Check out my latest post on 8 Points, 9 Seconds.
Saturday, December 21, 2013
Friday, December 20, 2013
Foul Play: Miami takes advantage of Pacers big man's absence
The folks over at 8 Points, 9 Seconds gave me the chance to post my thoughts on the way the Heat's offense goes at the Pacers' defense. I was very thankful for the chance. Thank you in particular to Jared Wade.
Click on the link to see what I had to say, and check out 8 Points, 9 Seconds.
Click on the link to see what I had to say, and check out 8 Points, 9 Seconds.
Wednesday, December 11, 2013
NONE SHALL PASS: Roy Hibbert's Effect on the Heat Offense
One does not simply walk into the paint.
Perhaps more accurately, one does not simply drive into the paint when it is occupied by Roy Hibbert.
That was the case on Tuesday night as Hibbert and the rest of the Pacers kept the Heat from doing what they love most and the Pacers came out with a 90-84 win.
The Heat like to shoot just over 41 percent of their shots within eight feet of the basket making around 65 percentage of them. Only problem Tuesday was that's where Hibbert likes to play. We know that the bigger Miami guys like Chris Bosh, Rashard Lewis, Birdman and Shane Battier have to deal with Hibbert in the post, but how does the rest of the team deal with Indiana's big man. The scheme and personnel of Indiana contribute to the defensive effort, no doubt. But look at the season averages versus what Miami did on Tuesday night, and you might expect Hibbert had something to do with the lack of efficiency by the Heat.
NBA.com defines a drive as any touch that starts at least 20 feet of the hoop and is dribbled within 10 feet of the hoop and excludes fast breaks.
The Heat have three players in the top 50 in drives per a game, and two more in the top 100, but when they tried to go to the basket, it wasn't working against the Pacers. LeBron
tried to take the ball to the rack more than usual, but only got one basket on those drives.
Only Norris Cole shot above his average, but the rest were noticeably below. Considering the fact Roy boasts a league best 39.7 average for opponents field goal percentage at the rim. We all know how good Hibbert is at defending the rim, but when they are driving at him, especially when Roy isn't in foul trouble, that would seem to play right into the Pacers game plan. It should be noted that too that LeBron, Wade, and Chalmers all help create points for their teammates when they drive. Respectively when they drive, they help create 6.4, 7, and 5.3 team points for a game. It wasn't as easy for them or their teammates to get points off their drive like they usually do.
Obviously this is only one game, and we are running it back on Wednesday in Miami, but it will be interesting to see how the Heat approach Hibbert as the season wears on.
The Heat are hoping Greg Oden can maybe change up the Pacers approach when they play, but until we see him play, that's a very big if.
Until then, the Heat better find a way to deal with Roy Hibbert's verticality.
Perhaps more accurately, one does not simply drive into the paint when it is occupied by Roy Hibbert.
That was the case on Tuesday night as Hibbert and the rest of the Pacers kept the Heat from doing what they love most and the Pacers came out with a 90-84 win.
The Heat like to shoot just over 41 percent of their shots within eight feet of the basket making around 65 percentage of them. Only problem Tuesday was that's where Hibbert likes to play. We know that the bigger Miami guys like Chris Bosh, Rashard Lewis, Birdman and Shane Battier have to deal with Hibbert in the post, but how does the rest of the team deal with Indiana's big man. The scheme and personnel of Indiana contribute to the defensive effort, no doubt. But look at the season averages versus what Miami did on Tuesday night, and you might expect Hibbert had something to do with the lack of efficiency by the Heat.
| Player | Drives vs IND | Points on Drives vs IND | Percentage vs IND | Season Average Drive Per Game | Season Average PPG on Drives | Season Average Percentage on Drives |
| LeBron James | 9 | 2 | 11% | 5.9 | 4.1 | 62.7% |
| Dwyane Wade | 6 | 2 | 17% | 5.6 | 3.4 | 54.5% |
| Mario Chalmers | 9 | 4 | 22% | 4.8 | 2.5 | 48.6% |
| Norris Cole | 3 | 4 | 66% | 4 | 1.7 | 48.6% |
| Ray Allen | 1 | 0 | 0% | 2.8 | 1.8 | 70% |
NBA.com defines a drive as any touch that starts at least 20 feet of the hoop and is dribbled within 10 feet of the hoop and excludes fast breaks.
