# Amare expands his game



## carrrnuttt

http://www.azcentral.com/sports/suns/articles/1002amaresuns1002.html



> Paul Coro
> The Arizona Republic
> Oct. 2, 2005 12:00 AM
> 
> The Suns officially get back to work Monday, when they go through a circuit of media duties and catch a bus to Tucson for a weeklong training camp.
> 
> But Amaré Stoudemire really never stopped working since the playoffs. By his count, he took two weeks off this summer outside of his basketball training and his expanding off-court demands.
> 
> You will see it when he drives to his left, pushes the fast break with the dribble, pulls up for jumpers and - gulp - shoots the corner three-pointer. After pickup games, Stoudemire's shooting drills now regularly include long streaks of made threes.
> 
> "I'm ready to go," Stoudemire said. "I'm really trying to win a championship this year. That's what I'm striving for. There are a lot of new guys and there have been some huge changes, but I think it's all for the best to help this team become a champion. That's what it is all about."
> 
> Stoudemire committed himself, whether it was occasional trips to America West Arena for workouts with Suns athletic trainers, or asking Phoenix assistant coach Phil Weber to come to Orlando for five days so he could continue the basketball development they did at the arena.
> 
> "His mind-set is about as good as it gets," Weber said. "Because of how good he is, some other factors came up this summer that other people don't have to worry about. He did whatever I asked for as long as I asked. He just wants to be the best player he can be."
> 
> The pair worked primarily on offense, leaving the defensive adjustments to come from assistant Marc Iavaroni via video lessons. Stoudemire and Weber worked on perimeter moves usually reserved for backcourt players.
> 
> Suns power forward Brian Grant, signed this summer, carries the best perspective for Stoudemire's development as a former foe. He knew every scouting report on Stoudemire said to force him left. When he did that during one of last month's voluntary workout games, Stoudemire blew by him.
> 
> "Oops," Grant told the coaches. "Guess you can't do that anymore."
> 
> Stoudemire said he liked the team's summer moves, although he did make a push for the Suns to try to keep Joe Johnson. Any distaste seems to come from only Johnson's side. Stoudemire said they were "real good friends" and hung out away from basketball.
> 
> "I can't hate him for the move he made because it was a smart move on his behalf," Stoudemire said.
> 
> The additions of Grant and Kurt Thomas, two veteran post players, were especially pleasing to Stoudemire, who now won't have to guard opponents' top post players and may get more space to operate. He played frequently last month with the team's other additions, including the standout of them all, guard Raja Bell.
> 
> "I'm impressed," Stoudemire said. "I think we're going to be even better, especially defensively, and we've still got the offensive game."


I don't know about the decision to leave the defense part of his game on the backburner, but he did say in an earlier interview that you can't really work on defense by yourself, and that he was planning on focusing on it when training camp starts, and he had a whole team to play defense against.


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## JT

perimeter moves? corner three-pointers? what are these guys doing...he should be working on postmoves, counters on the block. they are ruining this young man's development. good to see him learning about defense though.


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## Pioneer10

sherako said:


> perimeter moves? corner three-pointers? what are these guys doing...he should be working on postmoves, counters on the block. they are ruining this young man's development. good to see him learning about defense though.


 I agree I thought his jumper looked pretty good last year. You had to honor him to around 18 feet. But why would anyone want Amare away from the paint?


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## jminges

The kid was going to be a superstar ever since his first game in summer league. He's the future.


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## Amareca

sherako said:


> perimeter moves? corner three-pointers? what are these guys doing...he should be working on postmoves, counters on the block. they are ruining this young man's development. good to see him learning about defense though.


He was unstoppable in the post already anyway.


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## RP McMurphy

sherako said:


> perimeter moves? corner three-pointers? what are these guys doing...he should be working on postmoves, counters on the block. they are ruining this young man's development. good to see him learning about defense though.


I agree. This guy was maybe the best offensive player in the league last year and they spent the summer trying to change his offensive game? I remember Arclite said last year that he thinks Amare has the talent to be a great defensive player, but the Suns' coaching staff has failed to help him in that area of his game. Looks like he was right.


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## Amareca

Please....

The guy is an offensiv monster. What was he supposed to work on if not his weaker spots? Defense isn't something you can really work on on your own. They didn't change his game or anything. The article just points out that he expanded his arsenal. 

