Really close to two weeks from now. If history is any indication, it will be two weeks from tomorrow, October 3rd.
He shot 69.9%. That is just about average. I don't think he will impact how he does overall as a basketball player though. There are some bad FT shooters that are pretty good ball players (baron davis and jason richardson). Now if his 3pt% improves by at least 5 percentage points..haha one can dream right?
Hotzones for Last Season Luther Head Straight Away 3 -- 15/38 = .395 Left Corner 3 ---- 24/55 = .436 Right Corner 3 --- 26/61 = .426 Left Center 3 ---- 24/81 = .296 Right Center 3 --- 22/72 = .306 Overall 111/307 = .3616 Kirk Snyder Straight Away 3 -- 03/13 = .231 Left Corner 3 ---- 07/18 = .389 Right Corner 3 --- 07/18 = .389 Left Center 3 ---- 07/37 = .189 Right Center 3 --- 22/41 = .537 Overall 46/127 = .3622 Hotzones misses afew shots, but their data is 99% complete. The actually season % are .361 for Head and .357 for Snyder. So yeah, I thought head was a better shooter before doing this, but they're pretty even. Head has a slight advantage though because he is a volume shooter (more than 2x the treys as Snyder), and also because Head can hit from more locations from 3, whereas Snyder should just stick to Right Center.
Kim, cool analysis. That said playing with a healthy Yao and Tmac should make 3 pointers become easier. So the analysis gives us an indication, but in the end we have to wait and see. If Snyder's shooting is in the ball park of Head's and he doesn't prove to be an idiot on the court, Snyder would be the choice because of his blend of size and athleticism. Putting Snyder at the 2 and Tmac at the 3--pretty long and athletic players, would also help compensate for rebouding and size at the PF spot with SB playing there. It would also allow us to seemlessly defensively switch among the 2-3-4 spots the way Dallas does when they go big (Stack or Daniels at the 2) or what Detroit does.
Have to go with Head because he knows the team already and he will play in the system the best (JVG Experience counts for something!!!)
You've gotta be kidding us that Head's FT% is about average, buddy. No matter which way you look at it, 69.9% FT is no better than a bottom 20% standing among all NBA players (the most generous category), all guards, all SGs, and even all rookies. Baron Davis and Jason Richardson are two notorious examples. They somehow (more than) compensate their poor FT shootings with other aspects of their games. Still, you have to wonder why GSW suck so badly, given the fact both play important roles in their team. It's true FT% is by no means and should not be the only criterion for evaluating an NBA player, but then again Head is not expected to be a Davis or Richardson type of player either. Head's 3-PT shooting was inconsistent at best. When you couple it with his 2-PT shooting minus those close to the basket shots (heck even that is a suspect), there is one word that best describes his overall shooting: erratic. Of course Head has showed promising signs in other areas which should not be overlooked. It is also a bit unfair to judge him basing on how he did in his rookie season. Since this is a thread about Snyder and Head, I happen to notice Snyder improved almost across the board in his second season last year, most notably his FT% was increased from 66.7% to 73.5%. Just a little perspective, FWIW.
I think people underestimate the need for a smaller compact shooting guard like Head. Yes, Snyder is bigger than Luther, but that size comes at a cost. He’s not as quick. He can’t chase around the smaller quicker shooting guards of the league (Wade, Ben Gordon, Ginobili, Jason Terry, etc.) as well as Head can. The same reason we needed to acquire a quicker more mobile power forward this summer (Battier) is the same reason we need to hold on to Luther Head. I say hold on to both Snyder and Head. Having versatility in the backcourt is a good thing.
I agree for the most part -- that's why for all the apparent Head bashing in my posts, I do not force myself to choose one over the other. However, one thing I can't help but question, is Snyder really slower than Head?
It may not be a dream. Head shot .482 from distance in November compared to .361 for the season. He hit the rookie wall in December, as you might expect, and hit .309 before bottoming out at .294 in January. Of course, those were the two months that saw TMac and Yao missing games, so it should come as no surprise that Head's numbers went down as he was more of a primary option. Head's three point percentage increased every month from there to the end of the season, due at least partially to Yao's return, to .343, .375, and .395 in Feb., Mar., and Apr. Even if Head only splits the difference between his November performance and his season performance, that would be a 6% increase in his three point percentage to over 42%. That is why we need to see what Head has before we ship him out somewhere. He has the potential to be a deadly three point shooter and has proven that he can shoot lights out when given the opportunity. We need to let him show what he can do with a healthy Yao and TMac over the long term. Head will be money from distance this year. Mark it, Dude!
Great post andymoon. I'm looking forward to seeing what Head can do next year. While Snyder's shooting is decent at times, he's not a volume shooter and hopefully his slashing can provide a different dimension to the backcourt.
I would say it’s highly likely Head is quicker than Snyder. Both players are very athletic, but Snyder is significantly bulkier and is listed 40 pounds heavier than Head. It’s a matter of physics. 9 times out of 10 a significantly bigger/heavier player is not going to be a fast as a smaller/lighter player.
Well if 3-PT shooting is solely needed by the Rockets, then a little over 40% is not really much of a big deal. Don't we all forget we have a bona fide sharp shooter in our new rookie Novak? I'd say it's Head's all-around game that counts most -- sort of a little bit of everything, with some more prominent than others, so to speak.
Snyder's career high in points is 15 and his career high in assists is 3. That isnt so impressive after 2 seasons. I would take head any day. I would take it, i mean him, over snyder any day.
Barkley would beg to differ. On a more serious note I guess (and hope) the 40 pound weight has more to do with the 3 inch height difference between the two. It'd be nice to have a guard with size (6'6 listed for Snyder) to compensate our PF position, but after I looked again at Snyder's rebound stats I am not so sure now.
Snyder is a very athletic guy for his size. The knock on him is not athleticism or quickness, but whether he will listen to the coach and be a team oriented guy. Snyder's lack of steals does trouble me--I don't know if that means lack of effort, and maybe way he wasn't wanted by his previous teams. Artest, Wade, Lebron and Marion are all very quick in stockier bodies, you must look beyond weight or BMI.
how can you guys get two pages comparing two guys who average lass than 20 minutes per game for their VERY SHORT NBA careers ..and haven't played on the same team yet ?!?
