Back in April, Rick Reilly of ESPN.com discussed Jimmer Fredette. Reilly said “If his last college game is what he’s bringing to the NBA, then I’d say, in five years, he’s got a really good chance to be your Provo area Isuzu dealer.” In another article, he said, “I’ll donate $5,000 if he starts a game, any game, his first year in the league. I’m serious.”
Well, Reilly made out the check a few weeks ago when Jimmer started a pre-season game for the Sacramento Kings. Quoting from Reilly, “In the check’s memo line, I wrote: Crow.” Reilly had quite a few complimentary things to say about Jimmer.
I said he wouldn’t be able to get off his shot off in the NBA. So far, in two preseason games, he’s averaged 16.5 points. He’s been pyrotechnic from the wider NBA 3-point arc (67 percent). His handle is tighter than a coffee pot’s. His rebounding and defense still have more holes than a Danielle Steele novel, but, all in all, he’s been jaw-droppingly good.
But here’s the best part:
And now it looks like he has a chance to become the Tim Tebow of the NBA.
Tim Tebow plays for the team I hate the most in the NFL: the Denver Broncos. Yet I like Tim Tebow. I can’t not root for the guy, even if I hate his team. For a guy everybody said would be a bust in the NFL, and thought the Broncos were crazy to take him in the first round, Tebow has reeled off 6 consecutive wins in the closing minutes of games–all in miraculous fashion, then dumped 3 in a row, only to beat the Steelers yesterday on the first play of overtime. (Here’s hoping my Patriots don’t let Tim do any magic next week.)
Tebow expresses his religion more than anybody in recent memory. (He’s a Southern Baptist. Perhaps Reggie White came close.) To top it off, Saturday Night Live did a funny bit on Tebow (and called Tom Brady “God’s nephew”.) It’s good in it’s own right, but there was a very funny reference at the tail end of the skit, so watch it all the way to the end.
What’s your take on Jimmer or Tebow?
Wheat & Tares 
Don’t watch BB at all so i cannot comment on Jimmer. but, I did have to watch the Broncos- Steelers yesterday since we know have early Church.
I am not a Broncos fan and not a football in fan in general having never forgiven the Rams from leaving LA.
But, it was an exciting game. I was impressed with a number of things. Tebow was good, no doubt and that pass in the OT period was unreal.
but, as good as he was, the Steelers defense was bad. They applied zero pressure to Tebow most of the game. The Bronco offensive line looked exceptional and I am not sure they are that good. And while the Steelers offense put them back in the game, their D let them down.
So while, I would not take away from Tebow’s play, because it was very good, the Steelers defensive deficiencies were very apparent.
It will be interesting to see how they do against the Pats.
Most people who ripped Jimmer didn’t really watch him play all that much (later games out West), and they overlooked the fact that he led the team in assists, also. If he works really hard on his defense, he has a chance to be special; if not, he still will be a solid scorer and overall player.
Tebow is cool, largely because he really does appear to have handled all the extreme, fanatical statements from the religious zealots and not let it go to his head. I admire that. He wears his religion on his sleeve, but he’s not obnoxious about it. I admire that, as well. He also appears to be non-hypocritical about it.
I root against the Broncos, but I like that Tebow is giving his haters fits right now.
It’s strange to rip a guy who can rain 3-pointers like its the Amazon. Seriously, the man can shoot a basketball. Agree with Ray, if steps up on defense he can be great. If not, he’ll just be decent (at least in the NBA).
Not sure about Tebow. I really dislike the SEC, so perhaps I hold that against him. Not sure.
I think it is just a matter of time before each is knocked down really hard. What they are like when they get up will determine how pro they are. Also, for Jimmer, how his legs hold up in the long NBA season.
When your home team starts the season 0-8, you don’t notice the NBA, so I’ll pass on Jimmer comments.
But I loved all the experts on the NFL yesterday having their mouths zipped shut as the mighty 12-4 Steelers got ripped for long gain after long gain after giving up only 14 points a gaim all season. Indeed, if the refs hadn’t blown the fumbled lateral call in the red zone, the game would never have been close to overtime.
Bob, have you seen Jimmer’s build?
I understand that stanima is an issue for college players going to the NBA, but dude is strong – and he’s been knocked down and around in his career up to now. Physically, he’s bigger and stronger than John Stockton ever was, so I’m not worried about that nearly as much as his effort to learn to defend.
Having said that, Stockton wasn’t that good a defender – because he had to stay in the game and lead the offense for so many minutes each game. He was willing to go into the paint and set screens for the big guys – which ticked off the other team’s big guys but made him resepcted throughout the league for his toughness. If Jimmer is willing to do that, he could be great even if he only improves his defense to mediocre.
However, I’m not sure his coach(es) will ask / require him to do that, so it might end up being defense that decides who he will be in the long-run.
Oh, and 67% from the 3-point area is stupid good. I can’t believe he will be able to maintain that level (or even close), but it’s just sick right now.
