The NO major trade camp - I'm in.

[ThisCharmingFan]

Main reason I kinda want Melo is his clutch play. We really don't have that here. Most of our players fall apart in a tight game (Dirk's missed free throw at Denver comes to mind), and Melo is arguably the best in the league in that area, even better than Kobe.

[LonghornDub]

Originally Posted by ThisCharmingFan

Main reason I kinda want Melo is his clutch play. We really don't have that here. Most of our players fall apart in a tight game (Dirk's missed free throw at Denver comes to mind), and Melo is arguably the best in the league in that area, even better than Kobe.

Melo has missed plenty of FT's in tight games in his career. Dirk's just as good in the clutch as anyone. Bad comparison.

Note: This is coming from someone who wants Melo on the Mavs.

[ThisCharmingFan]

Originally Posted by LonghornDub

Melo has missed plenty of FT's in tight games in his career. Dirk's just as good in the clutch as anyone. Bad comparison.

Note: This is coming from someone who wants Melo on the Mavs.

True. I suppose I just haven't seen much clutch from Dirk lately compared to other players. I guess I just notice Melo more because he basically out plays his entire team every game.

[LonghornDub]

Originally Posted by ThisCharmingFan

True. I suppose I just haven't seen much clutch from Dirk lately compared to other players. I guess I just notice Melo more because he basically out plays his entire team every game.

He's certainly as dynamic a scorer as they come.

[CadBane]

Originally Posted by LonghornDub

Melo has missed plenty of FT's in tight games in his career. Dirk's just as good in the clutch as anyone. Bad comparison.

Note: This is coming from someone who wants Melo on the Mavs.

Yeah, that guy is off target. Melo is certainly clutch, but Dirk is a top 5 clutch player in the NBA (one could argue Melo is as well). Citing a Dirk missed FT is pretty humorous considering Dirk led the NBA with a 98% clutch ft. Led it by several points.

[ThisCharmingFan]

Originally Posted by CadBane

Yeah, that guy is off target. Melo is certainly clutch, but Dirk is a top 5 clutch player in the NBA (one could argue Melo is as well). Citing a Dirk missed FT is pretty humorous considering Dirk led the NBA with a 98% clutch ft. Led it by several points.

There's nothing wrong with Dirk, don't get me wrong. My mistake. That particular free throw was the difference between going into OT and a loss. Sounds like almost the epitome of clutch. On the other hand, Melo hit everything he threw up (so did Aflalo, but whatever). It was just one game, I know, but Denver seems to have an edge on Dallas for some reason. Which is funny to me because it seems like the top teams are handled pretty well most of the time this season.

That was just the most recent thing I remembered and it shocked me. I haven't seen much clutch play from him in recent games is all. I love him, he holds the team together, he makes everyone around him better, but you guys must know that the Mavs tend to let leads slip away really easily. I think Melo would be a good addition to any team, but losing Roddy B doesn't sounds good to me. Honestly, wouldn't want to lose anyone the way they are playing.

But, yeah, Dirk rarely misses a FT, which is why it stuck with me.

[tcat075]

Originally Posted by ThisCharmingFan

There's nothing wrong with Dirk, don't get me wrong. My mistake. That particular free throw was the difference between going into OT and a loss. Sounds like almost the epitome of clutch. On the other hand, Melo hit everything he threw up (so did Aflalo, but whatever). It was just one game, I know, but Denver seems to have an edge on Dallas for some reason. Which is funny to me because it seems like the top teams are handled pretty well most of the time this season.

That was just the most recent thing I remembered and it shocked me. I haven't seen much clutch play from him in recent games is all. I love him, he holds the team together, he makes everyone around him better, but you guys must know that the Mavs tend to let leads slip away really easily. I think Melo would be a good addition to any team, but losing Roddy B doesn't sounds good to me. Honestly, wouldn't want to lose anyone the way they are playing.

But, yeah, Dirk rarely misses a FT, which is why it stuck with me.

I don't know why Melo's clutchness is even being seen as a big deal. If we acquired him, yes, it'd be nice to have a player down the stretch who can create a shot and hit it down even with the pressure on him. But must we have such a player? Not at all.

Sure, we had that one game where Dirk missed a free throw and it lost us the game (assuming we would have won in OT, which isn't a given). But overall, this team is very, very good at closing out close games. The veterans aren't afraid of the pressure, they know what to do. I don't know our record off hand, but games decided by like 5 points or less we have a very high winning percentage, because this team is typically very clutch and simply finds ways to win late in games.

So Melo's clutchness isn't a bad thing, but its not a necessary thing. If we acquire him with one of the primary reasons being his late game ability, that's stupidity. It shouldn't even be a factor on this team. Obviously, if you want him for his scoring, that's an entirely different issue, but focusing too much on a strength of his that this team is already very strong is pointless.