Comments on: The Mozgov mirage

By: Rog

Rog — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 06:11:59 +0000

Tonight we got 18 minutes from Mozgov and Anderson combined. For a team that’s supposed to be so deep I don’t understand why we didn’t play Koufos. Mozgov was in foul trouble, we played back to back nights and Koufos sits on the bench? If Koufos can’t play in this type of game I don’t know that he’ll ever get meaningful minutes. We played small ball and got killed on the boards.

By: Dan

Dan — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 23:09:39 +0000

By the way, if Mozgov had been born in Russia but raised and trained in basketball in the USA, these types of arguments would not have been made. In fact, Koufos is Greek in origin, but nowhere was that information used in the argument. If his intent was to make an argument about the man’s race, you would think that Koufos’ Greek origin would not have been ignored.

If anything, it’s an indictment on the quality of basketball in Russia, which is not only not racism, it’s likely true.

By: Dan

Dan — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 23:00:59 +0000

Let’s throw in some direct quotes here: “But most importantly, Koufos has a more convincing background, as he was born and bred where the best basketball in the world is played on a daily basis. Of course, this isn’t to say that great basketball is nonexistent in Russia, but rather that growing up in America you’re likely more surrounded by the game and given more opportunities to peruse (sic) your passion with the best advice from former professionals.”

My God the racism! Koufos likely (operative word) got better exposure to the game than Mozgov playing in the US than in Russia. This is no different, as I stated above, then an soccer player benefitting from training in England or Spain rather than the USA and that is not a racist statement in the least.

Let’s continue: “He’s since played four years in the league, and while he hasn’t come close to living up to the expectations placed on him by his draft position, the fact remains that four years of NBA experience always tops one. Mozgov on the other hand wasn’t even drafted and has only played in Russia throughout his professional career, unlike many top flight foreign prospects who often come from Spain.”

So, four years of NBA experience outweighs Russian professional basketball and one year of NBA experience. My God, look at all that racism dripping from these statements!

The reference to Spain is because it is arguably the second best professional league in the world and that Spanish international players do get better exposure to top-quality basketball training than those who play in other leagues. Once again, look at all that racism.

You might disagree with the sentiment that Koufos’ basketball training and background necessarily dictates that he is more deserving of the starting role. In fact, this would actually likely imply that Mozgov has greater potential, particularly when given NBA-level training. The fact that Koufos hasn’t lived up to expectations should be the major red flag. But none of this is even mildly broaching on racism.

By: Lil Rik

Lil Rik — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 21:26:40 +0000

What a horrible position we are in. Nothing better to worry about than which young 7-footer with potential should get the most minutes!

P.S. GOOD RIDDANCE to Melo, J.R. and Kenyon. I don’t care how good Kenyon’s defense was – I believe this team can compensate for that. Plus, all 3 of those guys were CLASSLESS. So long Thuggets!

By: Lil Rik

Lil Rik — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 21:24:06 +0000

Ummmm….. Thabeet’s offensive game is about as developed as a a high school freshman’s. He’s still the same guy that got OWNED by Dejuan Blair on both sides of the court in college

By: Lil Rik

Lil Rik — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 21:20:30 +0000

Ouch, no love lost for Bird, eh? I will agree that he needs to make a statement this year and prove that he deserves the minutes over the younger guys.

By: Lil Rik

Lil Rik — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 21:18:28 +0000

agreed about Faried! I’m really excited about the guy, but he is also very young and raw right now – he will get his fair share of mop up minutes to earn his keep. Welcome to the NBA…

By: Lil Rik

Lil Rik — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 21:10:45 +0000

nicely put Charlie. I think Mozgov has been a bit unfairly criticized as well – lets see what this guy can do on a new team, in a new system, under a new coach, as a relatively inexperienced player. He has a lot of room to learn and we will se what that brings.

By: Lil Rik

Lil Rik — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 21:01:23 +0000

wow, fairly direct, but I have to say I agree with your assessment of Mozgov (allen). Time will tell. I think he will develop nicely. All stats aside – he’s doing something right because George is starting him and they have won the first 2 games.

By: Jason

Jason — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 19:56:25 +0000

This will be an ongoing debate all season, most likely. The good news is I think by the end of the year we will have a better idea of who the superior player is. Althought is quite possible they both turn out to be about equal.

But I definitely agree with the contingent that says its too early to form conclusions. You cannot base what limited minutes both players have played for other teams in past years as any indication of who the better player is. Some of those teams were bad teams, or badly coached teams, and circumstances are different.

I do like Koufos, and he seems to be a bit more polished offensively…though Mozgov has a better jumper from what I have seen. But defensively, I think Mozgov is better.

Either way, it is apparent that Karl must feel Mozgov is the better option, as he is choosing to start Mozzy instead of Koufos.

I truly think this is something we cannot answer until MORE data is available.