Greivis Vasquez having breakout season with Hornets

[FlyGirl]

The smile is unmistakable, even on the court, even during the most intense of games. Greivis Vasquez plays with the same enthusiasm that prompted him to nearly sprint to the stage three years ago in New York when he was drafted in the first round by the Grizzlies.

Fast-forward to this season. The NBA’s only player from baseball-crazed Venezuela, where Miguel Cabrera and Andres Galarraga are the standards for sports heroes, appears to have found a home with the New Orleans Hornets.

A leading candidate for Most Improved Player, Vasquez is fourth in the league in assists (8.8 per game). As the starting point guard for the youthful but talented Hornets, Vasquez has flourished in his role as floor leader. He scored 25 points as the Hornets snapped a seven-game losing streak with a win Tuesday against the Clippers.

The Hornets are an organization in transition, with Anthony Davis and Austin Rivers as their rookie anchors while they wait for potential cornerstone Eric Gordon to come back from knee issues. Without a true point guard after the departure of Chris Paul, Vasquez received his first full-time starting job. So far, he is taking advantage of the chance.

“I am blessed to have this opportunity that I have right now,” he said. “I do appreciate what coach Monty Williams is doing with me. He’s giving me a great amount of responsibility and he’s letting me play. He’s letting me develop my game and showing the NBA what I’m capable of doing.

“And, to me, right now, I’ve still got so much room to get better. I can lead this team to win more games.”

http://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/20...campaign=sm_tw

[nolaslim213]

He is currently 2nd in the league in Assist % (above Chris Paul but behind only Rondo).

[Snarly]

He's currently 20th in Assist/TO ratio which is more important to me considering he doesn't do anything else well.

[Bee-Fense]

I know we complain about Greivis' turnovers a lot, but he has a lower % than Rondo has had for the past 3 seasons.

I am really happy with how Greivis has played offensively. I think he'd look better on both sides of the ball, but especially defensively, with Gordon out there.

[Snarly]

I know we complain about Greivis' turnovers a lot, but he has a lower % than Rondo has had for the past 3 seasons.

I am really happy with how Greivis has played offensively. I think he'd look better on both sides of the ball, but especially defensively, with Gordon out there.

Greivis is basically a glorified Calderon right now. He's good at getting the ball to his guys in spots that they can take advantage of but he does it inefficiently with his turnover rate. If you consider he offers nothing on defense and shoot a terrible percentage for a PG, His shortcomings are much more glaring than a guy like Rondo, Westbrook, and Holiday who all have higher turnover rates.

[Bee-Fense]

Greivis is basically a glorified Calderon right now. He's good at getting the ball to his guys in spots that they can take advantage of but he does it inefficiently with his turnover rate. If you consider he offers nothing on defense and shot a terrible percentage for a PG, His shortcomings are much more glaring than a guy like Rondo, Westbrook, and Holiday who all have higher turnover rates.

Of course he's not on the level of those 3 guys but my point is that I think sometimes we're a little too harsh on Greivis when it comes to the turnovers. However if we're going to get shooting %'s involved, go and compare Rondo's TS% over his entire career's to Vasquez's. They're pretty much the same in that aspect. I was only talking offense, which is where Rondo crushes Vasquez.

I'm not trying to say he hasn't been horrible on defense, because he has. However, I'm just saying that I think that he's played very well given the circumstances. I think Vasuqez would look much better on defense if Gordon was there. Look at who his guard counterparts have been on defense this year. Then also consider we've been missing Davis for a majority of the season, and our pick n roll defense is much, much worse than it should be.

All I'm saying is, I'm happy with Vasquez given the circumstances. He's not a starter, but he's a damn good back up.

[nolaslim213]

He's currently 20th in Assist/TO ratio which is more important to me considering he doesn't do anything else well.

A lot of his TOs come from the team not having any chemistry. It's not just Vasquez. Everyone is turning the ball over because we have a lot of new players. On top of that, we have a very young team that he is working with, and they don't know their roles yet.

[Snarly]

A lot of his TOs come from the team not having any chemistry. It's not just Vasquez. Everyone is turning the ball over because we have a lot of new players. On top of that, we have a very young team that he is working with, and they don't know their roles yet.

He is very careless with the ball. He is guaranteed at least 1 or 2 turnovers because of this. Some of his turnovers are due to making risky passes and forcing the issue, others are due to him being out of control during penetration. I don't see chemistry as the issue here. He knows where certain players like to have the ball and does a good job getting it to them.

[goat gorilla]

I am probably one of the few here who think with the right cast GV is starter quality. He has noticeably progressed and is getting better with each game. And he has the drive to continue to get better. With better wings his defensive deficiencies won't be as apparent. Also I believe with more and more experience and chemistry the turnovers will decrease and assist will increase. Leaving his shooting, well as many have said in regards to aminu and rivers, shooting is the easiest to improve. I say he is our starter for some time unless a nice trade comes along.

[Snarly]

I am probably one of the few here who think with the right cast GV is starter quality. He has noticeably progressed and is getting better with each game. And he has the drive to continue to get better. With better wings his defensive deficiencies won't be as apparent. Also I believe with more and more experience and chemistry the turnovers will decrease and assist will increase. Leaving his shooting, well as many have said in regards to aminu and rivers, shooting is the easiest to improve. I say he is our starter for some time unless a nice trade comes along.

I would agree with that. He definitely needs to play with more control. The poor shooting and turnovers need to be limited for him to take the next step.

[DroopyDawg]

Drive up your trade value Gravy!

[Pelicans78]

Wow, a breakout season? Really? Who writes this stuff.

