Photo by Fernando Medina/NBAE via Getty Images
Frankel’s 2013-14 projections
| PPG | RPG | APG | TS% | PER |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8.5 | 4.0 | 0.6 | 56.7 | 15.8 |
Will he come into his own? Will he ride the train of mediocrity? Will he show us a side of him that we haven’t seen? I’m not sure, but Andrew Nicholson has a good amount of room to grow as a player.
Let’s consider a few details.
Averaging 7.8 points and 2.5 rebounds per game last season is certainly nothing to sneeze at, but Nicholson was relatively efficiently for a young player, boasting a 15.1 PER and a .557 True Shooting percentage. And he’s poised to carry some serious weight on this Orlando roster with the absence of Big Baby to start the season.
Several limitations are still in place, though.
For one thing, Nicholson is still undersized and his physicality is not necessarily prolific, which hurt him defending post-ups last season. The hot stove league was convinced that Jason Maxiell was brought on for the purpose of helping guys like Nicholson learn to be more physical on defense. Whether that’s true or not, we can expect him to make intentional strides in that direction.
Secondly, Nicholson’s skill-set on offense needs to expand. He has a silky smooth post game and a nearly automatic midrange jumper, but his offense needs to become even more dynamic if he is going to steal minutes from Tobias Harris and Glen Davis at the four. That’s why Nicholson made a concerted effort during the offseason to extend his range to the 3-point line. We’ll see if he’s able to turn into an effective 3-point shooter.
Nicholson is a bright kid, and Jacque Vaughn obviously has a long-term plan for him as he limited his minutes throughout last season.
Look for Nicholson to boost his numbers up this year and tack on a handful of double-doubles to boot. He’s not going to be a go-to guy on offense, but he can turn into an extremely dependable option off the bench.
Oct 11
How to graciously root for a loser
Commentary
by Spencer Lund
at 11:24 amPhoto by Fernando Medina/NBAE via Getty Images
I’m a Buffalo Bills fan. I know I’m writing for a basketball blog, and this is the second time I’ve mentioned a different team sport, but if you’ll bear with me for a second, it’ll come together shortly.
The Bills — if you don’t know — haven’t made the playoffs since I was in high school. That year, we lost to the Tennessee Titans in a game many still remember as the “Music City Miracle.” It was not miraculous for Bills fans.
The brutal twist of fate on that January day in 2000 came after a decade where I spent my formative years detesting Super Bowl Sunday. The Bills lost four straight Super Bowls from 1990-1993. It was a trying time for a young kid from upstate New York who worshipped sports. But I learned a lot from those years and from the ensuing playoff drought we’re currently in the middle of, going back to that horrendous loss in Nashville.
I offer this preface as a way to show you my bonafides as a fan. I have stuck with my Bills through a lot and I have come out with a new appreciation for cheering on a loser.
By most accounts — including most, if not all, of the writers on this site — the Magic are not going to be very good next year. Sure, Tobias Harris offers hope, and ‘Dipo might be a two-way star in the next half-decade, but for the next six months, Magic fans will be faced with a whole lot of losing.
While you never want to get used to the idea of losing, something that has unfortunately stricken a large swath of Bills fans, you also don’t want to be a grouchy, glass-half-empty fan, either, forever looking at an upcoming game as a chance to sob alongside the Nightengale. You should see the beauty in the Nightengale’s song — like Coleridge did, but minus all that opium.
Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Andrew Nicholson, Arron Afflalo, Derrick Rose, Dwight Howard, Glen Davis, Maurice Harkless, Nikola Vucevic, Penny Hardaway, Shaquille O'Neal, Tobias Harris, Tracy McGrady, Victor Oladipo
Leave comment