Pretty funny that some of the complainers here are the same guys who complain that he can supposedly only dunk. Now they complain because he is working on more finessse things...

His defense will be much better this year just because of the fact that he can play alongside Kurt Thomas now. The biggest reason his defense didn't look so good was because he had to defend the other teams top big man most nights but had to stay out of foul trouble because his offense is too important.

Most teams don't have their star big man defend Amare either because they don't want them to get in trouble (KG, Duncan etc). As good as Tim Duncan may be defensively, his reputation as a great defender is based on the fact that his team is that good defensively. Duncan himself doesn't even really guard the best offensive big men of other teams.


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## futuristxen

What possible use would a 3 point shot be for Amare?
Yao can hit 3's too. But there's a reason he never shoots them.

I can see the Suns offense now. Nash trying to post up, Amare spotting up in the corner...oh, it will be beautiful.

Oh well. The only thing Amare really needs to add is more focus on rebounding and defense. It's hard to work on those things by yourself, and it's more of a just focusing on it consistently type deal.


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## HB

Why does everyone want to be the next Dirk?


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## Pioneer10

Amare is so good because of his face up game especially since he added a nice jumper last year. He hasn't developed that many post moves yet and in paricular a so called "go to move". If I was him I would concentrate on his back to the basket game. Why shoot 3 pointers when you're the second coming of Moses. One of the reasons Shaq is Shaq is he didn't become like D. Robinson and Ewing a center who tried to be a forward.


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## Silent But Deadly

futuristxen said:


> What possible use would a 3 point shot be for Amare?
> Yao can hit 3's too. But there's a reason he never shoots them.
> 
> I can see the Suns offense now. Nash trying to post up, Amare spotting up in the corner...oh, it will be beautiful.
> 
> Oh well. The only thing Amare really needs to add is more focus on rebounding and defense. It's hard to work on those things by yourself, and it's more of a just focusing on it consistently type deal.


Stop trying to make bad out of good. Nowitzki is a good perimeter player, and I'm sure Amare isn't trying to be anything like Q. Rich, but just have that option open. If you have to guard him outside and inside, what are you going to do?


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## ChiBron

He needs to work on adding some post moves more than anything. Defense and Rebounding can always be improved with more experience and effort. And I can only hope his 3pt game never picks up. Who the heck wants to see him shooting long jumpers? As if the NBA wasn't already lacking big men who actually play like big men. Stick inside, Amare. Nobody wants to see your already-exciting&dominant game go beyond 18 feet.


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## Like A Breath

Ben Wallace can hit 3's in practice, too, it doesn't mean he should be shooting them in games. When you have Nash on your team, why do you want Amare pushing the break? He should be working on post footwork. He's not "unstoppable" in the post. He's unstoppable facing up and driving in.


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## NugzFan

this is great news. i want amare to practice 3s. the more he shoots from the outside, the better! lets defenses off the hook.


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## Seuss

I think it was a good move to practice shooting not only short shots, but 3s.


Hes not gonna be shooting them whenever he gets a chance. Its just there if he needs it.

Remember Webber? He can shoot the 3 but he only does it when its the right time.


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## Ming_7_6

Amare AND yao spent summer working on 3's. JVG also said Yao will be allowed to shoot 3's now.

Perhaps these coaches of Suns and Rockets know a little more than some fans on a message board?


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## tenkev

Amareca said:


> As good as Tim Duncan may be defensively, his reputation as a great defender is based on the fact that his team is that good defensively. Duncan himself doesn't even really guard the best offensive big men of other teams.


No. His reputation as a great defender is based on the fact that he is probably the best shotblocker/alterer in the league.


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## TonyMontana_83

Well I think it was the right move by the Suns. As it is right now, when Amare is faced up outside the paint the defender is usually a couple steps back. Now if he forces them to respect his shot and get right up on him, he will simply blow by them towards the hoop for a lay-up or a foul shot. I think it's the right idea to think about expanding his range. When Karl Malone added the perimeter shot to his game it added a lot more options for him and for his team. And it's not like you can't run defensive drills in the summer, but it's true that training camp would be a much more effective place to practice that.


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## The_Franchise

Pioneer10 said:


> Amare is so good because of his face up game especially since he added a nice jumper last year. He hasn't developed that many post moves yet and in paricular a so called "go to move". If I was him I would concentrate on his back to the basket game.


