i) The coaching is the main difference between his play in brooklyn compared to dallas. i'm not saying carlisle is literally out there performing like deron is, but that's the difference in his play so far.
That's a big difference to what you initially said about his play. He's a shell of his former shelf, let's not act like he's playing great this season. He's had far better stretches during his time in Brooklyn.
His second season in Brooklyn he averaged 19 ppg on 44% shooting (37% 3-pt shooting on 5.7 attempts) and 7.7 apg, playing 78 games. That's considerably better than what he's done so far in 18 games - 15 ppg on 43% shooting (37% 3-pt shooting on 3.9 attempts) and 5.8 apg. I mean shyt he had months where he'd averaged 20-25 ppg.
March 2013 - 22 ppg on 47% shooting
April 2013 - 24 ppg on 52% shooting
I don't think it's due to the injuries he had in brooklyn and you even said in your post he's still dealing with some injuries now, so it can't simply be due to injuries that he played much worse over there. Yes I was wrong in saying he never got to this level of play since he was actually better than this at the start, but it's true it just got worse over time even during what should have been his prime years.
How can you sit there and type this when injuries robbed him of maintaining any sort of elite play? It gradually got worse over time because the severity and regularity (lingering effect) meant he couldn't regain his game - which was compounded by the fact of his unwillingness to live up to expectations. His numbers and play were better two seasons ago, than they are right now. You're severely overvaluing his play so far this season.
- On March 18, 2011, Williams injured his right wrist in a 110-95 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks. He was placed on the injured list with a strained tendon in his right wrist two days later amid whispers the Nets were shutting him down for the season. He returned to the active lineup on March 31st.
- On April 6th, 2011, he was placed again on the injured list, with the official report a “sore right wrist” that would keep him out for the season. On April 11th, 2011, Williamsunderwent surgery on that wrist to remove bone fragments and scar tissue.
- Williams wouldn’t miss any more games until January 4th, 2012, sitting out with sore ribs. Also my favorite Fred Kerber tweet ever.
- From March 10th through 16th, 2012, Williams missed four games with a right calf injury.
- Williams returned for a month before missing five more games from April 16th to April 26th, ending his 2011-2012 year year.
- On October 27th, 2012, Williams said he might need offseason surgery on his left ankleafter receiving a cortisone shot to lessen inflammation in the ankle. He sat out two practices.
- On November 1st, 2012, Nets general manager Billy King downplayed bone spurs in Williams’s ankle, saying they’d get cleaned out after the season. Williams never had the surgery.
- Williams sat out December 26th, 2012 with a sore right wrist. Nets coach Avery Johnson was fired the next day.
- On February 11th, 2013, Williams officially went on the injured list with an ankle injury, undergoing platelet-rich plasma therapy treatment and cortisone shots on both ankles heading into the All-Star Break. He also reportedly did a detoxifying juice cleanse. He returned to the active roster on February 19th.
- On February 17th, 2013, Jerry Colangelo said that Deron Williams was “unfit” during the Olympics that summer.
- On February 23rd, 2013, it was reported that Williams had received at least eight injections on his ankles in the last four months.
- On March 17th, 2013, finally healthy, Williams admits that his ankles “felt like s—.”
- On April 15th, 2013, Williams was placed on the injured list with a left knee injury. He was re-activated two days later in time for the playoffs.
- On September 18th, 2013, the Nets announced that Williams had sprained his right ankle while working out at his home in Utah within the month. He was fitted for a walking boot and was expected to make a full recovery in time for training camp, but did not return to contact in practice until October 22nd, and did not play until the team’s last preseason game on October 25th.
- Three weeks later, Williams missed 11 games between November 16th and December 7th with a sprained left ankle. He originally injured the ankle on November 15th, returning to the Nets on November 20th and re-spraining the ankle on a bad fall. He was officially listed as day-to-day each day.
- Williams missed three games between January 6th and 10th, 2014, telling team doctors he felt pain in the ankle. Following an MRI, the team officially diagnosed him with a sprained left ankle.
- The team officially put Williams on the IL on January 11th to undergo platelet-rich plasma therapy treatment and cortisone shots. He missed the team’s week-long trip to London and was re-activated on January 20th. He came off the bench for six games before returning to the starting lineup.
- Williams rested the final few days of the 2013-14 season with what was deemed “right patella tendinitis.” With the Nets resting starters heading to the playoffs, it was not considered a serious injury.
- During the team’s exit interviews on May 15th, Williams said he would undergo an MRI on both ankles on Friday, May 16th, to determine if he required surgery. He met with the team’s foot & ankle specialist Martin O’Malley the following Monday for further evaluation.
- On May 22nd, the team announced that Williams will have surgery on both ankles. The surgery was performed on May 27th, and removed bone spurs from the front and back of his left ankle, cleaned out his left ankle joint, as well as a loose bone fragment from his right ankle. The surgery put him in two walking boots, with an expected recovery time of three to six weeks.
- On December 19th, Williams left a game against the Cleveland Cavaliers with a right calf injury. An MRI diagnosed the injury as a low-grade calf strain, and would sideline him for two games. Williams returned to the lineup by coming off the bench for six straight games.
- On January 4th, 2015, Williams suffered two separate injuries to his left side, calling the first a “tweak” and the second a “cramp.” Williams sat out the team’s game the next day.
- On January 7th, Williams, who was listed as “doubtful” by the team before being activated, played four minutes before leaving in pain. The team officially diagnosed Williams with a fracture to the cartilage portion of his 12th left rib after an MRI, sidelining him for 11 games between January 9th and February 2nd.
- On April 27th, though it did not cause him to miss any games, teammate Joe Johnson said Williams had dealt with some “pretty bad tendinitis” in the team’s first-round playoff loss to the Atlanta Hawks. Williams scored a season-high 35 points the next day, but only scored 36 points in the other five playoff games combined.
ii) So he was never healthy for 4 years ? I know he had a lot of injuries, but come on, it's not all due to injuries that his play was shyt and Pierce even called out his poor work ethic and lackluster effort. he just didn't like playing in brooklyn
I didn't say he was "never healthy", but as you can see from the above list - his time in Brooklyn was riddled with injuries from the start to the very end - most of them lingering when he did come back and having a follow-on effect leading to another one from either a) overcompensating b) not being completely healthy.
iii) I recall him getting to this level in his first year and in parts of his second year, but then the few good games became more and more infrequent.
His second year in Brooklyn was arguably his best. Last season was his worst. He played better in 2014 (still plagued by injuries) in stretches, than what he's doing so far this season. As I mentioned earlier let's not act like 18 games this season, is any indication of him playing better than he did in 2014:
December 2013 - 15 ppg on 48% shooting, 8 apg
January 2014 -15 ppg on 51% shooting, 6 apg
March 2014 - 16 ppg on 46% shooting, 5 apg
Didn't know Nicholson could do that
