Reminds me back in 2006 when the Lakers nearly signed me to a 10 day contract and me and Kobe would have combined for 81 against the Raptors!

I was actually going to post and ask whether people felt Ingles and Exum have been doing enough to warrant their minutes lately. 20 plus minutes and they accounted for only 8 points between them.

I remember a few years back thinking how fantastic it was to have 3 Aussies (Bogut, Andersen and Jawai) all playing on the same day. I never even dreamed it would get to where it is now. Absolutely love it!!

GWB, from what I've seen they have definitely not, especially Dante. Joe has been alright but Dante has not improved since he started at the PG. Burke has been playing really well of late, so there must be some issue that I am unaware of with him and management as to why he isn't starting.

Baynes the star of the Aussies imo.

Joe's been playing really well of late. He's been knocking down the 3 and spreading the floor. His playmaking is a real asset and he's also changed some games with his defensive intensity. He seems much more confident now that he's starting and has taken on more of a leadersihp role out on the floor. I noticed him pulling Gobert aside a couple of times today after the young Frenchman made a couple of errors.

Dante's minutes are developmental game time. Clearly at 19 he's not ready for a starting role just yet, but his defense has been remarkably solid. He fights over screens and has great court awareness. His work today on Lillard was excellent. There was one play in particular on the break 1-on-1 where he had no right keeping the attacker in front of him, but he did an incredible job and held up play just long enough for Gobert to swoop in for the big block from behind. It was the defensive play of a seasoned vet.

He's still not attacking nearly enough and is way too timid on offense, but he's not overtly hindering his team either. He moves the ball and looks for the open man. I noticed he got caught up in the emotion of the game today, chest bumping Booker after a big break-away dunk. Then he came out in the 4th with a lot more intent and played particularly well during a stretch where the Jazz pulled away from the Blazers. Kaman got switched on to him at one point, and he confidently read the mismatch and knocked the 3 ball down in his face. His ball handling is improving rapidly. You can see the world of potential in him, he just needs time and development.

I'm really impressed with Snyder as a coach though. Our boys are in good hands.

I was at the Warriors Spurs last night & Baynes had a big role early in the game with the pick & roll. I was pretty close to the Spurs bench & in one instace Baynes look frustrated when he came off & Pop just strolled down to him & patted him on the head.
Later in the game he hammered Bogut and it was announced that it would be under review by the League Office.

Mills was pretty quiet & Bogut played some great D.

Awesome game to see in the flesh

Mystro,

How did you get your tickets for the game and what did they cost?

People who get butthurt and oversensitive about perfectly reasonable criticism of a player, just because the player happens to be an aussie, are equally lame IMO.

l Bought them off NBA.com with my MasterCard and payed about $550-600 NZD ea from memory. My friend shouted me better seats last season at the TD Garden in Boston (right behind the scorers bench on halfway) but he makes real good money and he pretty much paying for me steering clear of his sister when we were kids

I agree with Dunkin Dan. When I brought up the fact that Ingles/Exum aren't really producing enough to justify their minutes, I say it with concern for them - Not as some sort of tall poppy hater.

The truth is they aren't producing right now. Obviously that needs to change or they face the risk of teetering their way out of the league. Exum has a bit more time up his sleeve than Ingles does. Ingles has been a good role player, but if for some reason the Jazz cant keep him next season, will anyone else pick him up on his current production? I wouldn't be guessing so.

I am a huge fan of Joe Ingles, but in the end of the day, he needs to produce to stay. He needs to be willing to take a few more shots and to do more than just be a good presence and head on the bench if he wants more time in the league. Facts are facts. We are talking about someone who is going to be 28 this year. NBA chances start wearing thin when you approach 30. Joe can definitely do it.

As for Exum, he is dancing around being the player he could be. His outside jump shot has proven to be much better than predicted. His defensive effort is also very good. As is his passing. However, he is doing little of the one thing everybody saw in him. Penetration! He can hit a three all he likes, but until he makes the defence in the key pay, he is only going to realise a small amount of his potential. He is doing "ok", considering he is 19 years old. But seeing as we don't have a crystal ball, I see his trajectory going like this. He either becomes creative, gets to the ring, looks to score more, bulks up, becomes a genuine NBA player/star. Or, he continues playing like he is. He doesn't ever really get the guts to take it inside... rather he perfects his outside shot. He finds himself in the bunch of hundreds of other players who can pass and hit the three. And he becomes either a bench role player, or ends up playing his career out in Europe.

Both Exum and Ingles have shown signs of being very good. Both do deserve time invested in them. But I think fans and administration will start expecting more from them soon. There are a lot of great players who would love to take their places.