[AD23forMVP]

Rather see him gone.

[JJackisangry]

Hes too unathletic not to be a great shooter if that makes any sense. If he cant defend or shoot, and hes not fast or athletic.. hes not good enough. Hes got way more shortcomings than qualities.

[bojangles837]

He is very careless with the ball. He is guaranteed at least 1 or 2 turnovers because of this. Some of his turnovers are due to making risky passes and forcing the issue, others are due to him being out of control during penetration. I don't see chemistry as the issue here. He knows where certain players like to have the ball and does a good job getting it to them.

i feel like half of his turnovers come from when he drives, realizes hes slower than the guard guarding him, tries to kick it out to the wing when no ones in a position to get the pass and the other team just gets a easy pass to grab that usually ends in a fast break score

[The JNR]

Hes too unathletic not to be a great shooter if that makes any sense. If he cant defend or shoot, and hes not fast or athletic.. hes not good enough. Hes got way more shortcomings than qualities.

Yeah, I think that's why he's been working on his 3pt shot. He knows that he needs it to be able to keep his job.

[GeneralGreivis]

I'm a huge Vasquez fan since he came from UMD and have watched literally every game he has played in in college and the NBA. From what I've seen out of Greivis in the NBA so far I feel he isn't playing with the same enthusiasm and passion he did in college. No way am I saying he is not as interested or in love with the game, but he hasn't shown the fire that he did with the Terps. Being such a limited player athletically, I feel he used his emotional energy to step his game up and compete. On Monday I got a little nostalgic watching him shoot those pull up threes and play with a little more swagger and confidence jawing at the clips fans at the end of the game. The performance he had against LA is what I expect from him at a minimum, honestly. Not numbers wise, but with that physicality and aggressiveness. He seems like a different player when he doesn't play 150% every night. At Maryland he was the General and took over every game whenever he wanted, now at the next level he is playing cautious and afraid to play too hard. I have to say he is improving every game and starting to play more like I'd like him too, though. I hope he continues to do well and play like he used to. Of course my thoughts are very biased, so don't mind me if I sound dumb.

Here are some videos that I watch before Vasquez plays lol hoping to see some repeats

He can be a decent defender when he is aggressive and alert in college and the nba

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UjWd92XE1Rw skip to 3:39, he drained it to the tune of "Deport Vasquez!" I believe

Love this one http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SGc4KaPS3fw notice the fans "booooo" when vasquez had the ball and "oooohhh" when he passed it on the last play. every acc team hated him



He was famous for his "shimmy" at MD as well, surprised there arent more videos of it http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cui-p0_efMI the guy at 0:33 knows whats up in his draft video

[NemesisKING]

I am probably one of the few here who think with the right cast GV is starter quality. He has noticeably progressed and is getting better with each game. And he has the drive to continue to get better. With better wings his defensive deficiencies won't be as apparent. Also I believe with more and more experience and chemistry the turnovers will decrease and assist will increase. Leaving his shooting, well as many have said in regards to aminu and rivers, shooting is the easiest to improve. I say he is our starter for some time unless a nice trade comes along.

So he is a starter based on other players' talent.

[goat gorilla]

No but we are a winning team based on other players talents. And that is how a pg should be gauged, with wins and the performance of his teammates due to him facilitating. We don't need him to be the best player on our team. Many of teams have been championship teams without their pg as the first second or third option.

My points are that:
He will become a better shooter with work- he has shown the aptitude to be a hard worker.

He will be a better passer and scorer with chemistry and superior talent causing better spacing.

With experience he will make less stupid passes.

He won't be focal point of offense when Gordon returns therefore he won't try to play outside his abilities.

Gordon has the ability to bring ball up if they decide to press GV. Less turnovers.

With more athletic wings defensive switches will occur if there is a obvious mismatch.

Faster rotations by the other wings will help compensate if he is too slow.

Along with several more reasons.

GV is perfectly fine at running this team and if he continues to progress Rivers will not be unseating him before 2-3 more years. Fact is hornets fans are spoiled when they thinkof pg play. Is he a world beater no, but he definitely is good enough and with 2 more years of experience undoubtedly.

[kclaboy504]

i feel like some of u guys think we are going to have an all star at every position lol...i mean this kid is pretty much just starting his career in the nba as a starter and i think hes doing a dam good job of it considering the circumstances he has to work with...were u expecting chris paul results??...yea he is a bit slower than some but he has a killer instinct on big shots and aint scared of the big moment..4th in assist is pretty dam good if u ask me..again considering the circumstances with this team...even tho he is 20th in in assist/turnover ratio there are 30 nba teams so he is a starting pg in this league...can u guys name 29 pg's that u would rather have over this kid?? i think not...cut this kid a break and appreciate his wanting to be here and caring about winning...we can win with this kid at pg there is no doubt in my mind we can

[Vinny6420]

I love having Vasquez on the team, he is a beast, smart, his shooting is getting better too

[jacklvyn]

Early in the summer, hornets247 blog predicted Vasquez to be most improved hornets this season. They considered the fact that with Gordon and Davis, his assists will increase a lot.

Now it is after 15 games played. Look at how many games Gordon and Davis played with Vasquez and how many assists he got. Vasquez also contributes 13 points a game.

We have to say he did it not because he relied on his teammates to give him assists.


Thank you, Vasquez.

[nolaslim213]

I love having Vasquez on the team, he is a beast, smart, his shooting is getting better too

This ^. He has been shooting much better this season - especially his 3 pointer and his floater. For a PG like him, he needs to be able to hit those shots on a consistent basis because he won't get too many easy looks with his speed like most other PGs do.