If you asked any casual Pelicans fan during the preseason who they wanted to be the primary back up point guard, I am going to bet that the majority would have been in favor the sweet shooting Jimmer Fredette. Jimmer was shooting the lights out during the preseason, and he was the shiny new offseason acquisition that fans tend to gravitate towards.
To the surprise of some, the incumbent, Austin Rivers — otherwise known as the son of Doc — has distanced himself from Fredette with his outstanding early season play as the backup point guard.
Rivers shot a miserable 37 percent during his rookie season and often times looked lost while on the floor (who could blame him, he was only 19 years old). Critics questioned what his destiny in the league would be, specifically if he would end up as a shoot first point guard or a two guard that can occasionally pass.
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Realistically, Rivers is a mixture of both of those identities. He has good size for a point guard (6’4″) and is capable of putting any defender on skates with his handles. Questions about his decision making and passing ability are warranted, but given his lack of size for the 2 guard position, grooming him into a point guard makes the most sense.
The Pelicans coaching staff has wisely gone in this direction so far this season.
Rivers is shooting a robust 51 percent from the field through ten games, a percentage that is sure to come down as the season progresses. Surprisingly, he is shooting 66 percent on shots within 10 feet of the rim, a 21 percent increase from last season’s pace, per NBA.com’s SportVU tracking data.
Again, that percentage is a lock to regress (66 percent would place him amongst the league’s elite finishers) but it is still an encouraging sign nonetheless because of Rivers’ ability to snake his way to the rim with his slippery handles.
Drives such as this one against Minnesota are beginning to look more routine for Rivers than they once did:
Mo Williams isn’t exactly Tony Allen, but that is still an impressive finish given the difficult angle of the shot.
A place where Rivers has improved drastically is his decision making within the pick and roll offense. It takes a certain amount of moxie to manipulate a defense on the pick and roll to create a high percentage shot, and Rivers has shown flashes of that early on. Peep your eyes on this dandy versus the Kings where Rivers sets up Ryan Anderson for the wide open 3-pointer.
The play itself has a great design, where Anderson slides around Alexis Ajinca (the original screener) and completely loses Kings forward Jason Thompson. Rivers still does a great job of extending the defense slightly before whipping a pass to Anderson.
There are a ton of catch and shoot opportunities within the Pelicans offense due to the amount of attention that must be paid to Anthony Davis. Rivers has excelled in these situations, shooting 39 percent on catch and shoot chances beyond the arc, per NBA.com’s SportVU tracking data.
If he continues to shoot with that kind of efficiency and show growth with his game, Monty Williams will have no choice but to extend his minutes on the court. At this point, Rivers is more than deserving of it.
Next: NBA: Is There A Pelican In The Top 25 Scorers Of All-Time?