Agreed, Amare has more space to work with than any other big man in the league. If Phoenix isn't knocking down treys at an efficient rate this season Amare is in trouble. He'll be able to score off the pick and roll and nothing else.


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## ShuHanGuanYu

Amare's development is being ruined? Wow, that's nuts...especially considering most players don't work half as hard as he does in the summer. Come on guys, just because the article says he shoots 3's in practice now doesn't mean he's spending five hours a day shooting threes and not working on his post game. Of course he's also working on that. He's trying to become more of an all-around player, it doesn't mean he'll be spotting up for a bunch of threes on the break or that he wants to be like Dirk. I think expanding his range will prolong his career. Athleticism won't be with him forever, so what will he rely on then? He'll have a nice mix of offensive ability and should be able to score from anywhere on the court. Of course, defense is the most important improvement Amare can make. I don't think that's on the backburner at all for him, but time will tell.


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## TonyMontana_83

ShuHanGuanYu said:


> Amare's development is being ruined? Wow, that's nuts...especially considering most players don't work half as hard as he does in the summer. Come on guys, just because the article says he shoots 3's in practice now doesn't mean he's spending five hours a day shooting threes and not working on his post game. Of course he's also working on that. He's trying to become more of an all-around player, it doesn't mean he'll be spotting up for a bunch of threes on the break or that he wants to be like Dirk. I think expanding his range will prolong his career. Athleticism won't be with him forever, so what will he rely on then? He'll have a nice mix of offensive ability and should be able to score from anywhere on the court. Of course, defense is the most important improvement Amare can make. I don't think that's on the backburner at all for him, but time will tell.


Exactly. Great post, and I don't even like the Suns. I know I'm beating a dead horse here, but Amare's life and career is so much like Karl Malone's that it's scary. Malone added perimeter shooting to his game around the same time Amare is. Also, Malone didn't develop into a real good defender until like 6 or 7 years after being in the league. Suns have should hope Amare is a bit quicker than that, but I wouldn't expect to see a huge jump defensive wise in Amare this year.


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## SeaNet

Looks like he'll be even more of a beast offensively, and just as much of a swinging door on defense. Memo to Phoenix opponents.... run the pick and roll. Make Amare make decisions defensively, and you can rely on him making the wrong one.


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## Hakeem

Since when did improving your shooting range become a bad thing? Every improvement helps. If what that article said is true, it'll just make him that much harder to guard. Part of why David Robinson and Ewing were so good was that they were versatile. When they played teams with smaller centers, they took them inside. When they played the Magic, they hit shots from outside and beat Shaq that way. Versatility never hurts. Amare already has some impressive post moves. Just because he has improved his shooting doesn't mean that he has forgotten how to play in the paint.


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## 1 Penny

People are missing the point.

I think they highlighted the three point practice because its the most surprising aspect that he is working on. He is developing every offensive arsenal he has.

And about foot work?, you cant really practice well until the actual off pre-season comp, when teams are playing scrimmages.

The one thing that stands out and people should of emphasized on is... Amare's mentality and commitment to get better. And the steps he is doing to achieve his goals. I am glad he is becomming an outside threat (18-20 footer). Now you really have to seriously respect him at top of the key.


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## Ron Mexico

Ming_7_6 said:


> Amare AND yao spent summer working on 3's. JVG also said Yao will be allowed to shoot 3's now.
> 
> Perhaps these coaches of Suns and Rockets know a little more than some fans on a message board?


I hate it when people play that card


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## Lakerman33

what a animal...

Im smelling MVP type #'s for this guy


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## TonyMontana_83

Hakeem said:


> Since when did improving your shooting range become a bad thing? Every improvement helps. If what that article said is true, it'll just make him that much harder to guard. Part of why David Robinson and Ewing were so good was that they were versatile. When they played teams with smaller centers, they took them inside. When they played the Magic, they hit shots from outside and beat Shaq that way. Versatility never hurts. Amare already has some impressive post moves. Just because he has improved his shooting doesn't mean that he has forgotten how to play in the paint.


 I agree. Nobody complains when Rasheed Wallace takes 3 pointers, why should it be any different for Amare? Plus, I don't think they're trying to get him to shoot more threes they're just trying to make it harder for opposing PF's to guard him. Like I said before if they have to worry about him hitting 18-20 footers they're gonna be playing him closer, making it easier for him to blow by them and get to the basket (like it was really that hard before).


