Jonas Valančiūnas thread

[Miškinis]

Good rebounding, but quite terrible defense during the 4th quarter by Valančiūnas. I didn't see the whole game so I'm not sure what was the reason for that. Foul trouble? Anyway, Raptors in general did not look good at all. Here are some highlights of his game:

[Straight forward]

Good rebounding, but quite terrible defense during the 4th quarter by Valančiūnas. I didn't see the whole game so I'm not sure what was the reason for that. Foul trouble? Anyway, Raptors in general did not look good at all. Here are some highlights of his game:

It wasn't terrible. It was more on Derozan and other players who who didn't prevent George going inside. JV simply had to step out for help defence and to leave his man because of that. Casey should put someone in front of Paul George because he was doing whatever he wanted in the second half. No idea why someone like Carrol or James Johnson didn't guard George. Basically Raptors opponents always exploit Raptors weaknesses so well in the playoffs, almost ideally. That says something about Casey and his ability to prepare the team for PO. I like Casey as a man, but as a coach he seem to be always outsmarted by other coaches.

Also, another prove that Lowry and Derozan are not strong players mentally. Now we'll see how Lowry will bounch back, he's too good these days to completely brake as last year, but he's on his nightmare again. After a bad game it's hard to get your confidence back. However, this Raptors team is too good and Indiana is not that tough to do it, IMO. It's on Raptors, they should simply play as they can instead of choking.

[CoachZ]

He also had a terrible shooting performance. For a player with a limited range and shot selection to take 14 shots and hit 4 is just bad. Especially against a team where he dominates everyone in the paint. He hasn't really progressed as a player on the key areas where he was struggling.

- He is not a better passer even after 4 years in NBA. He is still a black hole once the ball comes down to him and that unfortunately leads to bad shots since he cannot pass out, when double it's basically 50% chance to be a turnover. This will limit him the most.

- His defense has not improved in the fundamentals. He still is too aggressive on picking up penetration and racks up fouls. He uses hands way to much when trying to slide against quicker guys etc. This is the essence of his poor defensive performances. I believe that 1 on 1 when people are posting him up he does a very good job, and not a lot of guys can destroy him and expose him in defense. As a part of team defensive effort he is often a problem and lost on the floor. He is late on pickups on PnR, he doesn't slide well in matchup zone, he gets lazy feet on switches etc etc.

- Still has no confidence in his jumper and that limits him offensively. He needs to extend his range and open up the game for himself. In NBA he will never be a guy to blow by someone, but he has a lot of power and toughness to get the tough points and attack the boards, he needs to improve passing and stable jumper and he will be an offensive powerhouse.

Again I agree with most that Casey is not doing a good job with him, but not in terms of use but rather in terms of development. He needs to work on those fundamentals so he can earn more minutes and become a more focal part of the offense and average more than 7-8 shots a game.

[Straight forward]

CoachZ, your post reflects JV's weaknesses well, but also let's agree that it comes from too tiny perspective. JV improved in all categories compared to last season, he's improving, slowly but improving. You seen one game where he missed some bunnies and easy tips and exaggerated that quite a bit. Also his assists numbers went high on compared to his first phase of the season. His jumpers are pretty good % wise and he's taking way much more of them this season. He's still raw and far from finished product though.

[CoachZ]

CoachZ, your post reflects JV's weaknesses well, but also let's agree that it comes from too tiny perspective. JV improved in all categories compared to last season, he's improving, slowly but improving. You seen one game where he missed some bunnies and easy tips and exaggerated that quite a bit. Also his assists numbers went high on compared to his first phase of the season. His jumpers are pretty good % wise and he's taking way much more of them this season. He's still raw and far from finished product though.

Actually, it's not an assumption on one game. I have watched 10-15 Toronto games this season, and overall at least 50-60 in the last several years. Like I said, I like him and don't think he is a bad player just that he has few serious fundamental flaws. Passing is the most obvious. In general you shouldn't trust a lot to Raptors media or even NBA related material when talking about players it's always 90% praise, very rarely an actual assessment of player performance and development (it's not case of Raptors, but league wide. All they do is hype and promote).

