After a holiday hiatus, the BJD/Steve Fan Pick and Roll is back for more.  This week’s topic is Goran Dragic and Robin Lopez.  The rookies are having a tough year and have failed to meet expectations.  What to do?  (poll on the right)

Dragic and Lopez: Patience or D-League? Steve Fan

Over the years the Suns seem to have developed a chronic inability to use rookie players. The last rookie to have an impact in his first season? We have to go back to Stoudemire in 2002.

In years past, the Suns failed to consistently use their bench. This year is no exception. In training camp the Suns looked like the deepest team in the League. All the talk was Coach Porter using a 9 man rotation, something unseen in Phoenix in a long time.

Coach D’Antoni was unable to use the bench and was not willing to develop young players. Last year D.J. Strawberry and Alando Tucker each played an average of 8 minutes despite the praise and the encouraging words from the coaching staff.

This year is no different. Dragic and Lopez have struggled quite a bit, but I believe they’re in very different situations while all of a sudden the Suns are very thin in their rotation.

Goran hasn’t played at all in 13 of the last 18 games and more often than not his box score line reads DNP-CD. His numbers are as low as they can get. He’s shooting just .283 from the field and looks lost on both ends of the court.  The naked truth is Dragic is not ready to play in the NBA.

In the case of Goran Dragic the best scenario would have been to let him play at least one year for Tau Vitoria in Spain and have a shot at some Euroleague basketball as well. He would have played in the best basketball league outside the NBA and had a chance to play pressure filled games against very good basketball teams. If you have never checked a Euroleague game on TV you should do it soon, as you’d be surprised by how well those teams play.

A few days ago, while watching the Heat and the Spurs I realized the Suns could have drafted Mario Chalmers who Miami took with the 34th pick but then again, Mario could be rotting on the Suns bench right now. The search for the back up point guard is becoming an odyssey. From the Marcus Banks non-sense contract to the Dee Brown sign and cut…but that’s another story.

The D-League is not an option, not for any of them anyway. The level of play is really not good enough.

There are certainly talented players but the league is full of shooting guards who can’t shoot and undersized frontcourt players trying to up their numbers to get a better contract. Playing in Fort Wayne or Sioux Falls won’t help you prepare to face the Spurs in San Antonio in the playoffs.

Playing 30 minutes a night for the Iowa Energy would only get you in better shape, maybe get some shooting touch back, but it’s not going to make Dragic a better player. Check the 2007/08 Alando Tucker for example. He went there, dominated for a couple of weeks, came back and was again forgotten.

I think it’s a bit different for Robin Lopez. He played a couple of years of college ball in a good conference. He even played competitive pick up games at home against his big brother.

He just needs to play. I think he’s ready to play 15 minutes every game. Coach Porter should put him in the front court rotation and exercise patience.

Robin has great size, he’s a good shot blocker and has good basketball instincts. He’ll never be a scorer in this league, but he can play. He’s had trouble over the last few games at times (lack of concentration, maybe) but if Shaq plays 30 minutes, Stoudemire 35, Robin should be in for his 15 minutes with Diaw now out of town.

He can play, especially if he’s not required to score points, which is the case when sharing the court with Amare. We need some patience and a little faith in Robin from Coach Porter. He’ll make his mistakes, but he could certainly be useful later in the season as Shaq wears down and the games become more frequent.

Dragic and Lopez: Unrealistic expectations Mark McLane

With the selection of Robin Lopez with the 15th pick and the signing of Goran Dragic after a Mr. Mom like obstacle course of financial mumbojumbo , the Suns were very excited with their haul.  With two draft picks, they seemingly filled two glaring needs.

Another big body to man the middle and give Shaq rest was a huge addition to the team.  Bringing Dragic aboard after wandering the desert for four years in search of a player capable of giving Nash rest was seen as a boon to the Suns depth and future.

The bar wasn’t set to Sergei Bubka levels, but expectations were high nonetheless.  Unfortunately, neither have been able to meet the lofty goals Suns fans set for them after guzzling the Kool-Aid happily served by Steve Kerr and David Griffin.  Dragic can’t get on the court, and when Lopez gets a shot, he can’t stay on the court due to foul trouble and mental breakdowns.

Dragic has been racking up the DNP-CDs and as Steve Fan said, sure doesn’t seem ready to contribute to this team in any way except on the practice court.  This is in direct contrast to the plan laid out by Kerr and Co. in the preseason, where they envisioned Dragic getting 10-15 minutes a game, and Nash receiving some much needed rest.  Somewhere along the way, things were not as they seemed.

Whether or not Kerr or Griffin are incorrect in their evaluation of Dragic is a moot point.  Suns fans can start all the blogs they want, Goran isn’t going anywhere.  Not after the price the Suns paid to bring him to Phoenix.

What’s important to think about is the next step for the young man.  Clearly, he won’t be contributing this year.  Do they send him to the D-League or keep him in Phoenix and allow the coaching staff to continue working with him?

I tend to agree with Steve Fan in that the D-League may not be all it’s cracked up to be, especially for a point guard, but the young man needs to play, plain and simple.  Send him to Iowa, let him get some minutes, allow him to build confidence in his game.  It may not be on the level of the Euroleague, but the D-League is still real basketball competition and it beats the heck out of practice.

Dragic may very well be the Suns point guard of the future but we’ll need to wait and see and exercise plenty of patience.  Kerr and Griffin erred in anointing him the Suns backup point guard savior and now have an incomplete project on their hands.  Not all is lost though, we simply need to reevaluate what we expect from Dragic.  This of course applies to Robin Lopez as well.

With Shaq out last night with weak back (hear he strained it about a week back…HIYO!) Robin got the start in his place…and performed miserably.  The ugly foul bug bit him and bit him hard.  After getting two quick ones, Coach Porter banished him to the bench for the remainder of the first half as Sweet Lou Amundson and his ponytail bounced around the court.

With the second half came Robin’s second chance…and he blew it.  Much of the same as the first half.  Two quick fouls, a permanent spot on the bench.  This was not the showing one would expect from a player looking to crack the rotation and earn minutes.

Lopez certainly has the physical tools to play in this league but it’s what is underneath that mop of a head that concerns me.  Coach Porter said it this week, his mistakes are mental and due to a lack of preparation.  The kid hasn’t been ready when his name is called (isn’t that Bill Cartwright’s job?.)

He is after all a kid (a really, really big kid) and growing pains, especially those of the mental variety, shouldn’t be all that surprising.  Like Dragic, I believe the way to foster improvement is by playing him, and a trip to the D-League is the way to get it done.  Bring Courtney Sims into the fold and allow Robin to work out some kinks and get his head right.  A stint in the D-League can only help him.

255 pound 7 footers don’t grow on trees, especially ones that play with energy and have a knack for shot-blocking.  At first glance, Lopez may not seem as important to the team’s future as Dragic, but once Shaq rides off into the sunset, Kerr and Co. will need someone to fill the Mark West role.

It’s only their first year and I believe there’s much more to come from both Goran Dragic and Robin Lopez.  The Kool-Aid Kerr and Co. filled so many Dixie cups with turned out to be sour, sure, but that doesn’t mean patience shouldn’t be the operative word.

They’re the first draft picks this team has held onto since Sarver took over and as I previously mentioned, the kids fill a need on the team.  A steady diet of playing time in the D-League isn’t going to hurt, and will make them better players.

// Click here to read the rest from Black Jesus Disciples

January 8th, 2009 11:23 AM

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