Jason 'Sly' Butler
Position: Guard (1,2)
Hometown: Robbinsdale
High School: Robbinsdale Cooper
Often Mistaken for: Sylvester Stallone (in Rocky I only)
Favorite Cartoon: Transformers(more than meets the eye)
Could be a better player if: Got more than 2 hrs of sleep the night before.
Interesting Fact: Walked across Twin Lake to get to my house on many occasions in High School. (In the winter that is, he's not God...that I know of!) Sometimes he did it when the ice was not quite thick enough to support his weight, arriving at my house soaking wet and on the verge of hypothermia on one occasion.
League Background: Has been with us a long time. Again, can't really remeber when he started playing. Props for showing up so regularly considering he has to pay $8 every time.
Strength: He does multiple little things very well, for example...he rebounds exceptionally well for someone of his small stature. He also runs the floor every time there's a fast break, whether on offense or defense, and gets many of his points this way.
Weakness: Size and Ball-Handling...Its difficult for him to defend almost everyone we play with when they have large height and weight advantages. 'Sly' could be a much more effective offensive player if he was a better ball-handler. ...also, always requires rides home.
Grades-
Offense: B-
Defense: B- (simply because of his size)
Rebounding: A- (extra pts b/c of his size & fearlessness)
Passing: C+
Hustle: A
Attitude: A
Overall Grade: B
26 comments:
Come on people(Jay). Its been up for half an hour and still no comments! Geez, what am I doing this for?
I saw it. I'm afraid to comment because I've killed the last three basketball threads. I figured Butler should have a few people say something before I step in and everyone clams up.
But I'll risk a start.
First, I'll try and get away from my complete myopic focus on the grading and say Jason plays best on 2 hours sleep!
And now back to myopic focus: Sly seriously deserves his A grades for Hustle and Attitude.
I think you shortchanged him on offense. He has a deceptively strong jump shot that he works hard to get an open look for (necessary because of his size disadvantage) and seldom misses an open look. He works hard on offense so that when his opponent leaves to help in the man to man, he ends up with an open shot. If you're playing man to man on Sly you double down at your own risk.
I'm all for easy grading (at least it seems like it) but I can't see how Jason gets in the A range for rebounding (the same grade you gave to Elbows!) This is why we hate it when our students compare papers but again, I can't see how Sly and Elbows get the same rebounding grade. Sly's rebounds come from his hustle -- which he's already getting credit for with the A in that category.
I guess i can see your point about not needing to reward him twice for hustle. Maybe the rebounding should have been a B. I think that's a better representation of his rebounding ability.
I have to tell all of you though...I think its funny that the discussion has focused exclusively on the grades b/c I originally didn't even have the grades on there, and just added them right before I put 'Elbows' profile up. Also...I haven't been comparing people when I've been giving the grades either. I guess I don't think of it as "well, Elbows is an A-, so since 'Sly' isnt as good a rebounder as 'Elbows' he has to get a lower grade than him. I guess I put more of an emphasis on what people do with their respective abilities. Anyway...whatever.
I guess I shouldnt be surprised that a bunch of academics focus on the grades though.
No profile of Jason would be complete without reference to his constant calling out of made shots as "short." Maybe that's some kind of battle cry?
And it should also be noted that Butler probably uses the glass on his shots more than anyone else we play with.
I had forgotten about the 'short' calls. Nice one Jay! I've been sitting here in my cube laughing, thinking of him yelling out 'short' and then hearing swish, for the last few minutes, and people are starting to look at me. Hilarious!
Yeah,I can hear it too -- in that deep, Sly Stallone voice, "short!" Maybe he should a "Yo" before it. I might start sprinting down the court when I hear that from now on.
he may get posted up in mantaman, but his ball-hawking at the top of a zone makes life miserable for those trying to make the entry pass.
I'm posting this here since this profile is at the top -- there are 5 positions in basketball not 3. At least that's my philosophy.
