By Spencer
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Josh McRoberts, PF 36 MIN | 7-11 FG | 3-4 FT | 7 REB | 2 AST | 1 STL | 0 BLK | 3 TO | 17 PTS | -25
Nice impact on this game. Efficient from the field + came with more energy than most for Cats. Rumblings are going around that McBob could be back in Charlotte next season. Will be quite interesting to see the deal he gets, if so. I’d expect a 1-year contract.
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Bismack Biyombo, PF 37 MIN | 4-6 FG | 0-1 FT | 8 REB | 0 AST | 0 STL | 2 BLK | 2 TO | 8 PTS | -7
Every time I watch Biz play I become more convinced that he’ll be nothing except a speciality guy off the bench in this league. He literally still can’t catch the ball — off a pass, or off the rim.
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Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, SF 31 MIN | 3-7 FG | 1-2 FT | 7 REB | 2 AST | 1 STL | 2 BLK | 1 TO | 7 PTS | -6
2-3 with the mid-range jumper is encouraging and it’s obvious to see that MKG knows he has to have that in the arsenal to ever be competent on the offensive end in this league. When the minutes become more consistent next season his stat lines will become much more fun, because he does impact the game at a consistent rate when on the floor.
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Kemba Walker, PG 37 MIN | 9-21 FG | 6-6 FT | 5 REB | 6 AST | 0 STL | 0 BLK | 5 TO | 28 PTS | -15
It’s ridiculous how much this team depends on Kemba for offense — is forced to have the ball in his hands with the pressure of having to make a play far too often. Usually late in shot clock.
Had 24 points at the half and then when Detroit made adjustments at the break he went 1-8 for 4 points in the 2nd half.
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Gerald Henderson, SG 35 MIN | 6-18 FG | 2-2 FT | 1 REB | 5 AST | 3 STL | 0 BLK | 3 TO | 15 PTS | -6
It’s insane how much Kemba has to do offensively for Charlotte, but if you take this guy and Kemba out of it like Detroit did in the 2nd half tonight, Charlotte has nothing. When the Pistons adjusted at the half, they shutdown Kemba and also made sure Hendo didn’t beat them — Hendo was 2-8 from the floor in the 2nd half.
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Two Things We Saw
- Charlotte was outscored in the paint 58-28 — I mentioned how much of a problem that could be in the preview. Detroit also scorched the Bobcats in fast-break points 26-14.
- With 3 games remaining the Bobcats hold a 2 game lead on Orlando for the best odds in the lottery to get the 1st pick. Charlotte’s remaining 3 games are all at home vs. Milwaukee, NYK & Cleveland.
By Spencer
Who: Detroit Pistons vs Charlotte Bobcats
What: NBA Basketball – Pistons Home Game
When: 7:30 PM ET
Where: Live at The Palace of Auburn Hills, Detroit, MI
The Matchup:
|
Record |
Offensive
Efficiency |
Defensive
Efficiency |
Pace |
| Detroit |
27-52 |
100.6 (23) |
105.9 (24) |
92.9 (22) |
| Charlotte |
18-60 |
98.0 (29) |
109.3 (30) |
94.0 (16) |
Previous Meetings:
2013/01/06 – 101-108 – Recap – Boxscore
Injuries:
Detroit: Jose Calderon (OUT)
Charlotte: Byron Mullens (OUT), Ramon Sessions (OUT)
Starting Lineups
QCH Panel –
Spencer: The Pistons come into tonight looking to win three straight games, which would be a big boost for a team that started the season having some quiet playoff hopes. In the past 5 games Detroit has been scoring 102.4 PPG and shooting the ball at a 49.2% mark. These are numbers that wouldn’t presumably come down when Charlotte comes to town. In the Pistons past 5 games they have attempted 56% of their FGA from ‘around the rim’ and that’s up from a season average mark of 51.1%. Having the duo of Monroe and Drummond healthy and on the floor together is helping that stat.
Tonight, McRoberts will have his hands full with Monroe. Seems to me that McRob should attempt to crowd Monroe when he catches the ball away from the basket and force him to make a scoring play by putting the ball on the floor. Biz, on the other hand, will likely draw the duty of defending Drummond. The key to guarding Drummond is to not allow a deep catch around the basket and also to keep him off the offensive glass — Drummond is 3rd in the league in Offensive Rebounding Rate (15.6%).
