Post by Brazil on Mar 15, 2016 0:27:12 GMT
Zagreb--60 games in, and let's take a look at the good, the bad, and the ugly with one of the league's most mediocre franchises...KK Cibona.
As a team, this is a different squad than any previous version of Cibona. This team is 7th in offense and 2130403th in defense (give or take). Because of this, the scoring is quite balanced (7 players over 9 points a game), but there's no standout scoring stud. Rebounding is an issue (the PG leads the team in rebounds), but there is some activity on defense in terms of steals. We don't talk about the FT shooting in polite company, but the team does shoot the 3 ball pretty well (and from the field in general).
This was a team coming off their first non-playoff season in 3 years with a 42-40 record and aging key players. Ed Macauley, the 2 year scoring anchor, was playing like an anchor as Father Time was catching up with him. His running mate, Red Rocha, had departed the year before as a free agent, and the bench was a cluster---- of random guys who did a little but not enough on a nightly basis. Thinking that the problem was offensive in nature, Rick Majerus and his staff had a shocking discovery...if you play your best players you might actually win more games. So the Majerus experiment was launched by moving Dejan Bodiroga up front and playing a basic 3 guard lineup with Kidd, Middleton, and Wes Matthews as the guards.
Of course, this is all made easier by Cibona's Triple Crown winner Jason Kidd. Kidd is one of the few players in the league to lead his team in scoring, rebounding, and assists. Kidd's line of 18.7/8.3/10.9 would be an eye-opener if it wasn't done in the capital of mediocrity of Zagreb. Kidd doesn't shoot the ball great, but when he's a triple double threat every night...teams have to take notice of him on the floor. Kidd's running mate for the last two years has been swingman Khris Middleton. Middleton was selected #22 overall by Cibona two years ago, and he has been one of Cibona's best players since day 1. He's been a consistent 17 points per game guy in his two years, with deadeye 42% shooting from behind the 3 point line. His other percentages have taken a small hit, but his ability to hit the 3 ball has led to one of the better offenses in ABCA. Dejan Bodiroga has been the 3rd member of the "Big 3" here, and he's averaging a career-high 17 points a game on a respectable slash line of 50/72/40. He also adds 5 rebounds and 4 assists a night (2-1 A/TO) as the third pretty good player in blue and white. Wes Matthews has been moved to a backup/bench role of late, with Chet Walker getting some more run as a starter. It hasn't made much difference in the record, but Walker gives the team another scoring threat inside while still hitting an OK percentage of 3 balls. Connie Hawkins was signed to replace Macauley in the post, and he's been a decent player but not a superstar by any means. Hawkins gives the team 14.7 points and 7.5 rebounds a night along with 3 assists. One thing this team does pretty well is pass the rock up and down the roster (31 APG)...and it's led to a pretty efficient offense on most nights.
The only thing one can count on when watching Cibona is that they are consistently inconsistent with most anything that does not involve passing. The bench of Twardzik/Marin/Matthews/Payne has been good at times...Marin has some nice upside as another guard in the shoot first, ask questions later offense. The outlook for Cibona is probably a low lottery pick (still 4th in the division at press time), but at least the core players (Kidd/Dejan/Middleton) have played well this season and some of the supporting players have..gasp...provided support. That said, this probably isn't a playoff team, but it's at least somewhat entertaining this season.
As a team, this is a different squad than any previous version of Cibona. This team is 7th in offense and 2130403th in defense (give or take). Because of this, the scoring is quite balanced (7 players over 9 points a game), but there's no standout scoring stud. Rebounding is an issue (the PG leads the team in rebounds), but there is some activity on defense in terms of steals. We don't talk about the FT shooting in polite company, but the team does shoot the 3 ball pretty well (and from the field in general).
This was a team coming off their first non-playoff season in 3 years with a 42-40 record and aging key players. Ed Macauley, the 2 year scoring anchor, was playing like an anchor as Father Time was catching up with him. His running mate, Red Rocha, had departed the year before as a free agent, and the bench was a cluster---- of random guys who did a little but not enough on a nightly basis. Thinking that the problem was offensive in nature, Rick Majerus and his staff had a shocking discovery...if you play your best players you might actually win more games. So the Majerus experiment was launched by moving Dejan Bodiroga up front and playing a basic 3 guard lineup with Kidd, Middleton, and Wes Matthews as the guards.
Of course, this is all made easier by Cibona's Triple Crown winner Jason Kidd. Kidd is one of the few players in the league to lead his team in scoring, rebounding, and assists. Kidd's line of 18.7/8.3/10.9 would be an eye-opener if it wasn't done in the capital of mediocrity of Zagreb. Kidd doesn't shoot the ball great, but when he's a triple double threat every night...teams have to take notice of him on the floor. Kidd's running mate for the last two years has been swingman Khris Middleton. Middleton was selected #22 overall by Cibona two years ago, and he has been one of Cibona's best players since day 1. He's been a consistent 17 points per game guy in his two years, with deadeye 42% shooting from behind the 3 point line. His other percentages have taken a small hit, but his ability to hit the 3 ball has led to one of the better offenses in ABCA. Dejan Bodiroga has been the 3rd member of the "Big 3" here, and he's averaging a career-high 17 points a game on a respectable slash line of 50/72/40. He also adds 5 rebounds and 4 assists a night (2-1 A/TO) as the third pretty good player in blue and white. Wes Matthews has been moved to a backup/bench role of late, with Chet Walker getting some more run as a starter. It hasn't made much difference in the record, but Walker gives the team another scoring threat inside while still hitting an OK percentage of 3 balls. Connie Hawkins was signed to replace Macauley in the post, and he's been a decent player but not a superstar by any means. Hawkins gives the team 14.7 points and 7.5 rebounds a night along with 3 assists. One thing this team does pretty well is pass the rock up and down the roster (31 APG)...and it's led to a pretty efficient offense on most nights.
The only thing one can count on when watching Cibona is that they are consistently inconsistent with most anything that does not involve passing. The bench of Twardzik/Marin/Matthews/Payne has been good at times...Marin has some nice upside as another guard in the shoot first, ask questions later offense. The outlook for Cibona is probably a low lottery pick (still 4th in the division at press time), but at least the core players (Kidd/Dejan/Middleton) have played well this season and some of the supporting players have..gasp...provided support. That said, this probably isn't a playoff team, but it's at least somewhat entertaining this season.