He has moved nowhere in terms of his passing, and the game performances and numbers support that. He is actually now passing as much as he was when he played 10 minutes less per game, so he has even declined in that are in terms of sheer production (not just assists but also passes from the paint or postup), but that is more due to coaching who are trying to minimize his passing liability by not letting him do it. This is why his turnovers have also decreased in per minute basis.

Defense is an issue of technique, rather than effort. I think Jonas is a hard worker and tough kid, that is why I like him, but he just has a technical deficiency on how to play defense and he needs to work on it so that footwork and decisions become automatic. These are main limiting factors, the jumper comes after that. Jumper is not a weapon unless you use it often and with consistency so the actual % of made jumpers makes little sense. It's like saying that Al Horford is a legitimate 3pt shooter since he is shooting 35% beyond the arc for a Center, when in reality he is decent but gets completely open looks since noone defends that. Once he starts shooting them more he will get the hand in the face, and his % drops to nowhere. Less than 20% of his shots are actual mid-range shots, so that is not really a tool he uses regularly, just sometimes.

Again, not bashing on him, just saying the keys to improving and being a more complete player. Unfortunately his skillset is valued less and less in the League, and if he can't become a better playmaker/passer, diversify offensive tools and improve defensive technique he will have a problem to make the next step in NBA. Teams are already switching from these types of centers and going all out on tweener types like Davis, Cousins, Towns, Green, Aldridge who can space out on offense, and be mobile and quick on defense. He has to improve tools to stay competitive or I see him being traded to a different team for a different presence inside.

[Straight forward]

CoachZ, you still haven't watched enough of JV's game this season if you missed his comeback after injury when he had record of games in a row with at least one assist per game and most people including Casey, fans and Raptors Republic noticed that. Casey surely don't want to overhype his players and he never was JV's pleaser to say the least. He admits that JV improved a lot in terms of positioning, his improved defence is visible in stats, he improved passing (read and watch this http://www.raptorsrepublic.com/2016/...iunas-passing/). Assists numbers don't show that JV is better passer these days, but he is. He still should be much more willing passer, but I can assure you his positioning and overall awareness, decision making has improved compared to last season, let alone previous ones. You have to follow player all the time to notice these things. That's why I don't comment teams and players that I don't follow all the time - it's going to be false statements 90% of the time, you have to know every fall and rise of the player. You right thought that JV is not a good passer yet, but he already is so much different at this point, he tries to pass and sometimes does it pretty well. In his rookie year he was never passing back after offensive rebound, he was looking to score in all situations. Now he gets the ball, he passes back, he goes for a screen, he's learning. Give him 2 more years and he will be decent passer for a center. Also, JV is one of the most effecient post players in the league (last season he was best), so he doesn't need to rely his game on perimeter shooting, that's should be only a little part of his offence as it is now. Don't forget that JV's usage in Raptors is very low and no matter that he averaged 13ppg, he doesn't need to expand his game much, he needs to polish it and to be involved more.

No speaking about defence, you right, he'll never be elite at step outs, he's not that agile and he won't be able to guard 4s or every mobile centers. But let's not mix everything, players like Davis, Towns are more of 4, not to mention Green who is 3/4. JV is pure center and he has his own advantages as such. He usually is stronger than his opponents, he's one of the best rebounders in the trafic in the league, he has soft touch. He is 5th center in NBA by efficiency. I think he has future, even with this limited role.

