Oklahoma City Thunder: Anthony Morrow Should Start At Shooting Guard

By Andrew Kennedy | Sep 27, 2015

Mar 18, 2015; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Anthony Morrow (2) reacts after a made 3 point shot against the Boston Celtics during the third quarter at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports /

There’s a theory that you don’t try to fix something that isn’t broken. But what if you can make something that is very good great?

This has been the case with the Oklahoma City Thunder‘s starting lineup the last few years. Scott Brooks was often criticized for the starters he went with and it was a problem from 2011-12, when the team was clearly better when Kendrick Perkins was off the floor. Brooks of course stuck with Perkins until last season and the starting group actually proved to be one of the best OKC lineups over the last few years.

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The new Perkins last season was Andre Roberson. One of the worst shooters in the league somehow found his way into the Thunder’s starting lineup at shooting guard. So the guy that would benefit the most from playing alongside Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and Serge Ibaka shot 24.7 percent from the three-point line. Doesn’t feel like it makes a ton of sense.

It wasn’t all bad though. Roberson — 6’7″, 210 pounds — was able to make up for his atrocious offensive nature because he was so good on defense. He had the third-best defensive real plus-minus among shooting guards at 3.30. That helped him rank 17th in overall RPM among shooting guards despite his ORPM being -1.30.

Roberson won the job partially because he resembled the departed Thabo Sefolosha so much. That had to be one of the reasons. He slid right in there, looked the same on TV, and nothing changed with that starting unit. Just how Brooks liked it.

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Change can be really good though and the Thunder got — and still have — the opportunity to change that starting unit for the better after acquiring Anthony Morrow last season.

Morrow proved that he is one of the elite shooters in the league and could be that for an elite team as well. He shot 43.3 percent from three overall last season, attempting 4.4 in 24.4 minutes per game. As the season progressed, he did too. In February he shot 51.7 from beyond the arc, 51.2 percent in March and 47.1 percent in April. The sign of any great shooter.

Morrow was always important in Thunder wins and when the team lost, it wasn’t as good with Morrow on the floor. His plus-minus was 7.2 in wins and -2.2 in losses. Obviously, it’s common for players to have positive plus-minuses in wins and negatives in losses but this is a pretty big gap.

Morrow was particularly effective shooting early in the shot clock. He famously jacked a lot of threes early in transition when the Thunder had no one in position to rebound and not one fan was mad at Morrow for taking those shots. He shot between 42-47 percent when there were seven seconds or more left on the shot clock. He was really solid at the very end of the shot clock, too, hitting 38.9 percent.

Here are the stats that really stand out when you consider just how effective Morrow could be alongside Durant and Westbrook more often. He posted a 64.6 effective field goal percentage on catch-and-shoots and when he was “really open,” per NBA.com. With a defender within 4-6 feet, his eFG% was 62.0 and when a defender was six or more feet away, his eFG% was a blistering 80.1 percent!

Those two types of open shots accounted for 56.7 percent of his attempts, which is a lot, but you have to imagine that would go up if he got more run with the starters.

Morrow’s play resulted in him being a part of four lineups that played at least 30 minutes together and outscored opponents by 20-plus points per 100 possessions. And by the way, none of those lineups included Durant. Morrow only played 121 minutes with Durant and Westbrook together last season.

Overall, Morrow ranked 12th among shooting guards with a 2.76 RPM. His ORPM carried him as he ranked ninth among shooting guards at 2.33 but he was still positive on defense at 0.43.

With Morrow and Roberson, you definitely get each end of the spectrum. Morrow proved last year his offensive impact is really one of the best in the league for his position. He competes on defense but because he moves like an old man, that limits him at times.

Roberson may be emerging into one of the best wing defenders in the league and was so good that the Thunder still outscored opponents with him out there and surrounded by stars. But that’s not how you build a team. You don’t cater to Roberson by surrounding him with talent so you can get away with playing him. You surround your stars with the best possible role players to make the game easier for them. Brooks leaned on his stars too much.

Will Billy Donovan decide it’s better to start Morrow or will he, thanks to Brooks helping him imagine this possibility, stick with Roberson? You have to think if there is any change, it will be this.

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