Free Bruno damnit!

[NBASupes]

Let the man get real minutes #Bruno2020

[smoove31210]

Agreed

[JayBirdHawk]

FREE THE BRUNO!!!

I'd rather throw him in the fire and live with the results.

[JayBirdHawk]

TS on Bruno:

Q: Do you feel like getting a better rebounding big man is something that you are going to have to address either through trades, free agency or even the draft? 

Well, I think when you look at our roster, the only center that we have under contract for multiple years is Bruno, and he’s been getting around 10 minutes per game. We didn’t anticipate him coming in and being a huge factor, but I think in the limited minutes he’s gotten, he has shown us flashes, too. I’m pretty sure when he’s on the floor, that’s when we’re at our best defensive rebounding-wise. Some of that is limited minutes, but I do think he does have that physicality, athleticism and desire to get the ball that I was referring to.

[AHF]

None of our centers are averaging even 20 mpg. "Limited minutes" is not the reason we are rebounding better with him in than with our other centers (particularly Jones).

[macdaddy]

Hmm.  not sure about that.  Bruno is in the second tier of hawks in terms of defensive rebounds per36.  collins, len, parker and then everyone else.   Bruno is right there with Bembry.  

But he is better than Jones.  Not sure why Jones isn't a better rebounder.

[AHF]

21 minutes ago, macdaddy said:

Hmm.  not sure about that.  Bruno is in the second tier of hawks in terms of defensive rebounds per36.  collins, len, parker and then everyone else.   Bruno is right there with Bembry.  

But he is better than Jones.  Not sure why Jones isn't a better rebounder.

That is very fair.

TRB%

JC 15.2%

Len 14.8%

Bruno 12.6%

Parker 12.5% 

Jones 11.6%

Bembry 9.9%

[TheNorthCydeRises]

LP is missing a golden opportunity to play Bruno at the 4, so that the Hawks can stay somewhat big at all times.  Until Collins comes back, he should be the 2nd PF and the 3rd C, which means that he should be playing about 15 - 20 minutes a game.   The team is far and away a better rebounding and defensive team with him in the game, simply because he's the one big on the team that constantly runs out at open 3 point shooters.

And he has an offensive skill set that's not being tapped into, especially as a playmaker in the high post.

But LP loves Vince at the 4, so he's the "big man" he chooses to play at the PF spot.

I hate to rag on Vince, because he's always been one of my favorite players.  But if he can't be effective at his natural position, he shouldn't be forced to play out of position.  It's making him look a lot worse.

[TheNorthCydeRises]

5 hours ago, macdaddy said:

Hmm.  not sure about that.  Bruno is in the second tier of hawks in terms of defensive rebounds per36.  collins, len, parker and then everyone else.   Bruno is right there with Bembry.  

But he is better than Jones.  Not sure why Jones isn't a better rebounder.

Because Jones can't laterally move well.  He can jump vertically out the gym.  But his side to side movement is very poor.  He also reacts slowly to loose balls. ( pause )

Bruno is the 2nd best moving big man we have defensively, next to Collins.  

[JayBirdHawk]

 

Quote

Bruno Fernando couldn’t sleep on the short flight from Phoenix to Los Angeles a month ago. Even if he wanted to get a short nap in, he couldn’t. His thoughts felt suffocating. He arrived at the team’s hotel in Beverley Hills, went to his room and crawled into bed. He still couldn’t sleep. His mind raced and wandered.

 

Fernando needed help but felt like he was in a situation where the solution he sought didn’t rise from a particular problem he was facing, and it scared him. He couldn’t figure out what he needed to do and couldn’t pinpoint what was really causing his on-court struggles.

 

He wasn’t injured. He wasn’t out of shape. He still had the same skills he possessed at Maryland, the ones that got him drafted in the second round. Why couldn’t he find his footing in the league, he wondered.

 

He couldn’t control his thoughts the night before the Hawks were blown out by the Los Angeles Clippers. He stayed up all night. He wanted to text head coach Lloyd Pierce late at night but didn’t want to bother him as he slept, so he waited until 6 a.m. to ask if they could chat in Pierce’s room. They talked for more than an hour about basketball, how to navigate adulthood and everything a young player has to do to last in the NBA.

 

“Every player wants to be successful and wants things to go their way,” Fernando said. “That’s not always going to be the case right away. I was thinking about everything I put into getting to this point. I was thinking about everything I’ve done in my career so far. I was thinking about the struggles I’ve been having and how I can get better. I learned that I needed to be patient and not rush anything. I can’t seek perfection if I’m not willing to give it time. He gave me an example of Trae (Young) struggling in November and not to get discouraged with myself just because I was struggling. It’s hard when you’re struggling and you just can’t figure it out. It’s different when you’re going through struggles and you know the reason for them, but it’s totally different when you’re struggling and you don’t know why. That’s where I was at that night, and the conversation helped me a lot and made me realize I just need to relax and be patient.”

