That doesn't look that great for Dame. I love what he does but he is the highest player on that list but his rank doesn't measure up to that. PER: 2nd TS%: 3rd TR%: 3rd Ast%: 3rd Stl%: 5th Blk%: Tied for 2nd TO%: 3rd OWS: 3rd DWS: 4th WS/48: 4th BPM: 5th VORP: Tied for 4th Not 1st in any category....except salary.
That's been my main issue with Dame over the past year. As good as he's been for the team and the community, his reputation has far exceeded his production, to the detriment of his teammates, I believe. That's why I'm inclined to think, a) George Karl had some idea what he was talking about, and b) Stott's reaction was so defensive. There's a raw nerve there somewhere being hidden away from the public. Add in Conley and Lillard would fare a bit better in that category.
Isaiah Thomas is RIDICULOUSLY underpaid. A reminder of the 2011 draft: 21. Trail Blazers Nolan Smith SG 22. Nuggets Kenneth Faried PF 23. Rockets Nikola Mirotic SF 24. Thunder Reggie Jackson PG 29. Spurs Cory Joseph PG 30. Bulls Jimmy Butler SF 38. Rockets Chandler Parsons SF 51. Trail Blazers Jon Diebler SG 53. Magic DeAndre Liggins SG 55. Celtics E'Twaun Moore SG 60. Kings Isaiah Thomas PG
This is also just this season where Dame has had a very bad season defensively and has been in a slump and is shooting his worst from 3 for his career. On the other hand Walker/Lowery are vastly exceeding there career averages in shooting and Thomas is shooting a little better from 2 but the same from 3, its really the amount of FTA's he has is almost 3 more then last season and almost double his career avg.
It's funny: his PER is his highest ever, as is his TS%, and his BPM is better than last year (but worse than the year before that) but his VORP is the lowest it has ever been.
VORP is a cumulative figure that increases over the course of the season. At his current rate, he's on pace for a VORP of 4.3--second highest of his career. I imagine that if the defensive adjustments that have been implemented remain effective after Dame's return, his DBPM would improve, and his VORP would likely approach 5 before the year's out.
We never had the opportunity to draft any of those players or to trade Dame for them so it doesn't matter to me that he makes more than them. And besides, the only reason Dame makes more is because the cap went up. They're all max players.
From basketball-reference.com: VORP Value Over Replacement Player (available since the 1973-74 season in the NBA); a box score estimate of the points per 100 TEAM possessions that a player contributed above a replacement-level (-2.0) player, translated to an average team and prorated to an 82-game season. Multiply by 2.70 to convert to wins over replacement. Please see the article About Box Plus/Minus (BPM) for more information. BNM
The startling stat is Dame's only shooting 35% from 3. That's BAD. For a guy who is universally considered a good shooter, that's an awful percentage. He really is very streaky. Dude really needs to stop the pull ups from 30+ feet until he's hot. His 35% doesn't give him the license to chuck from that far.
