What to make of Watson's performance
by C4DUNK on Nov 27, 2010 2:12 PM CST
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PrintUp until a game-winner by Carmelo Anthony, the best player on the court in Friday nights 98-97 loss had been C.J. Watson who finished with a game and season high 33 points, which included six straight to give the Bulls a 97-94 lead with 30 seconds left in the game, before Anthony took over.
Filling in for Derrick Rose, who sat out due to neck spasms, Watson was able to go out and just play his game, which is more so being a scorer than being a distributor.
To say he's struggled to with Tom Thibodeau's system would be an understatement. At times he has look confused on his decision making and has struggled with a more disciplined style of play after spending the past three seasons of his professional career playing Nellie Ball in Golden State under former Warriors coach Don Nelson.
Going into last nights game, his best game this season was a 13 point performance in last Friday's 88-83 win over the Dallas Mavericks. Watson even was left in the game in the closing minutes, as he and Rose shared the backcourt.
Watson's shooting percentage's are all down this season mostly coming with the struggle of wanting to shoot or drive, but having to pass to try and make what is the best play, but in Denver he was able to loosen up and be allowed to play his style of play.
Of course, it's only one game and it's not like the Nuggets played like they wanted to win, but what has become evident this season and even more so in the loss in Denver is Watson is not a point guard and would be better utilized with having more freedom on the offensive end.
With Rose coming back, soon, it will be interesting to see if Thibodeau allows Watson to initiate the offense for the second unit rather than trying to instruct it.
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Watson and Rose need to have more time on the floor together.
Whether you want to call it Waston at PG and Rose at SG, or vise-versa, it doesn’t matter. Watson needs more playing time.
eat. sleep. hoop. repeat. become legendary.
by Sir Buckets on Nov 27, 2010 2:55 PM CST reply actions 1 recs
Yes he does. That’s another thing about why he’s still uncomfortable in the system. Feels like if he makes too many mistakes or doesn’t play a specific way, than he’s going to be pulled, but he just has to play HIS game because that’s where his impact is going to be. I think as the season goes on, him and Rose will begin to be in the lineup to close games out.
Chris Cason
Couldn't disagree more...
but he just has to play HIS game
One of the strengths of this Bulls team is their willingness to share the rock, make the extra pass and play a good team game…Watson has shown to be a “me-first” type of player, which works on night’s like last night when the two best offensive players are out; but does not work in the big scheme of things…
Is this even a basketball game anymore, or am I watching a referee themed television show? -Juiceboxjerry
And I disagree with that take.
I think you see Watson as a “me-first” player because of his role. He’s asked to play point guard when Rose is out. As we saw last night, this team has a monstrous shot-creation problem when Rose is not on the floor. Watson at least tries to fill that void, and this offense is designed to be PG-centric.
Additionally, I think Watson would thrive playing next to Rose. You’ve all seen him try to handle the ball; ball-handling and distributing are not his strengths. He is, however, a solid defender, and a much better shooter than Brewer or Bogans. While I don’t think he’s up to the task of guarding the Kobes and Wades of the world for 25 min a night, he’s the best SG option against either smaller SGs (the gordons, jason terrys of the world) or non-shot-creating ones (the brandon rush, wes matthews types).
I think you're a little hard on him
He plays with a shoot-first attitude, but that’s what he’s good at. He’s a very capable scorer; he proved that yesterday, and if he can continue to give the Bulls spurts of “instant offense” off the bench, he’ll be very valuable at times when Rose is on the bench and the Bulls are struggling to score. Now he doesn’t have very good court vision and his decision-making is questionable at times, but I don’t think that’s a result of him being selfish. Being able to see the whole court and make good decisions on the fly is a skill, and a rare one at that.
Pat Riley is the devil.
by Poloplaya14 on Nov 28, 2010 12:08 AM CST up reply actions 2 recs
Only thing I really took from it
was that he is good enough to punish a team for playing horrendous defense. Continue to be optimistic about CJ, especially because plenty of NBA teams have been known to play lazy D. Remains to be seen how much of a difference maker he can be versus top quality opposition.
by reprisal on Nov 27, 2010 4:21 PM CST reply actions 1 recs
He doesn't need to be a difference maker vs top opposition
He just needs to hold par… though it would be nice if he were a little more of a passer, all he really needs to be is competent. We just need to remember that he’s a backup who we’re hoping only has to play occasionally, we don’t need him to be a superstar.
I’d say to your point that he can punish bad D, I agree, and I think that is what is great about him. Unlike someone like Duhon who takes (and misses) sooooo many bad shots and can really kill your team, Watson can actually attack and punish weaker teams.
by 72-10 on Nov 28, 2010 8:02 AM CST up reply actions 2 recs
I think you're underestimating Watson's improvement
As the season has gone along. He’s not a perfect player, there’s a reason we got him for cheap.
