Tim Hardaway Jr. struggled as a sixth man option for the Mavericks at the beginning of the 2019/20 season, as Eddie Sefko of Mavs.com details.
“I knew that wasn’t my game,” Hardaway said. “An opportunity [to start] presented itself. I tried to make the most of it. And here we are today.” Hardaway has improved since moving to the Mavericks’ starting five on November 20, averaging 16.5 PPG and shooting 43.1% from long range.
There’s more out of the Southwest Division:
- The Pelicans will be getting their No. 1 draft pick, Zion Williamson, back from a knee injury on January 22 against the Spurs. In the meantime, recent losses to the Jazz and Clippers have taught the team some valuable lessons about competing at a playoff level, according to William Guillory of The Athletic.
- Spurs guard Derrick White‘s adeptness at drawing charges from opponents stems in part from his father Richard, who played high school basketball in DeKalb, Georgia, according to Tom Orsborn of the San Antonio Express-News. “He’d say, ‘I used to foul people out with charges,’ “ White said. “That’s where it all kind of started from.”
- After losing three out of four games last week, the Rockets had an emotional postgame airing of grievances on January 15, according to ESPN’s Tim MacMahon. “Everybody’s their own person and feels some type of way about whatever’s going on, individually and as a unit,” said Rockets star James Harden. “So you speak about it and get it off your chest.” The Rockets would go on to lose their next game, a 124-115 defeat to the Lakers.
Starting is the most overrated thing in sports. Minutes played is all that matters.
Depends on how you look at it. Those who start typically are the same ones who finish games as well. You usually place your best players in the starting lineup for that reason. Perhaps for allot of players it’s a psychological thing. They want to start and finish games.
Like when people get hung up on Harden not being a starter for the Thunder, even though he was getting over 30 MPG and was closing games. Makes no sense.
Harden was the sixth man of the year in 2012, but he only played around 25 minutes during his first two seasons with OKC. The Thunder did waste his talent if you look at the points scored in the first 3 seasons of all the players in the 20,000-point club. He had far fewer points in his first 3 seasons than anyone on that list.
Harden was the sixth man of the year in 2012, but he only played around 25 minutes during his first two seasons with OKC. The Thunder did waste his talent if you look at the points scored in the first 3 seasons of all the players in the 20,000-point club. He had far fewer points in his first 3 seasons than anyone on that list.
It’s the same headcase nonsense as a Closer in a non-save situation. That basically tells me he won’t last much longer than his current contract bc once he dips to below “starter” quality he doesn’t have the mental makeup to transition back to the bench. So buyer beware when he is a FA.