Bringing the third-leading scorer in the NBA off the bench as a "scoring weapon". Only in Boston.
being the third-leading scorer in the NBA isn't necessarily what most people want in their starting PG.
there's a difference between bringing him off the bench to primarily score vs not wanting him on the team at all.
Yes, "people" want a true PG. Someone like Rajon Rondo. Man, it would work just swell if we could have Rajon Rondo instead of Isaiah Thomas, right?
I note the sarcasm but IT and Rondo are almost at opposite ends of the spectrum. I love Rondo but he wasn't a complete PG either because his shooting/scoring was way too little. he provides everything else though, except consistent effort. Shooting/scoring and effort are the things IT brings to the table.
what I'm referring to is a PG that can provide scoring when called upon to provide a balanced offensive attack but is not a shoot-first PG. there's a number of them in the league. it's not a coincidence that IT is very effective on offense when there's another player running the offense and IT is functioning more as a SG than PG. I'm amazed at how much criticism people heaped on Rondo for supposedly ballhogging but the ball sticks in IT's hands much more. A lot of that time is that he's hanging on to that ball because he's looking to score rather than pass or facilitate the offense.
Except ... it doesn't. This simply isn't true. At all.
Thomas has very low time-of-possession, average time-per-touch and touches per game stats compared to most other 'ball dominant' point-guards. And he doesn't come within a country mile of Rondo (when he's been a starter) or guys like Harden, Wall or Westbrook for ball-dominance. Those last 3 guys averaged possession of the ball almost 9 whole minutes of every game. Thomas is way down at just 6.7 mpg. Wall lead the league holding on to the ball at 6 seconds per touch. Thomas was way down at just 4.7 seconds per touch.
What you are asserting is mythology.
You're exaggerating a bit, because IT has the ball in his hands more than most starting PGs. His time of possession was 12th in the NBA, for instance, which was more than Lebron. He touches the ball a lot, although less so than the guys you noted.
What's impressive about IT is what he does with his touches. He led starting PGs in points per touch, despite not having a secondary guard regularly setting him up. He was also the centerpiece of a top-8 offense.
IT does exactly what he's supposed to: he converts touches into points.
With 30 starting PGs in the league, to be ranked 12th in total time of possession would put him far closer to median than it would to 'ball hog', though, right?
And the specific premise I was responding to was "ball sticks in IT's hands much more". Total time of possession will go up with more total touches, but whether it "sticks" in the hands is measured more by avg secs per touch. And among players with at least 40 games and at least 50 touches per game, IT is ranked way down at 20th. IT tends to be quick with the ball, either passing it or attempting to score. Part of that is due to the way the Cs run their offense, often with Marcus or Horford starting with the ball and getting it to IT on the move. So things often happen quickly. But it is most definitely not a case of the ball "sticking" in Isaiah's hands.
I totally agree with your other points.
Topic: Have these last 7 games changed your opinion on IT? (Read 16716 times)