What has Casey been Eating?

[ASUCHRIS]

I have been one of the biggest complainers about having Casey on the team, especially because I wanted Boozer at the time, but Casey is quietly starting to make a real impact on this team. His three point shooting is starting to be where we expected it, and I heard that he is in the top three in the league in three point shooting percentage. Apparently he isn't as worthless as many of us thought he was....

 

[SweetD]

I like Casey but I don't wan't him playing SF or PF in Mike's lineups.

 

[Chaplin]

Originally posted by SweetD
I like Casey but I don't wan't him playing SF or PF in Mike's lineups.

That's not Casey's fault. I only want him to do one thing--play well when he's on the floor. That's it. If D puts him in at SF, then I can only hope Casey plays as best he can. Unfortunately, if the guy he's defending is simply a better player, or bigger, or whatever, it appears that Casey is playing badly. That's unfortunate.

 

[fordronken]

Well, gee guys. Maybe he's not suddenly a good basketball player. Maybe he's adapting to the NBA.

 

[George O'Brien]

Originally posted by fordronken
Well, gee guys. Maybe he's not suddenly a good basketball player. Maybe he's adapting to the NBA.

The Suns and everyone else screwed up when the passed on Boozer. Boozer was an overweight 6'7" center in college. He lost 30 pounds after leaving college, but he was judged based on his tapes which indicated he was very slow, short, Duke player (they have a repuation for playing better in college than in the NBA).

The Suns lacked a pure catch and shoot guard, so Casey was a reasonable choice at the time. Since then he has developed into a decent all round player who can actually play some defense. I expect Casey to continue to get better as a reliable backup.

As for Casey playing SF, he may actually be better suited to it. He is short but he still rebounds well on a per minute basis. Also, he is much better at shooting three's from the corner than on the wing. I suspect that someday he will get traded to a team who could use him as a starter at PF, but it will only happen if the Suns are offered a lot.

 

[fordronken]

Originally posted by George O'Brien
The Suns and everyone else screwed up when the passed on Boozer. Boozer was an overweight 6'7" center in college. He lost 30 pounds after leaving college, but he was judged based on his tapes which indicated he was very slow, short, Duke player (they have a repuation for playing better in college than in the NBA).

The Suns lacked a pure catch and shoot guard, so Casey was a reasonable choice at the time. Since then he has developed into a decent all round player who can actually play some defense. I expect Casey to continue to get better as a reliable backup.

As for Casey playing SF, he may actually be better suited to it. He is short but he still rebounds well on a per minute basis. Also, he is much better at shooting three's from the corner than on the wing. I suspect that someday he will get traded to a team who could use him as a starter at PF, but it will only happen if the Suns are offered a lot.

I'm not saying Boozer wouldn't have been a better choice(or Tayshaun Prince for that matter). I'm just tired of people writing players off after a season and a half in the league.

 

[SweetD]

Originally posted by fordronken
I'm not saying Boozer wouldn't have been a better choice(or Tayshaun Prince for that matter). I'm just tired of people writing players off after a season and a half in the league.

That happens also becouse some teams hold on to players to long. ala Sasser. But with the cap and roster limitations you sometimes need to move that player out to give someone else a try.

 

[sunsfn]

Casey is doing well and by next year (after an off season of working) his 3 point shots will be better as all of his shots will be. He works hard & I would expect him to work hard in the off season.

George, you have said before that Boozer is 6' 7".
He is bigger than that. He is as tall as Amare but not as muscular, although he is getting bigger.

 

[George O'Brien]

Originally posted by sunsfn

George, you have said before that Boozer is 6' 7".
He is bigger than that. He is as tall as Amare but not as muscular, although he is getting bigger.

Two years ago Boozer, was widely reported as being shorter than Brand. I'm not sure how he grew two inches, but that is part of the wonderful world NBA personal stats. Boozer is listed at 258 and uses his size to clear space. Still, he is not a jumper and has a lot of problems defending much larger players.

I have serious doubts about how how tall Boozer really is. In any case, the Cavs have enough cap space to re-sign him even though they lack his Bird rights.

