deconstructing - Shawn Bradley - inlcudes related articles

Sporting News, The, March 22, 1999 by Ken Amos

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RELATED ARTICLE: THE PANELISTS

BUZZ BRAMAN

"If you asked him, `Do you mind shooting 10 free throws a game?' he would go, `Hell, no!' Why? He knows he's going to make eight out of 10. If he had 10 jumpers at 16 feet, he probably wouldn't think he could make six. I think that he's extremely capable of doing that."

PETE NEWELL

"You don't have any hips if you stand straight up. And his first five years of his career he wasn't required to stay low, so it's pretty hard for Nellie now to lower that down. Bradley has shown no propensity for doing it, and he'll never be a post player unless he learns to play low--knees flexed and butt out."

CLIFFORD RAY

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"If he were to get into the best shape of his life, the best condition ... so that he could have endless stamina, then I don't think anyone could play with him.... He could wreak havoc on a team."

RELATED ARTICLE: THE CASE STUDY

Believing Bradley's development was stifled during his time with Philadelphia and New Jersey--teams in search of instant offense--Mavs assistant coach Donn Nelson says, "Whenever you're that tall and your body type (and center of gravity) is like that and you're expected to be a 7-6 savior, it's a bad mix. Shawn is a case study."

We couldn't agree more.

THE SPORTING NEWS enlisted three bright NBA minds to examine different components of Bradley's game and tell us what, if anything, needs fixing.

* Buzz Braman

Credentials: Known as the NBA "Shot Dr.," Braman was the first full-time shooting coach in league history (with the 76ers in the late '80s). He once made 738 consecutive free throws and sank 1,121 of 1,144 free throws (nearly 98 percent) in one hour. He also hit 246 of 250 3-pointers. Braman analyzed the technical components that make up Bradley's shots by reviewing tapes of six recent games in which Bradley averaged 7.5 points, 6.3 rebounds and four blocked shots.

Thoughts: "I was surprised at how much Shawn has improved. His free throws were really nice mechanically. He has great natural touch. I think he's right there, second only to (Rik) Smits in terms of natural touch and shooting ability for a big man."

Braman says any player who can shoot 80 percent from the foul line can shoot regardless of their height. "To not have that as part of your offensive game ... that's where I would try to do something with him," he says. "What is evident is that Bradley does not have a polished offensive game. At this point, I would throw out the fact that he's 7-6, saying, `You're a pivot man, get down there in the low post,' because it's obvious he doesn't have the upper body strength to bang down there.... I've always believed that height has nothing to do with what you can do to develop your game.... And touch, you can't teach."

Braman believes Bradley should try to refine his 15-foot game. "He needs to develop a triple-threat game; meaning catch, turn and face, like the game Karl Malone has," Braman says. "But what (Bradley) does on his free throw is not what he does on his jump shot. This is a very common error with players."

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deconstructing - Shawn Bradley - inlcudes related articles

Sporting News, The, March 22, 1999 by Ken Amos

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