lurker23
04-02-2010, 05:06 AM
As a continuing part of the Raising the Bar series of features, I'm doing an “Unheralded Player” segment at least every month, and sometimes more frequently as time/energy/ideas dictate. This segment is intended to highlight a Spurs player who has performed well, but perhaps hasn't gotten as much attention from SpursTalk or other outlets as he deserves. You can see February's edition here (http://www.spurstalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=147835).
There were a few good candidates for March. Matt Bonner quietly had his best month since returning from injury. Two of the top candidates from February, George Hill and Manu Ginobili, continued and even improved their stellar play. These two players carried the Spurs in most of the games throughout the month; Manu especially turned a few losses into wins single-handedly.
However, Manu has gotten a lot of attention for his amazing play, and while I think George Hill still isn't getting as much attention as he deserves, I didn't want to feature him two months in a row. So, the Unheralded Player for March 2010 is Richard Jefferson. RJ has gotten a lot of flak on these boards the entire season, most of it deserved. However, in what many Spurs fans hope are signs of things to come, Jefferson stepped up his game in March. His 12.8 ppg scoring average was his highest since November, but what's more important is how he is getting those points, as well as several other facets of his game.
Perhaps most importantly, RJ has started to rebound. With his 6'7" height, RJ has seriously underperformed on the boards, averaging only 4.4 rpg this year (note: this is also a trend that has been ongoing for the last four seasons). However, RJ hit the boards with a lot more energy in March, averaging 6.1 rpg, his highest of the year. If this rebounding can become consistent, then Jefferson will become a lot more valuable on the court.
The value of RJ's offense in March comes not from the increased scoring average, but from three other things: fewer three pointers, more free throws, and significantly more consistency.
-Fewer three pointers: One of the biggest knocks on RJ's offense this season is that he's settled for the 3-point shot far too often. On the season, he's averaged 2.7 three-point attempts per 36 minutes, and 24% of his FGA have been 3PA. In March, however, he took only 1.9 three-pointers per 36 minutes, with only 18% of his FGA being 3PA. This may not seem like a huge change, but it has actually had a big impact on his offensive efficiency, with his FG% in March soaring to an impressive 54.9% (his previous high for a month with the Spurs had been 48.7%, and was his highest FG% in a single month since December 2005).
-More free throws: Jefferson's increased attacking of the basket also led to his most free throw attempts per minute on the year. Perhaps more importantly, he hit them at a much higher percentage: 82.7% for the month, by far his best month of the season, and closer to what the Spurs expected when they obtained him (about 80% in the previous two seasons). If RJ can get to the line more often (and hit them at a high percentage) in the playoffs, then his value for this Spurs team can increase significantly.
-Consistency: What the Spurs might need most from Richard Jefferson, however, is consistency. Averaging 13 ppg doesn't matter much if you don't know on a given night if you can expect 5 points or 21 points from a player. In March, RJ displayed more consistency than he had before in a Spurs uniform. Coming into March, RJ had scored below 12 points in 28 out of 56 games (50%). In March, he scored below 12 points in only 6 out of 17 games (35%), including only 2 games in his last 12. If the Spurs have a chance to win in the playoffs, they need to be able to rely on RJ to score in double digits night in, night out.
Finally, I have to take a minute to talk about Jefferson's defense, which is one of the bigger issues Spurs fans have had with RJ. Many Spurs fans have already come to the realization that RJ is not going to be a stopper; this acceptance is a good thing, as it sets fans goals for him much closer to reality, as opposed to the inflated sense that the front office tried to instill in the offseason. However, RJ definitely showed some flashes of starting to get it on defense in March. Don't get me wrong, there were still times that I was yelling at my TV screen for RJ to rotate properly and use his size more effectively. Still, he's beginning to show more effort on the defensive end recently. This is particularly evident in his blocks numbers for March; he got 14 blocks for the month, which is significantly more than any other month for the year (his previous high month had 7 blocks). If he can put in the effort, improve his rotations, and get a few blocks here and there, his liability on that side of the court will significantly decline.