The Bobcats have not been like the Pistons within the past 5 games. It doesn’t help when 4 of those 5 opponents are all playoff teams, but the numbers still speak for themselves. Charlotte is shooting the ball to the tune of 41.3% in the past 5 and scoring a putrid 88 PPG. Charlotte is also attempting just 39% of their FGA in the past 5 games from ‘around the rim’. Again, that is a product of facing good, paint packing, defenses. Still not going to get the amount of points on the scoreboard that is good enough to beat any team.
Prediction — 104-96 Pistons.
Greg: The three games this year between the Pistons and Bobcats have been close contests, with the average margin of victory at under five points. Kemba Walker in particular has played well against Detroit, scoring at least 20 in each contest so far.
The Pistons made a little bit of a splash before the trade deadline, shipping out Tayshaun Prince for Jose Calderon. Calderon’s stats have looked pretty stellar (11.6 points and 6.6 assists on 52% shooting and 52% from three), but he’s always looked solid statistically. His defense and passive play are his biggest weaknesses, which are harder to quantify. Calderon’s doubtful for tonight’s game, which may not be a good thing: There’s evidence that Brandon Knight is an underrated defender, and he’ll likely see a bump in his minutes with Jose out.
Keys to the game:
— Free throws. Charlotte has only shot 42.2 percent from the floor against the Pistons this year, but they’ve averaged 25 free throw attempts a game. Kyle Singler in particular has struggled with fouls, logging at least five in each game and fouling out on Feb. 20. Picking up those free throws will help a lot, considering Andre Drummond’s very aggressive shotblocking could limit opportunities inside.
— Turnovers. In their win against the Pistons this year, the Bobcats were able to win their turnover battle easily, 22-11. In their losses, the margin was much closer. Points off turnovers should have been a strength for Charlotte, considering how often they play small ball, but it just hasn’t quite panned out. Taking advantage of teams prone to turnovers (Detroit ranks 23rd in TOV%) would be a good start.
Brett: ESPN’s David Thorpe came out with his column about who rookies from this season should study to improve their games. Believe it or not, Thorpe says MKG should study Lebron!
By Brett
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Josh McRoberts, PF 41 MIN | 3-11 FG | 2-2 FT | 8 REB | 2 AST | 0 STL | 2 BLK | 1 TO | 8 PTS | -23
Not a good sign when your big man who shot well from the floor went 3 for 11. Decent line otherwise, but 8 points on 11 attempts is no good.
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Bismack Biyombo, PF 38 MIN | 1-7 FG | 1-1 FT | 12 REB | 1 AST | 0 STL | 3 BLK | 1 TO | 3 PTS | -21
Yes, Bis went of 1 of 7 from the field to give McRoberts the crown for best shooting big man for last night’s game. But Bis did collect double digit rebounds and block 3 shots, so it wasn’t a total loss.
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Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, SF 27 MIN | 3-7 FG | 0-1 FT | 6 REB | 1 AST | 0 STL | 0 BLK | 2 TO | 6 PTS | -4
MKG with another quiet line – 6 rebounds is not bad for 27 minutes, but 6 points and no steals or blocks isn’t much production for a starter.
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Kemba Walker, PG 34 MIN | 9-17 FG | 1-1 FT | 2 REB | 3 AST | 0 STL | 0 BLK | 1 TO | 19 PTS | -19
If you only looked at his 2-point attempts, Kemba had a great game shooting, going 9 of 12. Even after you add in the 5 misses from deep, 9 of 17 is still very good. Only 3 assists for Kemba – but he can only pass the ball, he can’t make shots as well.
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Gerald Henderson, SG 41 MIN | 6-16 FG | 1-1 FT | 6 REB | 2 AST | 0 STL | 0 BLK | 1 TO | 13 PTS | -23
Like McRoberts and Bis – an off night from the field for Gerald Henderson, who was just 6 of 16. Like MKG not much beyond points and rebounds, as he recorded just 6 boards and 2 assists, with blanks in steals and blocks.
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Two Things We Saw
- According to this, just 2 steals. The Bobcats need transition opportunities to boost their offense, and steals are a good catalyst for that. Without them last night, scoring enough points to get a win was a battle too large.