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## banner17

I think Amare is a fabulous talent, one of the best in the game, but man his rebounding numbers always dissappoint me. He has the body and athleticism to rebound like Garnett, why he barely averaged 9 boards a game last year is a mystery to me irregardless of whether or not he's playing alongside Marion.


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## tempe85

People are focusing way too much on the blurb about him shooting 3's and not nearly enough on his being able to drive left. That's probably the most important things Amare added to his arsenal. There are very few ways to stop Amare and one of those ways might not work any longer (forcing him to drive left). That's a lot more important than anyone seems to give credit to. 

Also before people knock Amare for learning how to shoot the 3 remember a man named Larry Bird. This guy once spent an entire summer working on shooting the ball left handed! He said he wanted to be able to knock down a shot lefty just in case he ever was forced to shoot that way in the game. Did people knock Larry Bird for that? Heck no. Amare is following that example... What if the ball gets kicked out to Amare late in a game near the 3 point arc (or he rebounds it there... whichever)... well now Amare's chances of making it are much greater.. meaning he's a better player because of it. Don't knock a guy for trying to be the best possible player he can be.


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## Cap

Ming_7_6 said:


> Amare AND yao spent summer working on 3's. JVG also said Yao will be allowed to shoot 3's now.
> 
> Perhaps these coaches of Suns and Rockets know a little more than some fans on a message board?


However you cut it, message board posters AND coaches know more about this than you.


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## Cap

And the only real weak part of Amare's game is his general defensive presense. He guarded other big men mosts nights? Wrong word there. He was _assigned_ to guard them, but let them do pretty much whatever they wanted.

He improves that part of his game and he's the best player in the league. But it'll take a LOT of work.


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## tempe85

EHL said:


> And the only real weak part of Amare's game is his general defensive presense. He guarded other big men mosts nights? Wrong word there. He was _assigned_ to guard them, but let them do pretty much whatever they wanted.
> 
> He improves that part of his game and he's the best player in the league. But it'll take a LOT of work.


After seeing Duncan match up against Amare in the WCF it seemed Duncan needed more work than Amare.


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## Sir Patchwork

He should be getting some guys in the gym, and telling them to double and triple him in the post so he can get used to defenses attacking him, and work on hitting the right man out of doubles. For a guy as unstoppable as him, he needs to learn to read defenses better. Then maybe a back to the basket game, since most of his game is face up, but hey, nobody can guard that face up, so if it isn't broke. 

Defensively and with rebounding, same thing. You don't have to work on these things alone. I find it hard to believe that he can't get some guys in the gym to focus on these individual aspects of his game in detail. 

He needs to work on better habits with these weaknesses in his game, and the only way to form better habits is to play play play. So he could do it when the season starts, but it'll take a couple years to form those good habits. He could realistically get a lot better at reading defenses, playing defenses and rebounding in one offseason, just by pinpointing it in scrimmages and what not.


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## Sir Patchwork

tempe85 said:


> After seeing Duncan match up against Amare in the WCF it seemed Duncan needed more work than Amare.


No player can guard Amare one on one. Spurs let Amare go at Duncan one on one, because the Suns had shooters last year, plus good ball movement. They tried to make it a one man team type thing, and it worked. 

I don't think Amare would have averaged 40 points if he was shooting three pointers. Why do that when you have the ability to get 0-footers on any player in the league? There is no reason. Front of the rim big man.


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## Cap

tempe85 said:


> After seeing Duncan match up against Amare in the WCF it seemed Duncan needed more work than Amare.


:laugh:


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## tempe85

EHL said:


> :laugh:


I'd like you to see you statistically prove me wrong. Popp said himself he's never seen a player dominate Duncan so badly as Amare did in the WCF... that includes Shaq in his prime.


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## The_Franchise

TonyMontana_83 said:


> I agree. Nobody complains when Rasheed Wallace takes 3 pointers,


Considering that's all he did in Portland once he started shooting above 30% from long distance, I'm pretty sure some Blazer fans would disagree.


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## The_Franchise

Sir Patchwork said:


> No player can guard Amare one on one.


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## DuMa

He still got ways to go to top duncan and kg.


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## Cap

tempe85 said:


> I'd like you to see you statistically prove me wrong. Popp said himself he's never seen a player dominate Duncan so badly as Amare did in the WCF... that includes Shaq in his prime.


Shaq > Amare. Duncan > Amare. Pop > Amare.


