billyshelby
Well-Known Member
If you think his numbers are "inflated" because of his minutes than look at his advanced stats and it will give you a better idea of how he is doing! I made a list of wing players who got more than 1000 minutes this season and ranked them based on AST%, REB% and FTr(Alec is also on that list!).
I don't know how you define "exceptionally well" but his passing and playmaking is elite in my book(compared to wings!). His rebounding ain't elite but he is above average and it has nothing to do with the minutes he gets. I agree with the defensiv part but really who is an above average defender on this team? We just have Derrick who is above average and that's it. And more than individual defensive guys this team needs a coach who can implant TEAM DEFENSE. Like coach Clifford did in Charlotte. And he ain't getting to the line like an elite wing but again he is above average in that depature as well.
Why is him passing to outside shooters a problem? It's not like he is standing on the perimeter and passing to his left or his right and says "shoot it". There are really two possibilitys. He can drive to the basket or he can play a PnR with one of our bigs.
When he drives to the basket he can either dish or kick it to the outside. And defenses don't allow a drive and dish so much in the NBA. So it is up to the ball handler to make the right read. If the dish is not there than he have to find the open man at the perimeter and that's not a bad thing at all because it's a wide open shot most of the times.
When he runs a PnR with either Enes or Derrick there are the similar options. You find the roll(Derrick), the pop(Enes) or the outside shot. If the defense does not allow you the roll/pop than you gotta kick it out. And that wouldn't be a bad thing either.
He is doing a good job when he drives to the basket. I really don't remember situations where he didn't dish the ball in favor of an outside shot but he could do a better job in PnR situatins with Derrick but that really isn't just Gordon's problem.
And I totally disagree with your second part I don't see him as a top 2 scoring option on a team with quality players(he would be the 3rd or 4th opion) but I would still let him handle the ball and create for others even with quality players!
A lot to respond to.
First off, I'm not too sure how much I like the parameters of your comparison. There are only 13 players in the entire NBA who have played more minutes than Hayward this season. So lumping him in with guys playing "over 1000" seems a little odd. The difference between 1000 and Hayward is 10 minutes a game.
Second, I don't quite understand your selection of stats to compare. Maybe I'm old fashioned, but Ast% and Reb% seems worthless to me. It indicates that Hayward gets a high percentage of the team assists and rebounds, which would be expected given his minutes and how much he controls the ball. On the plus side, Hayward grades out very well positionally in his per minute assists and rebound stats. And I think he is solid in these categories.
Third, the FT% stat just seems like cherrypicking. Hayward has always done well at getting to the line. But this shouldn't be confused with an ability to get to the rim, to "attack". He's shooting 49% at the rim last I checked which is pathetic. He gets to the line because he possesses the ball so much, not to mention he's been above average on the break.
What your comparison leaves out is how Hayward compares to guys playing actually similar minutes in categories like scoring. His shooting numbers are horrific as his attempts have increased. Furthermore, my speculation is that his stats are inflated by how much he handles the ball. He isn't suited to be a primary ball handler, but on our team he is. With half the touches he gets, which would happen on any team with a true star, his numbers will regress.
Hayward is a good player. But that's all he is. Good. The question is only what the going salary for good is.
