Mikal's progress

[Cheesebeef]

I don't think that's accurate, especially in today's game. There are a lot of good scorers that get most of their points coming off of screens. And it's not like Mikal can't put the ball on the floor when the defender closes out on him, he's done it many times. He isn't a strong ballhandler but he's not exactly Shawn Marion in that department either.

Agree to disagree.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

I don't think that's accurate, especially in today's game. There are a lot of good scorers that get most of their points coming off of screens. And it's not like Mikal can't put the ball on the floor when the defender closes out on him, he's done it many times. He isn't a strong ballhandler but he's not exactly Shawn Marion in that department either.

I’m thinking of too threesomes in the league and almost all have a better ballhandler at #3 than bridges.

Zion/ingram/McCollum
Curry/poole/green/klay
Embiid/harden/maxey
Kahwi/George/wall/Jackson/Morris
Jokic/Murray/gordon
Ja/bane/brooks/jjj
Luka/dinwiddie/wood
Tatum/brown/smart
Giannis/middleton/holiday
Butler/bam/herro
Siakam/Barnes/vanvleet
Lilliard/Simmons/grant


Maybe Mitchell/garland/don’t know about mobley

Maybe more. Got tired of exercise. But undoubtedly if bridges is your #3, he’s towards the end of good teams’#3s in terms of ballhandling ability.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

Individual defense is one of the most difficult aspects of basketball to diagnose. Some nights you don’t have the energy or just care less for whatever reason.

Bridges falls in the consistently good but not great type defenders. He was well developed early by playing 3 years in college for a great program and has the length to cause problems for offenses but he provides little resistant to longer/stronger scorers.

He’s not the freak of nature defender Giannis and young Kawhi were. He’s not the tenacious/aggressive defender Smart and Jaren Jackson are. He doesn’t have genius defensive iq like Holiday or younger Draymond. He’s just kinda good in all aspects. In the last two playoff series losses I’m not even sure he was a positive defensively and that’s when it matters most.

Agree with all this. I think where he truly hangs his hat defensively is in his team defense. Help defense. Steals and deflections in passing lanes. Weak side block here and there. I think that’s where he’s earned his reputation.

 

[Cheesebeef]

I’m thinking of too threesomes in the league and almost all have a better ballhandler at #3 than bridges.

Zion/ingram/McCollum
Curry/poole/green/klay
Embiid/harden/maxey
Kahwi/George/wall/Jackson/Morris
Jokic/Murray/gordon
Ja/bane/brooks/jjj
Luka/dinwiddie/wood
Tatum/brown/smart
Giannis/middleton/holiday
Butler/bam/herro
Siakam/Barnes/vanvleet
Lilliard/Simmons/grant


Maybe Mitchell/garland/don’t know about mobley

Maybe more. Got tired of exercise. But undoubtedly if bridges is your #3, he’s towards the end of good teams’#3s in terms of ballhandling ability.

It’s an exercise in futility Ouchie. No matter how many times you post a list like that, or I post a list of the title winners for the last 30 years with their big 3 on offense, certain people will refuse to admit they’re wrong about steadfast opinions, backed up by an absence of evidence.

Reality is that if Bridges is your #3 on offense, unless you have a dynamic of Shaq/Kobe or bubble Bron/AD, that team isn’t going to be very good and they sure as hell ain’t winning a title.

So, yes, Bridges could be a #3 on a mediocre to bad team. But who cares? For this Suns team, he doesn’t cut it as that option and that is a problem of construction with the team now and in the future.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

It’s an exercise in futility Ouchie. No matter how many times you post a list like that, or I post a list of the title winners for the last 30 years with their big 3 on offense, certain people will refuse to admit they’re wrong about steadfast opinions, backed up by an absence of evidence.

Reality is that if Bridges is your #3 on offense, unless you have a dynamic of Shaq/Kobe or bubble Bron/AD, that team isn’t going to be very good and they sure as hell ain’t winning a title.

So, yes, Bridges could be a #3 on a mediocre to bad team. But who cares? For this Suns team, he doesn’t cut it as that option and that is a problem of construction with the team now and in the future.

He’d be great as a #4. If book is your 1, you find a stud as a 2, Ayton is 3 and bridges is 4 you likely have a contender (like when Paul could perform as a 2). But after jones has passed on a Haliburton and places no value in the draft I don’t have a lot of faith in him finding that #2.

 

[Carolinacacti]

I'm his number one fan and I think its time for Mikal to come off the bench. He plays a lot of minutes so he plays with those guys anyways, cut the minutes.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

I'm his number one fan and I think its time for Mikal to come off the bench. He plays a lot of minutes so he plays with those guys anyways, cut the minutes.

But for whom? Start Lee?

 

[Carolinacacti]

But for whom? Start Lee?

But for whom? Start Lee?

I would

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

But for whom? Start Lee?



I would

Okay, I don’t mind that.