The Heat have three players in the top 50 in drives per a game, and two more in the top 100, but when they tried to go to the basket, it wasn't working against the Pacers. LeBron
tried to take the ball to the rack more than usual, but only got one basket on those drives.
Only Norris Cole shot above his average, but the rest were noticeably below. Considering the fact Roy boasts a league best 39.7 average for opponents field goal percentage at the rim. We all know how good Hibbert is at defending the rim, but when they are driving at him, especially when Roy isn't in foul trouble, that would seem to play right into the Pacers game plan. It should be noted that too that LeBron, Wade, and Chalmers all help create points for their teammates when they drive. Respectively when they drive, they help create 6.4, 7, and 5.3 team points for a game. It wasn't as easy for them or their teammates to get points off their drive like they usually do.
Obviously this is only one game, and we are running it back on Wednesday in Miami, but it will be interesting to see how the Heat approach Hibbert as the season wears on.
The Heat are hoping Greg Oden can maybe change up the Pacers approach when they play, but until we see him play, that's a very big if.
Until then, the Heat better find a way to deal with Roy Hibbert's verticality.
Thursday, November 7, 2013
The Pacers are playing outta their minds right now
“We want to step away from that shadow as the ‘little brothers’ of this division,” Paul George told NBA.com. “Their success is the Michael Jordan era. This is a new age, this is a new team. It’s ours till they take it.”Baby steps Indiana, baby steps. (or Baby Dragons, if you ask Jason Whitlock.
Yes, it is early, but the Pacers have clearly taken care of business so far. They beat the teams they should beat every time, and they passed the first test of the season. (Grade: A) It is a young season and plenty of things will happen between Game 5 and Game 82, but the Pacers are monsters at the moment.
At the moment, being the key word.
Before we start talking about what's down the road for the Pacers, let's look at where they've been.
A year ago, the Pacers were 2-3 at this point, and I was cursing be decision to purchase NBA League Pass. There wins were over the Toronto Raptors and Sacramento Kings, and neither looked pretty while they got destroyed 101-79 by the San Antonio Spurs. Roy Hibbert looked like he took the money on his deal and hadn't practiced since. Paul George was the future, but the future looked no more than slightly above average. Obviously the Pacers grew into a team that challenged the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals, but they didn't look like much of a team until late in the season.
So what has changed in Indiana?
Well, with the caveat that these are small sample sizes, let's take a look.
Paul George is playing like a monster.
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| Paul George through five games |
He's actually shooting more from range than at the basket, which is working well so far for him as he's the league's third leading scorer. Looking at his shot performance, he's doing no worse than average from any part of the court with smart shot selection. He has no hesitation when he pulls up for three pointers, but is still working his way to the basket more than he did last year. Last year he had eight free throws attempts through give games. This year he's averaging 6.4 per a game. Let's hold up superstar talk, but he's certainly updating his resume so far this season. I hate to try to talk about intangibles because I'm not talking to Paul George or watching enough to really guess what his mindset really is, but he looks more aggressive and confident than ever. He looked great in the ECF, but now he looking like and playing like he's one of the league's best. We'll see how long he keeps this going because right now he's playing at a career high level. Even if these numbers fall slightly, he's still showing he's making his way up the chart of the league's best players.
But what else is going on in Indiana so far? What is so different about this year's team that is off to a franchise best 5-0 start.
Roy Hibbert isn't playing like crap, and he's averaging 5.2 blocks a game. rebounding slightly better than last year, and playing better defense even if his offense is slightly down. The Pacers run through the playoffs has earned him the reputation as an elite defender, and so far he's averaging one less foul even with the bad Pelicans game as far as foul trouble. We'll see, but so far it looks like he's getting the benefit of a doubt when he goes to block shots. He has worked on using the NBA's rule of verticality well. When 12.5 percent of plays end in a Hibbert block, their opponents defense isn't going to do very well.
Opponents are shooting under 30 percent at the rim with Hibbert there. It certainly a team effort as the wings help force opponents into bad situations, but those numbers are ridiculous.
Lance Stephenson a year ago was an unknown commodity, even to Pacers fans. He had 35 points through five games and wasn't starting until the seventh game of the season.
This year?