So, there you have it; while RJ is far from the finished product the Spurs hoped he would be, his contributions in March are a good sign that he might be able to help them win ballgames yet, and hopefully more fans will begin to talk about the positive steps he's taking.
There were a few good candidates for March. Matt Bonner quietly had his best month since returning from injury. Two of the top candidates from February, George Hill and Manu Ginobili, continued and even improved their stellar play. These two players carried the Spurs in most of the games throughout the month; Manu especially turned a few losses into wins single-handedly.
However, Manu has gotten a lot of attention for his amazing play, and while I think George Hill still isn't getting as much attention as he deserves, I didn't want to feature him two months in a row. So, the Unheralded Player for March 2010 is Richard Jefferson. RJ has gotten a lot of flak on these boards the entire season, most of it deserved. However, in what many Spurs fans hope are signs of things to come, Jefferson stepped up his game in March. His 12.8 ppg scoring average was his highest since November, but what's more important is how he is getting those points, as well as several other facets of his game.
Perhaps most importantly, RJ has started to rebound. With his 6'7" height, RJ has seriously underperformed on the boards, averaging only 4.4 rpg this year (note: this is also a trend that has been ongoing for the last four seasons). However, RJ hit the boards with a lot more energy in March, averaging 6.1 rpg, his highest of the year. If this rebounding can become consistent, then Jefferson will become a lot more valuable on the court.
The value of RJ's offense in March comes not from the increased scoring average, but from three other things: fewer three pointers, more free throws, and significantly more consistency.
-Fewer three pointers: One of the biggest knocks on RJ's offense this season is that he's settled for the 3-point shot far too often. On the season, he's averaged 2.7 three-point attempts per 36 minutes, and 24% of his FGA have been 3PA. In March, however, he took only 1.9 three-pointers per 36 minutes, with only 18% of his FGA being 3PA. This may not seem like a huge change, but it has actually had a big impact on his offensive efficiency, with his FG% in March soaring to an impressive 54.9% (his previous high for a month with the Spurs had been 48.7%, and was his highest FG% in a single month since December 2005).
-More free throws: Jefferson's increased attacking of the basket also led to his most free throw attempts per minute on the year. Perhaps more importantly, he hit them at a much higher percentage: 82.7% for the month, by far his best month of the season, and closer to what the Spurs expected when they obtained him (about 80% in the previous two seasons). If RJ can get to the line more often (and hit them at a high percentage) in the playoffs, then his value for this Spurs team can increase significantly.
-Consistency: What the Spurs might need most from Richard Jefferson, however, is consistency. Averaging 13 ppg doesn't matter much if you don't know on a given night if you can expect 5 points or 21 points from a player. In March, RJ displayed more consistency than he had before in a Spurs uniform. Coming into March, RJ had scored below 12 points in 28 out of 56 games (50%). In March, he scored below 12 points in only 6 out of 17 games (35%), including only 2 games in his last 12. If the Spurs have a chance to win in the playoffs, they need to be able to rely on RJ to score in double digits night in, night out.
Finally, I have to take a minute to talk about Jefferson's defense, which is one of the bigger issues Spurs fans have had with RJ. Many Spurs fans have already come to the realization that RJ is not going to be a stopper; this acceptance is a good thing, as it sets fans goals for him much closer to reality, as opposed to the inflated sense that the front office tried to instill in the offseason. However, RJ definitely showed some flashes of starting to get it on defense in March. Don't get me wrong, there were still times that I was yelling at my TV screen for RJ to rotate properly and use his size more effectively. Still, he's beginning to show more effort on the defensive end recently. This is particularly evident in his blocks numbers for March; he got 14 blocks for the month, which is significantly more than any other month for the year (his previous high month had 7 blocks). If he can put in the effort, improve his rotations, and get a few blocks here and there, his liability on that side of the court will significantly decline.
So, there you have it; while RJ is far from the finished product the Spurs hoped he would be, his contributions in March are a good sign that he might be able to help them win ballgames yet, and hopefully more fans will begin to talk about the positive steps he's taking.