The Protege - Fngb3's Blog - Operation Sports

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The Protege

Posted on February 11, 2012 at 05:50 PM.

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In the summer of 2014 Ion Falls moved to Florida to join his new team the Orlando Magic. Since shaving his head the previous year he had let his hair grow into a short afro. Falls walked the streets of Orlando looking for a tattoo parlor to add some ink. He eventually came away with a large and detailed tribal tattoo on his shoulder (#27). But while he took time to get to know the people and city he now called home, most of his days were spent on the court...

Up until this point in his career Ion Falls had slowly been gaining leaguewide recognition. Endorsements came steadily especially after his first year. Billboards, magazine covers, commercials, more magazines... but the real prize came with a signature shoe designed by Ion for the Jordan Brand. Ion was quoted as saying he felt something special about them every time he put them on, that they "gave [him] clarity...helped [him] see things. Practically before they happen[ed]." (+5 pass shoes)

Ion was also looking to model himself after the best players around. He knew wasn't much of a dunker yet (dunk rating 55) but as a bigman he decided that the Los Angeles Clippers young superstar power forward had the kind of awe inspiring repitoire that Ion wanted for himeself (purchased Blake Griffin dunk package). He knew he would be a while before he was good enough at dunking to be able to actually pull off the same moves, but groundwork was laid that offseason.

Ion knew he had an opportunity, sharing the hardwood with Howard, to electrify crowds with one of the most exciting aspects of sports; the alley-oop. He was determined to become the kind of passer that could get Howard the kind of easy baskets and demoralizing slam-dunk finishes that energize players and fans alike.

As not a natural passer Falls felt himself hit a plateau with that skill. He just couldn't seem to push to the next level. It was at that time that he began taking the money of his new contract to find the type of skilled passing coaches and experts that could help him develop even further.
All this effort and salary and (and shoes) made Falls the kind of passer he wanted to be (80 passing cap, +5 attribute boost with salaries, +5 passing from shoes = 90 passing) and the league took notice not just from a career high 4.0 assists per game but nearly half of them coming from earth shattering alley oops to Superman.

As a small forward Smooth knew that as long as his ball handling and security skills remained poor he would never have the ball in his hands enough to be a main distributor for his team, regardless of how good of a passer he was. So if he wanted to be more of a play maker he would need to work even harder.

It was early on in the 14-15 season that Orlando pulled the trigger on a trade that mostly gutted their team but brought in Kevin Love to play beside Howard in the frontcourt. Management felt Love could be a perfect compliment to Howard as Superman could mask Love's shot blocking deficiencies, while Love could slide out and stroke the 3 pointer, giving Howard room to work in the post. Also, bringing together the two best rebounders in the game would give the Magic an edge in that critical rebounding differential every single night.

Orlando's roster core after the trade was as follows.
C Dwight Howard 93 ovr
PF Kevin Love 84 ovr
SF Ion Falls 79 ovr
SG Liviu Paven 61 ovr
PG Willie Warren 67 ovr
PF/C Brandon Bass 68 ovr (6th man)

In addition to his usual all around improvements Falls came out of the gates sporting a vastly improved 3-point shot. With Howard in the post open 3s came in bunches and Falls showed he was ready to capitalize with a 3PT% of .374. Though there was an increased efficiency Falls found himself taking twice as many 3s (230 3PA) as he had the previous year. Despite a heavier reliance on the low percentage 3-ball, even smarter shot selection in the mid range, polished moves around the post, and stronger shots underneath the basket helped Falls keep his FG% at .487. His free throw percentage recovered slightly from the down-turn of the previous year to .718 which also came with an increase in attempts (373 FTA). All of these factors led to Falls scoring 18.6 points per game which may have been even higher but his conditioning was not where it needed to be and his stamina kept his minutes below 30 min a game.

Throughout the season one thing was a constant work in progress; defense. As one of the best shot blockers in the NBA Howard perfectly exemplified the kind of defensive presence Falls wanted to become. Number 12 took Falls under his wing to teach him the kind of effort, concentration and timing it takes to be an elite defender. It wasn't instantaneous but over the next several years Ion would embrace the role of Howard's protege. Howard as well benefited greatly in terms of maturing as a leader by mentoring the youngster and together they eventually formed one of the most feared defensive tandems ever seen. As a sign of respect Falls took after his mentor, adding an Adidas arm-sleave accessory like Howard's, onto his left arm.

Willie Warren and the young Liviu Paven, Orlando's starting backcourt were both above average 3 point shooters and this complimented Howards post game, the engine of their offense. But Warren hadn't quite seemed to fill his potential as either a ball handler or perimeter defender, two things Orlando very much needed. Paven was young and at a mere 6'0", with subpar athleticism, poor defensive instincts and an inability to create his own shot, he was truly nothing more than the occasional threat from the corner.

Most analysts believed that as good as Orlando's frontcourt was, as long as their guards were so woefully inadequate as defenders and as long as there was no reliable ball handler to initiate the offense, the Magic were a flawed squad.

Falls was named an All-star for the 2014-15 season and the Magic had high hopes resting on the powerful frontcourt trio of Howard, Love and Falls. But despite the talent and synergy of each starters games the Magic failed to make the post seas.

Ended the season 86 overall.
4th Season Stats:
26.9 MPG - 18.6 PPG - 4.7 RPG - 4.0 APG - 0.9 SPG - 0.7 BPG - FG% .487 - .374 3P% - .718 FT%

Next Entry

Fourth Year, first with the Magic. The frontcourt trio of Howard, Love and Falls

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