The Overlooked Rookies

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Austin Rivers, New Orleans Hornets

A season-ending hand injury in early March upended the first remotely successful stretch of Rivers’ season. Truly a rough break, and unfortunately one that may have disturbed Rivers’ developmental momentum. Even after picking his spots and finishing more effectively in the lead-up to his injury, Rivers still had — and has — quite a ways to go before looking the part of a viable rotation player.

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Brian Roberts, New Orleans Hornets

The undrafted Roberts is a relatively unknown 27-year-old rookie operating on one of the worst teams in the league, but he’s proved without a sliver of doubt that he’s a quality NBA player. That credibility starts in the high pick-and-roll, where Roberts brings an impressive variety to one of the NBA’s most basic sets. Even before he breaks down the defense, Roberts toys with an assortment of options — splitting defenders, darting around the screen, stringing out the defense by tracing the three-point line — as he navigates the sequence like an open question. From there, he has enough speed to beat help defenders to the rim on a fairly consistent basis, but generally opts for floaters and pull-up jumpers, both of which he hits with impressive consistency.

Roberts, who has played in Germany and Israel, isn’t a pure playmaker and has trouble keeping his man in front of him on defense. But Roberts — who, in his second career start, had 18 assists Monday when New Orleans snapped Denver’s 15-game winning streak — is an amazingly effective pick-and-roll specialist deserving of a reserve spot in a pick-and-roll league.

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Full Story here:
http://nba.si.com/2013/03/26/nba-roo...rrison-barnes/

I'd actually prefer BR over GV for our backup next year. I like his style of play better for a bench role. If we can trade GV and pieces for another pick and add say Smart and an athletic big for next year, I'd say that's a significant step.

To me, you need a pg that can score just as much as pass when coming off the bench. The bench is so fluid it is hard for a passing pg to establish a rythm with those guys. Come in and score while the starters rest, he and Rivers should be able to do that.

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Originally Posted by saintsinNO

I'd actually prefer BR over GV for our backup next year. I like his style of play better for a bench role. If we can trade GV and pieces for another pick and add say Smart and an athletic big for next year, I'd say that's a significant step.

To me, you need a pg that can score just as much as pass when coming off the bench. The bench is so fluid it is hard for a passing pg to establish a rythm with those guys. Come in and score while the starters rest, he and Rivers should be able to do that.

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I agree with this. Our successful backup PGs have been Jack and Pargo, two guys who score more than distribute. I'm not sure if Roberts can fit that same role, but I'd like to see him try.