If you’ve been avidly following the Thunder, you should know by now that Semaj Christon is not exactly an NBA caliber player.
Cameron Payne‘s foot injury forced Semaj Christon into a role he was not ready for. Backup point guards have to be able to run an offense; Christon hasn’t been able to do that.
The way I look at it, letting him run the second unit is similar to having a blindfolded turtle run through a maze. It’s an eyesore to watch, and it’s slow. REALLY SLOW.
Ever so often when he checks in, the Thunder are leading the game. Everything is just fine. Just as often of an occurrence, however, is him checking out after he has let the lead turn into a deficit.
He’s a magician when it comes to this. He can practically turn any lead the Thunder have into a deficit in the four-eight minutes of playing time that he gets.
But hey, without him this beauty doesn’t come to be:
What a shot. Nothing but N-E-T!
You might be asking yourself: “But, isn’t this supposed to be an article breaking down his play and how it affects the team? This isn’t supposed to be you just slandering him.”
Don’t worry, you’re not going to be disappointed.
Explaining his per game averages and percentages
Christon’s average stat line stands at: 2.9 PPG, 2.4 APG, 1.2 RPG, and 0.7 TOPG on 14.4 MPG. The 2.9 points per game come to the tune of an ugly 31.3 FG%, 23.8 3P%, and 50 FT%. All of said percentages are well below league average. He has an eFG% of 33.9, good for second worst in the NBA.
He shoots best from 0-3 feet away from the basket, but even there he scores at a rate of *drumroll* 39.1%! THIRTY NINE POINT ONE PERCENT. This is not bad nor horrendous. This is just sad.
He’s good at protecting the ball, nonetheless, as indicated by him averaging only 1.7 turnovers per 36 minutes. Outside of his terrific 3.6:1 assist-turnover ratio, he doesn’t have much. His shooting is beyond horrendous and he obviously doesn’t bring much to the table when it comes to offense. His free throw percentage is one fitting for a center, not a point guard.
As for his defense, players average a 46.2% field goal percentage when defended by Christon. That’s two percentage points higher than the league average. It isn’t terrible, but it certainly isn’t good.
Players also average 4.9% better when guarded by Christon from 3. They sink 40.6% from deep compared to the 35.7% league average.
Analyzing his advanced numbers
This is a table showing some of his advanced stats:
Let’s start with PER (Player Efficiency Rating). League average in PER always stands at 15. Even though this statistic can be flawed like other advanced statistics, having a PER of 5.9 is a surefire sign of being a below-average player.
Being a stathead, I expected it to be this bad considering his per game numbers and his shoddy shooting splits. What I did not expect, however, is for it to be a positive figure.
At 35.4%, his TS% (True Shooting Percentage) is the worst in the entire NBA. He also has negative win shares, negative WS/48 and negative offensive win shares.
That is while also accruing a -5.6 Offensive Box Plus/Minus and a -1.7 Defensive Box Plus/Minus, amounting for a -7.3 Box Plus/Minus. Even his Real Plus/Minus stands at -3.64, good for 17th worst in the NBA.
Related Story: Thunderous Thoughts: Cam Payne, Please Come Back
Christon’s Plus/Minus per 100 when on the court stands at -11.1, and his Plus/Minus Net per 100 stands at -15.4. MINUS FIFTEEN POINT FLIPPING FOUR.
The team’s offensive and defensive ratings take hits with him playing. The Thunder’s Offensive Rating with him on the floor is 88, a number that is less than the team’s offensive rating by 18.3. The team’s Defensive Rating with Christon on is at 109, which is clearly worse than the team’s 105.7. To put this simply, letting him play is a BAD idea.
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- Aleksej Pokusevski sidelined approximately 6 weeks with ankle injury
- Damian Lillard does not fit with the OKC Thunder
Conclusion to be drawn
Semaj can do nothing but protect the ball. With him, the offense and defense falls off a cliff. He doesn’t contribute to the team in any form or capacity, on either end of the floor. His contributions having amount to a total of zero win shares, meaning he has contributed NOTHING to the team’s wins.
Consider this: We are talking about someone who has been entrusted to be a backup point guard in the NBA. A drop of 18.3 in offensive rating is simply abhorrent and unacceptable. Simply put, Semaj Christon is detrimental to the team on both ends of the floor.
Don’t be mistaken, for I do not blame Christon for the losses. I am just saying that Cameron Payne can’t get healthy soon enough.