n coach. George is a solid playa, I conseed dat he ruffed up Masta KB24...course he had a bad back but I wuz embarased da way Hill took over. But what about the ovarated stuff? Nobody in the league hypes Hill. People like me or other teams respect him after he plays like he did on Kobe but I think whoever said 'ovarated' about Hill meant to tell the fans who think he's better than Tony Parker that he ain't no Tony Parker yet.

right? Spurm fanz tend to ovapraise they young stud playa just as much as they ovacritisize and put them ol dogz in da doghouse.

Now don't get all pissed, I ain't trippin'. Like I said, Hill is a nice dude. Parker is if anything undarated. I just don't understand why so many people got so offended and all. Me n my boyz don't start telling us self dat Shannon Brown is a better krunch time playa than Derick Fisher. Even tho Shano would run em off da court.

anyways, peace, y'all. Hill's solid, it's all good. But I'll take Parker if you don't want him. How about A-Mor and Vooyachick's expire fo Parker? word, get yo cap space! But seriously, please explain what Blackjack's post is about. Thanks

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Originally Posted by HarlemHeat37

Nice job, Black..

From looking at some stats and just remembering their games, Hill comes off to me as a cross between Leandro Barbosa and Lindsey Hunter..looking at those 2 guys' seasons 3rd seasons in the NBA(they both didn't get enough PT in their 2nd seasons for various reasons..I didn't want to use their rookie seasons for obvious reasons), if you adjust for pace, they have pretty similar numbers to Hill..

All 3 of them have almost identical rebound%s, assist%s, turnover%s(Barbosa has the most, but he also had almost 3% more of his team's individual possessions, so he gets a pass for extra turnovers over them)..

Hunter is clearly the best defender and more of a PG than both, but he was also significantly less efficient from a scoring standpoint..

Hill and Barbosa got to the FT line at the same rate, have very similar assist/turnover numbers once adjusted for pace..Hill is obviously the better defender and Barbosa was the better shooter though, so that's accounted for..

I think that's a fairly accurate comparison..Hill has more upside than that though IMO, he has better physical tools than those guys, but I think a hybrid of that is the least I would expect out of him..

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Nice stat-work and post.:tu

George isn't like one player, but he's got pieces and attributes of many. Barbosa is the easy, natural comparison, so it's not surprising the numbers would see some correlation. Hunter, I don't see quite as much, but the defensive disposition in an undersized body lends a decent comparison.

He's actually built a lot like Rondo and gives me a little bit of a Bobby Jackson vibe, in that he's got intangibles and a physical skill set that allows him to be a real X-factor; how many guys his size come out of a scrum with the ball or rip it away from the likes of Artest? (There's definitely some Manu is his game, as well.)

I talk of it often, but there's just something special about this kid and his makeup. The tools would be enough to secure him a spot in the league but the type of heart and character he has, that's what really makes you believe he could be something special.

George Hill will never be accused of being a player you can't win with.

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Originally Posted by SpurmzKilla

guys, Ima little confused, would you please help? I read another thread parently by Dwyer about George Hill being ovarated. ...Blackjack, which are your articles besides this one? You're not Dwyer, right? Or Are You?This wuz a good article tho.

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No, I'm not Dwyer.

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Originally Posted by SpurmzKilla

anyways, peace, y'all. Hill's solid, it's all good. But I'll take Parker if you don't want him. How about A-Mor and Vooyachick's expire fo Parker? word, get yo cap space! But seriously, please explain what Blackjack's post is about. Thanks

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It's about this guy named Hill and the discussion that ensued after a piece by Dwyer (brilliant troll, by the way;)).

On Hill post game tonight.

Pop.

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George is probably the most improved player in the whole league. From his rookie year last year to this year he’s starting to get confident and played well at both ends of the floor. He’s going to be a really fine player for us.

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Duncan.

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He has really developed this year and come on so quickly. He’s a real threat for us and is one of our best perimeter defenders. We expect a lot from him now.

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Unless he falls on his face at some point, Hill should start the rest of the season. If Pop puts Bogans back in the starting lineup alongside Parker, I'd go AHF.

It's really sad that during what's supposed to be this pivotal road-trip, the only ones to initially show up against a bad team after two days of rest are your backup point guard and your rookie power forward.

Hill's improvement on his midrange jumper has been staggering this year. On shots between 15 and 23 feet, Hill was only 33-for-112 (29%) last season. This season, he's now 42-for-95 (44.2%). In other words, he went from being one of the worst midrange shooters in the league to being borderline elite.

'09 draft picks rule the day
By Mark Billingsley/Special to The Democrat

SACRAMENTO -- The San Antonio Spurs have a young player trying to make a name for himself too. For the record, second-year point guard George Hill has arrived.

