Martin is the perfect 6th man
Matt Martin has 15 in the first half as he comes off the bench and drags the Griz's asses back into the game. And the debate is on: starter or 6th man?
Let's lay out the facts, Griz were down 17-2 but are up 37-34 at half. Once again, Martin had 15.
I don't want to discuss it completely because I'm sure it'll come later via Gar and Sanchez but here's what I do with Martin: give him starter minutes but bring him in off the bench. Who knows what happens if he gets stuck in the same funk the starters were in or if he's out there when the Viks are knocking down everything?
He was perfect coming off the bench. He did exactly what he was supposed to: played like his hair was on fire and provided a giant offensive spark.
Great game so far by Martin. Finish it off.
Let's lay out the facts, Griz were down 17-2 but are up 37-34 at half. Once again, Martin had 15.
I don't want to discuss it completely because I'm sure it'll come later via Gar and Sanchez but here's what I do with Martin: give him starter minutes but bring him in off the bench. Who knows what happens if he gets stuck in the same funk the starters were in or if he's out there when the Viks are knocking down everything?
He was perfect coming off the bench. He did exactly what he was supposed to: played like his hair was on fire and provided a giant offensive spark.
Great game so far by Martin. Finish it off.
Tinks, PLEASE call Larry K and ask if you can stop punishing Martin now for the missed shot in the Milwaukee game 2 years ago. PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE. This is getting crazy! Martin was not even the 6th man tonight and he was as hot as can be. Then you have Martin sit almost all of the second half. Call Larry, enough is enough! PLEASE!
While the other guards really played well—the 4 shots from Cam and Stads were big—I was also surprised at Martin's limited playing time in the second half. Great game by CET... gradually becoming an offensively capable player.
What the HECK is wrong with Tinkle's mind?
The only words that should have come out of Tinkle's mouth at half time should have been, " Get the ball to Martin, he is on fire"!
"Keep getting him the ball until he misses at least 3 in a row".
BUT ... NOOOooooo .... After carrying the team on his back for the short amount of time he played in the first half, not only did Tinkle not start Martin, Martin hardly got to play the second half. Of course Martin did miss one shot, so in Tinkle's little mind, that's enough to bench Martin.
Tinkle, what in the heck are you thinking? It certainly isn't BASKETBALL ! Some guys are in a funk, MY BUTT!
Tinkle is the one in a funk, a Brain Funk.
In 17 minutes, less minutes than in a half, Martin gets 5 assists and 15 points. It took CE Taylor 32 minutes to get the same points, and 2 assists, and still Tinkle can't figure out Martin is , BY FAR , WITHOUT DOUBT, his best guard !
Tinkle has to go.
I couldn't believe that Martin sat nearly the entire second half. The stats aren't up yet, but I believe he only played 5 minutes and attempted only one shot (which was blocked) in the 2nd half! WTF!!!
In the first half our guys got down 15, yet came back to lead by 3 at half. I listened to the game on a Portland radio station internet feed. You could hear the fear they had of Martin. They kept calling him "that Martin guy" who was perfect from the floor in the first half, had 4 assists, and 0 turnovers. I was thinking way to go, Matt. Keep it up!
At the time I didn't realize he wasn't going to get back in the game.
It almost seems like Tinks has an idea of what you're supposed to do to win a game. If you get up on a team by doing it the wrong way, that's OK, because then you can change everything you were doing and play "the right way."
Coach, I know you think it's your team, but WE kind of think it's OUR team. UM is trusting you (and paying you a shitload of money) to get the most out of ALL your guys.
I'm curious as hell what a guy can do that's so disdainful that you'll sit him despite the fact that he's PERFECT fromt the floor, he's really the only one who was hot, AND he led the freakin' team in ASSISTS! And you sat his ass for the whole second half!!
Coach!!! C'mon, tell us. We want to know. WTF were you thinking?!?!?!?!
Jack
If I'm Tinkle I start him on the bench in the second half. I get him pissed again. Get him rearing and ready, then after about 2 or 3 minutes let him loose. If you say "get the ball to Martin and Martin will shoot," things are going to get out of control. However, Martin just got lost at the end of the bench. I mean the Griz guards were, for the most-part, excellent in the second half, but you can't just leave him down there with the game he's having.
Colin,
things are going to get out of control????????????
......
HOPEFULLY, as out of control as they were the first half.
Quit making silly excuses for Tinkle. He is constantly screwing up, and you make excuses for him.
He should tell Martin to ,"GO FOR IT", every game. That appears to be the only times we win.
I believe Tinkle would rather loose, than let people see how wrong his style of play is, and how right Martin's style is.
Tinkle, what a BOOB.
If Martin just got lost at the end of the bench, after the 1st half he had, then Tinkle is even a bigger IDIOT than I already think he is, and that's BIG.
Martin obviously didn't need to get mad and rearing to go. IF YOU HADN'T NOTICED, he already was rearing and going, and quite successfully I might add. Tinkle pis sed that away, AGAIN.
Coming off the bench worked in the first half, I'd do the same in the second. Halftime gives you a lot of time to think. A lot of time to say "I'm on, I can do it all by myself." Martin was doing it all by himself but that's a dangerous mentality and you're playing with fire. What if he comes out, shoots, shoots, shoots and goes ice cold. He's essentially done for the night because you rode him too much. You do the same in the second because it couldn't have worked any better in the first. There's a completely different mentality coming off the bench. Martin plays best with that mentality.
- Colin
The LEAST you could do is try it.
