Deron Williams rocks my world

by Yucca Man on Mar 12, 2010 12:53 AM MST Comment 6 comments

I remember watching the Jazz make their WC Finals run in 2007. My favorite memory was in game 1 against Golden State, when the national broadcasters proclaimed that the Jazz were probably the better team, but Baron Davis was, without question, the best player on either team. And then Deron went for 31 and 8 in game 1, and the Jazz knocked the Warriors out in 5.

via www.basketballjohn.com

In the afterglow of that game 1 performance, I sat on the sofa, just thinking that Deron Williams could end up being the greatest Jazzman of all time. He wasn’t there yet, I knew. He wasn’t close to Stockton’s understanding and nuances. But Deron had the tools to be the best. I remember how excited to watch the next 5 or 10 or 15 years and see exactly how good Deron Williams was going to become.

And here we are now. I’m still not going to say the Ninja’s the best ever. That’s something to think about in 10 years, when he’s on his downside run. But the magic is there. And he’s getting the nuances and subtleties.

The most amazing thing about Stockton was how he led a fast break. Only after watching Deron’s early years did I realize how absurd Stockton’s skills were. He knew, instinctively it seemed, exactly what speed to run, exactly what angle to cut, the precise spacing the break needed, and then he’d hold on to the ball just almost too long—so the defender had to commit to Stockton. And it was at that precise moment, when the defender made his move that Stock would pass the ball—the the exact right guy, in the exact right space, swooping in at the exact right trajectory for the easy layup and dunk.

Young Deron could not do that. But watch him now. He’s doing it. He’s not as refined as ‘95-’98 Stockton, but the Ninja gets it. He does it. That’s how the Jazz score 132 points on the road.

via voreblog.files.wordpress.com

Stockton was also brilliant in stepping back and letting the Jazz offense do its thing. He didn’t have to dominate the ball to get his 15 points and 12 assists. Sure, there were a lot of pick-and-rolls with Malone that led to an assist or open jumper, but that wasn’t the heart of Stockton’s game. This was more typical:

Dump the ball to Malone in the post. Cut along the baseline. Set a screen for Hornacek making a weak side cut. Set a screen for Bryon Russell to cut through the key. Head out to the three-point line. Get the ball back on a back-door pass. Run his guy into a pick set by Malone. Run his guy into another pick set by Ostertag. Look at Bryon Russell, spotting up for the corner three, but flip a weak-side pass to Hornacek for an easy layup.

That’s how the majority of Stockton’s assists and points came about. And that’s why so many other Jazzmen piled up crazy assist numbers. Seriously, there’s NO WAY a PF and SG should be combining for 9 assists per game when they already have a PG dropping in 12. It was ridiculous. But that was the magic of John Stockton—he got his stats by making the team offense run. He didn’t do iso’s. He didn’t "create his own shot." He just let everything happen within the scope of team play.

Again, young Deron couldn’t do that. But today’s Ninja does it. He does it masterfully. He picks a few spots to assert himself, but 95% of his stats come in the scope of the team offense. And by doing this as well as he does, the Ninja becomes the catalyst for the most magnificent scoring machine in the league. Other teams may score more, but they just shoot more quickly and end up with more possessions. Nobody—NOBODY—puts together an offense more beautiful or more effective than the Jazz when they’re clicking.

via www.deseretnews.com

And I’m convinced that no other point guard in the league could make it click the way Deron does. He gets the ball to the right guy, he makes the right screens, he makes the right cuts (as a scorer and as a decoy), and he takes the right shots.

This summer, when the Blazers signed Andre Miller, there was a lot of uncertainty about whether he could play with Brandon Roy, because to be effective both players needed the ball in their hands the majority of each possession. This is the same with LeBron, Wade, Kobe, Nash, Chris Paul, and just about every other star in the NBA.

Well do you know what? Deron Williams doesn’t need the ball in his hands. The more I realize how rare that skill is, the more I realize how good the Ninja really i s. He dominates the Jazz, he runs the team, he makes the motor purr, he’s the unquestionable leader, and he does every other sports metaphor you can think of, all without the ball in his hands. All without forcing the team to stand around, stagnant and moldy.

And a final bit: A couple years ago, the Sports Guy decided to d efinitively declare that Chris Paul was better than Deron Williams, and it was absurd to even continue the debate. I was annoyed. But I wasn’t annoyed in the same way other Jazz fans were. I concede Chris Paul’s skills. He’s phenomenal. I never questioned the Sports Guy’s assessment of Paul. What I did question was what he said about the Ninja. Deron Williams was, and is, much better than Simmons gave him credit.

