NBA.com chats with Mo Cheeks

[westkoast]

http://www.nba.com/sixers/news/cheeks_chat_050915.html

Chris (Kentwood): Are there any areas you are gonna focus on A.I. with this training camp

Maurice Cheeks: I talked to Allen earlier about a few things. He gets a lot of attention paid to him, and someone had mentioned about him leading the league in assists, and only once has a player led the league in assists and scoring. I'm not saying Allen will do that, but I do think he can lead the league in assists. He's a great player and can really dish the ball in addition to score it, and I think he'll continue to improve in that area this year for us.
 

[rickortreat]

Out of all the coaches we could have wound up with, I think Cheeks is the best we could have hoped for.  Being a Phily favorite, he will get the benefit of the doubt for a while.

I liked what he had to say about Sam Dalembert:
"Sam is going to be a big part of our team. His shotblocking, his ability to run the floor and also he's an underrated offensive player, so he will be a big part. Last year, the Sixers got like 16 turnovers per game, and he was a big part of that and we think we can continue and even improve on that number. He will be a big player for us this year, a key player."


...."an underated offensive player"


 

[Joe Vancil]

...and I can agree with that.  It's easy to underrate him when you think he sucks offensively as bad as I think he does.  Obviously, he's not that bad.

And equally obvious, Cheeks hasn't talked to you.
 

[Guest_Randy]

Actually, I USED to think that Cheeks would be a great coach -- he was decent in Portland but not any better than that.  I really thought he would connect better with players -- he didn't do that in Portland very well at all.  I realize Portland was a worst case scenario -- but I thought he was weak in player assessment, in X's and O's and he failed in the area that I thought would be his greatest strength -- reaching players and garnering their work in a team concept.  

Again, the problem with Dalembert isn't that he doesn't have any offense -- there are a LOT of players who have been vital to their team from a defensive and rebounding standpoint (Rodman, Big Ben, etc.) -- they manage to be a vital part of the team without their offense -- the problem is that Dalembert LIKES his offensive game and looks for it and that isn't good for Philly.

[westkoast]

he didn't do that in Portland very well at all.  I

I disagree.  For a while there the team really shaped up.  They were playing decent ball and the players were actually listening.  However, with that group of guys it was only a matter of time before something happend.  You cant have a team full of hard headed, Im-the-man type players and not have something happen. IMO I thought he did a much better job than any other coach that has been up there recently.  Mike Dunleavy only looked like he did a better job that one year because Portland was winning.  You saw how great he did when they went back down to middle of the pack status.

[Derek Bodner]

The more relevant clips (That mo one was pure coach speak):
http://www.nba.com/sixers/news/mediaday_051003.html

Iguadola, the second-year swingman, put on 10 pounds of muscle and talked about having a better offensive arsenal. "I found myself last year getting the ball with five or six seconds left on the shot clock and struggling to create shots. This summer I worked on getting a few go-to moves. I'm going to shoot the ball a little more this year and put the ball on the floor. I'm going to score more points and grab more rebounds. I want to be a more complete player."

That kid's going to be special.  10 more lbs or muscle?  He was already jacked.
http://cache.gettyimages.com/comp/53346421...81CF461BB6606AD

[westkoast]

The more relevant clips (That mo one was pure coach speak):
http://www.nba.com/sixers/news/mediaday_051003.html

Iguadola, the second-year swingman, put on 10 pounds of muscle and talked about having a better offensive arsenal. "I found myself last year getting the ball with five or six seconds left on the shot clock and struggling to create shots. This summer I worked on getting a few go-to moves. I'm going to shoot the ball a little more this year and put the ball on the floor. I'm going to score more points and grab more rebounds. I want to be a more complete player."

That kid's going to be special.  10 more lbs or muscle?  He was already jacked.
http://cache.gettyimages.com/comp/53346421...81CF461BB6606AD

Drive, talent, and athletic ability...what more could you ask for?  Hopefully Mo er I mean Iverson gives him a little bit of room to operate on that end of the floor like he wants.  He easily could be the right choice for the 2nd scoring option (sorry Webb)

[Derek Bodner]

Well, he's still got some ways to go before he's got the polish to be a 2nd option.  But that's ok, he's only 21 yet.  If we could just get 13-15 out of him this year it would be terrific.

[Reality]

That kid's going to be special.  10 more lbs or muscle?  He was already jacked.
http://cache.gettyimages.com/comp/53346421...81CF461BB6606AD

Unable to view.

[westkoast]

Well, he's still got some ways to go before he's got the polish to be a 2nd option.  But that's ok, he's only 21 yet.  If we could just get 13-15 out of him this year it would be terrific.

Some ways to go in the mental aspect of the game.   You can learn that but you cant exactly learn the atlethic ability he has been given.   As far as slashing and cutting I think he will be alot better in this department this year.  

Hes only 21?  Wow I thought he was a little older than that.

[Derek Bodner]

Yeah, born Jan '84.

His slashing is good.  And his pull-up J is actually better than I expected and has shown considerable improvement (2 years ago he shot 27% from 3 pt range in college.  To make 50 threes at 33+% from nba 3 pt range last year is good improvement).  What he desperately needs is a pull-up jumper, which is why I was happy to hear he was working on that this offseason.  And he needs a mentality change.  He's more interested in being a passer than a scorer, and was in college as well.

[westkoast]

He's more interested in being a passer than a scorer, and was in college as well.

Thats not exactly a bad thing though.  His passing skills with Iverson's ability to move without the ball could be a pretty deadly combo dont ya think?

Im really looking forward to seeing how hes improved over the summer.

[Derek Bodner]

We just need a little more balance.  if he defers too much, his man begins to cheat on Iverson.  It becomes Eric Snow all over again.  And Andre's too skilled to have that problem.

[rickortreat]

Andre is going to be a star in the NBA.  Maybe not quite a Jordan or a Dr. J, but it's hard to say at this point.

It took MJ a couple of years to become the star that he became, and he was further ahead in terms of scoring when he first came into the league.  Andre is a better passer than MJ was at the same point in his career.

It's a great situation for him to be in, with teams worried about Iverson and Webber.  If he really has developed a pull-up jumper the Sixers will be able to outscore most teams.  And leave their defenses frustrated.

Cheeks is focused on defense, and forcing turnovers.  This should give Andre and AI lots of opportunites for easy baskets.

I would expect Andre to average closer to 15 pts this season, and possibly more, depending on how much Webber and Dalembert score.

I'm a little concerned about the guard spots. Loosing Willie hurt, and I'm not sure if John Salmons or Kevin Ollie can play well enough.  I would rather the Sixers have a solid point on the floor to distibute to Chris, AI and AI, rather than have Allen be the point.  

[Skandery]

It took MJ a couple of years to become the star that he became, and he was further ahead in terms of scoring when he first came into the league. Andre is a better passer than MJ was at the same point in his career.

A better passer?? :huh:

Jordan had a 5.9 apg average and a 6.1 per 40 minute average his rookie year.  

Iguodala had a 3.0 apg aberage with a 3.7 per 40 minute average.  

I understand Jordan's opportunity as the main focus of the offense afforded him more chances to dish for scores morso than Iggy.  So maybe MJ isn't quite twice the passer Iggy is (as the stats suggest), but suffice to say he was a heck of alot better than Iggy is at this point in their careers.  

Iguodala is an exciting young player and I like his game quite a bit, but you've gotta stop overrating all your Sixer players.  So Sam is now a top 5 center that makes Dikembe look like a spaz and Iguodala is being compared to Dr. J and Michael Jordan.  Team spirit is good Rick, but c'mon...