Like Gar said,
"Keep getting him the ball until he misses at least 3 in a row".
At least you would know if he was still hot or not, but you DO NOT just bench him because you don't like the way he was winning.
Sanchez -
I agree that you CANNOT bench him the way Tinkle did. I'm not saying you do. I'm saying you start him there. Give him the same role that made him produce at the highest level. I'm not even saying give him the same amount of minutes in the first half. Just like 2:00 (or less if things go sour) on the bench to start it, keep him a little modest and give the Viks a false sense of security. Then, let him loose. Once again, keep him in the same mindstate that made him produce.
- Colin
All I am saying is, just because you have a long time out, called half time, you should pick up right where you were, and let it run it's course.
You will never keep your players motivated when they go, "What the Hell do I have to do to get some respect from that guy?
I disagree, I think Martin is at his finest with that type of thought in his head.
I hear people talk about Martin being cocky and throwing them up from everywhere. There's probably a little truth to that. But when everything he's throwing up is going in, you ride that horse until it stops.
Also, he wasn't just having a good shooting night!! He was having a career freakin' game. In something under 12 minutes of the 1st half, he had 4 assists, 0 turnovers, and was getting himself to the line, drawing fouls or dishing. When you sit a guy in the middle of a game like that, you are not just telling HIM that performance isn't enough to earn playing time ... YOU ARE SCREAMING IT IN THE FACE OF EVERY PLAYER ON THE TEAM.
You can bet your ass that every guy on the floor - both teams - realized the game Martin was having. Yet he got yanked!
Do think his team mates don't wonder what's up with that? I guarantee you, when someone is making everything he puts up, EVERY OTHER GUY OUT there wants to feed him the ball. They all want to win! Tonight the Griz had a weapon that they don't see every game. Coach took it away from them. S'pose the guys wonder why?
You think Matt doesn't "share the ball"? Take a look at his assist numbers. If you think he doesn't do anything on defense, take a look at his steals. If you think he doesn't have handle, take a look at his Ast/Trn ratio. And ... if you think he's throwing it up too often ... again ... take a look at his PPS rating. Maybe he takes some shots that don't look good to you and I. I guarantee he thinks they're makeable or he wouldn't take them. Even with the shot selection he picks, he makes 43+ % of them. I can tell you two things about the "I can make that" perspective. ALL good 3pt shooters have it. They don't just flip the ball up there on a whim. When they get a shot they know they can make, they take it. Of course, they don't always make it. But 43% is pretty damn respectable. Then, know this. Even even with his "questionable" shot selection, he's still got the highest PPS rating on the team. He's the 3pt shooter. Why would you, I, or anyone else who can't shoot like him think we can tell him the "right way" to do something at which he's already so successful?
So, regardless of what you, I, or Coach think of his shot selection, HE'S THE MOST EFFICIENT SCORER ON THE TEAM, given his PPS rating. I don't care how you slice it, the guy with the highest PPS should be taking the most shots. PERIOD!! And if that guy happens to be a damn good combo guard, gets assists, rebounds and protects the ball ... YOU PLAY HIM! You don't sit him because he's not 6'8".
i too don't believe tinkle quite knows what he's doing. all the guards played well the second half and martin should of played more and been one of them.i'm surprised he did'nt pull cam and stauds when they both scored back to back buckets each because when the guards take too many shots that is what he usually does, even if they make them. they really should be playing the good freethrow shooters too.(matt is the best at that too but i don't doubt tinkle does'nt know it.)
Sometimes I get upset that things aren't going the way I think they should for the Griz. Generally, I'm a pretty rational, logical guy who tries to keep his emotions from over-riding his brain.
I get frustrated seeing what I believe to be great talent produce such pathetic results. I don't think it's the players.
I think everyone on this blog has a slightly different take on where improvment could happen. That probably means theres plenty of things that could help. But it seems like we keep seeing the same old things being tried and "almost working." We "almost" won that game. There've been half a dozen that went right down to the end and we "barely lost". Yet, we came out on the short end of the stick EVERY TIME.
It's not because we don't have guys who can shoot. It's not because we have no rebounders or shot blockers. It's not because we have no one who can get to the hoop or drive and dish. We have those guys. But, usually when we "just barely lose", it's because we waste opportunity when it really counts.
There's got to be someone who knows what to do. One would hope that's the coach and that he could convey the plan to the guys on the floor. One would also hope that Coach wouldn't be afraid to determine who wants the ball and get it to him. When it comes to taking the last shot, not everyone wants to do that. Guys who want it are going to feel the least pressure. Run a good set for whoever that is. Don't pick your hero, put him under a bunch of extra pressure, and then try to clear him if his defender has been in his jersey all night.
Anyway, sometimes we all get wound up. I hope I'm not offensive to those I disagree with. We all want the same thing ... Griz wins ...
The other teams in the BSC look at OUR coaching staff as THEIR best defense! This isn't the first coaching staff that has wondered where Martin went and why. Very sad! There is no way that he should be the 6th man or seventh or eight or..
http://blog.oregonlive.com/portlandstatevikings/2008/02/_here_ are_the_links.html
After Martin swished one of his threes and then went to the bench, Glanville shook his head and asked why the coach would take him out. Told it might be for defensive reasons, Glanville delivered the line of the night:
"You don't ask Liberace to carry the piano."
FIRE TINKLE ... FIRE TINKLE ... FIRE TINKLE ... FIRE TINKLE ... FIRE TINKLE ... FIRE TINKLE ... FIRE TINKLE ... FIRE TINKLE ...