The Official 2015 NBA Free Agency/Off-Season Thread

[Gil Scott-Heroin]

damn...cant shoot cant dribble can create his own shot...

52M

good god. MJ done lost it

make more than danny green brehs

Negged.

 

[Black]

 

[Darealtwo1]

see how happy he is.....this guy couldn't wait to be sore free for these off season meetings

 

[42 Monks]

nice contract for the Hornets

That's a fukking steal

Goddamn we been blessed this offseason

 

[Black]

 

[ALonelyDad]

I wonder what Harrison Barnes is going to get.

more, he's a more popular name

 

[loyola llothta]

s/o to Derrick Rose, man that nikka nice.



Folk never been the same since

 

[42 Monks]

more, he's a more popular name

which is a fukking shame but

 

[Professor K.]

s/o to Derrick Rose, man that nikka nice.



Folk never been the same since

 

[G.O.A.T Squad Spokesman]

which is a fukking shame but

Had we had MKG instead of Barnes we wouldn't have had a parade in Oakland.

 

[NatiboyB]

Had we had MKG instead of Barnes we wouldn't have had a parade in Oakland.

I'd beg to differ I think the lineup of

Bogut
Green
Iggy
Klay
Curry

With MKG coming off the bench would of made that defense even more phenomenal.

 

[42 Monks]

Had we had MKG instead of Barnes we wouldn't have had a parade in Oakland.

You make it sound like Barnes never went 0-8 in a finals game on one of the most spaced out floors in the entire NBA

At least when MKG is off, he's still giving you Kawhi level defense and pushes the ball in transition. When Barnes isn't hitting he adds almost nothing to the team.

 

[G.O.A.T Squad Spokesman]

You make it sound like Barnes never went 0-8 in a finals game on one of the most spaced out floors in the entire NBA

At least when MKG is off, he's still giving you Kawhi level defense and pushes the ball in transition. When Barnes isn't hitting he adds almost nothing to the team.

 

[42 Monks]

I only post facts @Blackthoughts we been over this

go down to on/off court stats and tell me what you see - but check your emotions before you respond

Kawhi: Kawhi Leonard of the San Antonio Spurs, NBA player stats
MKG: Michael Kidd-Gilchrist of the Charlotte Hornets, NBA player stats

It should also be noted that Kawhi plays with TD behind him and MKG plays with the human layup line Al Jefferson, this and roughly equivalent defensive statistics is... well, very telling if nothing else

If you would like to know more, please read this nice article: Why Michael Kidd-Gilchrist is worth $52 million even though he can't shoot

In his rookie season, Kidd-Gilchrist shot 28 percent on shots 10 feet and longer, per NBA.com. That mark went down to 27 percent in 2013-14. In a league that's emphasizing spacing more than ever, poor jump-shooting like that is a death knell for an offense.

With this in mind, the Hornets remade Kidd-Gilchrist's jumper to make him more of an outside threat. While the youngster didn't attempt a single three-pointer last season, that fixed form resulted in much more proficient shooting on two-point jumpers. That 27 percent mark from 10 feet and out jumped all the way up to nearly 40 percent on 177 attempts. Kidd-Gilchrist also shot a solid 41.3 percent on spot-up opportunities last season, the best mark on the Hornets for players with at least 100 spot-up possessions, per Synergy Sports Technology. The next step in his shooting development will be to extend that range out to the three-point line.

But even if Kidd-Gilchrist never becomes a three-point threat, he still makes a positive contribution on offense. Our Mike Prada highlighted Kidd-Gilchrist's strong cutting ability and work on the offensive glass earlier in the year, and the numbers bear out his skill in those areas. His points per possession on cuts placed him in the 75th percentile in the entire league, and he ranked fourth among qualified small forwards in offensive rebound rate, per ESPN.

Furthermore, Kidd-Gilchrist was perhaps the only Hornet that was a threat on the break. Charlotte ranked near the bottom of the league in fast break points with just over nine per game, but MKG's 2.6 fast-break points per game was best on the team, per NBA.com. Without his speed, Charlotte wouldn't score in transition at all. Toss in MKG's ability to get to the free throw line at a good rate, and you have the makings of a quality offensive player even without a legitimate three-point shot.

Then there's the defensive end of the floor, which is where Kidd-Gilchrist really shines. He has ideal size, length (7-foot wingspan) and athleticism on the wing, and he uses those tools to his advantage as a defensive stopper.

Kidd-Gilchrist was fourth among small forwards in ESPN's Defensive Real Plus-Minus, and his impact on that end is clear when looking at his on/off splits. In the 1,587 minutes he was on the court last season, the Hornets gave up just over 96 points per 100 possessions, per NBA.com. In the 2,394 minutes he was on the bench or injured, they gave up over 104 points per 100 possessions.

He was that essential to the Hornets' defense. During a 12-game stretch ranging from mid-November to early December when Kidd-Gilchrist was sidelined to injury, Charlotte gave up nearly 110 points per 100 possessions. When he missed the last 11 games of the season, the Hornets gave up over 105 points per 100 possessions. Both of those marks would rank near or at the bottom of the league.

Kidd-Gilchrist's long arms, quick feet, never-ending activity and dogged tenacity make him the ideal modern shutdown wing defender. Kidd-Gilchrist fared excellently in isolation situations and allowed just 43.7 percent shooting on shots he defended, one of the better marks among forwards, per NBA.com. He was especially good stopping shots closer to the basket, holding opponents to 4.4 percent less than their normal field goal percentage on shots less than 10 feet and an even stingier 7.7 percent less on shots less than 6 feet.

The scary thing is Kidd-Gilchrist still has room to improve on defense, especially in pick-and-roll and situations. He's already good enough as it is, but as he gets older and continues to learn the finer points of defense, he'll improve even more. If he stays healthy, he should be a perennial member of the All-Defensive Team. He could even find himself in the running for Defensive Player of the Year.

With the cap jumping up to around $90 million next summer and possibly near $110 million in 2017, signing a 21-year-old lockdown defender with a budding offensive game at $13 million a year makes sense for Charlotte. Eventually, that deal will be for less than 12 percent of the cap. That's equivalent to a contract at around $8.5 million a season at the current salary-cap level.

 

[Easy-E]

Nov. 16, 2014, after scoring 44 points on 34 shots in 31 minutes during a Lakers blowout loss: "I'd rather not have to do that, but you can't sit back and watch crime happen in front of you."

37 Kobe quotes for Kobe's 37th birthday