- As for the title – I feel like this title has probably been used before, because of the cheesy headline word play with Grizzlies and maul. Oh – and the Grizzlies are really good and the Bobcats are not.
By Spencer
Who: Brooklyn Nets vs Charlotte Bobcats
What: NBA Basketball – Nets Home Game
When: 7:30 PM ET
Where: Live at The Barclays Center
The Matchup:
|
Record |
Offensive
Efficiency |
Defensive
Efficiency |
Pace |
| Brooklyn |
43-32 |
104.6 (9) |
103.8 (19) |
90.9 (29) |
| Charlotte |
18-58 |
98.1 (28) |
109.2 (30) |
94.1 (14) |
Previous Meetings:
2012/12/28 – 96-80 – Recap – Boxscore
Injuries:
Brooklyn:
Charlotte: Byron Mullens (OUT), Ramon Sessions (OUT)
Starting Lineups
Just a few quick notes today:
Greg: Brooklyn hasn’t had much trouble with the Bobcats this year, winning by an average of 18.5 points. The Bobcats shot under 40 percent in both of those games, so their issues were largely on offense. I’m not sure there’s a ton they can do about that: Deron Williams and Joe Johnson have the size to bully Charlotte’s guards, and if the Bobcats’ perimeter players aren’t scoring, they aren’t scoring period.
If they want to even have a shot, they’ll need to slow down Brook Lopez. Lopez, who the Bobcats tried to sign to an offer sheet before the season, is a terrific scorer. He’s gone off against Charlotte this year, averaging 21 points on 79 percent shooting (!) in two games. Just check out this shot chart:
Maybe keep him away from the basket, if possible?
By Spencer
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Josh McRoberts, PF 37 MIN | 4-12 FG | 0-0 FT | 11 REB | 3 AST | 1 STL | 2 BLK | 1 TO | 8 PTS | -18
Not a great defensive effort — Bosh made McRob look silly on occasion. I’ll say this a lot in this recap, but not a stellar night offensive either.
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Bismack Biyombo, PF 25 MIN | 2-7 FG | 0-0 FT | 8 REB | 0 AST | 0 STL | 1 BLK | 1 TO | 4 PTS | -1
Blah. The only think that sticks out about this stat line is that he took 7 FGA.
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Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, SF 38 MIN | 7-17 FG | 4-4 FT | 14 REB | 1 AST | 1 STL | 1 BLK | 1 TO | 18 PTS | -4
The one bright spot for Charlotte in this one. Not crazy efficient from the field, but extremely competent compared to his other teammates tonight. 3 of MKG’s makes were mid-range jumpers on left side of the court — his preferred portion of the floor for jump shots.
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Kemba Walker, PG 41 MIN | 3-15 FG | 6-6 FT | 3 REB | 4 AST | 3 STL | 0 BLK | 2 TO | 12 PTS | -13
Sigh. Well, Kemba didn’t torch Norris Cole as I expected. Couldn’t get anything going from behind the arc or from mid-range (0-7). Also, not very successful finishing around the rim last night (2-6). A night to forget for Kemba.
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Gerald Henderson, SG 37 MIN | 2-16 FG | 7-8 FT | 3 REB | 3 AST | 2 STL | 0 BLK | 4 TO | 11 PTS | -14
Pretty much everything I said about Kemba, except slightly worse. 1-7 with shots around the rim and 1-4 on mid-range — what’s to like? Nothing, and then throw 4 turnovers in the pot. Throw this one in the garbage Hendo.
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Three Things We Saw
- The Bobcats will want to forget this game quickly and they’ll have an opportunity to do that with a game in Brooklyn slated for 7:30 tonight.
- 31.8% from the field is not going to get it done against anyone. Also doesn’t help when the opposition knocks down 13 3′s — probably the X-factor for Miami to win this one.
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By Spencer
Who: Charlotte Bobcats vs Miami Heat
What: NBA Basketball – Bobcats Home Game
When: 8:00 PM ET — ESPN
Where: Live at Time Warner Cable Arena
The Matchup:
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Record |
Offensive
Efficiency |
Defensive
Efficiency |
Pace |
| Charlotte |
18-57 |
98.1 (28) |
109.3 (30) |
94.2 (15) |
| Miami |
58-16 |
110.5 (1) |
100.7 (8) |
93.0 (22) |
Previous Meetings:
2012/12/26 – 92-105 – Recap – Boxscore
Injuries:
Charlotte: Byron Mullens (OUT), Ramon Sessions (OUT)
Miami: Mario Chalmers (Game-time decision), Lebron James (OUT), Dwayne Wade (OUT), Ray Allen (OUT)
Starting Lineups
– Lebron James, Dwayne Wade and Ray Allen are all expected to sit tonight for Miami. Vegas has the line at Even, but does the absence of so many vital Heat members make this a realistic opportunity for the Bobcats to beat Miami for the first time since March 9th, 2010?
