Nice game from Kuzma, +17 rating out there to go with his 16 points. Good to see him get his offensive mojo back.
Pleased with his offensive output. I do wish we didn't have to hide him on D a little. If he relaxed on the gambles, might've been ok. Save that s*** for Vegas.
He was good. I even liked that he wanted to guard Tatum after JT had already murdered the other guys. He still gambles too much on defense but he is showing effort.
This is really good stuff. If he can stay in front of Tatum, he should be able to stay in front of a slower Kawhi as well.
Kuzma still retreats on drives too much. Gets on skates going backward. But working at it. Needs more film study - on Klay, Kawhi, Butler, etc. Crosses his feet and opens and turns hips to easily rather than a wide base with lateral and angled quick steps. Lebron and Ad were both negative yesterday against Tatum and Brown. Yikes.
i'm surprised it took so long to send a second defender on tatum isos. he's not a good passer. and it makes sense to put a taller player on him, given how he likes to play.
Yeah with all of that with his feet. Hope he can continue to get better and quicker reacting in those areas. The hardest skills he will ever work on.
How much does Kuzma officially weigh? He seems to be at the 215-220 range. If he was 230-240, he'd do a lot better taking contact, getting to the FT line, finishing around the basket, defending bigger wings, posting up... the possibilities are there. It's not like he's the quickest guy on the court or his game relies on being lighter. He should just bulk up.
He has added muscle since he came into the league. In the end though, every individual has a limit as to how much muscle they can add onto their frame (unless they want to go the HGH/Anabolic route). Putting 10-20 pounds of muscle on Kuz would have him looking like Miami Lebron.
Biggest thing that impressed me yesterday was the defensive effort was there. Hope he keeps that kind of intensity up.
i actually think that if he has a future on a winning team, he has to learn how to play in space on defense. and i think that a) you're right, he's still not great there; but b) he's made significant strides in this regard. only thing that has concerned me this year is that his threeball is still in the toilet. he's improved everything but that, imo. that thing is super important to his effectiveness, though.
Certainly not while "he's eating bushes". Bill Cosby line on record album skit when he was still funny and cool. Don't go to the other place.
