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looked horrible 1st quarter of the season. Looks almost as I expected the 2nd quarter
What Do you think his potential is? I can see him getting 14 and 11 easy in a few yrs. Throw in 2ast and a stl a game, but that's me. He's been looking great since the start of the yr. Wish he'd get a better looking shot though.....ewww
looked horrible 1st quarter of the season. Looks almost as I expected the 2nd quarter
+1
Except for the Lakers game @ Staples Center
He has been fitting in nicely as a starter, I see no reason to change anything and I think he is only getting better.
http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/holli...pf/league/west (14th in West and he was buried in the mid 20s most of the season)
http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/holli.../c/league/west (all WC players note that Duncan is 2nd in this to only Nene)
http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/holli.../c/league/west (all WC players)
Blair is moving up in PER - he is now over 16 and moving up - Hollinger regards him as the PF and Duncan as the Center while PER stats do not tell the whole story Blair is now higher than
Marc Gasol and Marcus Camby and in the ballpark of Okafur - all players that if you asked many might be considered superior but statistically at least are not truly.
If keeps surging and getting some > playing time Spurs will at least have an an average to better than effective Center starter most nights = then matchups will hopefully dictate Pop going with more size (or at least get hot shooting out of Bonnner playing the 4/5 along with Duncan or some great minutes out of Dice and hopefully some out of Splitter) - notice Splitter is nearly as effective in PER than Marcus Cousins, and played him well head to head, but does not get any burn from Pop - sign!
He's really turned it around. Struggled early.
The difference is PER is hugely biased to offense and while Blair might be in the ball park offensively, he is no where near the defender of Gasol/Okafor.
I still think Mcdyess will be the starter come playoff time but Blair is giving me doubts if that would be the right move. Blair is a defensive liability in post up situations but he has a knack at stealing the ball from bigger opponents. Also bigger players have a hard time guarding Blair.
So it comes down to matchups. If the Spurs think Blair can win the matchup battle with most bigs then I think he will remain the starter for the rest of the season. But if Blair starts showing major signs that he cant hang with bigger frontcourts, I look for Mcdyess to take that spot.
He is a starter . . .
Absolutely, starter material. He's been the starting PF for every game with a group vying for one of the longest starting-5 game strings in recent history.
He is learning the nuances of the game, his limitations, and how to play the 5-man team game at both ends. Yeah, his defensive acuity needs work, but he's picking it up.
Agreed.
He's developed a fairly good rapport with Duncan. You can see Duncan and he having side bar conversations and playing off one another.
One very underrated aspect of Blair's game is his deft passing. He's probably the best passing big on the roster. He's really got a great feel for that part of the game. Furthermore, his long arms give him the ability to strip and steal the ball, on occasion.
While he still needs to continue growing defensively and watch the careless fouls, I just like how his overall game is developing and see no reason that he shouldn't continue starting.
I was against it but Blair is playing well since January and he looks decent on D now, his rotations are better and he's using his quickness to bother big guys.
He'd probably be putting up eye popping numbers nearly every night if he was on a bad team like the Wolves. Blair has really turned it around since the start of the season. The Spurs team of years ago used to struggle at grabbing rebounds and getting easy points, Blair does both very well. His defense has been steadily improving and his quick feet, excellent length/hands, and wide base has bothered quite a few teams this season including the vaunted LA Lakers.
He's got amazingly quick hands. If he can learn to use that skill to block shots instead of swiping at dribblers he'll be even more effective. Glad he worked through his struggles at the beginning of the year.
Um...he is a starter.
He's started all 51 games.
Spurs are 43-8.
Why are you even asking?
Since the Jan. 14th games against the Mavs:
11.5 ppg, 9.3 rpg, 1.4 spg, 56 FG% in 28 mpg
It will be interesting to see Blair going up against Elton Brand in Philly. Brand is on a hot streak, of late, averaging 25 ppg in February, and his team has won 6 of 8 against some pretty good teams.
of course he's starter material.
just not quite finisher material yet.
He also has great hands, he rarely miss a pass from Manu, and they are usually damn awkward.
I'm not sure about the "absolutely starting material" the energy he brings could be special coming from the bench and playing against starters while they are a little more tired. I can see his abilities fitting perfectly in an important bench role, comparable with the one Manu had several seasons.
Blair is fine as long as he plays within himself and not try to do things that are out of his comfort range. Last night was a perfect example when he got the ball and put up the shot quick or scored off missed shots he is great. When he tries to back people down or takes too many dribbles it usually winds up with a terrible looking shot.
I was against Blair starting at the beginning of the season..I'm not against it anymore, he's definitely a very good offensive player, but I still feel like he can easily be exploited by a good team, particularly on the defensive end, we'll have to see in the playoffs..
Blair's D has improved, particularly his post D, but he's still a below average defender, at best, and opposing coaches will target specific players during the playoffs, and he'll probably be the main target for teams vs. the Spurs..we'll see how he responds, he's proven doubters like myself wrong, many times before..
The OP has been defending Blair since the beginning of the season when everybody was talking trade Blair. The Op was the one that said, wait till mid point, y'all are gonna be eating a lot of crow. When guys like Cessation or however you spell his name and Guitarracist was calling him dumb and stupid, the Op was defending him.
To you Blair
26 and 11. If Bynum had put up that recently, Laker fans would be talking about how they have the next Kareem on their team.
Original Blair supporter/apologist/etc. right here. A lot of you guys are eating crow right about now.
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