QCH Panel–
Spencer: Absolutely. Charlotte seems to really be getting into a groove on the offensive end — the Bobcats have an offensive rating of 104.7 (+6.6 of season avg.) in the past 5 games and have a 56.2% total shooting % (+5.7% of season avg.). Henderson’s offensive outburst as of late has helped and you have to like his chances again tonight going up against Mike Miller, although Battier could give him a run for his money in spurts. The other matchup that they Bobcats can take advantage of is Kemba vs. Norris Cole. Cole doesn’t have one advantage over Kemba — not height, speed, quickness or shooting. I would look for a huge night from Kemba.
Charlotte biggest challenge tonight will be containing Chris Bosh. Everyone needs to remember that Miami won in San Antonio just a few nights ago without James & Wade, so this is still an extremely good team without the duo. Charlotte will likely guard Bosh by committee. I would expect Dunlap to start McRoberts on Bosh and then change it up on him for the rest of the game with a mix of Biz and Adrien.
Prediction — 102-99 Bobcats.
Greg: Charlotte will obviously have a solid chance, but Vegas sounds about right. It feels like a toss-up. The Heat, even without all the players listed above, are stocked with professional vets that know how to compete. They should be fired up, as well, considering all those guys take pride in their play and that it’s a nationally televised game.
One thing working in the Bobcats’ favor is that its a home game. Even though they’ve won five of their last 12 games, a (depressingly) big improvement over their total record, none of those victories came on the road. In fact, their last win away from Charlotte came Feb. 19 at Orlando. They’ve only won six all year.
The Bobcats guards should have big nights, as the Heat will be giving heavy minutes to Mike Miller, James Jones and Norris Cole. On the other side, I’m half-expecting Bosh to go nuclear. The combination of the Bobcats’ weak frontcourt defense and the Heat’s lack of other options means he’ll be the focal point of the offense, and Bosh is good enough to take advantage.
By Brett
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Josh McRoberts, PF 43 MIN | 6-7 FG | 0-0 FT | 16 REB | 4 AST | 1 STL | 0 BLK | 1 TO | 12 PTS | +15
Exactly what the Bobcats want to see from McRoberts – efficient scoring, strong rebounding, and a few assists, with his passing really helping overall ball movement.
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Bismack Biyombo, PF 38 MIN | 2-7 FG | 0-0 FT | 11 REB | 0 AST | 1 STL | 3 BLK | 0 TO | 4 PTS | +5
Bismack gets contact credit for centering a defense that held Philly to 35% shooting. And 11 rebounds are nice as well.
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Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, SF 17 MIN | 2-6 FG | 0-0 FT | 7 REB | 0 AST | 0 STL | 0 BLK | 3 TO | 4 PTS | -1
7 rebounds from the small forward in just 17 minutes is nice (just 17 minutes, less so). And the delayed break basket he had where he finished with a floater in the lane while being tackled by Spencer Hawes was a great example of his scoring ability.
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Kemba Walker, PG 40 MIN | 6-14 FG | 3-4 FT | 5 REB | 10 AST | 5 STL | 1 BLK | 6 TO | 17 PTS | +13
Like Bismack – contact credit for being part of the defensive effort, with Kemba getting points for Jrue Holiday’s 2 of 24 shooting. Combined with Kemba’s double double, of 17 and 10, a very strong night.
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Gerald Henderson, SG 36 MIN | 10-18 FG | 4-4 FT | 4 REB | 4 AST | 2 STL | 1 BLK | 1 TO | 24 PTS | 0
Another A level performace from a Bobcat starter – 24 points without a made 3 for Gerald Jr, plus 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, and 1 block for the well-balanced box score.
