The 3 Most Overrated Players Heading Into 2022
A couple of days I ago I went over some of the most underrated players in the NBA heading into the 2022 season. Well today, it’s time to do the opposite. Now, don’t get it twisted. I am not saying these players are bad or that I want them to fail or anything.
I’m just saying that some people are making them out to be more than they are and what they are going to do in 2022. That’s all. I’m not that pessimistic, I promise.
Russell Westbrook
Hopefully this one doesn’t need any explanation. I get Westbrook is a statistical marvel and all, but I’m afraid that he does belong on this list. I know that there are some people who just hate Westbrook’s personality and that used to be me, but I do think he deserves to be on this list for a lot of reasons.
But obviously looking at his counting stats from 2021 would tell you that he’s a great player. He broke the triple-double record with was held by Oscar Robertson for decades. Oscar recently even said that Westbrook should have been the MVP in 2021. Westbrook’s counting stats have really never been the problem;
22.2 ppg – 11.5 rpg – 11.7 apg – 1.4 spg – 44% FG – 32% 3-PT
Like I said, Westbrook’s counting stats have never been the problem. He’s a 2x scoring champ. He’s led the league in assists 3 out of the last 4 years. He’s averaged a triple-double 4 out of the last 5 years. But there’s more in the NBA than just stuffing the stat sheet.
For one, Westbrook has never been a good shooter. He’s a career 31% 3-PT shooter and over the past 4 seasons, his free throw percentages have also been dipping. Westbrook’s career as a whole has been defined by his lack of efficiency and 2021 was no different.
League Average FG% (2021): 47%
Westbrook’s FG% (2021): 44% (-3%)
League Average 2-PT% (2021): 53%
Westbrook’s 2-PT% (2021): 48% (-5%)
League Average TS% (2021): 57%
Westbrook’s TS% (2021): 51% (-6%)
I digress. Westbrook is not efficient at all and I think my friend Kirk Goldsberry can help me show this point in more detail. Over the past 5 seasons, there have been 70 NBA players to take 2,000+ jumpshots. Guess who ranks last? You guessed it, it was Russell Westbrook.
Over the past 5 seasons, he’s shot an astounding 4,226 jumpshots and had an eFG% of 41.8. That is really, really, really bad. Westbrook is a non-shooter and in the playoffs, you’re fine with letting him shoot the ball. The bad thing is, he seems willing to shoot even if he’s not good. Even though he’s been so bad shooting the ball, he’s still shot well over 4,000 jumpers over 5 seasons.
Westbrook’s efficiency/shooting problem is such a problem in today’s NBA and I don’t know how people skim over this fact. Westbrook can stuff the stat sheet, but there’s a lot more to basketball than having a cool looking box score.
I think Westbrook is a Hall of Famer, one of the best guards of this generation. But some people seem to think that his problems don’t exist, when they are very clear and cause a lot of hurt to his teams at time. But you know what? Westbrook can prove me and everybody wrong in 2022.
He’s on the Lakers, his first shot at contending for a title since KD left in 2016. With all of his shooting problems, the at times selfish mentality, and the annoying personality, that can all be erased if he gels well with Lebron and co. and wins a title.
I make it sound a lot more simple than it is, but hey, I don’t make the rules. I just write them. There’s a difference.
Ben Simmons
I’m not explaining this one, you get it.
Jerami Grant
Now, I like Jerami Grant. But his success in 2021 was certainly inflated because the Pistons were bad. Sure, he had a good season playing for the first time as the #1 option, but I really don’t think Grant is as good as some people make him out to be and I certainly think he’ll come back to Earth in some degree in 2022.
Grant’s numbers at surface value in 2021 don’t look that bad. But if you take a deeper look, they’re not as good;
22.3 ppg – 43% FG – 35% 3-PT – 84% FT
Those are decent numbers. His TS% was 56%, which is slightly below average. But for somebody who had never averaged 14+ ppg in a season before, this was a big step up. But the underlying numbers show a different story.
Let’s talk about the volume and the efficiency. There were 34 players in the NBA who took more than 17 field goal attempts per game in 2021. Grant ranks 32/34 on that list in terms of field goal percentage, beating out John Wall and Victor Oladipo. Not ideal.
Grant was a pretty below average shooter overall in 2021;
League Average TS% (2021): 57%
Grant’s TS% (2021): 56% (-1%)
League Average FG% (2021): 47%
Grant’s FG% (2021): 43% (-4%)
League Average 2-PT FG% (2021): 53%
Grant’s 2-PT FG% (2021): 47% (-6%)
League Average eFG% (2021): 54%
Grant’s eFG% (2021): 49% (-5%)
Do you get what I mean? Grant just got a higher volume to do whatever he wanted and let’s just say he didn’t exactly shine. He wasn’t very efficient at all and he certainly struggled against the better defenses of the NBA.
In 2021, these were the top 5 defensive teams in the NBA based on defensive rating;
#1 – Los Angeles Lakers
#2 – Philadelphia 76ers
#3 – Utah Jazz
#4 – New York Knicks
#5 – Golden State Warriors
Let’s see how Grant fared in games against these 5 teams;
Jerami Grant Against The Lakers In 2021;
23 ppg – 6 apg – 51% TS
Jerami Grant Against The Philadelphia 76ers In 2021;
17 ppg – 7 rpg – 49% TS
Jerami Grant Against The Utah Jazz In 2021;
28 ppg – 62% TS
Jerami Grant Against The New York Knicks In 2021;
19 ppg – 6 rpg – 50% TS
Jerami Grant Against The Warriors In 2021;
23 ppg – 63% TS
Grant was about average. He was really good against the Warriors and Jazz, but was below average against the other 3 teams, particularly Ben Simmons and the 76ers. So Grant really didn’t carve up the best defenses. He got a lot of shots and he wasn’t very efficient. He just got a higher volume to do whatever he so pleased.
But one thing that Grant defenders really love to bring up is, well defense. Grant had always been known as a great role player because of his defense and his defense must have remained good in Detroit, right?
But the defense didn’t really stand out in the Motor City. His defensive box/plus minus was a -1.2, the lowest of his career. His opponents weren’t exactly shut down when they faced Grant either in 2021;
Less Than 6 Feet: 63%
Less Than 10 Feet: 59%
Two-Pointers: 54%
Overall: 48%
I mean, the defense overall was decent, but inside the arc? Grant wasn’t nearly the defender he had been in the prior couple of seasons, so this label of a two
I think that Jerami Grant is a good player, but he was made out to be an All-Star by some people when he really wasn’t. He was an inefficient scorer who didn’t really shine offensively, he just got the ball more. Gone were the days where he deferred to Westbrook/Paul George in OKC or Murray/Jokic in Denver. It was Grant’s offense and things weren’t great.
Defensively, he wasn’t anything special and regressed from his prior seasons with the Thunder and Nuggets. In 2022, Grant will have less of a role and that’s perfectly fine. I’m hoping his efficiencies jump up next to Cade Cunningham and he has a better overall season in 2022 with less volume.
I think 2022 will be a lot more telling for Grant than 2021 was, by a lot.
Do You Agree With This List or Not? Leave A Comment Down Below!
Follow My Instagram/Facebook To Never Miss A Post: @hoopnotions
