As Kevin Durant and LeBron James duke it out in the MVP race and the J.R. Smith circus tours America, it got me thinking:
Who's leading the LVP race so far?
In this edition of Per Diem, we'll take stock in the race for the least valuable player so far this season. Just like in the MVP race, we're not considering the contract status. For the purposes of this list, we're interested in identifying the players who have hurt their team's chances to win most. In essence, we're not looking at the 15th man on the roster. After all, you can't lose if you don't play.
Taking into consideration every player's traditional numbers and advance metrics including on-court/off-court data, here is one man's ranking of the least valuable players in the league so far.
And the "winners" are …
LVP: Kendrick Perkins, Oklahoma City Thunder
Give the guy a Nobel Peace Prize, because his leadership must be that transformative. Otherwise, there is no way he could convince an NBA coach to give him 20 minutes a night in 2014. Alas, Scott Brooks can't shake his Perkins addiction. With Perkins, every shred of tangible evidence points to "not an NBA player."
PerkinsGet this: He currently has more turnovers (53) than made baskets (48). And then there's the fact that he fouls five times as often as he blocks a shot.
If he does positive things outside the box score, it doesn't show on the scoreboard; the Thunder are 9.2 points per 100 possessions worse with him on the floor, according to NBA.com. That is especially amazing considering he plays almost exclusively (683 of his 690 minutes) with Kevin Durant. Even the MVP favorite can't hide his futility. Perkins ranks last in Estimated Wins Added (minus-1.5) and second-to-last in WARP (minus-1.8). It's hard to imagine a player more unintentionally destructive.
Second place: Anthony Bennett, Cleveland Cavaliers
Please, just send him to the D-League already. This isn't about pity; it's about rehabilitation. You know what's worse for his confidence than a demotion? Sticking with the status quo.
BennettWith an obscenely bad 1.1 PER and a subterranean 31.9 percent true shooting percentage, this is the worst rookie season for a top pick by a country mile. The guy is shooting 14-for-78 (18 percent) outside five feet and ranks dead last in win shares (minus-0.9).
For someone with conditioning issues, why nail him to the bench when he could work himself into shape in the D-League without the spotlight? Keeping him on the big-league roster reeks of cognitive dissonance by a desperate organization trying to save face. The sleep apnea, shoulder soreness and asthma issues are real, but so is the potential damage to his career and the Cavs' chances at relevance. He might not boast the number of minutes as the rest of the names here, but his play is too toxic to leave him off.
Third place: Ben McLemore, Sacramento Kings.
Maybe it's completely meaningless and utterly arbitrary, but ever since LeBron James posterized him in Miami on Dec. 20, here are the rook's averages over those 12 games: 21.0 minutes, 4.6 points, 2.1 rebounds, 0.8 assists and 31.7 percent shooting from the floor, 32.1 percent from downtown and 0.7 free throw attempts.
McLemoreThe worst part? He has 35 fouls and one steal over that span. That's horrendous for an athlete like him.
You probably haven't heard more about McLemore's demise because the most of the top 10 in the 2013 draft (with the exception of No. 9 pick Trey Burke) has been a train wreck. But McLemore's minus-0.4 PER this month illustrates how bad it's gotten, and he's now in danger of dropping out of the rotation after losing his starting spot earlier this month.
He's still just 20 years old, but we could be waiting a while for his athleticism to translate onto the NBA level.
Fourth place: Tayshaun Prince, Memphis Grizzlies
Meet the least valuable player in the league so far -- according to WARP. The 33-year-old has been a tire fire this season as the Grizzlies' starting small forward, posting a minus-1.9 WARP, which means that he's cost the Grizzlies two wins compared to a guy at the end of the bench.
PrinceFor a team like the Grizzlies in the thick of the race, those two wins could be the difference between a playoff spot and the lottery.
Now that Prince has oddly abandoned the 3-point line for a team that is starving for treys, his value as an offensive player has just about vanished. He's not a shot creator and he ranks dead last in catch-and-shoot efficiency among the 82 players with at least 100 plays, according to Synergy. His solid defense keeps him from appearing higher on the list, but even that is waning as he ages. Recent free agent signee James Johnson could be starting before long.
Fifth place: J.R. Smith, New York Knicks
The issue isn't if the Knicks should bench Smith. The real question is, why didn't it happen sooner? By benching Smith now after juvenile antics, the Knicks are conveniently trying to distract fans from the actual culprit: he can't score.
SmithAmong the 98 players with a usage rate north of 20 percent and at least 750 minutes played, Smith ranks dead last in true shooting percentage (45.5 percent). The only thing more poisonous than a player who can't score is one that thinks he can.
