John Schuhmann of NBA.com wrote an interesting article last week that looks at how players perform in “the clutch” (i.e. the last five minutes of a game with a margin of five points or less).
So who is Mr. Clutch? The man in the picture.
Manu Ginobili has the highest true shooting percentage of any player in the last five seasons. He’s not a particularly good shooter (44%) in the clutch, but he gets to the line a ton and makes his free throws at a high rate (86%). Mehmet Okur is second and Steve Nash third.
You also might notice that there’s no Bryant, James, Wade or Carmelo Anthony in the top 10. They’re a little further down the list. James ranks 12th, Anthony ranks 22nd, Wade ranks 28th and Bryant ranks 38th.
Who has the biggest difference in overall TS% and clutch TS%? Or, in other words, who steps up their game the most in the clutch?
Okur is tops in that category, trailed by T.J. Ford and Carlos Boozer. Ginobili is fourth.
Who’s shooting declines the most in the clutch?
Kirk Hinrich is first, followed by Pau Gasol and Hedo Turkoglu.
Where do our big four stand? James and Anthony shoot better in the clutch, while Wade and Bryant do not.
It’s an interesting read.
Photo from fOTOGLIF
After last week’s home loss to the Bulls sent the Cavs 3-3, it wasn’t clear how this team would respond having to play the next three games on the road. After a win against the Knicks, the Cavs upended the Magic in Orlando, and defeated the Heat, 111-104, last night in Miami. That’s an impressive stretch, for sure.
The Bucks are 4-2 in no small part to the emergence of rookie Brandon Jennings. Wednesday night, he had a 14-point fourth quarter to help Milwaukee upend the Nuggets, 108-102. On the night, he posted 32 points, nine assists and four rebounds. He shot 11-19 from the floor, and hit both of his 3PT shots and all eight of his free throws, including six in the final minute to put the game away.