Rookie Progress Report: Cody Zeller

The life of a NBA player is never easy, especially if you’re a rookie. Fourth overall pick Cody Zeller out of Indiana is quickly learning the hardships of a NBA player. Through 14 games Zeller has struggled, struggled again and then struggled some more. He is no Anthony Bennett, but his transition to the NBA has been anything but smooth. Let’s take a look at his numbers.

Provided by Basketball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 11/24/2013.

They kind of hurt your eyes, don’t they? Obviously there is no need to panic, but there is a lot of room for improvement. Let’s start with his field goal percentage–34 percent is pathetic. There is no way around that. His shot selection has not been horrible, as most of his shots have been taken under the hoop. Take a look:

Credit: NBA.com/Stats

Most of his shots have been right under the hoop–shots that are considered high percentage … right? Well, not for Zeller. What does this say about him? The first thing that comes to mind is size. Is Zeller undersized? Standing at 7’0” would make you think that height is not a problem. So the only other issue could be size. The former All-American is listed 240 pounds. He needs to put on some major muscle if he wants to duke it out with NBA centers. The second possible cause of his offensive struggles? His lack of a post game. Zeller’s offensive arsenal needs some work to say the least, and the numbers support my hypothesis. He doesn’t have the strength(yet) to power through defenders and his post game isn’t polished enough to make up for it. The 41.3 percent shooting under the bucket speaks for itself. Another obvious sign is the location of his shots. Zeller has yet to make a shot on the left side! Talk about one dimensional. Expanding his offensive game should be Zeller’s biggest focus at the moment.

Want to hear another disappointing statistic? He has yet to score in double digits. Additionally he has failed to record double digit rebounds. He has also turned the ball over three times or more in 29 percent of the games. Zeller has also been struggled on the defensive end, picking up fouls early and often. The good news is we are only 14 games into the season. Coach Steve Clifford has shown he is willing to stick through the growing pains, as Zeller keeps getting good minutes on a surprisingly good Charlotte team. I expect Zeller to struggle a tad more, for another 15 to 20 games. Around games 30 to 40 is when rookies usually get adjusted to the NBA. Let’s see if Zeller can beat the curve.

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