Most statistical differences were a wash, in my opinion. Paul rebounded better and had fewer turnovers. Deron shot better from outside and got his teammates shooting a higher percentage. Paul got more steals. Deron played better team and positional defense. There was just one thing I thought Chris Paul was better at: the razzle dazzle.

It’s important to not undervalue the razzle dazzle, either. It makes the crowd go bonkers, which makes the team play better. Dr. J’s famous cradle-windmill dunk against the Lakers wouldn’t have affected the game nearly as much if he had instead scored a simple layup.

via elyriact.smugmug.com

Razzle dazzle matters. And you know what? I was wrong. Deron’s got it. He’s been unleashed by Sloan, and my goodness does he have it. He’s got the no look passes. He’s got the posterizing dunks, he’s got the moves, he makes the crazy passes. He’s got the speed to blow opponents into dust. He’s got the power to knock them to the floor. And, most importantly, he’s got the relationship with his teammates to get a kick out of making something spectacular happen.

He’s the best PG in the league.

And what’s fun is to see the rest of NBA fandom finally start to appreciate the Ninja:

"Williams rarely gets mentioned in the same breath as LeBron James, Wade and Chris Bosh. And he should. He has developed into the best all-around point guard in the NBA … Williams (18.6 points, 10.2 assists, 4.0 rebounds) is the complete package: He is big, he is tough and he is getting better." — Frank Hughes, Sport’s Illustrated

"All due respect to Deron’s most popular rival, Chris Paul, but I think Williams vs. Rose is going to be the PG matchup to watch within the next 2-3 years." — Austin Burton, Dime Magazine

"A lot of point guards can score. Several can get 13 assists. A few can be All-Stars. But it takes a very special one [i.e. Williams] to know it's OK sometimes to fade into the background and let your teammates do their thing" — Henry Abbott, True Hoop Blog at ESPN

Deron Williams rocks my world. And what’s crazy is that he’s only going to get better.

* And by the way, it drives me up the wall when I hear that should the Jazz end up with the #1 pick they would have to trade either the pick or Deron. You can't put Deron Williams and John Wall in the same backcourt. There’s no way to put two PG’s that talented on the same team.

Maybe on most teams it wouldn’t work, but it could thrive on the Jazz.

It could thrive because Deron doesn’t dominate the ball. It could thrive because Sloan could rewrite the playbook, making the 1 and 2 spots interchangeable (Sloan already did this once, in ‘03-04 and ‘04-05). It could thrive because the Jazz get everyone involved with passing and scoring.

Seriously, I'm supposed to believe that a team based on team play, passing, easy baskets, and an absurdly high number of team assists wouldn’t be even better with two big, fast, athletic point guards? You’re telling me that Deron playing 24 minutes at PG and 12 minutes at SG (which he already does, happily, when needed) and Wall playing 24 minutes at the point and 12 at SG wouldn’t be freaking awesome?

On most teams it wouldn’t work, I agree. But the Ninja’s got magic and Sloan’s got the team-play. It would work in Utah, and it would be unbelievable to watch.

All comments are the opinion of the commenter and not necessarily that of SLC Dunk or SB Nation.

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Comments

Great write up

I seen Williams leadership earlier this season. I can’t remeber the player or the team now . But, somebody fouled Mathews and Deron set the hardest screen ever from a point guard and layed him out. It was awesome. It set him as a leader and told the guys he had their backs.

by neds on Mar 12, 2010 9:00 AM MST reply actions

When he set that hard pick

I knew we were a different team. You just didn’t see that in previous seasons.

SLCDunk.com, The Utah Jazz on SBNation

by Basketball John on Mar 12, 2010 9:42 AM MST up reply actions

I remember that screen

Deron just leveled the guy, then immediately walked to the other end of the court, just smiling as the refs called the obvious foul. That’s the kind of thing teammates do when they care about each others’ success and the chemistry is working.

I got the crap beat out of me in Provo one time

by Yucca Man on Mar 12, 2010 10:05 AM MST up reply actions

Thanks for this Yucca!

I enjoyed it very much.

By the way, I wont be able to join you all on the game thread tonight. I’m heading up to Milwaukee to watch the game myself =]

by i_am_pure_barbarian on Mar 12, 2010 9:22 AM MST reply actions

You lucky dude.

Haven’t seen a game live in about 5 years. Cheer like mad.

And I’d love you to write up what it was like watching Bogut’s crew going crazy the whole game. THAT’s only one of many reasons Bogut rocks and I wish somehow, someway the Jazz could get him.

I got the crap beat out of me in Provo one time

by Yucca Man on Mar 12, 2010 10:06 AM MST up reply actions