Patience is challenging for each of the young players on the roster — and especially for Fernando because he plays the least out of the rookies and second-year players. There are nights when Fernando sits for the first three quarters and is inserted late in the fourth quarter for garbage time. He might be fully rested by the time he goes in, but learning how to be impactful in meaningless minutes has been difficult for the rookie.

“Not knowing when you’re going to play or if you’re going to play is the hardest part,” Fernando said. “Just being ready whenever your name is called is tough. Sometimes, you’re sitting in the first, second and third, and then your name is called in the fourth to come in and make an impact with everyone else who has been on the floor already. You just have to get yourself in that mindset to get ready, and I feel like that’s the most challenging part for me right now.

“Every athlete wants to play and do whatever it takes to help their team win. At the same time, with this situation I’m in, I understand every decision the coaching staff makes. It’s a matter of time, and I have to stay patient, and when I do get my opportunity to try and perform the best I can to do whatever I can to help the team win.”

 

 

 

 

[TheNorthCydeRises]

That excerpt on Bruno just pisses me off even more, like no one else on the team has struggled even more than he has, and they've been in the league longer.

Bruno also sees Hunter and Reddish get every opportunity to play through their struggles out on the court, while Bruno can't even make one bad pass before coming out of the game after 3 minutes, despite the team overall still playing well.

Sitting on the bench is literally sucking the life out of him.

Send that dude to College Park ASAP, if. LP isn't going to play him. Let that dude just play ball, whether it's in front of 16,000 fans, or 160.

Sign a bunch of stiffs at C on 10 day contracts, and send Bruno to the G-League. 

Maybe he can help College Park win a G-League title, and get picked up by some other team that will utilize his entire skill set.

[JayBirdHawk]

11 minutes ago, TheNorthCydeRises said:

...and get picked up by some other team that will utilize his entire skill set.

...he can't get picked up by another team. 

[Spud2nique]

Seriously he’s kicking a$$ in 2K for me. You can spread the floor with Bruno.

 

Starters:

Trae

Huerter

Hunter

Parker

Bruno

Then Cam comes in for the role of Flip Murray. Put the ball in the hole 🕳 son! Even with ur slippery paws  

[macdaddy]

1 hour ago, TheNorthCydeRises said:

That excerpt on Bruno just pisses me off even more, like no one else on the team has struggled even more than he has, and they've been in the league longer.

Bruno also sees Hunter and Reddish get every opportunity to play through their struggles out on the court, while Bruno can't even make one bad pass before coming out of the game after 3 minutes, despite the team overall still playing well.

Sitting on the bench is literally sucking the life out of him.

Send that dude to College Park ASAP, if. LP isn't going to play him. Let that dude just play ball, whether it's in front of 16,000 fans, or 160.

Sign a bunch of stiffs at C on 10 day contracts, and send Bruno to the G-League. 

Maybe he can help College Park win a G-League title, and get picked up by some other team that will utilize his entire skill set.

I'm all for seeing Bruno play more but it's not like there aren't reasons.  Cam and Hunter are above average defenders and Bruno has looked lost a lot.   He's also 6'9" Center.  He's not better, right now, than the guys playing in front of him.  Cam and Hunter are the best options at their positions.

[AHF]

1 hour ago, macdaddy said:

I'm all for seeing Bruno play more but it's not like there aren't reasons.  Cam and Hunter are above average defenders and Bruno has looked lost a lot.   He's also 6'9" Center.  He's not better, right now, than the guys playing in front of him.  Cam and Hunter are the best options at their positions.

NorthCyde raises a good question for why he can't play some PF when his agility is pretty good for his size.  With Collins out, we are forcing some non-PFs to play minutes there.  Why can't Bruno get more of those to go with his center minutes?  

I'd like to see it (and I know you would too).  

[Spud2nique]

15 minutes ago, AHF said:

NorthCyde raises a good question for why he can't play some PF when his agility is pretty good for his size.  With Collins out, we are forcing some non-PFs to play minutes there.  Why can't Bruno get more of those to go with his center minutes?  

I'd like to see it (and I know you would too).  

I’d give it a shot. I mean even if he’s a tad slower on the defensive end, he presents issues for the opposition on the offensive end, there’s that.

[Thomas]

Thought Bruno would get twenty plus minutes after the All Star break at center before the season but as is if a more narrow role backing up PF gives him minutes then believe it reduces the negatives somewhat. If nothing else he likes to and is pretty good at finding open cats whether they brick the shot or not...or do definitely brick the shot to this point. He is physically big enough for that role at least.

[macdaddy]

Seems like the Lakers are about the only team that have gone big against us.  We are playing a lot of small ball with essentially 3 wings and the opposition does too.  That maybe some of the reason Bruno isn't getting in but i don't know.   I do think shrinking the rotation is a good thing but since it hasn't equaled wins i can see the argument of 'what's the point'.  

[NBASupes]

I felt he should be getting more PT but I want him to get minutes. Send him to CP if you aren't going to play him. 

[PSSSHHHRRR87]

Bump for start tonight