KCP Discussion: Kentavious Can Produce!

Thanks for posting this, at first I was like I thought it was 2-3 can't be 5 games.

 

I want to see what Hart is before I put him in there.

 

Knowing you're a fan of advanced stats, that's surprising.

 

You don't necessarily have to start your 5 best players. Lou was unquestionably our best player last season for the first half, and he didn't start. Lamar Odom didn't start and he was our 3rd best player. Clarkson can score. We need punch off the bench. I like Nance and Zu, but neither is going to be able to carry the scoring load on that second unit.

 

He has a better three point shooting percentage than Clarkson and can actually defend both guard positions. Clarkson can't defend a light post.

 

And Jordan was worse than years before in a more open system that encourages you to shoot. Jordan shot just 32.9% from deep while Pope shot 35%. The difference is not insignificant.

Jordan also fared much worse defensively against worse competition than Pope did.

 

The season numbers don't tell the whole story:

"Over those first 39 games, KCP was averaging 14.9 points per game and shooting 40.4 percent from three-point range. He injured his shoulder in the first couple minutes of a game against the Golden State Warriors on January 12th, however, missed the next four games and never seemed quite the same after that.

In spite of having two of his best scoring games (38 points against the New Orleans Pelicans and 33 points against the Charlotte Hornets), KCP’s numbers dropped precipitously. He scored just 12.9 points per game and hit a woeful 29.7 percent from long range for the rest of the season after his return.

Before the injury, the Pistons were -4.3 per 100 possessions when KCP was off the floor and +0.3 when on, but after the injury the numbers flipped drastically. After his return, the Pistons were an impressive +9.9 when he was off, and a staggering -8.6 when KCP was on the floor. To summarize, the Pistons were +4.6 points per 100 better when he was on the floor before his shoulder injury, and after his return they were a barely believable -18.5 points per 100 worse when he played."

https://pistonpowered.com/2017/05/22/detroit-pistons-kentavious-caldwell-pope-season-review-grade/

If he's now 100% recovered, he is much better than JC, and I'm a JC fan, at least offensively.

 

I doubt KCP will be playing 36. Clarkson will get his minutes cause he'll play at both the 1 and 2. But KCP is important for us playing next to Ball. Ball is going to struggle defensively to start the year (probably the whole year). We need a solid defender next to him in the same way Boston had Bradley for Thomas and GS has Klay for Steph. Clarkson and Ball on defense together...Lopez might set an NBA record for fouling out...or we'll give up 137 ppg.

 

There are no red flags about KCP before the injury, so I think it's safe to say that as long as the injury is fully healed, he will be back to the 3 and D player we expect.