 

[boisesuns]

The west is crazy close right now. We could drop to 7-8 if things keep going the way they are trending

 

[Mainstreet]

I like what I saw of Bridges at shooting guard, but with the Suns roster, it's not a likely scenario.

 

[95pro]

I like what I saw of Bridges at shooting guard, but with the Suns roster, it's not a likely scenario.

It was for like a game and half. I did see some promise but to count on Mikal as a screener or some under pressure to bring up the ball idk about that. And his choking in the big moments makes me think he’s best for defense.

 

[Mainstreet]

It was for like a game and half. I did see some promise but to count on Mikal as a screener or some under pressure to bring up the ball idk about that. And his choking in the big moments makes me think he’s best for defense.

I made a mental note of it if the Devin Booker experiment at point guard is ever resumed.

After this season, the Suns will need to start looking at alternatives for Chris Paul.

 

[Carolinacacti]

I like what I saw of Bridges at shooting guard, but with the Suns roster, it's not a likely scenario.

At shooting guard Mikal would not be over powered as he is at SF.

 

[Mainstreet]

At shooting guard Mikal would not be over powered as he is at SF.

This is what I was thinking. I like what I saw.

 

[Proximo]

He’s 26 years old and been playing basketball at high levels his whole life. When do you think the light is going to suddenly come on? How much more practice does he need?

If he is kept in the role of being the secondary scorer, I think it should only take a few months for him to improve greatly at it. Basically this season is the first time he has been asked to fill that role.

 

[Proximo]

It’s an exercise in futility Ouchie. No matter how many times you post a list like that, or I post a list of the title winners for the last 30 years with their big 3 on offense, certain people will refuse to admit they’re wrong about steadfast opinions, backed up by an absence of evidence.

Reality is that if Bridges is your #3 on offense, unless you have a dynamic of Shaq/Kobe or bubble Bron/AD, that team isn’t going to be very good and they sure as hell ain’t winning a title.

So, yes, Bridges could be a #3 on a mediocre to bad team. But who cares? For this Suns team, he doesn’t cut it as that option and that is a problem of construction with the team now and in the future.

Exactly where has anyone called him a great ballhandler?

That said, I don't know why you think he can't improve, he is twice the ballhandler he was two years ago.

Really Ayton should be our number 2 option, not Bridges. He is far more gifted athletically - if anyone is underperforming giving us more offense it is him IMO.

 

[AzStevenCal]

I’m thinking of too threesomes in the league and almost all have a better ballhandler at #3 than bridges.

Zion/ingram/McCollum
Curry/poole/green/klay
Embiid/harden/maxey
Kahwi/George/wall/Jackson/Morris
Jokic/Murray/gordon
Ja/bane/brooks/jjj
Luka/dinwiddie/wood
Tatum/brown/smart
Giannis/middleton/holiday
Butler/bam/herro
Siakam/Barnes/vanvleet
Lilliard/Simmons/grant


Maybe Mitchell/garland/don’t know about mobley

Maybe more. Got tired of exercise. But undoubtedly if bridges is your #3, he’s towards the end of good teams’#3s in terms of ballhandling ability.

Nice list but I think something's been lost in translation. My initial comment was that "I think he can be a good number 3 or 4 weapon but he's a complementary scorer, he's not capable of being the first or second option on a regular basis". IOW, I was setting a rough range of his capability, as the 3rd or 4th best scorer on a good team. Not insisting that he absolutely could become the number 3 scorer on a good team but I would add that like Ayton, his efficiency brings value above his actual points.

When I told Cheese I disgreed in a followup post, it was about his comment that you couldn't be a good number 3 scorer if most of your points are assisted along with his claim that Mikal was "almost entirely dependent on others to create your offense". It seems to me there are a lot of good catch and shoot scorers that get assisted on most of their points. Maybe I'm wrong there, but I don't consider Mikal unique in the degree to which others create for him. If there's stats that show otherwise, fine, but I'm not sure where to get that information.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

If he is kept in the role of being the secondary scorer, I think it should only take a few months for him to improve greatly at it. Basically this season is the first time he has been asked to fill that role.

Welp, failed at it again tonight. He was putrid.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

Nice list but I think something's been lost in translation. My initial comment was that "I think he can be a good number 3 or 4 weapon but he's a complementary scorer, he's not capable of being the first or second option on a regular basis". IOW, I was setting a rough range of his capability, as the 3rd or 4th best scorer on a good team. Not insisting that he absolutely could become the number 3 scorer on a good team but I would add that like Ayton, his efficiency brings value above his actual points.

When I told Cheese I disgreed in a followup post, it was about his comment that you couldn't be a good number 3 scorer if most of your points are assisted along with his claim that Mikal was "almost entirely dependent on others to create your offense". It seems to me there are a lot of good catch and shoot scorers that get assisted on most of their points. Maybe I'm wrong there, but I don't consider Mikal unique in the degree to which others create for him. If there's stats that show otherwise, fine, but I'm not sure where to get that information.

I think you can look at the list I provided and see all three or four guys are guys that get their own shots. Not assist dependent like bridges.