2k6-2k7 REPORT CARD: Andris Biedrins

Since it appears that the Warriors and Andris' reps are in the midst of hashing out a contract extension and given the "excitement" I seem to have stirred up with my take on the contract extension decision, I thought it would be a great time to drop the man's 2k6-2k7 GSoM Report Card.

Here's 5 things that made Biedrins' 2k6-2k7 campaign absolutely golden and 5 things that hopefully he can work hard on and improve upon for We Believe 2.0.

Absolutely Golden

1. Healthy- The man just shows up nightly. He played in all 82 regular season games plus all 11 playoff games.
2. Near Doublicious: Andris pulled down 9.3rpg and scored 9.6ppg. Guys with those numbers don't grow on trees.
3. Low Volume, High % Scorer- It sounds kind of funny, but that's exactly what he is. He's far from a big time scorer or threat, but he's effective when he does take shots.
4. Hand it to Him- This guy has amazing hands for a big man. He's the polar opposite of Erick "hands of stone" Dampier in that regard.
5. Run 'Dris, Run!- Very few big men can run with the likes of Boom Dizzle, JRich, Monta, Jax, Barnes, MP2, and Harrington. Luckily one of them rocks #15 for the Dubs.

Andris kindly puts those great hands to work by supplying his John Hancock for some We Believers.
(Photo by Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images)

To Take the Next Big Step...

1. Stop the Fouling- With 304 fouls (3.7 per game) Biedrins was tops in the league in whistles. (Interestingly enough Al Harrington led the league in fouls the previous season- check out Basketball-Reference.com)
2. Change that Shooting form- I don't know if he'll ever be able to completely correct that hideous shooting stroke, but he'll never be a prime time player without some type of jumpshot or hookshot a la Shaq. No one's asking for Ray Allen here, but if Biedrins is going to be a high impact player on both sides of the ball he needs to add a lot to his offensive repertoire.
3. Improve Dribbling- For as much as he's billed as an athletic basketball player, Biedrins has virtually no handle. That highlight dunk against the Suns where Biedrins drives to the hole for a thunderous dunk pretty much came out of nowhere (the dribbling part). If he can add some type of handles to his game he'll be a much more dangerous offensive weapon as that highlight emphatically illustrates.
4. Avoid Fatigue- Their were stretches last season where Biedrins looked worn out. He was pretty much the Warriors' only big man and it had to be tough to have to face the bigs of the Western Conference, but let's see if he can improve on this. Much of the Warriors success' is tied to Biedrins becoming a more consistent rebounding force this season.
5. Coming up Big Against Big Players- If the Warriors are going to make the jump from 8th seed darlings and him from exciting young player to legit star or All Star, Biedrins is going to need to come up against the likes of Carlos Boozer, Tim Duncan, Amare Stoudemire, Pau Gasol, Elton Brand (probably 2 seasons from now though- very sad to see), the big and brutal Nuggets' frontline, Tyson Chandler (he can't be getting 14, 11, 9, and 15rebounds when he faces the Warriors like he did last year) and even Al Jefferson who will be putting up big numbers in the West for at least the next 5 years or so. When the Warriors needed him most to give Boozer some trouble in the 2nd round he came up with some pretty dismal performances (Game 1: 4 points, 5 boards; Game 2: 4 points, 6 boards; Game 5: 2 points, 5 boards). I'll spare you Boozer's lines since those are utterly painful for us We Believers to look back at.

Andris asks future teammate THud if he believes.
(AP Photo/George Nikitin)

A report card you don't want to miss after the jump!

Our grades for Biedrins are probably going to surprise you, but first let's check out some footage of the man in action:

[PFortyy]

[nes1us]

Simply Marvelous: "And Biedrins... with a FACIAL!"

[nbalive2k707]

And of course here's the obligatory highlight against the Mavs in the playoffs...

[DavStern]

Adam Lauridsen (Fast Break)   Grade: A- Thanks to Nellie's play-if-you-earn-it system, Andris broke into the Ws' rotation early and only got better. His lateral and vertical quickness are second-to-none for a big guy. He needs to add a few more moves to his offensive game and a little bulk, but all signs point to him being a tenacious worker. Plus, every time he had to go 1 against 4 or 5 on the boards, my heart went out to the guy. Fun Score: 7 I can now find Latvia on a map. That has to count for something.