Elbows plays the 4 position. Although he can play the 3 and the 5.
Sleepy is a 3 that can move to either guard spot.
Instant Offense is a pure 2 guard that sometimes gets forced to play 3 or 1.
And Sly is a 2.
If nothing else, such gradiations provide us with a little more to analyze.
I agree completely, but just for simplicity, I didn't want to get into that. But if people want to, I'll be happy to.
"Sly"? Nice try, but there's got to be a better nickname than that. Jason plays much bigger than he actually is. And he's quite irritating at both ends of the court, whether it's knocking down open jumpers after a double-team or fouling you all the way down the court on a fast break.
I feel obligated to comment on sly as he is often on my team more than any other player for some reason.
Sly's best atribute on the court is his menacing on the ball defense. He often comes up with steals and he runs the floor better than anyone in the game. On the flip side, sly often fouls too much in his defensive zeal and could stand to be a better finisher on the break.On O sly has a tendancy to drive the baseline and stop in a bad position under the hoop and then make an ill advised pass or shot. He is at his best on O when he makes his defender chase him and then spots up for those mid range shots. Actually, I think Sly has improved his shot tremendously over the past couple of years to the point that he is a pretty consistent open shooter.In terms of boards, I understand why hype-o elevates Sly's rebounding grade. Many times Sly manages to come up with the board among the trees- he plays bigger than his size as the saying goes. Still I would not put him in the A category for rebounding. To me, an A in rebounding means that you would want that person playing down low or that he is a human vacuum cleaner ala Roy Tarpley (see dallas mavs circa 1986). Sorry Sly but you are not in that category and I would rather have Elbows slapping the window. This should not minimize sly's bounding, compared to all the "1" or "2"'s in the game Sly is the best rebounder but I am comfortable letting that grade show in the hustle category. I firmly believe that among all the regulars sly demonstrates the most consistent hustle and therefore deserves an A+. One other note on Sly, I remember one game in the not so distant past when sly stole a pass, then scored on the ensuing possession, then made a steal in transition right after that basket and scored on the resulting possession, then rebounded a ball on the defensive end, started the fast break and finished it by scoring. I think that sequence testifies to sly getting an A+ for hustle and also shows that in a fast paced broken style of play sly is at his best.
My grades for sly
offense B
Defense B
rebounding C+
Hustle A+
Attitude A
Ball-Handling B-
Passing C
Stamina A
Decision Making C
I think this puts him in the B range overall
Also, Since Jay brought it up, I agree that elbows is a 4 or a 5- definietly not a tweener.
Sleepy is a 3 that can play a 2 I am not sure about a 1 (not enough info here)
nerves is a 2 playing in a 3 body. by the way instant offense is a lame nickname. A nickname should highlight a particular personality trait not a label that can be applied to more than one person. Why not just call him "shooter" then. Better yet, call him Vinny after the original instant offense. My personal favorite is hype-o but I guess that is too much of a family insider name.
Granted, Instant Offense doesn't have the bite Nerves does. But it is what he is -- Andy can be counted on to shoot and most of the time score.
I thought about reviving an old St. Paul natives nickname, "The Ignitor" but thought that would just reveal my age. Besides, I always thought Overrated Coke Boy was a better nickname for him and I didn't want that associated with Andy.
Letting Matt determine Andy's nickname is like letting John Bolton become the American Ambassador to the UN. It is not a friendly gesture.
Here's another possibility to reveal age -- the Microwave. Or we could go with A or Y.
Sorry, I missed your Vinny suggestion -- the same as my Microwave!
I like the A+ for hustle.
I'd perhaps go with a B+ on defense because steals are an important part of Sly's game.
Sly can be a bit of a hack -- how about some kind of hack factor -- maybe not a grade but an qualitative evaluation of the propensity to foul? Perhaps a "How glad this player is that there are no officials on the court?" category.
