The PER Journey - 1989, 1999, 2009

I think he uses the eyeball test as much as anything. We could all see Frye was a 6'10" perimeter shooter who committed a lot of fouls and didn't bring any defense presence. This team didn't need a poor mans LMA as their 10th man.

With Sergio, it was clear defenses were daring him to shoot and Nate had reminded him that he isn't a good outside shooter. He had a hard time finishing inside on one end and was a defensive liability on the other.

Stats can be very helpful tools, but if you watch all 82 games last year, you could tell those two were bad fits without using a single metric.

 

I'd rep you if I didn't have to spread it around!

Insightful post, intelligent responses, and logical conclusions.

 

It occurs to me re-reading the OP how much people overlook Aldridge because of the spotlight on Roy. The only guys mentioned above who had a better PER than him were Roy, Sabas, Sheed, Porter and Drexler. Drexler and Roy were the only two who were drastically higher.

If Aldridge and Oden continue to develop, we should have three players with PERs over 20. When you can say that about your three best players, you're usually considered a contender.

 

Good read man. Thanks for the research.