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Tyrus Thomas, PF 12 MIN | 2-9 FG | 2-2 FT | 2 REB | 0 AST | 1 STL | 0 BLK | 0 TO | 6 PTS | -8
Tyrus had 9 attempts from the field, plus 2 free throw attempts in just 12 minutes – for 6 points. His focus continues to be on offense.
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Ben Gordon, SG 25 MIN | 2-9 FG | 5-6 FT | 1 REB | 3 AST | 0 STL | 0 BLK | 2 TO | 9 PTS | +5
9 points on 9 attempts, plus 6 free throw attempts? Shoot better, Ben.
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By Spencer
Who: Charlotte Bobcats vs Philadelphia 76ers
What: NBA Basketball – Bobcats Home Game
When: 7:00 PM ET
Where: Live at Time Warner Cable Arena
The Matchup:
|
Record |
Offensive
Efficiency |
Defensive
Efficiency |
Pace |
| Charlotte |
17-57 |
98.2 (28) |
109.6 (30) |
94.2 (15) |
| Philadelphia |
30-43 |
99.5 (26) |
102.9 (14) |
93.1 (21) |
Previous Meetings:
2012/11/30 – 98-104 – Recap – Boxscore
Injuries:
Charlotte: Byron Mullens (Status unknown), Ramon Sessions (OUT)
Philadelphia: Jason Richardson (OUT)
Starting Lineups
Thoughts from the QCH Panel –
Greg: The 76ers are going to be well-rested coming into this one; in fact, their last game was Saturday’s 100-92 win over the Bobcats. Like you’d think, they play a lot better when they get some time off. This year, Philadelphia is 12-8 in games when they have at least two days of rest; they’re 18-35 in all other games. There’s obviously a lot at play in deciding those wins and losses, but having fresh legs can help a lot at this point in the season.
Saturday’s matchup was relatively competitive, but it took an ultra-efficient night from MKG (21 points on 9-of-11 shooting) to keep things close. Most of those points came near the rim on hustle plays — which is a little surprising, as Philadelphia is typically solid at defending the restricted area and the paint. It’ll be interesting to see if he can repeat that performance.
Spencer: Charlotte played well in Phila on Saturday night — the Bobcats outscored the Sixers in the paint 48-42, only turned the ball over 10 times and shot 50% from the field. The straw that broke the camels back was the 14-23 (60.9%) from the free throw line — not good enough to win on any level. To add to that note, Hendo only got to the FT 5 times for the game, only converting on 2 of those attempts.
Phila is good at slowing the game down and forcing teams to execute in the half court — not Charlotte’s desired tempo. Tonight the Bobcats have to be able to find a healthy mixture of speeding the game up and getting stops in the half court, defensively.
Prediction: 98-95 Bobcats
Mathew: Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer looked at a few of the possible reasons the Bobcats have decided to give Tyrus Thomas some run after 25 consecutive games of inactivity. He touches on two rather clear motives – to see what the Bobcats have in him moving forward and to showcase his trade value for the rest of the league. Although he does admit a trade is unlikely (Bobcats would be forced to take back other bad contracts in exchange for Thomas), I think the most probably outcome is Thomas getting amnestied in the offseason. Therefore, the incentive is to showcase (please note, a loose interpretation of the word) him in the hopes that another team sees something worth bidding for, as any salary paid to Thomas by another team would offset the sum owed to him by the Bobcats. Let’s hope for no more 3-point attempts (if you didn’t see the play last game, check the box score) the rest of the season from T-Time – it certainly won’t help the Bobcats cause.
Harabalos Voulgaris is probably the most successful NBA bettor in the world. If you don’t know who he is, just read this. He even spent a brief stint working for an unnamed NBA franchise. This guy is not some degenerate – he loves the NBA and knows his stuff. Therefore, this response to a tweet from Rick Bonnell intrigued me. I knew the Bobcats were one of the worst teams in the league at defending the corner 3 (last in opponent makes, second to last in attempts, and third to last in percentage), which is one of the most efficient shots in the game. However, outside of slow rotations and bad team defense I hadn’t really considered the reasons for their struggles from a strategic standpoint. If Voulgaris’ eye for strategy is correct (I trust it is), you can understand Dunlap’s decision to a degree given the Bobcats’ struggles in the half court. He’s essentially risking more open attempts from the corners for the reward of having guys ready to get out on the break. However, given the tone of Voulgaris’ tweet, I think one can assume he views this strategy as a losing bet. One guy makes his money coaching on the floor. Another makes it from his living room. So who’s right? Something to keep an eye on as you watch tonight.