I think people are still looking at what he did early on, and not noticing that really, he’s been legitimately solid ever since. Yeah he makes some decisions that make you wonder what the hell he’s doing, but he’s a backup for a reason. If he was a guy capable of dropping 30+ while making sound decisions every night he would be an all star, not sitting on our bench.
by Grinder in Training on Nov 27, 2010 4:31 PM CST reply actions 2 recs
I should mention I don't feel the majority of people feel this way.
But the guy who made this fanpost would definitely fit in this group I’m referring to.
by Grinder in Training on Nov 27, 2010 4:32 PM CST up reply actions
Wrong you are. I was a guy who felt we could have tried to go after Steve Blake or Luke Ridnour in the offseason to help back up Rose because if you want a true backup point guard, you go after a guy who can play that position. C.J.‘s not a point guard, more of a small two guard. He is improving to the point where you can have him in games late with Rose in the lineup, but it’s obvious he’ll have more of an impact if he’s allowed to just play instead of trying to run a team because as you can see in the beginning of the season, the second unit struggled because he was trying to hard to just do every thing right. I never said he’s capable of being a guy who can give you 30 a night, I just expressed he’s a lot better when he’s just allowed to play his game.
Chris Cason
I'm not sure what the main point of this post is.
But then again, my reading comprehension skills are pretty mediocre at this very moment. I will say this, despite all of Watson’s struggles on the offensive side of the ball this year, he’s definitely been a positive influence on the defensive side, which is why Thibodeau continued to give him minutes off the bench. Most fans seem to have overlooked that in their evaluations of him as a player.
Pat Riley is the devil.
by Poloplaya14 on Nov 27, 2010 4:46 PM CST reply actions 1 recs
Watson should start
I was leaning this way before the Denver game. Bogan is just terrible. Like most fans I figured that Thibs was just waiting for Brewer to recover. But Brewer continues to struggle. Rose needs a SG who is eager to shoot (just not too often).
As bad as Denver is defensively, it looked like they might shut the Bulls out until Watson asserted himself. Bogan and Brewer both seem to hesitate until they get a wide-open shot (which Bogan will then miss).
Watson and Rose have been OK defensively. Watson pressures the ball nicely which takes pressure off Rose, and at least they aren’t as outsized as the combo of Hinrich,
Gordon and Duhon. Brewer can have 20-25 mins. per game as a third guard.
by El Toro de Goro on Nov 27, 2010 5:34 PM CST reply actions
Brewer has actually started to grab some more playing time on this trip, Bogans will still start because he gives them some what of a deep ball threat on offense who can keep that second defender off of Rose and has played good defense. I’m really anxious to see how a starting lineup with Brewer and Deng performs because they have similar strengths.
Starting Watson would definitely boost his confidence and he and Rose have played good in the short times they’ve been in together.
Chris Cason
Watson showed he can run a team as a starting PG
Glad hes on our team.Hope he plays that good when D-Rose comes back
Not ready to say that
because he still has issues managing what to do. When he’s allowed to just go out and play, he has been good.
Chris Cason
a deep ball threat, huh?
bogans is shooting 27.1% from 3 on the season. And his D isn’t that great either. time for him to go.
I love phil jackson
by paddyfairview on Nov 29, 2010 5:29 PM CST up reply actions
Kevin Durant...
is shooting 26.7% from three-land so far this season.
Now, admittedly, Durant will revert to a much higher percentage than Bogans, but judging either on the basis of a few bad games isn’t smart.
by badnewsintennisshoes on Nov 30, 2010 4:27 PM CST up reply actions
I thought
when the bulls signed Watson, he was going to play along side Rose at some point in each game together………….i guess i was wrong and i still don’t see why not play them together sometimes during games………..Rose and Watson are the bulls best guards…….the other 2 guards, Bogan and Brewer, hardly give you any scoring at all……..defense does win games but the bulls can’t depend on just Rose and Deng for most of the scoring……..they are called shooting guards for a reason
Either shoot the damn ball or
sit your ass on the bench……….and people wonder why Rose has to shoot so much for a pg and has 7 or 8 assist a game, imagine if he had someone like Ray Allen from Boston, he would have just as many assist as Rondo……….and Boozer return will help Rose assist also
They are starting to go to the Rose and Watson lineup more, but Watson is still uneasy on the team because he defers a lot trying not to make any mistakes instead of just playing how he’s suited. When Boozer does return, it should allow Chicago to run more because you’ll have a lot more rebounds and the second unit will become more stable giving Watson someone who he can run pick and roll with in Taj Gibson.
Chris Cason
Right now I'm okay with everyone on the team
we just played 15 games, with a new coach and a team that has 8 new players, two guys on their second year and a star that is only in his third year and barely starting his 20s.
This team is very good and will get better as the season goes on.
That said I wish we make a trade and use that Charlotte pick to get a better SG to unload Rose. This team must be able to compete now while the are hungry
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