starters and bench players drawing NBA paychecks who play almost no defense at all, nor is it really expected of them. It was "expected" of Jimmer for other reasons - and they have a lot to do with politics, alliances, egos, and yes - race, and possibly religion (Tebow syndrome) to some degree. If you don't party enough, and project too squeaky clean of an image, it leaves some people on the spectrum of anywhere from just "unsettled" to downright vindictive.

As far as defense? It's a smoke screen in large part. Jimmer leads the CBA in steals and gets the second most rebs on his team as a PG - those are defensive stats. While admittedly not a lockdown defensive specialist, when Jimmer was in the NBA, and the D-league, his defensive stats were skewed because teams purposefully singled him out somewhat based on reputation alone, and would just go after him. If they did the same against most players, time after time down the court, virtually all players defensive stats would suffer. He also got almost "zero" help defense due to teammates either ineptitude or unwillingness to help on defense. With how good the offensive skills are with so many players in the NBA, almost no one can just play straight-up defense. Help "D" is a must. Regardless, Jimmer's claimed defensive issues are just way more complex than the simple "eye test" that many people rely on.