Doug Collins could very well be coaching for his job from here on out. A loss to the Bobcats could cement his fate and induce another bleep-laden postgame rant from the Sixers coach. There’s something worth cheering for.
By Spencer
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Josh McRoberts, PF 39 MIN | 2-8 FG | 4-4 FT | 10 REB | 4 AST | 1 STL | 0 BLK | 3 TO | 8 PTS | -29Not a good night offensively or defensively. McRob was noticeably lazy boxing out. Used to seeing more effort/energy from him than we did tonight. |
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Bismack Biyombo, PF 25 MIN | 2-5 FG | 0-0 FT | 6 REB | 0 AST | 0 STL | 1 BLK | 0 TO | 4 PTS | -16Watching Biz go up against Larry Sanders puts into real perspective just how far he has to go with his development. Lately we’ve seen random flashes of Biz becoming more competent offensively — tonight did not provide us with any of those moments. |
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Kemba Walker, PG 35 MIN | 8-11 FG | 11-13 FT | 2 REB | 6 AST | 1 STL | 1 BLK | 4 TO | 27 PTS | -20Extremely efficient night for Kemba — he was 8-8 for FGA inside the 3-point arc. Wow. Just showed how versatile he’s come with his overall game. Finishing at the rim and knocking down step back mid-range jumpers. 100% of them. 4 turnovers is the only reason he doesn’t get A+. |
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Gerald Henderson, SG 34 MIN | 6-11 FG | 5-6 FT | 2 REB | 1 AST | 1 STL | 2 BLK | 2 TO | 17 PTS | -33Hendo didn’t dominate the ball as much as he has lately. He also wasn’t a factor on the glass, which Charlotte apparently needs him to be badly if they’re going to compete at all. |
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Jeffery Taylor, SG 29 MIN | 3-7 FG | 0-0 FT | 5 REB | 1 AST | 1 STL | 1 BLK | 3 TO | 7 PTS | -10It’s clear to see that the coaches are imploring Taylor to attack the rim more, but he has no go to move to get there. 3 turnovers. |
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Tyrus Thomas, PF 23 MIN | 5-9 FG | 1-2 FT | 2 REB | 2 AST | 1 STL | 0 BLK | 1 TO | 13 PTS | -12HE PLAYED AND HIT TWO 3′S. Yes, this is April Fool’s, but this stat line isn’t a joke. |
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Ben Gordon, SG 20 MIN | 6-8 FG | 0-0 FT | 0 REB | 0 AST | 0 STL | 0 BLK | 6 TO | 14 PTS | -13An efficient 20 minutes of basketball for Gordon tonight. He really is fun to watch on the offensive end when he gets into a groove. That being said, he turns the ball over at a high rate when dominating the ball. 6 turnover tonight. So basically the 6 made FG’s are negated by the 6 TO’s. |
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Four Things We Saw
- Charlotte turned the ball over 21 times and that led to 27 Milwaukee points. In contrast, the Bobcats only scored 6 points off 10 Bucks turnovers. When you turn the ball over against a team that plays as fast as Milwaukee, you’re asking for trouble.
- The Bobcats took 28 less FGA than Milwaukee tonight. A -13 rebounding margin and 21 turnovers will do that.
- You wouldn’t think that Charlotte has given up this many points to an opponent this season and if so, you’d be wrong. The Bobcats surrendered 132 to San Antonio back on Dec. 8th.
- Bobcats get Philadelphia at home on Wednesday and a nationally televised (ESPN) game against Miami, in Charlotte, on Friday.
By Spencer
Who: Milwaukee Bucks vs Charlotte Bobcats
What: NBA Basketball – Bucks Home Game
When: 8:00 PM ET
Where: Live at BMO Harris Bradley Center
The Matchup:
|
Record |
Offensive
Efficiency |
Defensive
Efficiency |
Pace |
| Milwaukee |
35-37 |
101.0 (21) |
102.5 (12) |
97.2 (3) |
| Charlotte |
17-56 |
98.2 (28) |
109.3 (30) |
94.1 (16) |
Previous Meetings:
2012/11/19 – 96-102 – Recap – Boxscore
2012/12/07 – 108-93 – Recap – Boxscore
Injuries:
Milwaukee:
Charlotte: Ramon Sessions (OUT)
Starting Lineups
 1- STATS: Neither team comes into this game on fire, but Milwaukee is especially struggling at the wrong time. Nobody seems poised to catch the Bucks for the 8th spot in the east, but they’re not helping their own cause. Milwaukee is 1-4 in their past 5 games — the Bucks have shot 29.5% from behind the arc during this 5-game stretch. On a team that certainly has outside shooters, what seems to be the problem?
