Brand in this Offense

[howiezbt]

Does anyone else think that having Brand sit at the 3pt line on the wing, while Dalembert sits in the post is the best use of our offense. Eddie Jordan must think Brand has Jamison skills to put him out there. Brand is not involved at all, and we won't win until he is.

[sixerbond]

Brand is a good attitude guy. But it won't take too long
before Brand gets frustrated with EJ's stupid offense, and we hear rumors
of a Brand trade demand. Not that we will find it easy to deal him. But Brand will
insist on being dealt to a cavs team,,,that can use a PF along with Shaq and Bron.
Or maybe even to a Houston team that works it's offense down in the post.


But trust me, Brand will tire of Jordan's ridiculous offense soon enough.

[9th Wonder]

Yeah, it's a little disconcerting to see him floating around the three point line so often. It's really been tough to gauge his level of play, also, since he doesn't get involved in the offense as much as I think he should.

On the other hand, Speights seems to be getting a lot more easy looks and has looked better taking the ball into the post (although Speights is playing more at C, which changes his looks a lot). It seems that most of EB's shots are forced, and he often gets blocked or stripped in the paint.

I really hope EJ can find a way to get Brand going in this offense, because it's a real waste to have him here otherwise. Not only that, but his value isn't exactly shooting up at the moment.

[UptownPhilly]

It's really been tough to gauge his level of play, also, since he doesn't get involved in the offense as much as I think he should.

This has been my problem with Brand. I thought that he was more assertive on offense, someone that demands the ball. It could be a matter of the players not knowing the offense, but I would expect him to at least go for his and take his share of FGA's.

It should be interesting to see how he adjusts to our offense within the next few weeks.

[Kevin12]

Even on broken plays, do you see Elton Brand ever even rolling to the basket?

No.

Stop thinking Elton Brand's playing style is anything that it really isn't.

He's always been a David West type of dude, not a inside scorer.

His lack of effectiveness in the offense is basically due to his pathetic lift on his jumper (causing him to hit front rim and out) on the looks that he DOES get.

Also, the lack or urgency his teammates have in reguards of getting him the ball because they don't have any faith in him doing something with it.

[dbodner]

When Elton Brand first game into the league, he was an inside scorer. He was insane on the offensive glass with the Bulls. It wasn't until his time with the Clippers (culminating in his time with Cassell) that he really developed the jumper to where it became his bread and butter. He has been primarily a jump shooter for a few years now, though.

[tk76]

Elton Brand will not be traded. What exactly would you expect back for him and his 14M,15M,16M,18M contract over the next 4 years. He might be the most un-tradable contract in the NBA by a wide margin.

So they have to find a way to use his strengths- once we learn what they are. At this point he really hasn't shown himself to be more than a decent 8th man big, and his role in the offense fits that description. He honestly looks worse than Sixer CWebb- which is frightening. I'm hoping he has a lot more in the tank, and I guess we'll find out. And I hope the skills he has left somehow fit the rest of the team.

The Brand signing will be the undoing of ES. That type of $'s has to trabslate into an impact star and wins and I don't see that ever happening with Brand. Not sure if it was Ed's "fault" but you can't escape that kind of move when it is you defining moment as a GM.

[Gsraider]

So they have to find a way to use his strengths- once we learn what they are. At this point he really hasn't shown himself to be more than a decent 8th man big, and his role in the offense fits that description. He honestly looks worse than Sixer CWebb- which is frightening. I'm hoping he has a lot more in the tank, and I guess we'll find out. And I hope the skills he has left somehow fit the rest of the team.

I'm not sure I believe it myself, but Brand may also be suffering from what has been almost two years of inactivity. It would certainly be nice to believe, but unless he gets at least some of his explosion back, he is just too undersized right now. It's a shame too because he's still pretty young having only recently turned 30.

[Lapinski]

Brand may also be suffering from what has been almost two years of inactivity

I think 4 games into the season can tell you a lot about Brand. We have not fully implemented a new offense. I think after 20 games we'll have a better idea of everyone's role is.

I think he is tentative and eventually will have some breakout games showing that he is a quality PF in the league. I do believe he will be a 30-32 minutes per game player. He will not play Iguodala type minutes.

No team will trade for him because of his injury history and inactivity.

[tk76]

Brand may also be suffering from what has been almost two years of inactivity

I think 4 games into the season can tell you a lot about Brand. We have not fully implemented a new offense. I think after 20 games we'll have a better idea of everyone's role is.
.

I agree, that's what I meant by "they have to find a way to use his strengths- once we learn what they are."

Even in my pessimism I figure he must have more in the tank then what we have seen. Or, if he is really limited there are probably ways to maximize what he can due using effort, size, length and smarts alone.

[dond]

I absolutely agree with the analysis of the Brand situation.

At this point, he appears to be simply a nothing special type player that can get you some rebounds, a few points here and there with pretty stable play around the basket. That sounds like a good bench player. That may be all he is and all he will ever be again. If so, they will just have to suck it up and use him as best they can because he is not going anywhere. They may continue to start him so as not to bury his sense of self-worth but he will be getting fewer and fewer minutes if the other players continue to develop or if they land a real good one.

[shadowTerp]

Elton Brand will not be traded. What exactly would you expect back for him and his 14M,15M,16M,18M contract over the next 4 years. He might be the most un-tradable contract in the NBA by a wide margin.

I'm not sure about the margin, but he is very hard to trade. I played around for several hours, trying to figure out a deal that could be made without us losing one of Iguodala, Speights, Williams or Young... Curry + Jeffries for Brand? Ick.

The Brand signing will be the undoing of ES. That type of $'s has to [translate] into an impact star and wins and I don't see that ever happening with Brand. Not sure if it was Ed's "fault" but you can't escape that kind of move when it is you defining moment as a GM.

+1. I don't blame him for the move, but if you take Brand out of the equation, this team would have youth, cap room and thus, flexibility for the future. We'd be in a (not-as-good-as-but) similar position to OKC or Portland. It's kinda sad if he doesn't improve.

[PhilasFinest]

Great post above and so true. Take eb outta the equation and we have cap flexibility and alot of young players. It's certainly easier said than done tho.

Another huge reason brands struggling IMO is because teams are clogging the paint versus us. We have no one who can hit a shot in our starting 5, so brands really gotta force shots up.

[tk76]

I'm not sure about the margin, but he is very hard to trade. I played around for several hours, trying to figure out a deal that could be made without us losing one of Iguodala, Speights, Williams or Young... Curry + Jeffries for Brand? Ick.

With the economy being so bad I think most moves would happen only if they bring back both equal money and years. With 4 years left and nothing to show he can really help a contender there is little reason for someone to take him on.

Now in a couple of years he could be moved, but right now few teams would entertain his type of contract, even if he was playing at a star level. We are all rooting for him to bounce back, because IMO Brand will likely be here longer than ES.

[PhilasFinest]

i hope we fire stefanski by the all star break and bring in Barkley...