Hill was picked late in the first round of the 2008 NBA Draft out of Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis and has filled in admirably for the banged up and aging Tony Parker. Hill scored a career- and team-high 23 points and hit four crucial free throws in the final six seconds to hold off the Sacramento Kings 115-113.

Since losing 112-103 to the Los Angeles Lakers at home in double overtime on Dec. 26, the Kings have dropped 17 of 20 games and are still one game away from tying the team's win total from last year.

The fourth-consecutive loss overshadowed a nice effort from Tyreke Evans. The Kings rookie of the year candidate scored a game-high 32 points, a team-high seven rebounds, eight assists, two steals and one blocked shot. But it was the other young gun, Hill, whose game mattered the most Wednesday night.

"I'm just starting to get more comfortable out there," said Hill, who added a career- and game-high nine assists. "I'm more confident this season and not deferring to the others. Last year I felt I had to defer to the Big 3 (Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobli). But they've been telling me to shoot or drive the ball, whatever, don't defer anymore."

Hill said he worked out three times a day over the summer and reunited with his team during the Las Vegas Summer League where he showed off his new skills including a much-improved jump shot and ability to finish around the basket. He averaged 15.8 points and four assists in the summer.

"George is the most improved player in the league, he's going to be a special player," Spurs head coach Greg Popovich said. "His jump shot has improved, his confidence, his knowledge of the pick and roll and his court awareness have all improved.

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Originally Posted by timvp

Hill's improvement on his midrange jumper has been staggering this year. On shots between 15 and 23 feet, Hill was only 33-for-112 (29%) last season. This season, he's now 42-for-95 (44.2%). In other words, he went from being one of the worst midrange shooters in the league to being borderline elite.

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Thanks for the segue.:toast


I wasn't able to observe or really scout Hill for myself before he joined the Spurs, but I've always felt the concerns about his shot were a bit unwarranted.

Some people can shoot. They know they can shoot. And when they're asked about their struggles because of a lack of success, for however long a stretch of time, they express it will eventually come around; they look to find and even refine their shot by hitting the gym, but there's no doubt in their mind it's there.

That was George last year.

When the talk of his shot came about, or lack thereof, he simply stated he wasn't worried; the shot was there. It would come around eventually.

But since no one had any real kind of knowledge or background on him, and maybe the presence of a guy like Parker, who came into the league barren of a jumpshot, folks just assumed they had another young guy who was in need of a jumper overhaul.

Upon learning of the Spurs' 26th pick in the '08 Draft (before I dropped the reins to the Chalmers bandwagon and after a not-so-subtle WTF) I went and looked up the newly acquired Spurs' stats from his time at IUPUI.

What I found, at least as it pertains to his shooting, was a guard that shot with a good amount of efficiency.

For his career, he connected at a 53-percent from the field overall and at 40-percent clip from the three; not bad. And the only time he shot below 51-percent from the field (50.9, to be exact) was a year in which he played only five games due to a broken foot.

In his first two years at IUPUI, he averaged just about 50 three-point attempts a year and shot them at 41-percent (freshman year) and 32-percent (sophomore year) respectively.

A 9-percent fall-off; could it be the proverbial sophomore slump?

Seeing as next year would essentially be lost to injury, we'd have to wait to find out.

In Hill's final year at IUPUI, the Jaguar had his best and most efficient shooting year.

He shot the ball at a blistering 54-percent from the field and at 45-percent from three; that's 45-percent after taking two-times the amount of threes he averaged in his first two years.

So what does that tell me?

The guy can shoot; the transition, jump in competition and sporadic playing time just didn't allow for most to see it.

Now that those long arms and slower delivery have a better idea of where the shots are coming from and there's an element that allows for premeditation when setting up for the pull-up, we're starting to see what Hill knew all along.

When it comes to his shot, it's only a matter of time.

^ ^ Only a matter of time...:smokin

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Originally Posted by Blackjack

^ ^ Only a matter of time...:smokin

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Nice call. Hill's time is here.

Post game.

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“George Hill’s just a fantastic basketball player,” coach Gregg Popovich said. “I think he’s the most improved young man in the league from last year to this year. We’re really thrilled with his progress in his shooting and his approach to the game—being aggressive, believing in himself and thinking that he’s a darn good player.”

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“I wouldn’t say I owned the first quarter,” Hill said. “My teammates just got me the ball in the right spots and I had confidence in my shooting. I’ve always been a scorer, but I think the summer really gave me the confidence I needed to be successful. I worked hard on a lot of things that carried over into the season, and it’s starting to pay off.”

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If he keeps this up, it's going to be hard to keep this man crush under wraps...