Spencer: On the season the Bucks are taking an avg. of 19.3 3FGA per game. In the past 5 games Milwaukee has fired up 22.4 3FGA/game. So the fact that they’re relying on the outside shot more is a sign of below average offensive execution and forced shots. When you have guys who dominate the ball such as Monta Ellis and Brandon Jennings, I’m assuming that it diminishes offensive efficiency in the long run.
Greg: The level of competition hasn’t helped — the five teams they played were the Pacers, Hawks, 76ers, Lakers and Thunder, and there are three top-10 defenses in that mix. Especially bad performances against Indiana (3-of-19) and Philadelphia (6-of-24) drag that average down, too. It seems like a lack of ball movement also hurt them in those games; they failed to record 20 assists in either, compared to a season average of 22.8.
Jeremy Schmidt (Bucksketball): Just a bad shooting stretch, frankly. J.J. Redick hasn’t been particularly effective lately, inside or outside the arc. Ditto for Brandon Jennings. Milwaukee has played a bunch of good teams of late and the Bucks schedule down the stretch is by no means favorable. They’ll have to start making a lot of shots they’ve been missing lately.
2- REDICK: Will the Bucks be able to retain J.J. Redick in the summer and should he be considered a disappointment since coming to Milwaukee at the trade deadline?
Spencer: I have to believe that the Bucks will do everything in their power to keep him there considering they gave up Tobias Harris, a young 6’8 SF with loads of potential, that’s still on his rookie deal. Yes, the Bucks were very crowded in the front court, but I would’ve done quite a bit to keep Harris around.
Redick has had to take on a different role in Milwaukee, so his individual numbers were always expected to take a small hit. That being said, I don’t believe he’s been that much of a disappointment. The one outlier that’s bothersome is that fact that he’s shooting 31.9% from deep since joining the Bucks. In Orlando Redick was 39% in 50 games this season.
Greg: I think they’ll do their best to keep him. They should have enough cap space to re-sign both him and Brandon Jennings, if that’s the path they want to take.
Just from looking at the numbers, he seems to be doing fine; his individual stats have taken a dip, but the on-court/off-court numbers look solid. The team’s offensive efficiency, true shooting, and eFG% all jump when he’s on the court, and the offensive efficiency as a team has risen from a season average of 101.0 to 104.1 in the 18 games since he’s joined them.
Jeremy: He hasn’t been disappointing from an effort perspective. He plays hard, he comes off screens with a fury and he’s a very hard worker. But he’s made only 31.9% of his threes and 40.8% of his shots from the field. That’s not the guy the Bucks wanted to acquire. Milwaukee paid a steep price in Tobias Harris to get Redick for the stretch run. Right now, that’s not looking like such a great move. But everyone expects his shooting to come around soon enough. It’s too tough for me to predict whether he, Ellis or Jennings will return this summer right now.
3- PICK IT: Milwaukee has 5 1/2 game cushion for the 8 spot in the east, but a loss at home to Charlotte may force some to push the panic button. Cats or Bucks?
Spencer: Bucks. Perfect opportunity for Milwaukee to break out of this slump and they simply can’t afford a home loss to the Bobcats at this point in the season. 105-92 Bucks.
Greg: I’d lean towards Milwaukee. Charlotte beat them on Nov. 19, but got massacred when visiting Milwaukee on Dec. 7. A big part of that loss was the Bucks’ shotblocking ability — they’re second in the league in blocks, which keeps the Bobcats’ guards from scoring at the basket as effectively. When you take that away, they’re forced to shoot from outside, and the Bobcats don’t have the three-point shooters to compensate for the less-efficient attempts.
Jeremy: Milwaukee has been disappointing lately, but mainly because they’ve been playing very good teams. I don’t suspect the Bucks will do anything other than beat Charlotte by double digits.
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