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## BootyKing

Mr. Roger's Cardigan said:


>


OMG Yao Stopped Amare TWICE


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## The_Franchise

BootyKing said:


> OMG Yao Stopped Amare TWICE


It's no secret Amare struggled against bigger centers like Yao and even Z last season. Amare averaged 22.5 ppg while shooting 43% against Yao in 4 games... not to mention Yao pulled down 22 rebounds in the game Marion didn't play in. Yao managed to get 11 blocks in those games as well, not sure how that happened.


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## chapi

i don't like amare to much but if he adds reliable midrange shot it would be great for him. i don't think he ever will be a good defender (if he stays in phx and coaching stuff don't change). next thing he needs to add is passing ouy of double teams (which is harder as it requires Basketball IQ and not only hard work).


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## tempe85

chapi said:


> i don't like amare to much but if he adds reliable midrange shot it would be great for him. i don't think he ever will be a good defender (if he stays in phx and coaching stuff don't change). next thing he needs to add is passing ouy of double teams (which is harder as it requires Basketball IQ and not only hard work).


Dude did you even watch the Suns play this past season? Amare's jumper is pretty darn good. In fact according to 82games.com Amare's jumper went in 42.6% of the time.

Here's a comparison (with other bigmen):

Nowitzki- 45.7%
Garnett- 44.0%
Ming- 42.8% 
*Amare*- 42.6%
Brand- 41.8%
Duncan- 41.4%
Jermaine O'Neal- 40.4%
LeBron- 39.6%
Pau Gasol- 39.4%
Randolph- 38.3%
Shaquille O'Neal- 34.9%
Okafor- 32.4%
Dwight Howard- 27.8%


Yep Amare has no outside jump shot.


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## tempe85

EHL said:


> Shaq > Amare. Duncan > Amare. Pop > Amare.


Nice statistical analysis. Here's a sticker for you to put on your forehead.


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## chapi

tempe85 said:


> Dude did you even watch the Suns play this past season? Amare's jumper is pretty darn good. In fact according to 82games.com Amare's jumper went in 42.6% of the time.
> 
> Here's a comparison (with other bigmen):
> 
> Nowitzki- 45.7%
> Garnett- 44.0%
> Ming- 42.8%
> *Amare*- 42.6%
> Brand- 41.8%
> Duncan- 41.4%
> Jermaine O'Neal- 40.4%
> LeBron- 39.6%
> Pau Gasol- 39.4%
> Randolph- 38.3%
> Shaquille O'Neal- 34.9%
> Okafor- 32.4%
> Dwight Howard- 27.8%
> 
> 
> Yep Amare has no outside jump shot.


Dude calm down. Did i say he has no shot?? jeez.


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## P33r~

BootyKing said:


> OMG Yao Stopped Amare TWICE


3 times actually. In their second matchup, when Amare had a decent game, he let Yao have anything he wanted, like say *22* rebounds (9 offensive) and 5 blocks. Granted Marion was out but Marion only rebounded well against the Rockets once last season. So considering that the Suns played the Rockets four times last season, I'd say 3 out of 4 times isn't bad.


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## MLKG

Amare's game is all about space.

The reason he was so good last year is Phoenix had 4 guys on the court at all times that you had to respect behind the 3 point line. With the defense glued to the perimeter Amare got to go 1 on 1 all day. Normally when players get by their man they have to deal with another big guy contesting the shot, but Phoenix had such incredible floor spacing that Amare didn't have to deal with that a lot of the time. Watching him play was like a throwback to the days where zoning was illegal. 

Amare isn't a back to the basket player. If he improves his perimeter game it just draws the defense further away from the paint and gives him even more space to work with. It can only help.


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## tone wone

Sir Patchwork said:


> He should be getting some guys in the gym, and telling them to double and triple him in the post so he can get used to defenses attacking him, and work on hitting the right man out of doubles. For a guy as unstoppable as him, he needs to learn to read defenses better. Then maybe a back to the basket game, since most of his game is face up, but hey, nobody can guard that face up, so if it isn't broke.
> 
> Defensively and with rebounding, same thing. You don't have to work on these things alone. I find it hard to believe that he can't get some guys in the gym to focus on these individual aspects of his game in detail.
> 
> He needs to work on better habits with these weaknesses in his game, and the only way to form better habits is to play play play. So he could do it when the season starts, but it'll take a couple years to form those good habits. He could realistically get a lot better at reading defenses, playing defenses and rebounding in one offseason, just by pinpointing it in scrimmages and what not.