With knee issues sapping his mobility, he should be reduced to a catch-and-shoot weapon, but the problem is that he believes he's Steve Nash, not Steve Novak. On-court/off-court data from NBA.com suggests that the Knicks are better off on both ends of the floor without him, confirming what our eyes tell us.
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Dishonorable mentions:
MayoO.J. Mayo, Milwaukee Bucks: Mayo's numbers don't scream LVP on the surface, as he's posted a lukewarm 11.7 PER with an above-average 37.9 percent conversion rate from downtown. But then you realize that the Bucks have been outscored by 15.5 points per 100 possessions with him on the floor and just 1.7 points per 100 possessions with him on the bench. In other words, the Bucks aren't a tanking team with Mayo.
HinrichKirk Hinrich, Chicago Bulls: Not many players can make D.J. Augustin look like an All-Star by comparison. Enter Hinrich. The guy is shooting 29 percent over his last 14 games, ever since the Bulls thumped the Miami Heat by 20 points in early December. He can't get into the paint and can't create enough separation to open up passing lanes so he's just brutal to watch run an offense at this stage in his career. Among players with at least 30 minutes per game, Hinrich owns the worst PER at 9.1. I can't believe I'm saying this, but, more Augustin, please.
ZellerCody Zeller, Charlotte Bobcats: Remember when people thought he was the next LaMarcus Aldridge? Let's pump the brakes on that. Zeller has been atrocious as a shooter, converting just 26 percent of his 87 midrange jumpers this season. He has yet to make a 3-pointer, despite the hype that he was the best stretch 4 in the draft. It's early, but the No. 4 pick has been a mess on both ends of the floor.
GreenWillie Green, Los Angeles Clippers: If it weren't for his longtime pal Chris Paul, Green may be out of the league. He can knock down a corner 3 every once in a while, but other than that, he's a liability on the offensive end. The Clippers' starting lineup with J.J. Redick has scored 109.4 points per 100 possessions this season, per NBA.com. With Green? 97.7 points per 100 possessions. It's hard to make an offense that stars Paul and Blake Griffin look mediocre, but Green works wonders.
FisherDerek Fisher, Oklahoma City Thunder: Like the guy ranked No. 1 on this list, his leadership qualities must outweigh his on-court contributions, which makes you wonder why he doesn't just put on a three-piece suit and join the coaching staff already. He's woefully inefficient with a 50.1 percent true shooting percentage, but unlike other players on this list, he knows his limits for the most part. At 39, he's washed up like a beached whale.
첫댓글 원문에서 젤러는 시즌 3점 시도자체가 1개밖에 안되는데 마치 주구장창 쏘는데 안들어가는것처럼 묘사해놨군요. 코디 젤러가 굉장히 고전하고 있는건 맞지만...애초에 공격에 강점이 있는 선수인데 하필 드랩된 팀이 수비만 미친듯이하고 공격은 원온원만 하는 샬럿이라 빛을 못보고 있다고 생각합니다. 달리기도 장점인데 샬럿은 달릴 친구들도 많아서 젤러가 할게 정말 없죠. 패싱센스도 있고 자유투할때의 슛터치만 봐도 슈팅도 세트만 잘해주면 괜찮을거라고 생각하는데 샬럿에서는 이런 장점들을 써먹을 수가 없습니다. 공격 시스템이 충분히 갖춰진 팀에가면 정말 빛을 발할것 같은데 매우 아쉽네요.
퍼킨스 한때는 하워드하고 맞짱뜨던 우승팀의 주전 센터였는데;;;;
퍽은 진심 안타깝네요. 부상 전 보스턴에 있을 땐 짧은 기간이긴 했지만 하워드 다음의 동부 넘버2 센터였는데 말이죠.
피셔 ㅋㅋㅋㅋ 고래 ㅋㅋ
맞아요, 리그패스 브레이크 타임에 나오는 영상은 사골처럼 너무 우려먹더군요..
퍼킨스..바스켓 보다 턴오버가 많다니 ㄷㄷㄷ 그리고 오클의 위엄이군요. 두 선수가 리스트에 있는데 팀 순위는 선두권
이 글은 듀란트가 이번에 MVP를 받아야 한다는 증거로 사용될 수 있을 듯 하군요.
근데 피셔는 그렇다치고 퍼킨스가 리더쉽? 그럴리가... 그냥 제프그린 보내고 데려온 선수라 아까워서 쓰는 듯
좋은 정보 감사드립니다~!! ^^
피셔,퍼킨스는 굳이 스탯을 파해치지않아도 정말 답이 안나오는데 왜 이렇게 중용하는지...그런데도 우승후보인 오클의 위엄이네요.
짧지만 내가 본 농구선수 중 가장 못하는 선수는 진짜 퍼킨스..............리더십이고 뭐고 ......하.........