Rondo and turnovers
Posted: Fri Feb 13, 2009 7:56 pm
Rondo is averaging 8.5 assist a game this season against 2.7 turnovers per game, for a 3.12 assist to turnover ratio. Evidently, some people think that he turns the ball over WAYYY too much. I happen to disagree.
The kid is 5th in the league in assists per game. Where is he in turnovers? 22nd.
Two of the 4 guys ahead of him on the APG list actually have a significantly worse assist to turnover ratio. Nash is FAR worse, with a 2.58, and Williams is about 0.3 worse. CP3 has one of 3.52, which is significantly better and, of course, leads the league in assists. He also happens to the best in the biz at that position. Calderon, who is virtually tied in assists with Rajon, has a ratio a full assist better than rondo. The problem with him, though, as just about any Raptor fan will tell you, is that he really doesn't create much offense with those assists. He is making A LOT of safe passes for mid range jumpers and the like. That doesn't make for a good offense, and the Raps offense is terrible.
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/statistic ... pg&pos=all
I think that it should be prett obvious from that list that Rondo is actually outperforming the vast majority of other point guards not only in production of assists, but also in his efficiency in getting them. I'm actually not a supporter of the idea that "assists are everything" in running an offense, as Billups is certainly a better floor general than many of the guys ahead of him on this list, but they are a MAJOR contributing factor. In addition, Rondo is an excellent floor general in his own right. He certainly isn't a turning the ball over excessively with respect to his peers. in fact he looks VERY good in comparison.
Some historical examples might be good to look at as well, considering that I am focusing on TURNOVERS (a note to potential strawmen builders). Magic Johnson is the concensus "best point guard ever". He averaged 11.2 assists for his career, which is just awesome. Great stuff. He also averaged 3.9 turnovers per game for his career. In the '84 season Magic averaged 4.6 a game.
What!!! Get that turnovermachine off of the court. Seriously, what self respecting coach would allow a guy who is coughing up 4.6 turnovers a game to step on the court. Well, one who wanted to win titles. The ends justify the means as they say. So what if Magic turned the ball over? His job was to spark the Laker offense. Don't even start thinking "well they were all 'good' turnovers". Magic made some of the most godawful passes I have ever seen in my life. Why/ He had a hair trigger, and sometimes you misfire. It comes with the territory. What matters is if you are making a lot of great plays for every bad one you make, and Magic certainly did that.
I'm of the opinion that it is part of a point guard's job to turn the ball over. That he's the guy who initiating the offense, and the guy who is taking it on himself to make the most difficult (yet rewarding) passes and that turning the ball over is a risk he has to take. If he's havibg an off night then he'll do it more, if he's really sharp he'll do it less. I keep in mind that by him taking that load that he actually REDUCES the team's turnovers and IMPROVES the looks that his teammates get. Rondo is a perfect example of this.
What has happened with our second unit over the last few games. Suddenly, after alternating between mediocre and awful for quite a long time, they are looking great. Why? Well Doc has FINALLY allowed Rondo to play with them. it made all of the difference for those guys. With Rondo actually CONTROLLING the offense and getting them their looks, everyone could just focus on doing thier thing. They didn't need to create offense, Rondo created it for them, or at least set them up to succeed, and they just finished the job. Rondo, by the way, has been doing this for our starters all season. If he turns it over, so what/ Do you actually think that anyone else could do better/ If you do, then you are kidding yourself.
The kid is growing a lot, and yeah, he makes some stupid mistakes at times. Well, try watching what the guys from pther team do. Nash isn't averaging 3.8 turnovers per game because he doesn't screw up. Yet Rondo turns the ball over 4 times in a game, and people act as if he's some butterfingered idiot. He is not. He's one of the best at what he does. Get used to the idea.
The kid is 5th in the league in assists per game. Where is he in turnovers? 22nd.
Two of the 4 guys ahead of him on the APG list actually have a significantly worse assist to turnover ratio. Nash is FAR worse, with a 2.58, and Williams is about 0.3 worse. CP3 has one of 3.52, which is significantly better and, of course, leads the league in assists. He also happens to the best in the biz at that position. Calderon, who is virtually tied in assists with Rajon, has a ratio a full assist better than rondo. The problem with him, though, as just about any Raptor fan will tell you, is that he really doesn't create much offense with those assists. He is making A LOT of safe passes for mid range jumpers and the like. That doesn't make for a good offense, and the Raps offense is terrible.
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/statistic ... pg&pos=all
I think that it should be prett obvious from that list that Rondo is actually outperforming the vast majority of other point guards not only in production of assists, but also in his efficiency in getting them. I'm actually not a supporter of the idea that "assists are everything" in running an offense, as Billups is certainly a better floor general than many of the guys ahead of him on this list, but they are a MAJOR contributing factor. In addition, Rondo is an excellent floor general in his own right. He certainly isn't a turning the ball over excessively with respect to his peers. in fact he looks VERY good in comparison.
Some historical examples might be good to look at as well, considering that I am focusing on TURNOVERS (a note to potential strawmen builders). Magic Johnson is the concensus "best point guard ever". He averaged 11.2 assists for his career, which is just awesome. Great stuff. He also averaged 3.9 turnovers per game for his career. In the '84 season Magic averaged 4.6 a game.
What!!! Get that turnovermachine off of the court. Seriously, what self respecting coach would allow a guy who is coughing up 4.6 turnovers a game to step on the court. Well, one who wanted to win titles. The ends justify the means as they say. So what if Magic turned the ball over? His job was to spark the Laker offense. Don't even start thinking "well they were all 'good' turnovers". Magic made some of the most godawful passes I have ever seen in my life. Why/ He had a hair trigger, and sometimes you misfire. It comes with the territory. What matters is if you are making a lot of great plays for every bad one you make, and Magic certainly did that.
I'm of the opinion that it is part of a point guard's job to turn the ball over. That he's the guy who initiating the offense, and the guy who is taking it on himself to make the most difficult (yet rewarding) passes and that turning the ball over is a risk he has to take. If he's havibg an off night then he'll do it more, if he's really sharp he'll do it less. I keep in mind that by him taking that load that he actually REDUCES the team's turnovers and IMPROVES the looks that his teammates get. Rondo is a perfect example of this.
What has happened with our second unit over the last few games. Suddenly, after alternating between mediocre and awful for quite a long time, they are looking great. Why? Well Doc has FINALLY allowed Rondo to play with them. it made all of the difference for those guys. With Rondo actually CONTROLLING the offense and getting them their looks, everyone could just focus on doing thier thing. They didn't need to create offense, Rondo created it for them, or at least set them up to succeed, and they just finished the job. Rondo, by the way, has been doing this for our starters all season. If he turns it over, so what/ Do you actually think that anyone else could do better/ If you do, then you are kidding yourself.
The kid is growing a lot, and yeah, he makes some stupid mistakes at times. Well, try watching what the guys from pther team do. Nash isn't averaging 3.8 turnovers per game because he doesn't screw up. Yet Rondo turns the ball over 4 times in a game, and people act as if he's some butterfingered idiot. He is not. He's one of the best at what he does. Get used to the idea.