[turk-jugoslav]

I also like this guy,he is so tough and physical.To my way of thinking,his main problem is decision-making around the basket.He has to be quicker when finishing at low-post.I don't mean he's not fast or agile,just moving slow and thinking so much about what to do when he received the ball near the rim.I've been following him for many years and he didn't improve his decision-making ability. Maybe it's not improvable,about basketball IQ which is god given.Gasol brothers and Nowitzki are very good examples for decision-making from today's basketball.They are able to go to basket and find the way-empty spaces immediately just after receiving the ball.It makes them so special.To be a star and difference-maker,you have to possess these skills.Sabonis was also very good at fast-thinking and decision-making,as far as I remember,apart from his physical advantages.

[Straight forward]

I've been following him for many years and he didn't improve his decision-making ability.

For many years? So you're saying that JV's decision making is at the level as he was at 18yo? He will never be Arvydas, Pau or Noah. He'll never be elite or maybe not even above average decision maker, but this statement alone is just ridiculous and plain stupid. Not that I'm trying to protect JV, but you don't follow JV if you think he hasn't improved his decision making at all.

[turk-jugoslav]

For many years? So you're saying that JV's decision making is at the level as he was at 18yo? He will never be Arvydas, Pau or Noah. He'll never be elite or maybe not even above average decision maker, but this statement alone is just ridiculous and plain stupid. Not that I'm trying to protect JV, but you don't follow JV if you think he hasn't improved his decision making at all.

Noah?Jonas,at least,not worse than him
Maybe I should have said ''hasn't improved much so far''.Anyway,you must get the point,what I said is so clear:I don't see any significant improvement on his decision-making.Of course,he's not at the same level with his younger version,don't ignore the ''experience'' factor.Even such a bust like Semih Erden has developed his game during the years because the minutes he's got made him gained experience.Nevertheless,I wouldn't assess it as ''improvement'' but ''natural flow''.
I follow Jonas along with other European youngsters,such as Jusuf Nurkic,Nikola Jokic,Giannis,Fournier,etc. Maybe I'm not very strict follower of him since I'm Turkish but believe me watched him many times on TV.To follow and observe a player,you don't have to watch or see every single f.cking game of him.
For Pau and Arvydas comparison with addition of Nowitzki,I can say that these type of players come out in just 25-30 years from European basketball area.Especialy Pau Gasol may become the last superstar of Fiba competitions,who knows!

[Straight forward]

turk-jugoslav, now I got your point. I mentioned Noah because he's a heck of a passer.

[Hepcat]

Wow! The only thing holding Valančiūnas back from really beasting this series against the Pacers is foul trouble. With 35 minutes on the court the imprint he'd have on the stat sheet would be huge.

[Straight forward]

JV would be signing way bigger contract this summer if he would have waited till he's restricted free agent As NT fan I'm happy though, he has contract and will come to NT without any problems.

[Straight forward]

LOL classy Raptors and Casey this time DD and Lowry 27/8. ISO plays all game long (12 assists, while Indie with 24). JV 16pts with 7 freaking shots, but Raptors never played through him except few minutes in the first quarter. Casey keeps JV on the bench in the 4th quarter while Indiana climbs all over the Raptors board. DD and Lowry continues to play bad and seems like they simply can't play in PO, specially DD. All star who can't play in PO, great stuff.

[Svajunas]

Yeah. But to be fair, this was the worst Jonas game on defense in this series. He was constantly out of place, for some reason he started to hedge on pick and roll when he should be staying in paint.

[Straight forward]

Yeah. But to be fair, this was the worst Jonas game on defense in this series. He was constantly out of place, for some reason he started to hedge on pick and roll when he should be staying in paint.

It surely was. He looked gassed compared to 2 first games as well. We'll see if he can be as intense again at home. However, he still was one of the most reliable offensive guns for the Raptors and Casey had to go with him instead of allowing Derozan to kill any hope for the Raptors. Casey will be an idiot if he won't go for JV next game because this Raptors team is capable of winning this round with JV as their best player. For next rounds Raptors will desperately need DD and Lowry stepping up to be competitive, but against Indie they can win with JV dominating the glass and the bench playing well. So far Derozan's constant effort to get into the rhythm only hurt Raptors.