Ryan Anderson is a double edged sword for the New Orleans Pelicans. One of the most beloved players by both the fans and players alike, he has a very discernible and in demand skill. But he’s also been hurting the Pelicans on defense this season. Let’s break it down some, and see what the Pelicans should do going forward.
Three Point Shooting
Oh, you’re not surprised when I say Ryan Anderson is a deep-threat and court-spacer? Okay, but how about I tell you why his three-point shooting is different than Eric Gordon or any other Pelican.
By being a stretch forward, Ryan Anderson frequently draws bigman defenders who aren’t used to stepping out a defending the three-point line. Power Forwards and Centers feel more comfortable down low where their height, both on offense and defense, becomes a huge advantage. Take a look at the wide open attempt below.
Boogie Cousins doesn’t even move out to the three-point line to contest the shot. It’s just not what he normally does. This creates a strong synergy Anthony Davis (in the gif above Cousins looks like he wants to cover Davis even though there is already another help defender down low). Anderson either pulls a defender out of the paint with the threat of an open three-pointer, opening the lane for Davis, or the defense sags off and gives him a wide open attempt. It seems like a win-win.
The Defense
There is no way to sugarcoat it: Ryan Anderson has been bad on defense this year. While not known as a defensive stopper by any stretch, the Pelicans defense has struggled with Anderson in the lineup. Anderson’s DRtg is clocking in at a woeful 108.9, 4.3 worse than the Pelicans team average. Only Jeff Withey, in his very limited sample size, has a worse rating on the team. The Pelicans 6th most used lineup, and the first one featuring Anderson, of Anderson/Davis/Evans/Gordon/Holiday has a DRtg of 116. The 7th most used lineup of Anderson/Asik/Cunningham/Evans/Gordon comes in even worse at 121.3.
More than that, Anderson even fails the eye test. He was abused constantly by Chris Kaman Saturday night against the Blazers. Kaman, with Anderson defending him often, put up a 170 offensive rating. That’s insane. And a big knock on Anderson. Anderson did make 2 threes that game, but those were the only points he scored, and it wasn’t until the 4th quarter that he got rid of the zero on the stat sheet.
Going Forward
I don’t want to downplay Anderson’s significance; however his value mainly comes from his three-point shooting. But that shooting can be replaced, and at a cheaper value than Anderson’s contract (See a guy like Anthony Morrow). Potentially that production can be filled internally; as we’ve seen this year the Pelicans have gotten more three-point production from other players. Quincy Pondexter has the third highest 3P% on the team. Gordon has been making over two per game while shooting 45%. Even Evans is making more than he ever has. Additionally, Anderson is a bit of a boom or bust player at times. In only 18 of the 55 games he has played this year has he made more than 2 three-pointers.
And then there is the defense. While great defensive players aren’t just readily available, an improvement could be made by simply removing a bad one. And it’s possible to argue that part of the Pelicans improved DRtg post All-Star Break is due to Anderson being out.
As the Pelicans wind down their season I’m starting to jump aboard the train that the Pelicans should keep pretty much everything intact, pray for some good injury luck next year, and see what this group is capable of. But if teams call Dell Demps about Ryan Anderson, the Pelicans GM should definitely answer his phone.
4 responses to “Ryan Anderson: Hurtful or Helpful?”
Sell high like the Saints did with Jimmy Graham. If only they could turn Anderson into a respectable 3, this team would take a step forward in 2016.
xman20002000 and I have been riding the same cut-back-Ryno’s-minutes train all year; for me about half the near 30 mins pg that Monty has been pushing Ryno, for me, way beyond his possible effectiveness at this stage in his career. He can bang centers, but is obviously undersized; what he flat-out cannot do, NADA, is to make any kind of rotation off a PnR: His best move here is banging the ball hard as he takes it our of the net. He is rated 462 on DRPM out of 467 players, that is behind the Thunder’s lead-footed center, Enes Kanter, and even our own previous defensive trainwreck, Jason Smith. Ryno is also the 69th ranked PF overall (counting O as well as D), 8 spots behind our own Dante Cunningham, who clearly works hard to attain replacement level. Here is a complete list of the entire bottom half of all 96 PFs rated playing at least 25 mins pg: Mbak a Moute @ 55; Cunningham @ 61; Ryno @ 69.
All year we have been a .500 team when Ryno makes 2 3s (as he did last night}, a powerhouse .750 team when he makes more than 2, and a woeful .250 team when he makes fewer than 2; for me, a sure sign that we have been way too dependent of Ryno’s mercurial play — or that, if he’s not raining 3s, he’s an absolute anchor for the team.Lucky for us, the Thunder has its own trainwreck in Dion Waiters — and an equally hapless coach: Waiters, playing 27 min pg, is the 87th rated SG on RPM, 5 spots being Austin Rivers. I am sure that Coach Brooks as well Coach Williams each feels that his guy is bringing something to the table (grit, spacing, whatever) that just can’t be measured. I’m not buying it.
xman20002000 I realize this may seem like piling on, but Ryno’s Daily Score (via Basketball-Referrnce.com) from last night’s Grizzlies game was -3.8, the 279th player out of the 279 out if all NBA players who suited up last night, and a full point worse than our own Jimmer Fredette, who at 277 had a score of -2.8. And I have already hear all the excuses, mostly from local bloggers – that he hasn’t played well on back-to-backs all yr, that he hasn’t played well on the road, that it’s just one game, that Monty didn’t use him properly – everything but the truth that he has played all year exactly like a 40-yr-old, that is someone who may occasionally light it up but whose body is rarely up to the rigors of the NBA.
I see a little data quoted, a leap, then an exaggerated claim designed to insult a player. I also see an insult to writers who do not take the leap and try to reveal some sort of pattern, some how, or some why in a neutral way, and the insult to them seems to be becsuse they do not insult the player but rather give an accurate description.
So, I’ll take the writer’s side. If you want insults or inferior analysis, look elsewhere. It is not the writer’s fault you are reading the wrong article for your tastes.