| Let's Send Granger To Phoenix! Authored by Andrew Perna - January 26, 2009 - 2:01 pm
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The seven reserves will be announced on Thursday evening, and Granger has stiff competition in the improving East.
Mike Wells of the Indianapolis Star reported in Monday's edition that Bird and O'Brien have sent packets, including personal letters, containing information about Granger's credentials to each of the East's coaches.
"We wanted them to have information so that they would really look hard at what Danny has meant to the Indiana Pacers, along with every pertinent statistical category of things he has done this year," O'Brien told the Star. "We're trying to do everything possible to make sure he gets the recognition he deserves."
Unless you are living underneath a rock, I find it hard to believe that anyone seriously involved in the NBA has missed Granger's superb play.
The truth of the matter is that Granger would be a lock to make it if he was playing for a winning team. Unfortunately, Indiana is just 17-27 through Sunday's action. It's no secret -- if Granger doesn't make the team, it's because of his team's record and nothing else.
Granger is fourth in the NBA in scoring with 26.1 points per game, and is breathing down Kobe Bryant's neck for third place.
The contention is that Granger is carrying a poor team, but the Pacers are an above-average offensive club. Indiana averages 104.1 points per game, fourth in the league.
Danny takes an average of 19.4 shots per contest. Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, and Bryant, who all sit above Granger in scoring, take more shots per game than the Indiana forward. Even Dirk Nowitzki, who is fifth in scoring with 25.8 points, average more shot attempts than Granger.
If Granger was just a scoring machine on a poor team, wouldn't he be chucking shots at an Antoine Walker-like pace?
He hasn't just been a scorer in 2008-09 either, he's also posting 5.1 rebounds, 3.4 assists (career-high), 1.4 blocks and 1.0 steals per game. According to RealGM executive editor Chris Reina's Floor Impact Counter (FIC) statistic, Granger is the 22nd-rated player in the entire NBA. LeBron James is the only pure small forward in the league rated higher.
If I'm not creditable enough for you, ESPN's Marc Stein has placed Granger alongside Paul Pierce as his reserve forwards. There are times when playing on a winning team simply doesn't matter, and this is one of those times.
John Hollinger, also of ESPN fame, is a fan of Granger as well. Granger has a 21.76 PER (player efficiency rating). That places him 17th among all players. Once again, LeBron is the only small forward ahead of him.
Granger has scored more than 30 points on fourteen occasions, including three explosions of 40-plus points. He's also hit countless game-altering shots because of the propensity for Indiana's games to go down to the final possession.
Just this month, Granger has a handful of heroic plays to his credit:
--Jan. 7, hits a three-pointer at the buzzer to beat Suns
--Jan. 11, hits a three-pointer to give Indiana a 119-117 lead with 23 seconds left against Warriors
--Jan. 14, hits a jumper with three seconds left to force overtime in an eventual win over Pistons
--Jan. 19, hits a three-pointer with two seconds left to tie a game against the Hornets that Chris Paul would go on to win with his own thrilling shot
I'm not trying to hitch myself to Granger's bandwagon either, I started my campaign to send him to the All-Star Game nearly a year ago.
Even with his solid play and favorable statistics, TNT analyst Reggie Miller doesn't believe that Granger should make the All-Star team this season.
Miller said on air last week that teams with winning records should be rewarded with All-Star bids. That's all well and good, but here's the problem –- only six teams in the Eastern Conference have winning records.
Does that mean that only the Celtics, Cavaliers, Magic, Hawks, Pistons and Heat should be represented in Phoenix?
Five of those six teams, the Hawks not included, are already sending a starter to the West Coast. So what about the conference's other nine teams?
"If Danny Granger isn't an All-Star," O'Brien told the Star earlier this month, "then I don't know what an All-Star looks like."
According to the Elias Sports Bureau, only three players that ranked in the top-five in scoring at the All-Star break have failed to make the team since 1986.
"I'd be lying if I said making the All-Star team wasn't one of my goals when I first came into the NBA," Granger said, according to the Star. "I wanted to be an All-Star, but the main focus is making a playoff push and being a championship contender. Being an All-Star along the way is one step along the ultimate goal."
It's certainly a step he should be taking this season.
Andrew Perna is Deputy Editor of RealGM.com and co-host of RealGM’s Radio Show. Please feel free to contact him with comments or questions via e-mail: Andrew.Perna@RealGM.com |
