Wednesday, December 16th, 2009 at 10:00 am  |  18 responses

Is Nene Too Unselfish?

According to his teammates (and some stats), Nene might be that rare case of an NBA player — gasp! — passing the ball a little too much: “Nene’s unselfish,’ Chauncey Billups explained, ‘and it’s a good feature to have, but sometimes it’s to a fault, because you’re like, ‘That guy can’t guard you! Just take him!’ I have to encourage him all the time. He’s getting better at it, though.’ Nene is a puzzle. He is averaging 13.3 points per game and is fifth in the league in shooting percentage (58.1), yet he’s a shoot-second big man (perhaps the first?). But then, there are nights he will be aggressive offensively — only in the first half. Entering tonight’s home game against Houston, Nene is averaging 8.1 points in first halves and 5.2 in second halves … Nuggets coach George Karl called Nene ‘an interesting guy,’ and said Nene cares more about the team operating effectively and efficiently than he cares about scoring — ‘and that’s unusual in our day of studs and stars.”‘

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  • MeloMan2.0 Posted: Dec.16 at 10:10 am
    yeppp… he definetly has brain cramps sometimes

  • twahc Posted: Dec.16 at 10:17 am
    if he steps up, nuggets will be unstoppable…

  • Hisham Posted: Dec.16 at 10:25 am
    Nene can really be a beast if he sets his mind to it. When you really think about the names on that Nuggets’ front court: Nene, Kenyon, Birdman, MELO, that should put fear in the hearts of every NBA big man out there. Except I don’t think it really does. And that’s just too bad.

  • Hisham Posted: Dec.16 at 10:34 am
    although melo is of course pretty frighteningly good

  • niQ Posted: Dec.16 at 10:38 am
    Wasn’t Brad Miller considered a shoot-second big?

  • cb 34 Posted: Dec.16 at 11:26 am
    Big Nene fan. One of the few players that use their left hand more than the right being a right handed player and all.Just like Jermaine and has better footwork than most of the starting bigs in the league. Very underrated passer too. I keep wondering who the biggest star in Brazil is. Is it him, Leandro or Andy?

  • kauhl Posted: Dec.16 at 12:40 pm
    @cb 34 Unfortunately, none of them is a real star here in Brazil. Basketball’s popularity here is down nowadays and that includes the NBA. Mainly because of poor management by the suits and our national team sucking big time for at least 15 years. I’d say Varejao gets more media attention because of his “man-child surfer” image and, of course, the hairdo. The general public doesn’t perceive him as the garbage-type player he is. Nene is hated by many, as he seldom plays for our national team. Every year he has a new excuse. He’s admired by others based on talent and potential. Basketball aside, I think his PR moves are terrible and he’s not the brightest person out there. I respect Barbosa because he always shows up to represent Brazil, but he’s not the leader or clutch player we’d like him to be. He’s just to humble. It’s not in his blood.

  • don Posted: Dec.16 at 1:46 pm
    i would pass to my teammates as well more ESPECIALLY if i had a tm8 averaging 30ppg.

  • Tarzan Cooper Posted: Dec.16 at 2:10 pm
    just a lil more aggressive and hed be at 16 or 17 ppg

  • robb Posted: Dec.16 at 2:42 pm
    As a Laker fan I thank Nene for being unselfish, because if he turns it up, man that could be dangerous. He’s good.

  • SAB Posted: Dec.16 at 3:43 pm
    this team is terribly coached

  • Jukai Posted: Dec.16 at 4:01 pm
    niQ: Yes.

  • Sporting-Lisbon-Blazers Posted: Dec.16 at 8:17 pm
    most complete center in the west…wish he was a Blazer…

  • Sporting-Lisbon-Blazers Posted: Dec.16 at 8:18 pm
    underated too…

  • clapzilla Posted: Dec.16 at 8:46 pm
    People Have Already Written Off The Nuggets In A Possible Series Against The Lakers (some here haven’t though). But What If Melo And Nene Just Go Off? Can The Lakers Actually Beat The Nuggets 4 Times If Those 2 Guys Play Out of Their Minds?

  • Jukai Posted: Dec.16 at 10:32 pm
    clapzilla: Yes.

  • dj Posted: Dec.20 at 5:42 pm
    nene is way underated

  • chintao Posted: Dec.23 at 4:39 am
    Nene easily is my favorite non-U.S.-born player. re: kauhl’s point, I think dude just doesn’t give a f@ck about P.R.

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