I find no problem in having the SG slot filled by someone competing with Anfernee Hardaway and Allan Houston for the top 3 spots in FG% for SGs. Remember when S. Anderson used to destroy the Rockets by the simple act of moving without the ball? He makes his job easy for himself, and his team benefits. ------------------ The ClutchCity 500.
So there seems to be a bit of an argument about Shandons contribution. Some say he needs to score more, some say he's doing a great job. I think the idea behind him scoring more is this (and correct me if I'm wrong); Anderson only averages 12 a game and the elite SG's in the league average a lot more than that. Houston's strength is currently in the backcourt and if we are to compete for the championship then we need more production out of Anderson ppg wise. Now on the other side of the coin, there are people saying that there are plenty of teams who have won NBA titles with SG's who score LESS than 12PPG. If we tie these 2 arguments together, it points to the fact that maybe Shandon is doing a GREAT job offensively (he does shoot damn well) - and maybe the rockets problem is that they ARE too backcourt oriented.. maybe we need to find some scoring in the frontcourt if we are to contend for a championship. Or maybe Shandon's offensive output is fine, I mean we say "12PPG - that's terrible, our backcourt is our strength, he needs to score more" - but does he? If Francis is scoring 18PPG and Mobley 15 and Anderson 12 then that combines for 45ppg from the backcourt. Instead of comparing Shandon's lone output vs the other SG's of the league, compare HOUSTONS backcourt production vs the other backcourt productions of the league. I think it's entirely possible that we'd have better backcourt production than a lot of teams... that would suggest that Shandons offense is just fine. To finsih with, some more side stats. Shandon Anderson's career offensive stats Year PPG APG RPG FG% 3PT% 96-97 5.9 0.8 2.8 46.2 51.1 97-98 8.3 1.1 2.8 53.8 21.9 98-99 8.5 1.1 2.6 44.6 34.1 99-00 12.3 2.9 4.7 47.3 35.1 The positive thing is that his PPG has increased every year... wonder if that trend will continue?? ------------------
Not sure where to start, but i must first say this..... What a great discussion Lauch Pad Love your idea and a very fair pt about Shandon being the forth scoring option, but I still feel Walt will get the arse soon and thus elevating Shandon to thrid scoring option behind Steve and Cat. I now ask is 12 ppg acceptable for a winning teams 3rd scoring option (perhaps later in the day i will post some stats about teams 3rd and 4th scoring options) TB-Cain I think Dr said it well enough, those teams all have high scoring front lines, whereas the rockets have a guy on a ventilator, a shot blocker, an over-acheiving rookie, a Wiz and a bull. No comparison. We have to get our points from our back court. DoD Thanks for the back up on the point per minute issue which i knew was not in shandon's favour. Nikestain I accept his average improved over the season and that his great to see and hopefully he can continue that level of scoring, interestingly do you have any idea if his FG% dropped over the season as the ppg went up??? And To whoever said about him moving and then scoring without the ball, that is GREAT point and a skill that is ever dimishing in the NBA, i love players that move well off the ball and get their points that way (thats why i am a Reggie Miller fan, he does that so well). All i was really trying to say was that for a team that's future is built around it's backcourt (please stay Cat, but i will follow) is 12ppg acceptable from a guy playing 30 minutes a game??? Whether it is or not is debatable (and thats why we come to CC BBS), but i am sure we would all agree that some improvement, say up 14-15ppg at a similar FG% would be a great boost to the Rockets. SMeg ------------------ Stuff BBS, the Rockets and you guys It's all Clippers these days, come join the bandwagon and visit http://www.ClippersCity.net
You should probably compare him with small forwards because, if we want to bring Mobes back, SA will be playing the three next season. ------------------ I'm sticking with Charlotte. I can't flip because I don't want to be confused with Peter Vecsey. -- Charles Barkley
Well, the answer to that last question is relative. Are you talking about building a winning team in the mold of the Jailblazers that spreads the scoring load amongst all four staters (scoring range from 11.8 to 16.4 ppg for the best (Wallace) and worst (Sabonis) starter, or would you prefer a more Laker-esque team (scoring range from 5.0 (Green) to 29.7 (Shaq)? In the former model (Blazers), 12.0 ppg is more than acceptable and in the latter it very well may not be. So here is a breakdown of the vital offensive stats for the third options for each of the Western conference finalists this last year. I also included the total number of players that averaged double figures on each team just for kicks. Lakers - Rice 31.6 mpg .430 fg% .367 3% 0.7 orpg (offensive rpg) 