16.4 PPG, 6.2 RPG, 4.6 AST, .470 FG% .538 3P%
Like many of the Pacers we saw him grow in the playoffs and right now he, like PG and Hibbert, are playing out of their minds right now. It was natural to expect progression out of this team, but all of this so far has been rather amazing. Lance was a starter for most of last year, but was still a very raw player. Even when he slumped against the Bulls in the first half, he wasn't slacking off on defense or anything. he played through and shot out of it like a good player should. He's been part of the success that maybe hasn't gotten enough attention. We knew Paul George was slated for a break out year and Hibbert was a good interior defender, but Lance so far was somewhat unexpected. He had grown certainly, but I didn't expect him to be a player who was going to start to draw defenders away from the basket like he's going to if he keeps this up. He still drives it to the basket hard and finishes well, but if he can hit a couple of threes a game, and right now he's a 2.8, he's going to help the Pacers offense spread out opposing defenses.
Lastly, the bench is no longer go awful that the sight of Tyler Hansbrough, D.J. Augustine and Gerald Green checking in made coach Frank Vogel cry, knowing any lead the Pacers might have had was about to put down like Old Yeller, but in a more violent, snuff film fashion.
This year, we've even seen C.J. Watson has been able to hold down the point with George Hill taking time off to heal. Indiana's bench is now average, but that's an improvement. If nothing else mentally the Pacers, or at least their fans can know their bench isn't the 29th in +/-. Last year Tyler Hansbrough was the only Indiana bench player with a double-digit PER. This year only Hill, Ian Mahinmi, and Luis Scola have PER's under 10. The league average is 15. I'm not counting Chris Copeland and Rasual Butler because they've played less than 5 minutes.
Again, small sample sizes, but this bench is showing itself to be a definite improvement so far.
Needless to say, we should expect some regression and low points as the year wears on. All these numbers are amazing and the best of these players careers right now for the most part, so that's natural. But what it is showing is that some of the players individual ceilings might be higher than expected.
Wednesday, October 30, 2013
Oh you didn't know? Trying to shoot over Roy Hibbert is a terrible idea
At this pace, Roy Hibbert will have 574 blocks this season...
...assuming he plays 82 games he will smash Mark Eaton's record 5.6 BPG (456 total) by 118 blocks.
Needless to say, Hibbert won't keep up this pace (career average 1.8 BPG) but it only reminds me that Roy Hibbert is one of the best centers in the league when it comes to forcing defenders into misses (Opponents are shooing 26.3 percent at the rim against him.). The Magic shot just 45.16 percent from the restricted area, a zone they shot over 60 percent from last year.
Obviously one game is a small sample size, but that's all we have to go off of right now, and the Pacers did exactly what they needed to do. Another note would be that's not all Hibbert: That's the force of nature that is the bigs of Indiana. The starting center and forwards of Orlando went 10-29, a 34.5 percentage. Ouch.
While the paint isn't the best place to attack the Pacers from Indiana did a great job making sure Orlando was pedestrian from the rest of the court as well, save the left corner three. Last season we saw that it's hard to do more than a 50 percent performance against the Pacers defense with no real liabilities on the floor and a system that encourages crashing the boards without giving up transition baskets. That doesn't look to have changed between this year. Considering you have 7'2" Hibbert, 6'9" David West, and even a 6'8" Paul George finding one way or another to make opposing shooters lives a living hell, it isn't entirely surprising. Yes it was Orlando but anytime you keep a team below their normal average, you are doing something right. Also consider the fact that Indiana didn't force the Magic to shoot any differently than they did last year, they had them to take the same shots but with worse results.
...assuming he plays 82 games he will smash Mark Eaton's record 5.6 BPG (456 total) by 118 blocks.
Needless to say, Hibbert won't keep up this pace (career average 1.8 BPG) but it only reminds me that Roy Hibbert is one of the best centers in the league when it comes to forcing defenders into misses (Opponents are shooing 26.3 percent at the rim against him.). The Magic shot just 45.16 percent from the restricted area, a zone they shot over 60 percent from last year.
Obviously one game is a small sample size, but that's all we have to go off of right now, and the Pacers did exactly what they needed to do. Another note would be that's not all Hibbert: That's the force of nature that is the bigs of Indiana. The starting center and forwards of Orlando went 10-29, a 34.5 percentage. Ouch.
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| Orlando's Shot Performance Vs. Indiana 10/30/13 |
While the paint isn't the best place to attack the Pacers from Indiana did a great job making sure Orlando was pedestrian from the rest of the court as well, save the left corner three. Last season we saw that it's hard to do more than a 50 percent performance against the Pacers defense with no real liabilities on the floor and a system that encourages crashing the boards without giving up transition baskets. That doesn't look to have changed between this year. Considering you have 7'2" Hibbert, 6'9" David West, and even a 6'8" Paul George finding one way or another to make opposing shooters lives a living hell, it isn't entirely surprising. Yes it was Orlando but anytime you keep a team below their normal average, you are doing something right. Also consider the fact that Indiana didn't force the Magic to shoot any differently than they did last year, they had them to take the same shots but with worse results.
