This is the upgrade we're talking about. A better percentage on 2pt shots and a half an assist and a half a rebound. I'll stick with the guy we already have for 5 million dollars a year. No amount of "the stats don't tell you everything he does to make the team better" makes up for the huge drop in price to performance ratio involved.
Using your logic, let me present to you two PG's stats below.
A) 15.4pts.....6.6asts......2.5rebs.....1.1stls.....0.1blks.....2.2TOs.....1.6PFs......401fg%......360 3pt%.. ..839%....28.63mpg
B) 16.9pts.....5.7asts......2.5rebs....1.1stls......0.1blks.....2.1TOs.....2.3PFs......394fg%......388 3pt%.....878%.....35.4mpg
Player A has more assists and higher FG% in
less minutes while most other stats are basically a wash. Per 36, Player A would have more points, more assists, more rebs, more steals, and higher FG%. So Player A is obviously better right? Right?
Well then, it probably shocks you to learn that Player A just lost his starting job this season and his team has been unhappy with his play and has been trying to replace him for some time.
Player B is a possible future hall of famer. That year he posted those stats, his team won the championship.
You see, you can't just judge PG by their stats. Yes, the old saying holds true. I will reveal who those players are at the bottom of this post.
You want to know why Dragic is better? It's because he controls the flow of the offense like only an elite PG can do - he spends most of the game (especially in the first half) passing the ball and setting up teammates, he turns down opportunity to score, not even thinking about shooting, in order to get his teammates going. He keeps track of how how many points/fouls each player has and he makes sure his scorers has enough touches in the right places. If one of the scorer is not scoring enough, he knows that and calls out plays to get that guy going. It sounds simple but some PGs have a lot of issues doing just that - IT, Reke, etc. Some PGs can do that (Rubio, Collison, etc) but they have trouble doing the following:
When the team is in a funk, when the high scorers are out of sort and the other teammates can't get going, the elite PG has the ability to flip the switch, say, "Guys, I got this." and takes over the game. This usually is what sets the great ones from the rest of the pack. Watch guys like Chris Paul and Derrick Rose and it's a case study in how to play PG perfectly. They often spends the first quarter not even looking at the basket. It's not unusual to see them with only 6 pts or whatever after half. And then sometime in the late 2nd or 3rd quarter, they just explode and take over the game. Maybe for only a 2-4 minute spell but it's enough to change the momentum and get his teammates' adrenaline going. Next thing you know, the entire team is awaken and they are running away with the score. That's what an elite PG can do for a team. Now, Dragic is
not at Rose/Paul's level, but he is close. When you look at the next tier down from those guys; you'll find Dragic there. He has that ability to flip the switch
and he has the PG's mentality (the unselfishness) to set up guys - he is a well rounded PG and those are very hard to find.
Collison on the other hand, doesn't have that ability to take over a game. So he has to play the game differently - more of a mix and match - a shot here, a pass there, mixing things up to keep the defense honest and basically takes what the defense gives him. Even though their stats may be similar, the way they go about getting those stats are very different.
Now, I have no complaint about Collison. He's solid and he fits the system. But let's not get overboard and say he is as good as Dragic. That's like saying Brandon Jennings is as good as Chaucey Billups.
Btw, Player A = Brandon Jennings. Player B = Chauncy Billups.
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