Share
MILWAUKEE There are many things you'd like a point guard to be: A creative passer. An ambidextrous dribbler. A long-range shooter. An inspiring leader.
There's one thing a point guard must be: An organizer. And that's how Raymond Felton and D.J. Augustin have failed of late.
The Charlotte Bobcats are in a six-game losing streak entering tonight's game against the Milwaukee Bucks. To say the point guards deserve all the blame wouldn't only be unfair, it would be dangerously simplistic.
But if you could make just one fix, point guard would undoubtedly be your focus.
Case in point: The score was tied when the Bobcats exited a timeout with the ball and about 30 seconds left Wednesday in Philadelphia. If ever a play should run smoothly, it's late-game directly following a timeout.
Problem: Stephen Jackson is new to the team and moved to the wrong side of the basket to begin the play. He didn't know better and Felton didn't notice as play commenced. From there, everything collapsed: No timing, no floor balance, a desperate shot (Boris Diaw's 3-pointer from the corner).
That miss led to a long rebound, a 76ers fast break, point guard Lou Williams' layup, and another perplexing near-miss.
Ideally, Felton would have moved Jackson to the correct spot. At minimum, Felton should have called timeout. That's a point guard's mission - organize.
Afterward coach Larry Brown began a sentence with "The point guards..." then abruptly stopped speaking, apparently to avoid saying something he'd regret.
I asked Brown if he was considering lineup changes, and he replied he didn't feel justified blaming one person for this loss.
Here's what I think: If Brown saw a ready-made alternative to Felton, he'd already have made a change. But Augustin looks even more shell-shocked.
That creative, aggressive rookie from last December is a befuddled mess. In the six losses, Augustin has never topped six points or four assists. His confidence looks cracked and when you ask him what's wrong, he has no explanation.
Felton articulated his problem Sunday: He's over-thinking about when to shoot, when to drive and when to pass. All that thinking - all that confusion? - is interfering with Felton performing in real time.
There are at least two jobs where real-time performing is crucial: NBA point guard and air-traffic controller. The way Felton's been of late, I'm glad he's not in a tower near an airport.
I don't know anyone who tries harder to do the right thing. But intentions aren't enough.
A year and a half ago, managing partner Michael Jordan asked Brown to find out whether Felton is an NBA point guard. The way he played the second half of last season, Felton seemed to answer that question.
Eleven games into this season, he's never been more of a mystery.
