Time changes, time changes. 2022, full of stories, is coming to an end. The 2022 Qatar football World Cup led to the concept of “Ragnarok”. This year, NBA also had many stories of Ragnarok.
In his late career (defined as 33 years old or older here), LeBlanc James could still cut points with extremely high efficiency. This year, he rushed to the scoring king in NBA history with extremely fast pace.
Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant both played incredible performances this year, changing the cognition of the whole basketball world.
Several veterans represented by Ale-Horford can still shine as role players and play an important role in the championship team.
Russell-Westbrook and James Harden have been actively transforming to extend their careers.
Of course, we can still see the power of the years on the old generals such as Carl Lowry and Chris Paul. They have been caught up by the old man of time and slowly left behind.
Old and strong: James
This season, among the players who have already played, James is the second oldest player, and only heat veteran Hasham is older. Igodala is older than James, but he has not played this season.
James can still score 27.8 points, 8.1 rebounds and 6.6 assists this season, with a field goal percentage of 49.6 percent. Last season, James averaged 30.3 points, 8.2 rebounds and 6.2 assists. During the whole year of 2022 (the second half of last season and the first third of this season), when James played healthily, his data was still gorgeous.
According to the data such as the number of breakthroughs, steals, and cap, James must have declined compared with himself. His hard solution ability at the offensive end, his investment in the defensive end, and his defensive effect have declined compared with the past, sometimes, from his body movements, he can obviously feel a sense of “inability to do well” that rarely appeared in the past. The Lakers didn’t even enter the play-in last season, and this season is also very hanging.
Compared with other great players in history, James’s decline rate is the slowest. Before James, only Carl Malone in the 2000-01 season and Karim Abdel-Jabbar in the 1985-86 season could score more than 23 points at the age of 37 or older, malone is 23.2 points, Jabbar is 23.4 points, and James is already the holder of the average score in a single season after the age of 37.
In addition, James has scored at least 30 points in 7 consecutive games this season, setting a record of 30 + points in a row after the age of 37. In 2002, 38-year-old Michael Jordan scored at least 30 points in four consecutive games.
Of course, the factors of the times and the three-pointer should be considered, but no one can deny that no player can play such data at the age of nearly 38 in the past, and there may be no more in the future.
Changing cognition: Curry and Durant
In today’s era, with the ability to project, you can really do whatever you want. Curry and Durant are both changing their cognition by shooting. The former is using three points while the latter is using the middle shot.
Curry encountered some twists and turns in 2022. He was injured in the first world war with Celtics on March 17 and missed the last 12 regular season matches last season. Fortunately, Curry caught up with the playoffs and the final result was perfect. Curry led the Warriors to eliminate the Nuggets, the Grizzly Bear and The Lone Ranger all the way to the finals. In the finals, Curry played an epic performance against the defensive strategy formulated by Wu ducurno. He used a 41.8% high hit rate to cast 23 dry points and led the Warriors back to the throne.
This season, Curry’s performance was even more exaggerated. Before the injury, his hit rate of three points was as high as, and he averaged three points in the game, which was truly the “King of three points”, he raised the power of this high-level technology to a new level, making his peers unable to reach it.
2022 may be the most chaotic year in Durant’s career. At the beginning of the year, Durant experienced the farce that Owen refused to be vaccinated and once could only play away. In February, Durant watched Harden apply for transaction departure. In April, basketable nets was swept out by Celtics in the first round, and Ben Simmons did not play after joining. Then Durant applied for a deal on basketable nets during the offseason. This season, Nash finished class after seven games. Owen was once banned from the controversy once again.
But even so, Durant still controlled what he could control and performed impeccable personal performance. Especially this season, Durant’s attendance rate is extremely high, and he is still a model worker. He scored 30 points in 36.4 minutes, 6.6 rebounds, 5.3 assists, 1.5 cap, and the field goal percentage was as high. In the case of serious Achilles tendon injury, 34-year-old Durant played the season with the highest attack efficiency. Curry is the king of dry draw and three points, while Durant is the king of dry draw. He made 8.2 shots of dry draw and two points in the game, with a hit rate of against the sky.
Positive transformation: Harden, weishao
As the former representatives of the core of holding the ball, Harden and Wei Shao have entered the transition period. From the perspective of extending career, early transformation is not a bad thing.
Harden understood after several years of rocket attack on the big core of holding the ball. He knew that this kind of play was too limited, so he went to basketable nets first and then to 76 people, early on, he began to transform to the organization guard who put passing first.