Atma Brother #1   Grade: A After his disastrous sophomore campaign, I honestly didn't think Andris would even be in the league that much longer. Yes, he was just that bad. Thankfully, Latvia's #1 hoops star rebounded big time and produced a very solid season. His game is ugly (even uglier than Antawn Jamison's unorthodox shot puts and scoop shots), but his energy and hustle are really fun to watch. The weird part is Biedrins will didn't contribute all that much in the Warriors clutch finish to the regular season or in the playoffs as Nellie elected to start Al Harrington for most of that run. I'm not sold that he'll get that much better given his awkward body movements, nonexistent shooting stroke (I have no idea why he still shoots free throws with that disgusting form), and propensity rack up fouls at a league-leading rate, but I hope he keeps proving me wrong. Fun Score: 6 His interviews are always pretty funny.

DJ Fuzzylogic   Grade: B+ The leap that AB made last last season is phenomenal. Who knew tripling his playing time would mean tripling his stats too? More than just the "rebounding" guy, AB actually became an offensive option within Nellie's offensive system. I hope he develops a post move and some finesse in the paint. A major worry is that his frame makes it difficult for him to D up bigger guys. Also, how did he always keep his hair looking perfectly gelled even as he's bangin' up against dudes in the post 30+ mins a game? Was he fixing it during time-outs? Do the Warriors have hair/makeup artists on the sidelines that we don't know of? Is that Abdenour's job, too? Wow. Besides improving his defense in ways that helped him stay out of foul trouble, it's amazing how Biedrins (or his coaches) learned to maximize his output with him just having to learn one move (that relies on someone passing him the ball) and transforming that into a nightly double-double. If you were to look up Biedrins in the thesaurus, the antonym under his name would probably be "range" since any shot beyond semi-circle looked like he was throwing up shot puts-Foyle style. Ironically, he was the best free throw shooter on the team during the playoffs. Another Warriors conundrum that will never make sense... Fun Score: 10 For the hair.

Fantasy Junkie   Grade: B+ Interesting season Andris had. He started out HOT and hit the NBA scene. People began to notice the Latvian. He finished with a near double-double average and shed the "One Minute Man" label. Whether he'll be a great center or not is up in the air, but what I do know is that he's got great hands, excellent footwork, and knows how to get open. If he can work on his offensive game further than 2 feet from the bucket he'll become much much better. I'm looking forward to his progress. Fun Score: 6

Hash   Grade: A- Great turnaround year for Andris. In the coming years he can really develop into a premiere center for us. High points included improved boarding and better control of his fouls. Low points included bad free throw shooting. Still, one of the most improved players of the league this year in my humble opinion. Fun Score: 9 He gets a bonus point for the amount of gel he uses.

YaoButtaMing   Grade: B Does everything we need him to do. The complete role player. Can he work on the fouling and maybe get an offensive move? I can't wait to see him next season! Fun Score: 5

Also see Andris Biedrins' 2005-2006 GSoM Report Card

Now let's pass the mic to the man himself...
(Major props to anyone who can understand the subtitles)

[rusher666latvian]

What's your grade for Andris Biedrins for the 2k6-2k7 season? How good will this Latvian big man be this year?

2006-2007 GSoM Report Cards

• Chris Mullin & Rod Higgins (B+)
• Don Nelson (A+)
• Jason Richardson (B)
• Mickael Pietrus (C)
• Matt Barnes (A-)
• Sarunas Jasikevicius (D+)
• Zarko Cabarkapa (F+)
• Troy Murphy (D+)
• Mike Dunleavy Jr. (D-)
• Josh Powell (C)
• Adonal Foyle (D+)
• Ike Diogu and Keith "Who?" Mcleod (Double D+)
• Kelenna Azubuike (B-)
• Patrick O’Bryant (F)
• Monta Ellis (B+)
• Al Harrington (B)