The Pacers playing good defense is no surprise. They won, but for a team that thinks it is going to win the title this year, they are going to have to be more efficient. The Pacers were outscored in the second quarter and went into halftime trailing. Going 8 of 18 and turning the ball over 11 times is no way to go through life son. On the plus side, George was more efficient than last year finishing at the bucket and shooting threes, but let's wait one, two, or ten games before making any bold proclamations. West actually didn't finish well around the rim but Lance Stephenson showed some improvement.
Just one game. But one win.
Just one game. But one win.
Wednesday, October 16, 2013
By The Numbers: Did the Pacers actually get better?
The Indiana Pacers showed in the playoffs that they were a few pieces (and less than most people thought) away from an NBA championship.
What I like about all of this is C.J. does many of the same thing D.J. goes on the floor, he just does them better. Watson is also important in another regard: In the 2012-2013 season, the Pacers 5th most used 5-man unit included Augustin running the point with. That unit had a +/- of -17, but I'd like to think was less turnovers (Watson's TOV% 12.1, Augustin's 16.8), that unit, along with the other unit's the used the back-up point guard, will improve. The only possible worry with Watson vs. Augstin, is defense (107 vs 104 DRtg), but as a unit the Pacers scheme, I'd like to think that will improve as well.
Better? Worse? Meh?: Better. What I really like about this is the fact they are very similar players as far as how they are used and how they shoot. C.J. Watson just does it better than D.J. Augustin did. Just about every per a game and advanced stat says Watson is a better player. Considering last year it felt like the Pacers 2nd Unit was not trying to maintain, but fight to see how much of a lead the they could give the opposing team. The fact the the Pacers starting five of Hill-Stephenson-George-West-Hibbert were +288 as a unit, league best, and the second team couldn't do more than now blow the lead, was very frustrating. When you put all of D.J. Augustin's units together, you end up with a +/- of -17, which is far from terrible, but let's you know when D.J. was on the floor, the Pacers lead was probably in peril. If it means anything, all of the 5-man Units of Watson when put together yield a +/- of +45 last year with the Brooklyn Nets.
The eye tests tells me, the numbers confirm, and popular opinion say Wastson in an improvement over Augustin. He should probably get around 18 minutes a game, only a minute less than he averaged last year so I don't think it is foolish to think Pacers fans get expect him to do the same at the back-up point guard.
Power Forwards: Luis Scola vs Tyler Hansbrough
Per Game
Advanced
What do I see: First let's take a look at the numbers, starting with the per a game stats. Good news! He's better than the beloved Psycho-T! A better rebounder, better shooter, even looking at the advanced numbers he looks more efficient, but maybe not as much of an offensive rebounder. That may change with the Pacers practice of crashing the boards.
However, the question is how will adapt to a lesser role with the Pacers than he had with the Suns. Last year Scola played in the top five used of Phoenix's 5 man units. Hanbrough averaged 16 minutes with the Pacers. Scola will in theory be losing roughly 10 minutes of play, depending on how coach Frank Vogel uses him. Donahue expects Scola to split time the 96 minutes the bigs get with Hibbert (28.7 mpg) and West (33.4 mpg), leaving 62.1 to be split between Mahimi at the five, (16.5 mpg). That leaves just 17.4 minutes to split between Scola and Copeland. Scola did play some center for the Suns, but I doubt Vogel will put him there very much, he didn't with Hansbrough. Even he he gets the bulk of those minutes, like Psycho-T did, that's 10 minutes less than he had in Phoenix.
But consider the fact that an improved bench might free up minutes for the starting bigs, meaning more time for Copeland and Scola. (Side note: PG was 10th in the league in minutes per a game at 37.62, hopefully he can rest with Granger's return.) The minutes, and how well the players use them is a question mark at the four (PF), is a question mark, but lets look back at some of the positives.
When it comes to USG%, Scola (23.3) and Hansbrough's (20.6) numbers are compatible, so as far as role goes, I think Scola will be fine as long as he doesn't mind the reduced minutes
Scola will also open up the paint if his shooting stays the same. Scola will shoot plenty from the paint but Hansbrough shot almost 70% of his shots from the paint, where as Scola has a near 50/50 split between the paint and mid-range. This is a big change over someone like Hansbrough, and maybe it will open up the floor, but that makes it much harder to judge how he will perform.
