You’re killing me, Smalls
This was color commentator Dominique Wilkins speaking on T.J. Ford in the first quarter of last night’s Hawks/Pacers game:
“He’s not a bench player. He’s a guy you have to have on the floor because he can make so many people around him better with his penetration ability.”
Even as a Pacers fan and somebody who respects Dominique’s opinion, I couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow at that one. Part of me wanted to believe, but a bigger part knew that if ‘Nique ever wants a coaching job, he’d better hope nobody heard that analysis.
Lo and behold, by the third and fourth quarters, T.J. was mostly on the bench as Earl Watson (20 pts) had stolen his minutes at point guard and earned Jim O’Brien’s trust. Ford (3 pts, 1-9 FG) only got back in after Watson got in foul trouble, and even then, all he did was take some ill-advised shots. For those looking for a scapegoat in a frustrating loss where the Pacers turned the ball over 25 times and gave up 120 points, Ford would be an easy pick.
Like so many of Indiana’s losses last season, they were plagued by bad decision-making, poor defense, and lack of offensive execution in crunch time. While franchise player Danny Granger (31 pts) has to play a big role in fixing those problems, Ford also has to be accountable as the starting point guard. Granger can score his 25-30 points per game, Troy Murphy can get his nightly double-doubles, and Roy Hibbert can turn into the Andrew Bynum of the East; but as I’ve said before, the Pacers won’t make the playoffs unless T.J. plays up to the potential his talent warrants.
The thing is, you want to see T.J. succeed. He’s the quintessential “little guy,” a 6-foot, 165-pound underdog who’s already overcome a potentially career-ending injury and returned to his old form. When he’s on, he’s one of the most exciting and explosive guards in the NBA and arguably the fastest player in the League.
But now in his seventh year as a pro, he still doesn’t seem to “get it.” He’s gone past the extra leeway you allow point guards to learn the pro game — the four or five years it took guys like Chauncey Billups and Devin Harris to catch on — and is now into Sebastian Telfair territory. Even though Ford has had success in the League and still puts up numbers (15 ppg, 5.3 apg last season), I’m thinking he’ll never be the lead guard on a contending team. His ceiling might be as a change-of-pace backup on a contender, like a rich man’s J.J. Barea or Shannon Brown.
On the positive side, Ford actually didn’t register any turnovers last night. And he was able to get to the rim regularly against Atlanta’s defense. The table was set this summer for T.J. to have a good season, primarily because Jarrett Jack’s departure could provide a sense of comfort and trust in the organization that he is their guy. Obviously it’s still early, but he’s off to a really bad start.
* Follow Austin Burton on Twitter: @AustinatDIMEmag
* Follow Dime on Twitter: @DIMEMag
* Become a fan of Dime Magazine on Facebook HERE
October 29th, 2009 at 3:52 pm
singharaj says:
What happened to Ford? I remember when he was coming out of Texas he was going to be some all-star caliber point guard. Did all those head injuries affect his basketball IQ?
October 29th, 2009 at 4:05 pm
Diggity Dave says:
You play like a giiiiiirl!
October 29th, 2009 at 4:10 pm
control says:
“he can make so many people around him better with his penetration ability”.
Was that guy calling a gay porn shoot or something? That’s the only place TJ can make a positive impact IMO. Guy hurts the team more than he helps it because of his ill advised jacking of shots randomly regardless of score, time left or game situation. He has HORRIBLE basketball IQ for a point guard.
October 29th, 2009 at 4:26 pm
Brown says:
Worst starting PG in the league. TJ’s ego is too big for him to come off the bench. He has a Napoleon complex. He wants to prove he’s a good basketball player, but has no idea how to do it. He has a scorer’s mentality and a sorry excuse for a jump shot, which is not a good combination.
There’s no player in the NBA I dislike more than TJ Ford simply because he just doesn’t know how to play basketball. He might shoot 1-9, but when he hits that one shot, he gets this smug look on his face like “see, I know how to play basketball.”
October 29th, 2009 at 4:38 pm
Rare Air says:
If by “He can make so many people around him better with his penetration ability”, you really mean “He can make so many people around him better with his pull up and shoot from 18 feet with 20 seconds left on the shot clock ability”, than dammit Nique’ you are absolutely right!
Please, I watched this chode for long enough when he was a lottery pick in Milwaukee to know that his game is nothing but overrated trash and will not be changing anytime soon.
October 29th, 2009 at 4:40 pm
Chicagorilla says:
WOW, didn’t know people had hate for TJ like that. I always liked him as aplayer when I saw him play. His speed changes the game. He has above avg passing skills, and is an reasonable defender. His shot is broke, which hurts. And everytime i see him play Chicago… he seems to be pissed off at Derrick Rose for some reason. It’s like he tries to go at Rose every time down court. and that ends up making him more emotional when he doesn’t get the calls he wants which in turn takes away from his team.
