Round 5, Pick 4: Mike James, PG, Minnesota Timberwolves

With the number of point guards that have gone off of the board already, I’ve noticed that only three of them had a field goal percentage [last season] over 47%: Dwyane Wade, Steve Nash, and Jason Terry.  With Terry already being on this squad, and not exactly being the biggest dime-dropper out there, I decided to ensure that along with my two big-men, I’d lock up another top-12 point guard – by my estimation.  I’d even consider arguing that James could be better than Terry this season…

The Truth is in the Numbers

Looking at Terry’s statistics from last year, some may argue that he had more of a shooting guard role on the Dallas Mavericks.  Honestly, I feel that Terry will be given the illustrious PG/SG eligibility at some point in this season, but I will not bank my decisions on this.  But I digress…

In comparison to Terry, last season Mike James produced on average an identical field goal percentage, steals, and three point field goals per game.  James was actually better (per game) in free throw percentage, points, rebounds, AND assists.  All while in Toronto.  No offense to my dime-dropping Canadians, but Toronto wasn’t exactly a high-powered, Phoenix-style offense.  To be able to convert nearly six asissts a game, while still contributing throughout the box score is quite the accomplishment.

The Move

Mike James decided that he didn’t like the cold weather up in Toronto, and decided to move south to the States.  Just kidding… Minneapolis is actually further north than Toronto.  However, James does move to a team that is hungry to get back into title contention. 

Some will argue that James’ role in the offense will be decreased in comparison to his days in Toronto.  I will definitely agree with this… somewhat.  With defenses likely doubling-down on Kevin Garnett, James’ knack for the long-ball should still hover around twice a game.  His percentages will be unharmed, if not actually increased due to the amount of increased open looks that he’ll receive.  And last but not least, his assist figures can only go up from here.  Now, with all due respect to Chris Bosh - Garnett, Ricky Davis and the new addition of Randy Foye can only mean greener grass (easy now, Sheed…) for James.

Yes, you still have Coach Dwayne Casey calling the shots on the floor, and Marko Jaric and Troy Hudson are still looming around, but James is the guy that has the larger check coming his way meaning he’ll be on the floor as often as possible.

Other Team Members:

1.4. Kevin Garnett, SF/PF, Minnesota Timberwolves
2.9. Rasheed Wallace, PF/C, Detroit Pistons
3.4. Rashard Lewis, SF, Seattle Supersonics
4.9. Jason Terry, PG, Dallas Mavericks