Better? Worse? Meh?: Better, but with a lot of questions with the minutes being cut for Scola, and how he adjusts. But assuming that works out, the shot performance chart to the right should tell you why this should be a drastic improvement. The yellow means his FG% Comparable to league average, and green is above. When Luis pulls up from mid-range, he's making 45.66% of those shots. When you look at Tyler's shot performance chart, you see almost all red, and in the restricted area Hansbrough may shoot around the league average, but Luis shoots two percentage better from that area. For sure the software is an upgrade at PF position but seeing how it integrates with the current operating system is yet to be seen.
In the off season, the Pacers added Luis Scola, C.J. Watson, Chris Copeland and drafted Solomon Hill.
Gone are Tyler Hansbrough, Gerald Green, and D.J. Augustin.
Gone are Tyler Hansbrough, Gerald Green, and D.J. Augustin.
It seems like all that can be considered upgrades (I will miss Psycho-T, though.), how well do they fit into the Pacers line-up. Honestly, we won't really know until they hit the floor. But we can sift through the numbers, check to see if they are an improvement on the floor, and see where they might find a fit in the Pacers rotations.
Here are a few assumptions I'm making as I do this: The starters will be Roy Hibbert, David West, Paul George, Lance Stephenson and George Hill, with Danny Granger coming off the bench.
Mr. Tim Donahue expects the same, with Watson and Luis Scola seeing significant playing time and Chris Copeland and Ian Mahinmi coming in situation.
I imagine Solomon Hill will see time, but I don't see him getting time to start the season unless someone gets hurt. (Please not Granger.)
So let's go position-by-position and see what the numbers tell us.
So let's go position-by-position and see what the numbers tell us.
Point Guard: C.J. Watson vs D.J. Augustin
Per Game
Advanced
What do I see: I think it is a good sign their minutes per a game are similar because if the new additions are having to change their roles, then I worry much more about chemistry and how their performance will fare. But since there is only a three minute per a game difference, let's move on. With the exception of free throw percentage and assists, C.J. is a better player. The advanced numbers are on Watson's side as well: PER 13.9 vs 11.0, a better rebounder, and a more efficient shooter. Similar Usage percentage, but Watson doesn't assist as much, and is a worse defender. But DRtg is strongly tied to team defense, so this may improve. Another good sign are Watson's and Augustin's shot distribution. Watson used mid-range shots more than Augustin, but Watson shoots above the league average from there even if it isn't the most used area, so little worry anyway. The bulk came from the paint and the left and right sides of three-point range. Watson shoots better from all but one (8-16 feet, in the paint) of those areas than Augustin does. Watson's going to take three's like Augustin did, but in theory, he should make more. |
| C.J. Watson Shot Performance |
Better? Worse? Meh?: Better. What I really like about this is the fact they are very similar players as far as how they are used and how they shoot. C.J. Watson just does it better than D.J. Augustin did. Just about every per a game and advanced stat says Watson is a better player. Considering last year it felt like the Pacers 2nd Unit was not trying to maintain, but fight to see how much of a lead the they could give the opposing team. The fact the the Pacers starting five of Hill-Stephenson-George-West-Hibbert were +288 as a unit, league best, and the second team couldn't do more than now blow the lead, was very frustrating. When you put all of D.J. Augustin's units together, you end up with a +/- of -17, which is far from terrible, but let's you know when D.J. was on the floor, the Pacers lead was probably in peril. If it means anything, all of the 5-man Units of Watson when put together yield a +/- of +45 last year with the Brooklyn Nets.
The eye tests tells me, the numbers confirm, and popular opinion say Wastson in an improvement over Augustin. He should probably get around 18 minutes a game, only a minute less than he averaged last year so I don't think it is foolish to think Pacers fans get expect him to do the same at the back-up point guard.
Power Forwards: Luis Scola vs Tyler Hansbrough
Per Game
Advanced
What do I see: First let's take a look at the numbers, starting with the per a game stats. Good news! He's better than the beloved Psycho-T! A better rebounder, better shooter, even looking at the advanced numbers he looks more efficient, but maybe not as much of an offensive rebounder. That may change with the Pacers practice of crashing the boards.