October 29th, 2009 at 4:44 pm
K Dizzle says:
So they played what? Like 1 game?
Today’s word is OATBRAN…
October 29th, 2009 at 4:44 pm
Spliff 2 My Lou says:
Earlier DIME had an article in which they proclaimed that Charlotte might be the worst team in the League but it could be Indiana. As much as I like Granger and Murphy you can’t be a playoff contender with those two as your best players. And you definitely can’t win with TJ Ford and his shoot first mentality as your point guard.
Off topic but Granger is on the road to being a one trick pony in the Al Harrington mold. I don’t know what happened to him. In college at UNM, Granger did it all. He scored from outside and in, he rebounded, passed well, and played stifling defense blocking a few shots per game. Now all he does is shoot from the corner. He’s better than that.
October 29th, 2009 at 4:45 pm
Chicagorilla says:
lmao@5 “Please, I watched this chode for long enough “
October 29th, 2009 at 4:47 pm
Chicagorilla says:
@spliff,
I can’t agree more with you on Granger. His post game was sick and he was a top level defender…then he had a coaching change and decided he had enough of that playing defense crap. Al Harrington is a good comparison
October 29th, 2009 at 4:49 pm
That's whats up says:
Tinsley + Ford = two selfish jackers that can’t play team ball
Tinsley + Ford = JACK-POT
…do they still have Tinsley on the payroll, but on home confinemet?
October 29th, 2009 at 4:50 pm
That's whats up says:
home confinement ?
when is he eligible for parole?
October 29th, 2009 at 4:50 pm
Diggity Dave says:
They waived him, and he’s currently refusing anything but a guaranteed contract. Good luck with that, after being out of the L for a year.
October 29th, 2009 at 5:01 pm
chris says:
pacers have earl watson, who has been in the league a few years now, and is finally going to get 30 minutes a game… i think watson is quicker, and a better 3 point shooter than jarret jack, and has better judgement, and is a way better 3 point shooter than tj ford..step in the right direction for the pacers, maybe not enough to get into the playoffs tho’.
October 29th, 2009 at 8:11 pm
Quinny says:
Funny how suddenly a lot of people aren’t giving any love to TJ. Wasn’t it just a short while ago that everyone was bashing Toronto for letting him go?
October 29th, 2009 at 9:20 pm
country boi says:
sebastian gets extra time for coming out of highschool lol
i swear wut he did was like history 6 ft out of high school
crazy
October 29th, 2009 at 10:00 pm
Promoman says:
The Pacers made a huge mistake by trading Jarrett Jack. When you get rid of someone to make someone else feel “secure” in doing a job that they can’t/won’t do in the 1st place, you’re asking to be in a world of shit. Granted, Jarrett fucks around with the ball too, but you’ll go further with him than you would with T.J.. Dominique was right in terms of saying that T.J.’s talented but he’s in the way defensively and sabotages the offense. He’s just another mini baller born in the Iverson/And 1 generation. Cats like that figure just because they’re small it means that they should have the freedom to do their thing rather than win.
October 29th, 2009 at 10:02 pm
Promoman says:
Hell, Chauncey went through 1/2 the league before he learned that point guard means to pass & defend as well as score.
October 29th, 2009 at 10:28 pm
jaydub114 says:
That was an unfair jab at Sebastian. He already gets what it takes to be PG, he’s just not a consistent enough scorer to stay on the floor and too small defensively.
October 29th, 2009 at 11:13 pm
spirow says:
Okay the man had a serious career ending injury . . . To his credit he’s still playing but not the way you expect him to. . . The mental factor could be a part of it when he’s always looking around for his saftey and team mates, things could get challenging. . . We had him in toronto, there was a point where he was amazing, beat any guy off the dribble and then shoot floaters . . .
October 29th, 2009 at 11:35 pm
King says:
I remeber when I saw him at a tournament when I was younger and he must of had like 10 assist in The first half alone. He was getting to lane at will and setting up teamates for easy shots and dunks. It’s stupid that he doesn’t make that the focal point of his game in the pros.
He can be one of best set up guys in thr legue if he just stopped looking for his own shot so much.
October 30th, 2009 at 1:06 am
SJ says:
“When he’s on, he’s one of the most exciting and explosive guards in the NBA and arguably the fastest player in the League.”
I have to disagree with this. He’s not exciting to watch even if he were to score 30 points. The dude is just frustrating to watch. A point guard who passes for shit. If he wants to be effective, he should use his speed to pull defenders in the lane and kick the ball out. He’s too little to run in and expect to get a good look without being blocked or manhandled.
And DAMNIT, I want the Pacers to make the playoffs this year. Maybe someone will pay off the refs with dinner or something.