Player Matt Jones

[bdotling]

Amazing that Hairston got court time back then and now we can't find it for guys like Semi or Delaurier

 

[rhfarmer]

Amazing that Hairston got court time back then and now we can't find it for guys like Semi or Delaurier

So many missed, wide open 17 footers

 

[TS9]

Amazing that Hairston got court time back then and now we can't find it for guys like Semi or Delaurier

Invisible intangibles.

 

[niveklaen]

Amazing that Hairston got court time back then and now we can't find it for guys like Semi or Delaurier

I think this is evidence that K is still learning and growing as a coach. He used to use a longer rotation like Roy and gave pt to guys like Hairston. He has decided that it is better to play your best players the most and to cut guys like Hairston out of the rotation. K has changed.

Lots of people complained that K played Hairston too much. Now that K has started following their advice, those same people make the opposite complaint.

 

[rhfarmer]

I think the evidence is that K plays some guys who are worse than others:

2012-

Josh Ortg 99.6
Amile 120.6
Amile had better rebounding and steal rates and fewer turnovers, shot a higher percentage and had a better defensive rating and BPM.

Josh played more.

2013

Josh Ortg 112.4
Semi 132.7

Semi, better FG, 3FG and FT %'s, better rebounding and steal rate, averaged 10 FEWER fouls per 100 possessions and had a better Drtg and BPM

Josh played more.

 

[rome8180]

Yeah, I don't think there's any evidence that K has shortened his rotation in favor of better players as niveklaen suggests. Those Hairston teams weren't super deep. And Jones played more minutes than Jackson most of this season.

 

[rhfarmer]

I get the idea that some guys have been in the program longer and k wants to have some loyalty to some guys who buy in. Hairston was a better player by the time he was a senior, but he was still not better than several players who were less experienced.

I'm not even going to bring up how much better Silent G's numbers were than Hairston's. Or Austin's for that matter.

 

[physicsfactor]

I haven't bothered to check this over several seasons, but I would guess the evidence would suggest that unless you're a stud freshman or there's no depth at your position, K is going to play the upperclassman over you. I'm guessing it has something to do with military background and trust and seniority and whatnot.

 

[DukeCrow]

Don't forget verve

 

[niveklaen]

I haven't bothered to check this over several seasons, but I would guess the evidence would suggest that unless you're a stud freshman or there's no depth at your position, K is going to play the upperclassman over you. I'm guessing it has something to do with military background and trust and seniority and whatnot.

I think this is another place that K may have changed. He had Avery come off the bench behind Wojo, Maggette behind Carrawell, and Duhon behind Nate James**. All three of those guys were much more talented* than the upperclassmen who started ahead of them and K would likely start all three in similar circumstances today. At least now he starts his stud freshmen. He didn't used to.

*I think an argument can be made that NDPOY senior Wojo may have been better than freshman Avery, but I got shouted down the last time I made that argument on another board...

**I tend to think of Matt Jones as a Nate James clone, though Nate never inspired the hate/contempt that Matt has...

 

[deepdarkblue]

Don't forget verve

I never saw Hairston as much of a verve guy, but then I guess there's that inner verve that only someone close to him could see. It's what makes K the GOAT.

 

[rome8180]

He definitely had a strong face though.

 

[rhfarmer]

I haven't bothered to check this over several seasons, but I would guess the evidence would suggest that unless you're a stud freshman or there's no depth at your position, K is going to play the upperclassman over you. I'm guessing it has something to do with military background and trust and seniority and whatnot.

I think this is another place that K may have changed. He had Avery come off the bench behind Wojo, Maggette behind Carrawell, and Duhon behind Nate James**. All three of those guys were much more talented* than the upperclassmen who started ahead of them and K would likely start all three in similar circumstances today. At least now he starts his stud freshmen. He didn't used to.

*I think an argument can be made that NDPOY senior Wojo may have been better than freshman Avery, but I got shouted down the last time I made that argument on another board...

**I tend to think of Matt Jones as a Nate James clone, though Nate never inspired the hate/contempt that Matt has...

I think this change is necessitated by the realities of recruiting. I mean, Rivers had terrible efficiency stats, but all the high level kids are watching what coaches are doing to help their draft prospects. If K had buried Rivers on the bench, it would have been a message to recruits.

Also, kids aren't being drafted purely on athleticism and the combine anymore, they have to show some skill with pace and space being the order of the day in the NBA.

 

[aiw]

Dijon supplanted James in the starting lineup towards the end of 2001

 

[aiw]

Not changing it.

 

[rhfarmer]

He was brown and spicey

 

[aiw]

In what way was Matt Jones a Nate James clone? In no way? In the JML way?

Nate James averaged 5 rpg his last 2 years and shot something like 58% from 2. Matt Jones did not.

Anyway, I'm a Matt Jones fan.

 

[niveklaen]

In what way was Matt Jones a Nate James clone? In no way? In the JML way?

Nate James averaged 5 rpg his last 2 years and shot something like 58% from 2. Matt Jones did not.

Anyway, I'm a Matt Jones fan.

Clone is probably the wrong term. I just always thought the comparisons to TT were way off base and that Matt was way more similar to Nate. Both 6'5ish wings who played complimentary roles on title teams with defense as their primary value and who both struggled mightily from 3 (Nate was a career .335 shooter from 3 - .314 as a senior).

 

[aiw]

Matt Jones was a career 37% 3 point shooter (34% as a senior) and a career 43% 2 point shooter (including an eye-test busting 48% as a senior). He grabbed a career high 2.8 rpg this year (3.4/40). He shot 26 FT as a senior (made 19).

Nate James was a career 35% 3 point shooter (31% as a senior) and a career 57% 2 point shooter (62.4% as a senior). He grabbed 5.2 rpg as a senior (7.5/40). He shot 144 FT as a senior (making 115).

Tyler Thornton was a career 39% 3 point shooter (45% as a senior) and a career 47% 2 point shooter (only 77 taken in 4 years vs 231 3s). He grabbed 1.7 rpg as a senior (3.4/40). He took 21 FT as a senior (making 18), despite taking 78 fewer 2 point shots and 86 fewer 3 point shots than senior Matt Jones.

 

[childress22]

You guys are both right; Matt has certain size and defensive similarities to Nate, and certain statistical ones to Tyler. The tie can only be broken using name similarity. Given that "Matt Jones" has five of the same letters in the same place as "Nate James", Nate wins out as the comparison.