Jimmer hasn’t maintained the 67% rate on 3-pointers from his first two preseason games. At present, he’s shooting just under 30% (11 of 37) from behind the arc — which is not elite, but is not bad at all. (See http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/f/fredeji01.html ). A more serious issue is that he’s only shooting 36% overall on field goals. He’s going to have to improve that number a lot if he wants to be a starter in the league.
But yes, he’s definitely good enough at the moment to be a quality bench contributor for a non-elite team. If he continues to improve, he could be more.
I believe Jimmer will surprise many people. College ball is only one indicator. It is hard to measure determination, drive and love of sport. Those are powerful for success. The only reason I see that Jimmer might not maintain the percentage of 3 points is the coverage they put on him. He found a way to get through it at BYU.
Football: I’m glad to see Denver and the 49er’s moving up again. They are my teams and it looks like the wait for their resurgence is paying off. Yeah football!!!
(For perspective, Jimmer’s current 3 point percent puts him at 90th place overall in the league. http://espn.go.com/nba/statistics/player/_/stat/3-points/sort/threePointFieldGoalPct/count/81 This isn’t great, but it’s not at all bad for a rookie. In fact, it’s the 13th best percent for a rookie so far this year: http://espn.go.com/nba/statistics/player/_/stat/3-points/sort/threePointFieldGoalPct/position/rookies/ ).
Thanks for the update on the %, Kaimi. I must have read an older report and not realized it.
Ray, the 67% was what Reilly said for the pre-season.
There are a lot of similarities between Jimmer and Tim. While a great shooter, Jimmer can’t play defense at all. It remains to be seen if he can improve in that area. As for Tebow, he’s a great runner, but it remains to be seen if he can be a great thrower. While his throwing has always been suspect, it is amazing that he hit 3 passes for over 50 yards yesterday.
Having said that, Stockton wasn’t that good a defender
Ray, you do know that Stockton is the all-time steals leader in the NBA, right? And that it’s not even close (he’s 700+ steals ahead of Michael Jordan, who is second on that list). And that he was named to the NBA’s all-defensive (2nd) team 5 times in his career, right?
Yes, Christopher, I do know that – but he was able to do that because Sloan put in a defensive system that allowed him to “wander” and cheat off his man. (Btw, a shout out to one of the best, most under-appreciated coaches in the history of the NBA is in order.) Stockton played in a system that allowed him to steal the ball as the “rover”; he wasn’t a good “defender”. There’s a difference, and, as a former coach, I believe in those distinctions.
Re Ray and Christopher-
Christopher said what I was gonna say, but I think Ray has a good point about Stockton. I suppose it’s a bit harder to measure how good someone is on defense. He consistently had to defend people bigger and faster than him (which is most NBA players) so I suspect any measure of defensive abilities wouldn’t be super.
Also, I recently read an article about an NBA player (can’t remember which). The guy, by all measurable statistics, did almost nothing. Few rebounds, few points, few blocks, few assists, few everything. And yet, the coach of the team was pointing out that when he was in the game, things changed. This guy made things happen. He made his teammates better, and he frustrated opponents. The coach thought he was indispensable even though it seemed he basically did nothing the whole game. It’s sort of like Mark Eaton of many years ago.
Living in Denver, Tebow is definitely not boring and made watching the Broncos interesting, even if they have serious holes in positions on the team.
I did not like Tebow from day 1, and thought the coaches were just giving fans what they want because their season looked doomed. It is really remarkable they not only made it to the playoffs, but won the Steelers game. It isn’t because of Tebow’s religion, but it may be because of his faith. He believes he can do it, so he never gives up or bows to the criticism. His teammates have responded because they know he’s geniune, even if a bit goofy. Bottom line, if he is helping them win, people like him. The ironic thing is he is so bad for 3 quarters, but stays positive and actually comes through when needed. The rest of the time McGehee and the defense are underacknowledged about how they are keeping the team in games.
Regarding Jimmer, his teammates don’t like him, and don’t seem to pass him the ball. The chemistry isn’t there. But all that can change if Jimmer can help win games.
Its always easy to hate on the hyped up goody-goody…which creates the atmosphere for a heroic struggle…rise above the criticism or crumble. So far, I’ve been as wrong as Reilly on Tebow.
I don’t believe God is even watching the games.
jimmer made his first regular season start last night and scored 7 points in a loss to the sixers on 2 for 7 shooting. hopefully he plays better in the future.
“I don’t believe God is even watching the games.”
There is a hilarious play called “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee” in which one of the contestants asks Jesus to answer a question. Jesus appears to her and answers the question – and, as he walks off stage, says, about the spelling bee, “Oh, and this is not something I care about.”
Yeah, there is that.
Did you see that 43% of Americans think that God is helping Tim Tebow on the football field? See http://offthebench.nbcsports.com/2012/01/12/poll-43-percent-of-people-think-god-helps-tebow-win-including-54-percent-of-republicans/related/
no miracles for tebow this week. glad my patriots won.
Just have the Bruins beat the Panthers tonight. 😀