2.2 apg 15.9 ppg 3 pwdd (Players with double digit averages) Blazers - Pipsqueak 33.5 mpg .451 fg% .327 3% 1.4 orpg 5.0 apg 12.5 ppg 5 pwdd And our hometown boy . . . Shandon 32.9 mpg .473 fg% .351 3% 1.1 orpg 2.9 apg 12.3 ppg 5 pwdd As you can see, Shandon's numbers are comparable to Pip's. He's falls short in the assists department, but that is mainly due to the fact that Pip plays point forward. His fg% an 3p% are both superior to Pip's. He falls short of Rice's production (even noting the ever-so-slight adavtange in orpg and apg). You do have to appreciate the much superior fg% with only a slight disadvantage in 3p%. Rice of course, was once an all-star and was required to make up part of the scoring load of a relatively shallow offensive team. The 4th option in Harper only averaged 7.0 ppg. I know I know . . .we are not anywhere near as deep or talented as the Jailblazers . . . yet. If we do pick up some frontcourt talent in the next couple of years, this would put us right up there on their level. Bottom line: The Jailblazers were quite arguably the best team this year and their third option only scored 12.5 ppg. Just be happy that we're not paying Shandon $14 mil for that kind of production ------------------
Someone might've already said this, but... SA, last season, consistently neutralized the league's top scorers; if his guy got 40+ (like Iverson), Anderson would score a new record and get 30+... As well as take 1-2 of the other guy's players out of rotation... His offensive capabilities... 12.3 ppg doesn't say much. But, to be honest, he almost never scores anywhere near 12-13 ppg; usually he either scores 2-5 or 20-30... His offensive ability is sketchy. His defensive ability is uncanny, though. A good night for him would be 20pt / 48% shooting, 5 reb, 2 stl, 4 ast... The untold parts would come from the steals (I think we can all agree he's good at those) - about 12 pts would ultimately result from them - and at least 1 reb is offensive, 2 assists on the run... This guy fits our system. I don't give a hoot whether he gets 30ppg, or even about his SPG average. I have never once seen him stop running. Never. At least, I never saw him standing still last season... As far as I'm concerned, he deserves his (promised) pay upgrade, and we should make sure to abide by his contract. (Give him what he wants) This is all part of my "Bend over and give the guards what they want" strategy... Steve, Cat, Shandon, Mooch - a Terror Troop for years to come... Now, give me a Big Banger or two, and we're set. With Shandon, we have a Club SG. Let's give him something to work with... (a banger / blocker who can clear the lanes) Not to be off subject, but I'd bet Steve and Cat would love that situ, too... (WAKE UP! CATO! WAKE UP) ------------------
In short, I'd respond to any "trade Anderson" proposal (or any current proposals to trade his contract) with a flat "No". Just as I'd decline any sign/trade offer for Cuttino. Throw the max at them, and pray... Especially after the draft. I generaly trust Rudy, but this one is strange...(Nadjera and Pryzbilla would have been well worth a 1st round pick next year!!! FUBAR...) I have a hard time seeing how the recent picks will help keep our backcourt (Cat) here. These new guys (Collier and Langhi) had better pan out - and at least one has to be able to play backup C, or we're lost - and totally reliant upon K Cato's ability - and willingness - to play... Pryzbilla - whatever and however you pronounce it... I think he has the stuff to make a decent backup C. Nadjera... Not a banger, more a SF/SG, but... I'm still dubious about Rudy/CD's thinking here... But the formula for success seems to be: KEEP THIS BACKCOURT TOGETHER AND A CHAMPIONSHIP WILL FOLLOW! Who am I to question fate?!?.... Anyway, I know one thing: Shandon is one of the best "swing men" out there. He can move from 2 to 3 in an eyeblink, much to the enemy coach's chagrin... And he uses mismatches to score. Otherwise, he just defends his man. Preventing the other man from scoring... That makes winning easy. That usually ends in a "slash to the hole" situation. And if he is to leave any mark here (and I think he will), it will be that slashing move, which almost always results in a 2-3ptr... ------------------
Month Games Games Started MPG FG% 3P% FT% OR DR TR APG SPG BPG PPG In February 13 13 32.5 .416 .148 .789 1.2 3.4 4.5 2.9 1.46 0.15 12.5 In March 15 15 35.1 .524 .453 .810 0.9 3.5 4.4 3.3 1.13 0.27 15.0 In April 10 10 39.1 .508 .341 .760 1.2 4.6 5.8 2.3 0.90 0.50 17.9 Interesting. In April, his minutes and scoring went up. His FG% DID go down, but can we complain with a shooting guard shooting over 50%? His rebounds went up significantly, but his assists went down. February looks strange. Shot 14.8% from 3 point land, yikes. But he still managed to get 12.5 ppg (he only attempted 27 3s in Feb, compared to 40+ other months) ------------------ The more lefties on your team, the better. Collier is Seven Foot and Left Handed. How can you go wrong? Trade or bench Kenny Thomas.