Amare was Pheonix's residential scorer last season....until they're able to actually run the offense "through" him they'll never win a title IMO

Generally, its easier to play with back to the basket in reguards to being doubled or zoned by the D. Face up big men tend to be better passers and have better court vision. He's subpar in both areas...their spacing was his saving grace. High post players generally get zoned not doubled....BUT with their shooters though, zoning him was impossible.

I really want see his improvement this upcoming season. Last year Marion did the dirty work and Nash did the playmaking..He aint in Garnett's and Duncan's league until he's able those things as well as score


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## tempe85

chapi said:


> Dude calm down. Did i say he has no shot?? jeez.


You said: "but if he adds reliable midrange shot it would be great for him" which implies he currently doesn't have a reliable midrange shot.


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## Foulzilla

Mr. Roger's Cardigan said:


> Considering that's all he did in Portland once he started shooting above 30% from long distance, I'm pretty sure some Blazer fans would disagree.


Well said. I like the fact that he was able to shoot three's, but I would've been perfectly happy if he couldn't as he would've gotten his *** in the post where it was needed more often. Still, being able to hit the 3 is an asset when used properly.


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## chapi

tempe85 said:


> You said: "but if he adds reliable midrange shot it would be great for him" which implies he currently doesn't have a reliable midrange shot.


ok. sorry 
i meant "If he Further improves his shot"


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## Schizogenius

tempe85 said:


> Nice statistical analysis. Here's a sticker for you to put on your forehead.



Ohhh My...

That one cracked me up...


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## Amareca

Mr. Roger's Cardigan said:


>


bwahahahhaa

Yeah where are the pics of Amare dunking on Yao?

If Yao can stop Amare ONE on ONE why is Yao camping under the basket the whole game while Amare was guarded by Cato when he was still on the Rockets and last year guys like Bowen etc?


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## The_Franchise

Amareca said:


> bwahahahhaa
> 
> Yeah where are the pics of Amare dunking on Yao?
> 
> If Yao can stop Amare ONE on ONE why is Yao camping under the basket the whole game while Amare was guarded by Cato when he was still on the Rockets and *last year guys like Bowen etc?*


Ryan Bowen? Why not throw out Vin Baker... or Moochie Norris? 

You can see the frustration mount up in Amare when he's not getting easy buckets. He recklessly charges into the lane and lunges at any opponent jersey, praying for a call. His shot selection is absolute insanity and his defense is non-existent. 

One thing I notice about Amare's shot blocking is that it isn't a block if he can't swat it into the 3rd row of the stands. That's why he goes for questionable goaltends so much, and why he doesn't bother to contest shots.


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## John

Amareca said:


> He was unstoppable in the post already anyway.


Only when he is facing up against people. lol at saying he is upstoppable in the post, and no championship for his style of play that's for sure.


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## John

Amareca said:


> bwahahahhaa
> 
> Yeah where are the pics of Amare dunking on Yao?
> 
> If Yao can stop Amare ONE on ONE why is Yao camping under the basket the whole game while Amare was guarded by Cato when he was still on the Rockets and last year guys like Bowen etc?


Because Yao is too good that his job is to protect the basket not like just guarding Amare one on one. LoL at Suns cant use Amare the way they use with Shaq, Duncan or even Ming to some extent.


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## ShuHanGuanYu

Mr. Roger's Cardigan said:


> You can see the frustration mount up in Amare when he's not getting easy buckets. He recklessly charges into the lane and lunges at any opponent jersey, praying for a call. His shot selection is absolute insanity and his defense is non-existent.
> 
> One thing I notice about Amare's shot blocking is that it isn't a block if he can't swat it into the 3rd row of the stands. That's why he goes for questionable goaltends so much, and why he doesn't bother to contest shots.


He does get frustrated sometimes when he doesn't get easy baskets. He does try to draw fouls, it is stupid to act like that is a bad way to go...considering he is one of the best in the league at drawing fouls. I don't know why you are acting like that is a knock to his game. Evidently it is working, considering the fact that he shoots 56% from the field and has improved a lot from the line.

