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Everything Is Starting A Little Slow For The Bullets

Welcome to my new feature for this site: the semi-regular weekly column. Here, I hope to revisit some events from the previous week and address some hot issues that may be burning and asking for answers. I say semi-regular, because anyone familiar with how I run things here realize that my regular workload sometimes necessitates my delay in addressing certain site management issues. Please be patient with me in these manners.

What's With The Bullets Slow Start?

Ah, isn't it great to consider a 2-3 start to the season a slow start? The expectations are rather high for this team, and they are justified. But I figured this crew would start a little slow, and there are probably a couple of reasons:

1. No inside presence. In particular, the lack of a true center isn't allowing the Bullets to set up their inside-out offensive set that was successful toward the end of the season. Muresan would force. And despite Webber's and Howard's success in the post, they are now trying to do it against players who are slightly larger than they are normally accustomed to. Howard, instead of posting up small forwards, is now forced to do it against power forwards, negating the size advantage.

   Muresan is schedule to return this week. It will take him a few weeks to get into playing shape and get the offense used to flowing through him at times. So this won't quite correct this area of a shortfall.

2. Poor outside shooting. The guards of the Bullets aren't making it any easier on the Bullets power players. Tracy Murray may still be suffering from the sore wrist, as he's shooting under 30% from the field and is not the outside threat the Bullets hoped he would be. That should change when he gets healthy.

   Unfortunately, the Bullets don't have many other deep threats. Jaren Jackson is playing well, but he's still a journeyman and a black hole when he touches the ball. Cheaney isn't shooting enough, and Strickland's range isn't quite out to 3-point range. Whitney isn't getting enough playing time (IMO). What's wrong with a lineup of Whitney and Strickland in the backcourt?

   And it's not just the guards shooting. Only Strickland seems to be hitting the medium range jumpers; Howard, Webber and Grant are generally not hitting them. That allows teams to sag off even more to cut drives into the paint. But Howard, Webber and Grant are generally decent shooters at that range and should come out of this slump shortly.

3. Free throw shooting. At least two of the losses (Cleveland and Indiana) found the Bullets getting lots of trips to the free throw line (over 30 times each) but shooting just over 50% from the charity stripe. Slightly better shooting from the charity stripe probably would have yielded wins in both games.

4. Trying to do too much. We also have three players that I think are trying to do too much individually: Howard, Strickland, and Webber. The offense, too often, seems to be just one of these players trying to take his defender one-on-one. Howard and Webber, in particular, are having problems with this arrangement.

   Are they trying to do too much? To prove that they are worth their paychecks (or, in Strickland's case, worth more than he's making)? Once these guys realize that this is a team game and they work together on offense, moving without the ball and also passing out of bad offensive situations, this offense could be much scarier. That's what I hope for, at least.

So, a lot of what we expected from this team in contributing to the slow start. However, the Bullets are generally playing good defense, keeping opponents to a low shooting percentage and blocking many shots inside. Hopefully, the inside presence will get better with Muresan's return. So, while 2-3 is good for the Bullets of recent years, we should hope for more.

What's With The Shooting Woes?

It isn't just the Bullets that are having troubles scoring. The league-wide scoring average over the past week plus is around 93 ppg, almost 6 ppg lower than the league-wide average last year. As I'm sure many fans realize, there are lots of low scoring games this year. Lots of teams are scoring in the 70s and 80s. What's the deal?

Yes, there's an increased empasis on defense in this league. Lots of teams are running down the shot clock before executing their offenses. Offenses are using the inside-out method of launching the offense, which requires time to get it started. All of these are contributing.

But I also sense that the shooters are getting worse each season. Good shooters seem increasingly rare on teams. Think about the Bullets, who have maybe two good shooters currently active - Murray, who's slumping horribly, and Whitney, who doesn't get large numbers of minutes. I really don't know if the league-wide shooting percentage has been dropping recently, but it seems to me, the fan and observer, that shooting is becoming a lost art form. Just look at free throw shooting percentages and shooting in the college ranks. Ugh.

No, it's not the only reason that scoring is down. But what happened to the shooters of old?

Is That What A Point Guard Supposed To Look Like?

It was a sarcastic comment from the person I share my seats with, but it's true. Watching Rod Strickland run the offense, especially on a controlled fastbreak, is truly beautiful. He is a very talented playmaker who does his job on the court. He can break down defenders, set up cutters, and hits the medium range pull up with ease. Watch him and appreciate something the Bullets haven't had in over a decade.

What's Up With Calbert?

I'm not going to answer this question now, but it's one that continually passes through the lips of many Bullets fans. We were hoping this would be Calbert's break-out year, but through the first 5 games, he has been mostly silent offensively. I like the fact the Calbert has been more aggressive on defense, but his offense is generally silent. He'll heat up for two or three shots, and then take another one. Sometimes, it's because he doesn't get the ball; other times, he just plain doesn't shoot.

What should the Bullets do? Trade him or keep him? He's really the 4th option on offense, and possibly the last option when Muresan returns. So, are we expecting too much from Cheaney? Maybe. But I might suggest that he is also playing out of position. Cheaney is not a 3-point shooter, which is really the responsibility of the shooting guard. He's a slasher. He might be a little small physically to play small forward defensively, but his quickness would be an advantage on offense.

So, for now, we watch and wait. But don't be surprised if Cheaney does not remain with the team throughout the season. I know, that's a familiar refrain every season. But the Bullets don't have much more time to wait for him to develop an outside shot.

wtf 11 November 1996

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