Bricklayer
Don't Make Me Use The Bat
After yet another disappointing performance by Ben last night, I went out to basketball-reference.com to do some checking, and what I discovered was alarming.
The deleterious effect on Cuz of firing Malone was obvious. It remains perhaps this NBA season's single most clueless and hamhanded maneuver. But because of the effect on our franchise player, perhaps the effect Malone's loss had on Ben has been overlooked.
So let's look at the Per36 Minute splits:
Alarm #1 -- The Overall Season Numbers Have Only Improved Marginally
2013-14 11.9pts (.376 .320 .804) 3.9reb 1.3ast 0.7blk 0.3blk 1.6TO PER: 7.7
2014-15 13.0pts (.430 .354 .825) 3.2reb 1.7ast 0.8stl 0.3blk 1.8TO PER: 9.8
2013-14
Field Goal Attempts: 11.2
Three Point Attempts: 4.9
Free Throw Attempts: 2.4
Defensive Rating: 112
2014-15
Field Goal Attempts: 10.9
Three Point Attempts: 5.4
Free Throw Attempts: 2.1
Defensive Rating: 112
An improvement in percentages? Sure. But hardly impressive overall even now. And what is notable is how everything else looks the same. For a couple of games there with Karl he seemed to be driving more, but now that's missing again, and if he's actually drawing less fouls than he did last year on the season.
Alarm #2 -- Under Malone Ben Was Efficient, Once Malone Left...
Ben's Shooting Percentages Month By Month:
Oct: .200
Nov. .493
Dec. .483
Jan. .382
Feb. .409
Mar. .348
In the 10 games since Karl took over Ben's Numbers:
31.6min 12.9pts (.368 .314 .794) 2.2reb 1.8ast 0.9stl 0.3blk 1.8TO
Which puts him right back into close to being the worst major minute starter in the league category. A constant anvil costing us wins for 2 straight years. To make matters worse his defense seems to be regressing as well.
This is supposed to be Ben's audition. Could he be failing it? After the promising November (which if you recall Ben had 2 or 3 really bad games to start the season, and then there was a game where we consciously tried to set him up, and he played well for the next month after that) its been all downhill again. He can't be impressing Karl with those numbers, and when you look at why we are again spiraling its not because of Cuz or Rudy, its because Collison is gone and so is the Ben of the early season.
There's still such a gap physically as to make the comparison inapt, but does anybody remember Jimmer's big November of his sophomore year? He shot .508 during November, had people talking of corner's turned, and he was never that good again. How's this going to go with Ben?
The deleterious effect on Cuz of firing Malone was obvious. It remains perhaps this NBA season's single most clueless and hamhanded maneuver. But because of the effect on our franchise player, perhaps the effect Malone's loss had on Ben has been overlooked.
So let's look at the Per36 Minute splits:
Alarm #1 -- The Overall Season Numbers Have Only Improved Marginally
2013-14 11.9pts (.376 .320 .804) 3.9reb 1.3ast 0.7blk 0.3blk 1.6TO PER: 7.7
2014-15 13.0pts (.430 .354 .825) 3.2reb 1.7ast 0.8stl 0.3blk 1.8TO PER: 9.8
2013-14
Field Goal Attempts: 11.2
Three Point Attempts: 4.9
Free Throw Attempts: 2.4
Defensive Rating: 112
2014-15
Field Goal Attempts: 10.9
Three Point Attempts: 5.4
Free Throw Attempts: 2.1
Defensive Rating: 112
An improvement in percentages? Sure. But hardly impressive overall even now. And what is notable is how everything else looks the same. For a couple of games there with Karl he seemed to be driving more, but now that's missing again, and if he's actually drawing less fouls than he did last year on the season.
Alarm #2 -- Under Malone Ben Was Efficient, Once Malone Left...
Ben's Shooting Percentages Month By Month:
Oct: .200
Nov. .493
Dec. .483
Jan. .382
Feb. .409
Mar. .348
In the 10 games since Karl took over Ben's Numbers:
31.6min 12.9pts (.368 .314 .794) 2.2reb 1.8ast 0.9stl 0.3blk 1.8TO
Which puts him right back into close to being the worst major minute starter in the league category. A constant anvil costing us wins for 2 straight years. To make matters worse his defense seems to be regressing as well.
This is supposed to be Ben's audition. Could he be failing it? After the promising November (which if you recall Ben had 2 or 3 really bad games to start the season, and then there was a game where we consciously tried to set him up, and he played well for the next month after that) its been all downhill again. He can't be impressing Karl with those numbers, and when you look at why we are again spiraling its not because of Cuz or Rudy, its because Collison is gone and so is the Ben of the early season.
There's still such a gap physically as to make the comparison inapt, but does anybody remember Jimmer's big November of his sophomore year? He shot .508 during November, had people talking of corner's turned, and he was never that good again. How's this going to go with Ben?