Rodney Stuckey Remix
Rodney Stuckey is known as many things – NBA veteran, former first-round pick, sometimes prolific scorer, guy whose name makes me think of horrendous puns pertaining to the movie Stuck on You – but of all the things we think of when we think about Stuckey, “outstanding 3-point shooter” is not one that typically comes to mind.
During his seven-plus years in the NBA (he’s now 28 years old), Stuckey has never averaged 1.0 3s per game. In fact, he’s never even averaged 0.8. And before this season, he had shot above 30 percent on 3s just twice in seven years. Quite simply, he was a low-volume (and frankly, not good) long-distance shooter.
And for much of this year, there was no indication that anything had changed. Through his first 44 games, Stuckey hit just 0.4 3s on 31.1 percent shooting. Then, on Feb. 9, he stepped onto the floor and hit a couple of 3s. Then two more the night after that. And two again each of the next two nights. Suddenly, he had strung together eight treys in four games, including back-to-back 30-point games, and the outside shooting binge had officially begun.
Now, over his last 10 games – including a career-high six 3s in a 34-point game on Tuesday – Stuckey has averaged 20.1 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 4.6 apg, 1.1 spg and 1.8 3s.
It is, according to my research, the best 3-point shooting stretch of his career, so the question naturally becomes: Can he keep it up? At this Korver-esque rate (22-of-42 – 52.4 percent – in his last 12 games), the answer is a decisive no. But there is some recent written evidence that Stuckey is putting “extra focus” on his 3s this year, hoisting up 100 of them after every practice. That’s not exactly a staggering number, and some would say it’s pretty much his job to do that as an NBA guard, but it is still notable for a guy who averaged just 1.4 3-point attempts for his career heading into this season.
I’ll admit that over the years, Stuckey hasn’t been a player I’ve wanted on my fantasy teams – for the exact reason that he was a guard who didn’t hit 3s (and didn’t do enough in categories other than points to make him all that valuable). But in his first season with Indiana, a key component of Stuckey’s game has abruptly changed – and so has my perception of him as a fantasy option. For the next month-plus, and far beyond if he keeps chucking it from 3-point range, I’m on board.
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In other hoops-related matters…
Has Michael Carter-Williams fixed his shooting issues already?
Back on Dec. 27, he shot 2-of-20 from the field.
In his next game, 1-of-7. Three games after that, a 1-of-13, followed by a 2-of-9 and then a 6-of-17.
At that point in the season, through 28 games, Carter-Williams was shooting a ghastly 36.9 percent from the floor on a relatively lofty 15 attempts per game. And it didn’t get much better during the rest of his tenure in Philadelphia – by the time he was traded to Milwaukee at the deadline, he was at 38.0 percent overall, having hit half or more of his shots just nine times in 41 games.
But since the trade to Milwaukee, something unexpected has happened. Jason Kidd, career 40.0 percent shooter – who spent nine of his 19 seasons below the 40 percent mark – has turned MCW into a marksman.
Well, sort of. Through his first nine games with Milwaukee, Carter-Williams has hit 43.9 percent of his shots, a number any rational person would accept given the damage he did to FG percentages for most of this year. However, this improvement has come with some downside. MCW has gone old school Rodney Stuckey since joining Milwaukee, hitting just one 3-pointer (on 1-of-13 shooting) in nine games. That’s just 1.4 attempts per game (down from 0.8 makes on 3.0 attempts in Philly), but given the improved shooting, and his rising numbers lately (21.3 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 5.7 apg, 2.7 spg, 0.7 bpg in his last three games*), I think most of us will gladly take it.
(*I didn’t really want to share this, but MCW is shooting 40.0 percent in his last three games, so this whole “improved shooting” thing isn’t necessarily guaranteed to last. With that said, I still really like the direction he’s headed under the guidance of Jason Kidd.)
Other Random Thoughts: Bradley Beal has quietly been one of the biggest disappointments of the season. Eighteen games missed so far, just eight games of 20-plus points (in 47 games played), and a drop in scoring (17.1 -> 14.8) and 3s (1.9 -> 1.7) from last year. He’s still just 21 years old, but the recurring leg injuries are a significant concern. I’ll be doing my best to avoid the temptation of taking him in drafts next year. … A shooting guard I feel exactly the opposite about – I.E., I will join extra leagues just so I can draft him next year – is Victor Oladipo. Last five games: 23.8 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 5.2 apg, 3.2 spg, 0.6 bpg and 2.2 3s on 46.8 percent from the field and a perfect 20-of-20 from the free throw line. … Ray McCallum has been really boring as Sacramento’s starting PG (11.0 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 4.6 apg, 0.9 spg and 0.5 3s in 11 games). It’s hard to drop a PG getting this kind of playing time, and ignore me if you’re desperate for the assists, but given the lack of 3s and limited steals, I would have no hesitation moving on. … Similarly, I think you can stop wasting your time with Arron Afflalo if there are good free agents on your waiver wire. He’ll certainly be better than he has been lately (7.8 ppg, 26.7 percent shooting in his last five games), but his upside is still very low. Aside from decent points (14.5) and 3s (1.5), Afflalo was averaging just 3.4 rpg, 1.9 apg and 0.6 spg in Denver this year.
Random Thoughts, Part 2: Is Hawks backup PG Dennis Schroder a standalone option? The recent numbers suggest yes (last six games: 14.7 ppg, 6.8 apg, 0.7 spg, 1.2 3s in 26 minutes per game), but Schroder has played just 19 minutes in two straight games, and that inconsistent playing time makes him tough to rely on outside of deeper leagues. (He’s also dealing with a sprained ankle as we head into the weekend.) … Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (13.3 ppg, 8.8 rpg in his last 11 games) has quietly tallied five blocks during a three-game stretch. That trend may not continue, but MKG really just needs some steals or blocks to be an intriguing fantasy option going forward. … Nerlens Noel’s last 11 games, just for our amusement: 11.5 ppg, 10.5 rpg, 2.8 spg and 2.8 bpg. There hasn’t been a player with this kind of steals/blocks potential in a while. … Danilo Gallinari needed just 24 minutes to unload a 23-5-5 line on the Hawks on Wednesday. I’ll admit I didn’t expect a lot from him this year, but he looks tremendous right now. Last 10 games: 17.5 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 1.3 spg and 3.0 3s. … For my thoughts on Adreian Payne, Alexey Shved and the Isaiah Canaan / Ish Smith PG platoon in Philly, check out my latest conversation with Jenna Corrado below:
