Add to that his 3 pointers and the list drops to 2. Him and Curry. It also shows how good Curry has been this season. http://bkref.com/tiny/sTbhR or for a rookie season: http://bkref.com/tiny/1zX6w Its funny, the more I love Lillard the more I also appreciate Curry
It's funny because I think it's easy to forget how special Lillard's rookie season is. I don't start to realize it until statistics like the one I quoted get thrown around. Just amazing. Fastest to 1,200 points and 400 assists since Iverson? That's fucking amazing. Faster than Rose. Faster than Chris Paul. Faster than LeBron James. That's staggering.
Can you imagine if Lillard played for the Knicks? Thank God he doesnt but the media would be going crazy.
Somewhere along the way i forgot just how good Iverson was as a rookie too. Lillard appears to be a better shooter but damn Iverson balled all the way around his rookie year: http://bkref.com/tiny/iwOqU
I was at the Adidas employee store yesterday and they were saying Adidas grossly underestimated Lillard's popularity when they initially ordered his swingman jerseys at the beginning of the season. One of the salespeople said they've missed out on a lot of money because of that error.
It is astonishing isn't it. All I can think about is how much better off the league would be if there were more players like Lillard who grew their game fully in college before making the jump.
Well, lottery picks used to be relied upon to contribute right away. We didn't start drafting for potential until the mid-90s, and the high schooler fad mixed with the euro fad really hurt the league. Lots of busts and guys who had no business being taken in the first round were taken in the top ten.
Also, for once, I don't feel like I'm sniffing my own farts when I gush over a player's stats like Lillard's; he is legitimately legit, not just fanboy legit.
Yeah, but who would you have taken #1 overall in that draft? Pau Gasol? Jason Richardson? Joe Johnson? Maybe Tony Parker? It wasn't a bad draft overall, but the talent was spread out over the whole first round. 2001 draft Tyson Chandler #2 Pau Gasol #3 Jason Richardson #5 Joe Johnson #10 Richard Jefferson #13 Zach Randolph #19 Gerald Wallace #25 Tony Parker #28 Gilbert Arenas #31 There are also some decent role players in that draft. Shane Battier #6 Troy Murphy #14 Brendan Haywood #20 Samuel Dalembert #26
http://bkref.com/tiny/8udOW Since 1954, only 67 players have had the season Lillard is having this year. Only 4 have had this good of a year as a rookie. Lillard is the first in 18 years to have this kind of rookie year. Hopefully, he can beat out Anthony Davis for Rookie of the Year.
Out of that list, I'd pick Pau. Size and versatility. Tony Parker is probably the best player overall, though, imho. But here's the problem: that draft had all Robins, no Batman.