However, the question is how will adapt to a lesser role with the Pacers than he had with the Suns. Last year Scola played in the top five used of Phoenix's 5 man units. Hanbrough averaged 16 minutes with the Pacers. Scola will in theory be losing roughly 10 minutes of play, depending on how coach Frank Vogel uses him. Donahue expects Scola to split time the 96 minutes the bigs get with Hibbert (28.7 mpg) and West (33.4 mpg), leaving 62.1 to be split between Mahimi at the five, (16.5 mpg). That leaves just 17.4 minutes to split between Scola and Copeland. Scola did play some center for the Suns, but I doubt Vogel will put him there very much, he didn't with Hansbrough. Even he he gets the bulk of those minutes, like Psycho-T did, that's 10 minutes less than he had in Phoenix.
 |
| Luis Scola Shot Performance |
When it comes to USG%, Scola (23.3) and Hansbrough's (20.6) numbers are compatible, so as far as role goes, I think Scola will be fine as long as he doesn't mind the reduced minutes
Scola will also open up the paint if his shooting stays the same. Scola will shoot plenty from the paint but Hansbrough shot almost 70% of his shots from the paint, where as Scola has a near 50/50 split between the paint and mid-range. This is a big change over someone like Hansbrough, and maybe it will open up the floor, but that makes it much harder to judge how he will perform.
Better? Worse? Meh?: Better, but with a lot of questions with the minutes being cut for Scola, and how he adjusts. But assuming that works out, the shot performance chart to the right should tell you why this should be a drastic improvement. The yellow means his FG% Comparable to league average, and green is above. When Luis pulls up from mid-range, he's making 45.66% of those shots. When you look at Tyler's shot performance chart, you see almost all red, and in the restricted area Hansbrough may shoot around the league average, but Luis shoots two percentage better from that area. For sure the software is an upgrade at PF position but seeing how it integrates with the current operating system is yet to be seen.
Thursday, September 26, 2013
Who is Lance Stephenson? Answer: Lance Stephenson (Part 3)
The honorable Tim Donahue asked on Twitter last week who exactly Lance Stephenson compares to.
After looking at the numbers, I have to come to one conclusion: He is Lance Stephenson.
He may attack like Jeremy Lin or Tyreke Evans at times, but his advanced statistics are more like Tony Allen's according to basketball reference.com.
But all those are flawed comparisons for many reasons. Lin is a distributor, Evans plays better defense, and Tony Allen is the Grindfather and doesn't shoot from deep like Lance is capable of. Lin and Evans are used much more in the offense as far as the Usage percentage goes and he is more in line with Allen in that regard, but I don't think Lance and Tony have all that much in common other than shot their inside shot selection and performance from there. Lance's use or range makes him more like Lin or Evans. One of the comparisons BR gave was Smush Parker (different shot selection) or Don Cheney, but considering he played pre-three point line, it seems just as hard to compare him as it does with Allen.
If any one has any other suggestions I'd be interested to know, because so far I can find a guy I'd feel that comfortable saying is his doppelganger.
Lance is his own animal in a lot of ways. He's got the irrational confidence of J.R. Smith, a defensive game comparable to Tyreke Evans, shot selection like Jeremy Lin, and finishes (better) like Tony Allen.
To see the stream-of-consciousness that got me here, look at Part 1 and Part 2.
After looking at the numbers, I have to come to one conclusion: He is Lance Stephenson.
He may attack like Jeremy Lin or Tyreke Evans at times, but his advanced statistics are more like Tony Allen's according to basketball reference.com.
But all those are flawed comparisons for many reasons. Lin is a distributor, Evans plays better defense, and Tony Allen is the Grindfather and doesn't shoot from deep like Lance is capable of. Lin and Evans are used much more in the offense as far as the Usage percentage goes and he is more in line with Allen in that regard, but I don't think Lance and Tony have all that much in common other than shot their inside shot selection and performance from there. Lance's use or range makes him more like Lin or Evans. One of the comparisons BR gave was Smush Parker (different shot selection) or Don Cheney, but considering he played pre-three point line, it seems just as hard to compare him as it does with Allen.
If any one has any other suggestions I'd be interested to know, because so far I can find a guy I'd feel that comfortable saying is his doppelganger.
Lance is his own animal in a lot of ways. He's got the irrational confidence of J.R. Smith, a defensive game comparable to Tyreke Evans, shot selection like Jeremy Lin, and finishes (better) like Tony Allen.
To see the stream-of-consciousness that got me here, look at Part 1 and Part 2.
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