[NBA] Pippen picks Gordon for Rookie of the Year
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Sorry Emeka: Ben Gets My ROY Vote
The ballots aren't due until the end of the season but I'm casting mine right
now .... Ben Gordon for NBA Rookie of the Year. I know, I know ..... a former
Bull voting for a fellow Bull, right? Well, the numbers back up my case.
We'll get to that in a second, though. I think Ben deserves the honor over
Emeka Okafor of the Bobcats because he's been much more productive while
playing less minutes. Plus, the Bulls are winning. Gordon's production in a
limited amount of time means a lot more than Okafor's, who plays a lot of
minutes and speads his numbers over four four quarters for an expansion team.
Gordon's proving that he can come in and do it in just in the fourth quarter
for a winning team. At last check, Ben has recorded 18 double figure scoring
fourth quarters this season. Where does that rank in the NBA? No. 1. Think
about that. That's ahead of such great scorers as Iverson, Kobe and T-Mac.
Now, check out the numbers between Ben and Emeka:
Ben --- Points-- 14.9; Minutes Per Game: 23.8, FG -- 42.5%; FT -- .847%;
Rebounds -- 2.6; Assists -- 1.8; Team Victories = 35
Emeka ---Points -- 14.8; Minutes Per Game: 35.7; FG -- .44%; FT -- .575%;
Rebounds -- 10.7; Assists -- .9; Team Victories = 13
As you can see, Emeka is playing 12 minutes more per game yet they are neck
and neck in terms of scoring averages. Naturally, Emeka is going to pull down
more rebounds than Ben but their shooting percentages are close and Ben
doesn't take nearly as many high percentage shots as Emeka does. Plus, Ben
has the advantage from the free throw line -- .847% compared to .575%. Not
only do I think Ben is deserving of top rookie honors, I also think he should
win the NBA's Sixth Man of the Year Award as well. I know it would be the
first time for any rookie to achieve this double double but nobody expected
the Bulls to be in the playoffs this season and Gordon's play off the bench
is a big reason why. This kid has been expected to come in and play a huge
role down the stretch of games and is delivering time and time again. I think
Scott Skiles' strategy of inserting him in the game off the bench is great
because Gordon is a huge spark for the team. If you put Ben out there as a
starter, the Bulls would lose some of their bench strength. Plus, other teams
haven't been able to figure Gordon out because he's not out on the floor a
whole lot.
These young kids on the Bulls have really worked hard. A year ago, they were
at the bottom of the barrel. But now, with the development of Kirk Hinrich
and the coaching of Skiles, this is a very scary team going into the
playoffs. In my mind, Hinrich should merit All-NBA Third Team honors for what
he is doing in only his second season. The Bulls have primarily being doing
it with their defense -- strong defensive rebounding while eliminating most
teams to only one shot per trip down the floor.
Skiles is really doing a great job of rotating the young players. If you put
five of them out there at one time, you really don't give yourself a lot of
room for coaching any one individual. Skiles will pull Tyson Chandler out and
say "Look, you're going to have to play behind Eddy Curry and earn your
minutes. Andres Nocioni, you gotta play behind Luol Deng, and Ben Gordon, you
have to earn your minutes behind Kirk Hinrich and Chris Duhon." This way, the
younger players can learn a lot watching from the bench and Skiles is always
gonna have fresh meat out there.
Bottom Line: Ben is doing more with less minutes for a winning team. And
isn't that what really counts -- the rookie making the most impact in helping
his team win?
Posted by Scottie Pippen - Mar 24 2005 12:28PM
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