 

[elindholm]

I've watched Boozer a lot on television, and I'd say he's about the same height as most NBA players who are listed at 6' 8" or maybe 6' 9". What height that actually is, who knows? (Or cares?) When comparing heights of players, all that matters is that they use the same system, even if that doesn't correspond to the real-world understanding of "feet" and "inches."

 

[hcsilla]

Originally posted by George O'Brien

The Suns lacked a pure catch and shoot guard, so Casey was a reasonable choice at the time.

The problem that Casey Jacobsen was not a pure catch and shoot guard. Even his shooting form was not perfect.

He penetrated a lot and that was OK in NCAA. He struggled with that in NBA. Since his shooting was never that perfect he was permanently struggling.

 

[George O'Brien]

Originally posted by hcsilla
The problem that Casey Jacobsen was not a pure catch and shoot guard. Even his shooting form was not perfect.

He penetrated a lot and that was OK in NCAA. He struggled with that in NBA. Since his shooting was never that perfect he was permanently struggling.

Casey has been hitting 43.6% of his three point shots. The second best three point shooter on the team is Barbosa at 39.7%. Last year Casey only shot 31.5% for three.

 

[hcsilla]

Originally posted by George O'Brien
Casey has been hitting 43.6% of his three point shots. The second best three point shooter on the team is Barbosa at 39.7%. Last year Casey only shot 31.5% for three.

So, does that mean that Casey was a pure catch and shoot guard?

 

[George O'Brien]

Originally posted by hcsilla
So, does that mean that Casey was a pure catch and shoot guard?

He could be. Right now he is still a bit inconsistent although he overall improvement has been dramatic. As it is, his ability to go to the basket, play team defense, and rebound is a real plus when compared to the other rookie contract shooter types.

Last night the Suns got killed by the Kings, but their three point shooters are not wildly better than Jacobsen. Stojakovic shoots 44.4% for three, Bibby is at 41.6% for three, Christy is at 36.6% for three and Peeler hits 40.8% for three. Stojakovic can make his own outside shot, but he benefits a lot from great passing and movement without the ball.

 

[slinslin]

Carlos Boozer isn't as tall as Amare. Boozer is 1 or 2 inches shorter than Amare.

 

[thegrahamcrackr]

Has anyone else noticed that the speed of Casey's release is about twice as fast as it was last year? Last season, Casey had to be wide open, or he would never get a shot off. This year however, he seems able to get it out of his hands MUCH faster.

 

[sly fly]

Wow. Casey Jacobsen has TOTALLY proven me wrong. I liked him at first (especially, since I watched him many times at Stanford).

Then, I was down on him due to his first season (and a half) with PHX. I thought he was trying to reinvent his game. It didn't look like it was going to work.

He tried to draw contact on every drive. His shot was erratic. He simply didn't look like an NBA player.

But, something happened. All of a sudden his shot his MONEY. He IS that 3 point specialist every team needs. And, the other parts of his game are falling into place.

He's never going to be a 20 ppg scorer in this league. But, he will be a solid contributor on a good/contending team.

I wouldn't be surprised if he averages 12-15 ppg, amongst the league leaders in 3 Pt. FG%, 3 Pt. Made, and FT%..

I'm glad he's a Sun.

 

[F-Dog]

Originally posted by sunsfn
George, you have said before that Boozer is 6' 7".
He is bigger than that. He is as tall as Amare but not as muscular, although he is getting bigger.

We must be watching different channels or something. At the rookie game, Boozer and Amare were on the court together, and it seemed to me that Boozer was at least two inches shorter than Amare (but thicker).

Frankly, it seemed to me that Boozer was noticeably shorter than the players he was 'guarding', Carmelo Anthony and LeBron.

This is not to say that Boozer isn't a good player, but my guess is that he's about 6' 6 1/2" in NBA height. He makes up for it on the boards with his thickness and his hops, which are nearly Barkleyesque.



Oh yeah, I think Casey is doing a pretty good job, too. I like the fact that he doesn't take a bunch of shots when he's out there--he waits for the open shot and delivers the dagger, or he keeps the ball moving to the open man. Jacobsen and Barbosa are both good at keeping the offense humming along without being too intrusive.

Casey has got to work on those free throws, though. There's no reason he should be shooting less than 80% from the charity stripe.