And one last thing about Sly. I often play against him but when I do play on the same team, I enjoy playing up top in a zone defense with him. He plays smart up there, can trap and hound the ball -- it is fun. Unfortunately for me, the A stamina that Sly gets is not something I would approach and I can't keep such pressure up for long.
And Matt -- like the expanded grades -- you should give them to all the players.
An "A+"?! Talk about grade inflation.
Only Jesus gets an "A+": http://subscribe.theonion.com/product_info.php?cPath=5_12&products_id=76
(Sorry, you may have to cut and paste this; I don't know how to do links here).
hey, quit creating categories that are gonna lower my course grade (ball-handling, decision-making, and stamina). and if a person is hack-tastic, do they get a high grade in hacking, or low? just wondering about my only hope for an A...
Come on! 'Buttons,'
'No-Shirt,' 'Skeeter,' all are better nicknames.
Matt - right-on on the grades. And Jay's right about doing it for all. Why should all of our ire be focused on Andy, when we can spread it around to everyone.
Jay - I like the discussion of positions too. I do have to say though, that your opinions are curiously well developed for someone who hasn't been around much lately ;)
All - Lets all agree that we are grading based on the talent of people that play with us.
I'll back up ???'s comments on two points. First, the grading is relative to each other of course. Second, Skeeter is an appropriate nickname for Butler, but I'm not sure why. Also, Jeeves (or Geeves) would work. Sly is good and I did not notice the voice tone and inflection similarity until now in my head. He's the most improved player since Yuichi. The shot is much improved and his passing improved too. Or so I noticed when I last graced the fieldhouse with my pivot foot of fury. I think I've figured out who most of these monikered bloggers are. Fats is a blast from the past for me, with an identity exposed through self-deprecation and african history references. I'm not sure about Bunyan, but I think he may be our only true 5 position player. If so, do you have concrete in your shoes? They f___ nail my shins at least twice a game. Can I swear on here? Back to Butler, I like being on his team for the added hustle and yes he fouls all the time on the perimeter and in transition. Maybe Bunyan is the Cincinnati Kid. Damn these identities. I hate the internets. Next profile: I'm pulling for Jason "inappropriate ad hominem fantasy football attack" Johnson, aka ?????. But seriously, Scott Kenyon is an asshole.
OK I will respond to the Nerves comments under his blog later but I want to defend my A+ grade for sly's hustle. First, I am measuring him against the rest of our b-ball "family"- myself included. I honestly cannot think of someone hustling more and (this is the key)consistently than sly. I have seen everyone hustle at times but I have also witnessed lots of standing or holding back on breaks. I just think Sly brings more energy to the court than anyone else. Basically, he is always around the ball and this is why he snatches boards, creates steals and scores on breaks. The more I think about it the more I think that to not give him a A+ would be a gross miscarriage of justice. Ok sly you better hustle your ass off this week or I'm going to look like a fool. If you can show me a player that hustles more than sly then I will reduce the grade but I am sticking to it.
As far as the nickname. I am sorry but it's too late for me. He is sly. Eveytime I look at him I think that's sly in Rocky I! Do you remember a couple years ago when he wore that hat to b-ball- it looked like sly's in Rocky I. So call him what you will but for me he can be nothing but Sly. I guess for me identity is not fluid. :)
As the blogmaster, I can say that you can FUCKING swear all you FUCKING want you MOTHERFUCKING ASSCLOWN!!!
Sorry, I've just always wanted to use 'assclown' and could never find the appropriate moment. I thought this was it.
Just as long as my nickname isn't "assclown", use away.
take that big red johnson
I'm sorry, but maybe I'm too much of a visual person. The voice maybe, but the looks are a little too different for me.
Offense B-
Defense B
Rebounding C+
Hustle A+
Attitude A
Ball-handling C+
Passing C
Stamina A
Decision Making C
Shooting B-
Overall B-
monkeyballs says work on that, monkeyballs also says play it right, play it fair, and keep it real. Monkeyballs out.
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