The reason Amare doesn't contest shots at times is because of foul trouble and bad jump timing. The Suns severely lacked good big men last year. If Amare gets himself into foul trouble, the Suns are screwed and have to rely on only outside shots. His coach tells him not to get into foul trouble.

Amare's young. He's not supposed to be at 23 a totally complete player. Yes, the young guy makes bonehead moves sometimes. Wow, big deal. He's still learning, and coupled with his outstanding work ethic and desire to improve his game, he'll only get better.


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## tempe85

ShuHanGuanYu said:


> He does get frustrated sometimes when he doesn't get easy baskets. He does try to draw fouls, it is stupid to act like that is a bad way to go...considering he is one of the best in the league at drawing fouls. I don't know why you are acting like that is a knock to his game. Evidently it is working, considering the fact that he shoots 56% from the field and has improved a lot from the line.
> 
> The reason Amare doesn't contest shots at times is because of foul trouble and bad jump timing. The Suns severely lacked good big men last year. If Amare gets himself into foul trouble, the Suns are screwed and have to rely on only outside shots. His coach tells him not to get into foul trouble.
> 
> Amare's young. He's not supposed to be at 23 a totally complete player. Yes, the young guy makes bonehead moves sometimes. Wow, big deal. He's still learning, and coupled with his outstanding work ethic and desire to improve his game, he'll only get better.


Great post. Some people believe Amare has a low learning curve and will never round out his game. This is ridiculous, the guy has already improved so much in just a couple years it's insulting to think he can't further develop (insulting not to me but to Amare). It's true some guys never seem to improve on defense but a lot of that us due to a players mentality (work ethic and desire). Amare wants to be the greatest player of all time, just like Jordan did. Jordan wasn't a defensive stalwert early but he worked on his game constantly and became extremely good. Amare knows if he wants to be the best he'll have to improve that part of his game... I see no reason he won't.


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## tone wone

tempe85 said:


> Great post. Some people believe Amare has a low learning curve and will never round out his game. This is ridiculous, the guy has already improved so much in just a couple years it's insulting to think he can't further develop (insulting not to me but to Amare). It's true some guys never seem to improve on defense but a lot of that us due to a players mentality (work ethic and desire). Amare wants to be the greatest player of all time, just like Jordan did. Jordan wasn't a defensive stalwert early but he worked on his game constantly and became extremely good. Amare knows if he wants to be the best he'll have to improve that part of his game... I see no reason he won't.


Jordan came into the league in '85 and won DPOY in '88. 

Generally, bigmen dont develope into great defenders. Thats a perimeter players' trait..they tend to improve as they get older. Great defensive bigment are great soon as they enter the league. D Robonsion, Ewing, Hakeem, Garnett, Duncan, Malone, Mourning, even Shaq.. were all terrific defenders the day they stepped on an NBA court.

btw, a lot of people act as if his offensive game doesn't have holes either..not saying he wont fill them but aint perfect on offense


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## ShuHanGuanYu

tone wone said:


> Jordan came into the league in '85 and won DPOY in '88.
> 
> Generally, bigmen dont develope into great defenders. Thats a perimeter players' trait..they tend to improve as they get older. Great defensive bigment are great soon as they enter the league. D Robonsion, Ewing, Hakeem, Garnett, Duncan, Malone, Mourning, even Shaq.. were all terrific defenders the day they stepped on an NBA court.
> 
> btw, a lot of people act as if his offensive game doesn't have holes either..not saying he wont fill them but aint perfect on offense



No, Amare not perfect on offense. But I would take -26ppg on 56FG% on a 62 win team that went to the WCF- any day. I don't think anyone is setting the bar at "perfection". I don't see the point in that.


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## tempe85

tone wone said:


> Jordan came into the league in '85 and won DPOY in '88.
> 
> Generally, bigmen dont develope into great defenders. Thats a perimeter players' trait..they tend to improve as they get older. Great defensive bigment are great soon as they enter the league. D Robonsion, Ewing, Hakeem, Garnett, Duncan, Malone, Mourning, even Shaq.. were all terrific defenders the day they stepped on an NBA court.


Every single one of those guys also played in college. Amare would be a senior this year if he had decided to go to college instead of entering the NBA immediately. I'd say he still has time to catch up.


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## azirishmusic

I'm not sure Garnett was a great defender first up. None of the HS guys were as polished at the start as the great big men with four years of college. In Amare's case, he didn't even has a strong prep school background nor the summer camps guys like LeBron had been through.


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