Raja Bell Out for Up to Four Months; Bring On Gerald Henderson!
by David A. Arnott on Oct 21, 2009 9:52 AM EDT
7 comments
Say Raja Bell really is out four months. That's not the worst thing in the world. I'm guessing a majority of the reputable stat-crunchers out there would say it won't have much of an impact on the Bobcats' results this season, simply because there's only a remote chance the Bobcats are a force this year.
However, the potentially good news is that we could get a better look at Gerald Henderson sooner rather than later. I've long been on record with the position that for where Charlotte is in their success cycle, if a rookie isn't totally embarrassing on the floor, he needs to play right away so we can get a fuller idea of his capabilities.
Let's read the tea leaves and see if that'll happen.
First, it's established that Larry Brown has an unhealthy predilection for rookie suppression. Even if a young player isn't quite as good as a veteran player, there are ample reasons to play the youngster over the vet in certain contexts. For instance, on a team with zero championship aspirations and another young piece of the core in the back court, it might be prudent to get those guys playing together as often as possible so that they are symbiotic when the team does make a charge through the playoffs. Brown will play rookies big minutes, but only, it seems, when there's no real choice to be made. That bodes ill for Henderson, since Ronald Murray is around, shin issues notwithstanding.
However -- and this is something a lot of coaches do, not just Brown -- it's possible Henderson will start games in Bell's absence so as not to disrupt the "roles" everyone else has been assigned. This is a real long shot, especially since it's the start of the season and "roles" haven't really been established, but bear with me. Say Brown has determined that D.J. Augustin is the PG off the bench and Flip is the first SG off the bench. Well, he might simply keep those guys in those "roles" and start Henderson at the SG spot. The start, itself, isn't really important, as much as the minutes Henderson might get, and with Murray's ability to play both guard spots and Brown's willingness to play Raymond Felton alongside Augustin last year, Henderson might still see only a few minutes per game, even if he gets to be put in the spotlight and high five everyone during pregame introductions.
If Murray's out for an extended period, that will force Brown's hand, since he can't play Augustin and Felton together the entire game, and Vladimir Radmanovic isn't a real SG.
The key, for at least this fan, is admitting that this season isn't about winning a championship; it's about building toward winning a championship, and the team should do what's best for that goal.
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More PT for Henderson
May be the silver lining to this unfortunate injury, but I’m not sure Henderson will put on much of a show this year.
The Bobcats need scoring out of the shooting guard position, and Flip Murray needs to start and become a primary scorer for the Bobcats’ offense to produce a respectable number of points. It’s very unfortunate he’s been hurt, too, and isn’t getting the chance to play with his new teammates. Bell’s injury is going to be his big opportunity to show he can be a starting NBA shooting guard. Hopefully he finds some of the scoring magic he showed a few years ago filling in for Ray Allen on the Sonics the first two months of the season.
I’d like to see Henderson start the season playing about 10 to 15 minutes a game and earn any additional minutes based on his play. After enduring the AMMO years, we should understand that more PT doesn’t necessarily equal player development.
The key for Henderson will be to become a lockdown wing defender and to learn to shoot from distance. He may have been a good college defender, but expecting him to match up with the likes of Dwyane Wade, Vince Carter and Joe Johnson is too much to ask of a raw rookie. In two or three years, he may develop into something comparable to Raja Bell. But if he starts and plays heavy minutes this season, then the Bobcats will be the worst offensive team in the league.
The Schedule
Wed 28 @ Boston
Fri 30 vs New York
Sat 31 @ Cleveland
Mon 02 vs New Jersey
The Cats should start the season 2-2. They usually play the Celtics well, but I cannot see Boston losing its home opener. The loss of Bell shouldn’t hurt the team too much. Murray and Henderson are serviceable replacements. One could argue that combo will be more productive.
As a side note, Diop needs to get it together. I honestly don’t know what he does in the off-season, but I have a hard time believing he plays a lot of basketball. He is too big and too long to be so unproductive.
"Late to bed and late to wake keeps you long on money and short on mistakes".
by Julius Coxswain on Oct 21, 2009 12:54 PM EDT reply actions
Henderson is not ready to start. He still cant shoot & the Cats desperately need scoring. Brown is more NBA ready than Henderson & he should be the one seeing the most minutes out of the rookies. Graham is a wildcard. He has a shooters range & he can defend multiple positions. I would go with him at the two before Henderson.
"it's a bad day to have a bad day"
Henderson’s 7-8, in 14 mins last night begs to differ that he cant shoot.
Furthermore, he’s shooting 18-36 in the preseason… .500 is outstanding for a rookie SG.
It’s time to let go of the preconcieved notions of him from Duke. He’s ready to get a shot, I agree with David.
Cat Scratch Reader's resident optimist.
by James The Aussie on Oct 21, 2009 3:00 PM EDT up reply actions
My point is that it’s kind of irrelevant whether or not he’s “ready” to start. With whoever else is on hand, the Cats are still, at best, a borderline playoff team. It’s the right situation to find out what Augustin, Henderson, and, yes, Derrick Brown, can do with significant playing time.
by David A. Arnott on Oct 21, 2009 4:55 PM EDT up reply actions
I'm a Tarheel but...
I’ve been saying all along that I think Gerald Henderson is a great player and pick up for this team. He can shoot the lights out when hes feeling it, is a competent defender and can drive the lane. I hate to see Raja out for to long, but between Henderson and Murry, I think the cats should be able to cover the difference.
I’m with Julius, I don’t know about the start of the season record, but I do believe that of all the positions to lose a starter at, the 2 guard might have been the best situation. Could you imagine if we lost Diaw for 4 months!? We’d be screwed. As much as I like Bell, I think Henderson and Murray (And Felton can play the 2 a little with D.J. at the point if need be) can handle it and be very productive.
I do like Brown, and I do think he will get some minutes, but I don’t see how he is more deserving of playing time than Henderson. Trust me D.W.G. I wanna hate on him, I really do (I have to force myself to forget what he did to my boy Hansbrough!) but from a basketball stand point, I think Henderson is a VERY solid 2 and I’m glad we have him at this point.
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