Throughout 2022, Harden’s transformation was smooth. In the second half of last season, he sent 10.5 assists in 76ers and 11.1 assists in this season. According to the passing data from Harden to enbide, the tacit cooperation between the two has improved. This season, Ha has sent 3.8 assists to enbide, compared with 1.1 last season.
Wei Shao started last season when he was coaching Vogel’s, but after Ham took office this season, Ham persuaded Wei Shao to serve as a substitute. Wei Shao’s transformation is reflected in the change of roles and style of play. Weishao accepted the role of substitute and reduced the proportion of sales by perimeter shot.
It must be admitted that Wei Shao’s attitude towards transformation is no problem. His passing as the engine of the second squad is very important to the Lakers (although there are still too many mistakes). However, due to the defects in playing style and technology, the efficiency of weishao will not rise but fall after the transformation, and its real hit rate is only. In the match where Wei Shao played the substitute, his usage rate of ball power increased to 28.8%, but the real hit rate was only 49.7%, even the average level of the league was not reached.
Luminous heating: Horford, Batum, Brook-Lopez
These three players are all role players of their respective teams, but they deserve the “indispensable” evaluation. In their twilight years, they can still contribute to the team in their own ways and continue to shine.
After returning to the Celtics last season, Horford, 36 years old, became full of second spring. This season, he still scored 10.1 points plus 6.3 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.1 caps, field goal percentage 50.8%, the three-point hit rate is 45.1%. Horford played an important role during Robert Williams’s absence. Regardless of whether the Celtics play double towers or single center, Horford is a key figure at both ends of the attack and defense of the Celtics. He and Lowe form the double insurance of the Celtics.
The 34-year-old Grand Lopez suffered a back injury last season and played only 13 games in the regular season. However, this season, grand Lopez is not only as simple as recovering from health, his average playing time has increased to 30.6 minutes, which is the highest personal value since the 2015-16 season. He has scored 14.9 points, 5.9 rebounds and 2.5 cap, he also shot 2.1 three points in the field with a hit rate of 40.1%. He is the best 3B (three points + cap) center in the league.
The 34-year-old Batum said in an interview not long ago that when he left the Wasp, he thought he was going to retire. As a result, Batum has become one of the most important puzzles in the Clippers five small lineups. When Tyron-Lu “it’s not a matter of five children”, Batum often topped the fifth position. His data was insignificant, and his average score was 6.4 points and 4.3 rebounds. However, he took up 52 percent of the time this season as the new record of the Chinese front, 40% higher than last season, it is enough to illustrate his tactical value.
Batum and Horford both gained new renewal contracts in 2022, and Grand Lopez should also take off next year.
Status decline: Lowry, Paul, Conley
In the era when young control guards jumped wildly, the three old control guards ushered in the twilight years of their careers.
In 2022a year, the competitive state of 37-year-old Paul continued to decline. In February and March 2022, Paul missed 15 games in a row, and in November and December, he missed 14 games in a row. Paul’s attendance rate was far less than that of 2021. At the same time, Paul’s offensive influence is also declining. Last season, his three-point hit rate has dropped to 31.7 percent, and this season, the overall hit rate has plummeted to 39.8 percent. Today’s Paul relies more on the three-pointer feel than ever before, while his three-point hit rate is only.
The 36-year-old Lowry experienced a cliff-like decline. In the playoffs last season, Lowry showed his old style, with an average score of 7.8 points and a field goal percentage of 29.1 percent. If part of the reason for Lowry’s playoff disorder last season was injuries, then his decline this season was entirely due to his age. His field goal percentage dropped to 41 percent, with a three-point hit rate of only 35.8 percent.
The track of 35-year-old Conley this year is very similar to that of Lowry. He made some contributions in the regular season last season, but the playoff data and efficiency plummeted, with only 9.2 points, field goal percentage 33.3%. This season, Conley scored only 9.8 points and 7.4 assists, field goal percentage 39.1 percent.
The three old control guards still have good contributions in connection, but the three have dropped to the lowest point in their career in terms of offensive influence. As they get older, it is difficult for them to keep up with the young people in their defensive steps.
Conclusion
In the dusk of the gods, young people waited for their own coronation ceremony to come, but those veterans had not planned to quit the main stage in 2022. Even Paul, Conley and lorry, who were in a declining state, were still sticking to them silently, including veteran Derek Ross who temporarily dropped out of rotation. What kind of stories will senior generals write in 2023? Wait and see.
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2022 annual inventory of Live Bar