Oklahoma City Thunder general manager Sam Presti’s usual style is not to leak any news. No one can guess the Thunder’s transactions and signings, just like the Pual George and Carmelo Anthony transactions. This time, just hours before the trade deadline, Davis Bertans, Tre Mann, Vasilije Micic and two second-round draft picks were traded to the Charlotte Hornets in exchange for 33-year-old forward Gordon Hayward.
Oklahoma City Thunder general manager Sam Presti’s usual style is not to leak any news. No one can guess the Thunder’s transactions and signings, just like the Pual George and Carmelo Anthony transactions. This time, just hours before the trade deadline, Davis Bertans, Tre Mann, Vasilije Micic and two second-round draft picks were traded to the Charlotte Hornets in exchange for 33-year-old forward Gordon Hayward.
Gordon Hayward, who averaged 15.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game in his career, chose to move to the Boston Celtics in the post-season after being selected to the All-Star Game for the first time in his career in the 2016-17 season. In just one game, he suffered a serious injury that cost him the entire season. Although he came back healthy the next season, he began to have a “dean” physique and encountered various injuries and problems, including feet, calves, hamstrings, and knees. , buttocks, fingers, etc. In the 2020-21 season, Hayward signed a four-year $120 million contract and came to the Hornets through a sign-and-trade. This year, Hayward only played 25 games for the Hornets, averaging 14.5 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 4.6 assists per game. The overall shooting rate was 46%, and the three-point shooting rate was 36%. Hayward performed well this year, but due to a calf injury, he has been sidelined since December 29 last year.
Although Hayward has a rich injury history, he still attracted the attention of the Thunder, which of course caused the transaction to arouse polarizing comments from the outside world. Exactly what kind of impact Hayward can bring to the Thunder, and whether the Thunder will get immediate combat power or a wounded soldier, the following points can be analyzed.
Veteran value injected into young team
After Hayward, 33, joins the Thunder, he will directly become the Thunder’s oldest player. Compared with the retired lounge leader who cannot play, Hayward can demonstrate to this group of capable and potential but still too young Thunder players through his actions on the court. In particular, Hayward has very high-quality wing player skills and court judgment. If Hayward can serve as a mentor, he will definitely be able to help develop young wing players such as Aaron Wiggins and Ousmane Dieng in the Thunder. In addition, Hayward has participated in 5 playoffs in his career, especially when he was with the Utah Jazz. In the first round of the 2017 playoffs, he faced the Los Angeles Clippers in seven games, averaging 23.7 points per game, and led the Jazz to victory in the series. .This kind of experience is definitely one of the biggest bets for the Thunder, which is extremely lacking in playoff experience.
Switch freely with and without the ball
There are quite a few people in the Thunder who need to hold the ball, including big brother SGA, Jalen Williams, who is getting better and better, and even Josh Giddey. Fortunately, Hayward has developed a very good sense of movement without the ball in the past Jazz system, so that He does not need to hold the ball on the court to find offensive opportunities by himself. Data shows that when Hayward shoots off the dribble this season, he most frequently shoots without dribbling at all, accounting for 36.4%, followed by dribbling 3 to 6 times, accounting for 28.3%. At the same time, the field goal rate of shots taken less than 2 seconds after touching the ball is 48%. It can be seen that Hayward can switch freely between being a fixed-point shooter waiting for the ball, or a ball carrier bypassing the pick-and-roll.
Replaces Josh Giddey at critical moment
After Jalen Williams developed his ball-handling skills, Giddey’s dilemma in the team became more and more huge. In addition, the off-field sex scandal this season made Giddey’s future in the team increasingly unclear. In the third year of his career, Giddey’s average playing time was a record low of 24.9 minutes per game, and his number of shots, points, assists, and rebounds were even lower than in the first year. Giddey, who was stripped of the ball, often turned into an offensive black hole on the court, and was even directly shot by the opponent. Giddey was often placed on the bench at critical moments in the fourth quarter. Indeed, Giddey’s playing time in the fourth quarter It is also lower than the first and third quarters. It can be expected that Presti was traded to Hayward to definitely solve this problem, although there are still young players like Isaiah Joe and Aaron Wiggins on the bench who can replace Giddey in the closing stages. But Hayward has a height of 201 centimeters, stable shooting, excellent defensive awareness, and more experience. Hayward is perfect for having him on the court.
As a backup ball-handling spot
After Micic was sent away in the trade, the Thunder only had Cason Wallace on the bench who could hold the ball. After Hayward joins, he will definitely strengthen the offensive firepower on the bench and also increase the team’s ball-handling options. In particular, the Thunder often pair Micic or Giddey with Chet Holmgren, Cason Wallace, Aaron Wiggins, and Jalen Williams this season. However, Micic and Giddey’s firepower on the offensive end is really limited. If this position can be replaced by Hayward, who is more stable defensively and offensively, it will definitely be a big plus for the Thunder’s lineup variability.
Conclusion
Many people are curious whether Hayward will directly steal Giddey’s starting position and let Giddey become the ball handler on the bench. No matter how the starting lineup changes, we will definitely see more players from SGA, Dort, The lineup consists of Hayward, Williams, and Holmgren. Hayward’s arrival makes up for the offensive firepower that Giddey lacks, but does not reduce the size of the lineup. Although Hayward’s health problems will cause doubts among fans, Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault has mentioned that Hayward can officially join the team after the All-Star Game, and Hayward has also participated in the team’s pre-game shooting training. If Hayward can meet the requirements, Blood is back, which really makes people look forward to the Thunder’s new look after the star game.
2024-02-18 08:59:29
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