My most vivid memory of Chris Webber was the infamous time-out. April 5, 1993, it was the Fab 5’s second consecutive trip to the NCAA Championship. Michigan was down by two points to North Carolina with 11 seconds left in the game. Chris Webber got to a loose ball near the sidelines. Two Carolina players converged on Webber immediately. Webber puts his hands together to form a “T” in an attempt to call a time-out. Michigan did not have any time-outs left and in resulted in a technical foul which sealed the game for North Carolina. Not the way you want to end your collegiate career.

Last year, Chris Webber played in 75 games. Do you remember the last time Webber played in 75 games? I don’t. You have to go back to the ‘99-‘00 season. Can he do it again?  Or will he take more “time out” from the floor?

Round 5, Pick 9: Chris Webber, PF, Philadelphia 76ers

Chris Webber is finally getting over his microfracture surgery to his knee. He had the surgery in 2003 and was limited to 23 games in ’03-’04 season. The fact it took Webber 2 years to regain confidence in his knee should leave fantasy owners wary of drafting fellow microfracture surgery recipient, Amare Stoudemire this year. Webber has never played in 82 games in a season and owners should be ecstatic if he plays in 70+ games this season. 

It’s easy to see that microfracture surgery has affected Webber’s game as he has become more a jump shooter, which is reflected in his 43.4% FG%. Webber is playing more pick-and-roll with Allen Iverson and setting up for the jump shot. He has lost some of his quickness and that has reduced the effectiveness of his post game. Defenses are not collapsing to double-team Webber in the post as often, so his assist totals have dropped to 3.4 assists per game. This pales in comparison to his 5.5 assists in his last year with the Sacramento Kings. The surgery also took away some of Webber’s hops as he only averaged 0.8 blocks per game last season, half his career 1.5 bpg average.

However, on the plus side, Webber still averaged 20 points per game despite Iverson jacking up 25 shots per game. And Webber still positioned his 6’10 body to snag a team high 9.9 rebounds per game. His hands are still quick as he averaged 1.4 steals per game, which equaled Kevin Garnett’s steal average. 

Chris Webber should play in 70+ games this year and continue to produce at a 20-10 clip. Webber is still one of the better passing big men and still has fast hands, so he will help teams with some assists and steals from the PF spot.

Excuse me if I cringe when Chris Webber calls a time-out near the end of a game. Sorry, I just can’t forget.

i>Other team members

1.9. Chris Bosh, PF/C, Toronto Raptors
2.4. Paul Pierce, SG/SF, Boston Celtics
3.9. Michael Redd, SG, Milwaukee Bucks
4.4. Stephon Marbury, PG, New York Knicks