With the start of Free Agency on July 1st approaching I thought it would be interesting to look at some of the unrestricted free agents. I limited this FanPost to only guards because I believe we are most in need of a third guard who can fill in when Beno Udrih or Tyreke Evans need a break. However, in order to earn playing time they will most likely have to be at or near Beno level, that is the purpose of this post. Are these unrestricted free agents Better than Beno?
Raymond Felton
| Player | Age | Games | PER | TS% | TR% | AST% | STL% | ORtg | DRtg |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Raymond Felton | 25 | 80 | 15.2 | .525 | 6.6 | 29.5 | 2.5 | 107 | 103 |
| BtB? | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
What I like about Felton is that he is still young at 25 so he still has a chance for improvement. He also has the best Defensive Rating of all the players on my list so I don't think he would be a defensive liability. However, I don't like that he is only 6'1" and his true shooting is the lowest of the players on this list. I'm not sure how well he will be able to play with Tyreke (who also has a better TS% at .529) if he isn't capable of hitting his shots at a high rate.
Mike Miller
| Player | Age | Games | PER | TS% | TR% | AST% | STL% | ORtg | DRtg |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mike Miller | 29 | 54 | 14 | .623 | 10.7 | 18.5 | 1.1 | 114 | 110 |
| BtB? | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | Same | Yes |
First of all, Mike Miller is listed as a forward, but he can also play shooting guard so that is why he made the list. What I like about him is his size. He would be able to come in and make opposing teams guard Tyreke with their point guard instead of their shooting guard. He is also an excellent shooter. However, I don't like that he was injured last season and his numbers have been in decline the past two seasons.
Luke Ridnour
| Player | Age | Games | PER | TS% | TR% | AST% | STL% | ORtg | DRtg |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Luke Ridnour | 28 | 82 | 17.7 | .570 | 4.6 | 31.9 | 1.6 | 116 | 106 |
| BtB? | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes | Yes |
Ridnour has alot of things going for him. He is a decent shooter and has the highest AST% of the players on this list. He is already used to coming off the bench, and has proven himself effective in doing it. What I don't like is that he is another short guard.
Nate Robinson
| Player | Age | Games | PER | TS% | TR% | AST% | STL% | ORtg | DRtg |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nate Robinson | 25 | 56 | 16.3 | .543 | 5.8 | 24.9 | 2.3 | 107 | 110 |
| BtB? | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
Speaking of short guards, at 5'9" Nate is the smallest guard on the list. What concerns me most about him is that he is the only guy on this list that had a higher Defensive Rating than Offensive Rating, which screams defensive liability. What I like about him is that he has now been deep into the playoffs and he is only 25 so there is reason to believe he could still improve.
Each of these four players would be reasonable additions to the Kings that wouldn't break the bank, but could help considerably next season. I think each of these players has elements to their game that make them on par with Beno or in some cases slightly better. As for me, I think I would prefer Luke Ridnour and Mike Miller to the others on this list.
Players mentioned in the comments:
| Player | Age | Games | PER | TS% | TR% | AST% | STL% | ORtg | DRtg |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kyle Lowry | 23 | 68 | 15.5 | .536 | 8.6 | 27.75 | 1.9 | 113 | 109 |
| BtB? | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes |
| Josh Childress* | 26 | 76 | 17.8 | .647 | 9.6 | 8.5 | 1.6 | 127 | 110 |
| BtB? | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| C.J Watson | 25 | 65 | 13.8 | .555 | 5.3 | 14.3 | 2.8 | 112 | 112 |
| BtB? | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | No | Yes | No | Same |
| J.J. Redick | 25 | 82 | 15 | .606 | 5 | 13.9 | .9 | 117 | 107 |
| BtB? | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| Player | Age | Games | PER | TS% | TR% | AST% | STL% | ORtg | DRtg |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anthony Morrow | 24 | 69 | 14 | .597 | 7.1 | 7.6 | 1.5 | 113 | 114 |
| BtB? | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | No |
| Wesley Matthews | 23 | 82 | 12.3 | .592 | 5.6 | 9 | 1.6 | 113 | 108 |
| BtB? | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | Yes |
| Randy Foye | 26 | 70 | 13.2 | .516 | 4.5 | 22.6 | 1 | 106 | 113 |
| BtB? | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No |
| Ronnie Brewer | 24 | 53 | 12.8 | .524 | 6.4 | 12.7 | 2.7 | 110 | 106 |
| BtB? | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes |
*Josh Childress hasn't played in the NBA since 2007-2008. All stats are from basketball-reference.com
Poll
Who would make a better Free Agent Acquisition at the guard spot?
Raymond Felton (82 votes)
Mike Miller (82 votes)
Luke Ridnour (65 votes)
Nate Robinson (59 votes)
Make an offer to a Restricted Free Agent (98 votes)
386 total votes
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