So what kind of game does dampier have?

[dude1394]

I just don't know enough about the guy. I see his stats. 12.3 ppg, 12 rpg, +20.3 efficiency (versus dirks 24.17 ...wow...) fantastic orebounder, FG% high but maybe he only dunks, ft% not great but 65% for a big man is acceptable, bpg acceptable.

But I don't have a feel for what type of player he is, just a bull, what?

- Does he have an outside shot at all? If so to what distance.
- Can he run the floor?
- Does he have a post up game? Obviously he doesn't pass out of it.
- Can he catch the ball in traffic and take it to the hole?

[dirk2003]

I also know very little about him. But he cant shoot at all. His % is high because its mainly putbacks, layups and dunks.

[fin4life]

1. No outside shot to speak of... he usually stays within 10-15 feet of the basket.
2. He can run the floor on occasion... but he is usually the guy that gets the defensive rebound so he doesnt do it much.
3. He has a post up game that is formidable... but we cant run the offense through him. Most of his offense comes from putbacks and dunks (which i think is a good thing for the mavs)
4. He doesnt really 'take it to the hole'. When he gets the ball... he is usually already at the hole. He doesnt have great hands either.

[EricaLubarsky]

Originally posted by: fin4life
1. No outside shot to speak of... he usually stays within 10-15 feet of the basket.
2. He can run the floor on occasion... but he is usually the guy that gets the defensive rebound so he doesnt do it much.
3. He has a post up game that is formidable... but we cant run the offense through him. Most of his offense comes from putbacks and dunks (which i think is a good thing for the mavs)
4. He doesnt really 'take it to the hole'. When he gets the ball... he is usually already at the hole. He doesnt have great hands either.

I'll jump in because I am a huge Warriors fan and this is actually something I know some about.

1) agreed. He really has a horribly underdeveloped jumper so anything farther than 5-7 feet is too far from him.
2) agreed.He has the cardio to run, and he is quick under the basket but he isnt the fastest player so we wouldn't see him out on the fast break often. He'll make it back into the offense quickly but he won't be leading any breaks.
3) again, agreed. He is formidable, but I disagree about running the offense through him. Although its never really been done, he is capable of having offense run through him. Just don't expect to get the ball back if things dont work out as he is a below average passer. He is a much better finisher than Bradley in close and he has much better hands for receiving a pass. I'd call his pass receiving average for a big man and his passing below average.
4) again, that is very astute. Although he has a very well developed lowpost game, he has very questionable dribbling/ballhandling ability and I've never seen him drive more than 2-4 feet. The good thing is that he is strong and always seems to find good position. He's a guy that needs at least one of two things- 1) a PG to find him or 2) an offensive rebound

[V]

25% of Damp's shot attempts last year were jumpers. His effective FG% was 26%... For reference 27% of Shaq's attempts were jumpers on 34% effective FG%.

But there's good news: 39% of Dampier's shot attempts were tips or dunks... and only 26% of Shaq's attempts were tips or dunks.

Damp's effective FG% for anything not a jumper was 64% ... Shaq's was 68%

[dude1394]

Thanks all...so next question(s).

How will he be used? It sounds like we won't isolate him unless it's really low and then no kickout.

So will he hang out on the weak side and go to the hoop on offense? Pick and roll's? Guesses, I just don't have a feel for his usage.

[fin4life]

well he will be mostly stored away on the weakside block getting ready for some offensive rebounds. When the ball is swung around to his side... posting him up is a good option. He has good strength down low and be succesful. He isnt a great passer... but he is good enough to kick it back out to some of our sharp-shooters.

[EricaLubarsky]

Originally posted by: dude1394
Thanks all...so next question(s).

How will he be used? It sounds like we won't isolate him unless it's really low and then no kickout.

So will he hang out on the weak side and go to the hoop on offense? Pick and roll's? Guesses, I just don't have a feel for his usage.

Much of that depends on Nellie.
I wouldnt personally do any pick and rolls with him because they tend to happen in the high post or on the perimeter and his ability to hit anything outside of 7 feet is questionable. The reason the Nash/Nowitzki picks were so effective is that defenders didnt know which way to go and both players could hit the three or midrange jumper. In the high post or farther out, the decision would be clear- to rotate in a way to keep on Terry (or whoever is the other party in the pick and roll)

He basically doesnt need much on defense and offensively most of his stuff should come off rebounds, but driving down the weak side and passing strong to him waiting is one way of loading him up. The other being a run-of-the-mill pass into the post where he can shove around the defender and where another player is working to make a pass back out simple. I wouldn't worry too much about it. The best way to use him is to have him on the floor without giving him some complex defensive strategy- just let him play the post on both sides of the court.

[Finley4ever]

I just watched a tape of one of Dampier's games against Dallas and I agree that the offense can't be run through him on most plays. He didn't pass that well out of the post or dribble very effectively. On every possession he fought for good position in the post, so if there is a mismatch we should be able to exploit it. When Dallas had Najera on Damp, Golden State gave it to him on a bunch of possessions and he scored nearly every time. Other than those times, he got a lot of putback dunks and open layups and sunks when his man doubled on a penetrator.

[Sinn Fein]

I think Damp's post game is pretty solid. He has a nice little hook (jump hook). Of course he'll mainly score on put-backs, but he should get some touches, especially on weaker centers. Like she ^ said, he abused Najera down low.

[lonny22]

You can tell we're Mavs fans by the comments that are being made (Range for a center, pick and rolls, etc). We have a player with no range, which is Shaq's achilles heel. It just happens that Shaq is big enough and strong enough to be close and make easy shots. Dampier does the same thing and he will be able to get position. He doesn't have Shaq's passing and hands, so maybe he'll be Shaq Jr. I sure hope he's working on some of this stuff with Parish and Ray at the Big Man's Camp.

We don't need Chris Anstey running the floor, Wang's 3-pointers, Raef's outside shot, or Bradley's shot on the baseline. A guy that makes easy shots in the paint is what the Mavs need. The Mavs have all the guys they need to drive to the basket and they can dump it off to Dump (For the cynics in the crowd), I mean Dampier for an easy 2. I don't care if he can't shoot if he's going to make a high % of the easy one's.

[twelli]

with Shaq out of the WC, who is the most difficult center Damp will face in the West, Yao? How is he able to handle PF/C Duncan? Is he better than Brad Miller, Kandiman and others?

[V2M]

Originally posted by: twelli
with Shaq out of the WC, who is the most difficult center Damp will face in the West, Yao? How is he able to handle PF/C Duncan? Is he better than Brad Miller, Kandiman and others?

There's at least 20 centers in the West who're better than Kandiman.

[The Miles]

I am just guessing because I have never actually watched a Kings/Warriors matchup, but I would think Brad Miller might be a tough matchup for Dampier defensively. Miller, as we all know, has that great mid range shot that should draw Dampier out of the post defensively.

I am more worried about Damp/Dirk v Webber/Miller (because both are high post types) than I am about Damp/Dirk v Duncan/Rasho.

[DevinHarriswillstart]

The offense can't be run through Damp because he is so turnover prone. His biggest weakness (IMO) are his ball handling skills. I remember the mavericks stealing the ball from him on more then one occasions, and it didn't seem too difficult.