Six Reasons to be Excited about the 2015-16 Season
By Eric Mullin
(10) dribbles the basketball during the first quarter against the New Orleans Pelicans at Sleep Train Arena. The Pelicans defeated the Kings 101-95. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports” width=”300″ height=”200″ /> April 3, 2015; Sacramento, CA, USA; Sacramento Kings guard Nik Stauskas (10) dribbles the basketball during the first quarter against the New Orleans Pelicans at Sleep Train Arena. The Pelicans defeated the Kings 101-95. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
4. Another shooter in Nik Stauskas
For the third consecutive offseason the Sixers were quiet in free agency. Their signings of multiple unproven point guards were trumped by the reported news of the team having a meeting set-up with restricted free agent Jimmy Butler. Butler was signed before the clock turned to July 1 and nothing ever came of it, but the report showed that the Sixers would be active in free agency for the right player.
Just because the Sixers did not make a headline signing does not mean they failed to make any type of splash. On the first day of free agency the Sixers took advantage of the Kings, a team eager to shed salary and become a player in free agency, by fleecing them in a salary dump deal. By taking on the contracts of Jason Thompson, who was recently re-routed to the Warriors, and Carl Landry the Sixers were able to get the right to swap their first round pick in the next two years with the Kings, a protected first-round pick in 2018 (which becomes unprotected in 2019 if it does not convey), and Nik Stauskas. Yes Nik Stauskas, the player the Sixers wanted to select with their second first-round pick in the 2014 draft.
This trade with the Kings showed the advantage the Sixers have in having a lot of cap room and flexibility. All they had to do was take on a little over $13 million to receive a really good haul of assets.
Stauskas is no sure thing, as inconsistencies led to struggles in his rookie year. In 73 appearances during his rookie campaign, Stauskas made just one start and finished with averages of 15.4 minutes, 4.4 points, and 0.9 assists. His shooting numbers were not any prettier as he shot just 36.5 percent from the field and 32.2 percent from beyond the arc.
To Stauskas’s defense he was put into a situation filled with turmoil and inconsistent minutes. In his first season in the NBA Stauskas played for three different head coaches, which would be hard for any player let alone a rookie. To his credit, after a sluggish start to the season, Stauskas bounced back after the All-Star when he started to receive consistent minutes. In 23 post All-Star break games, the Canadian sharpshooter shot 41.8 percent from the field and 42.1 percent from long range in 19.4 minutes per game. His offensive rating jumped from 99.3 to 104.5 after the break as well.
Stauskas can flat out stroke it, I mean the kid hit 46 threes in a row in the freezing rain. That skill set is a huge weapon for the Sixers, who intend to construct their offense around a low-post player that needs space to operate. Nik, along with Robert Covington and Hollis Thompson, provides the Sixers with wing players that will stretch the floor and will get a lot of open looks if Jah begins to command double teams.
Stauskas is a young player with a lot of upside as a two-guard that can be deadly from deep and handle the ball. To grow into that potential he needs to play big minutes consistently, which makes Philadelphia a perfect home for him. I would not necessarily lock Stauskas into the starting lineup on opening night, but expect the former Michigan product to be seeing the floor a lot this season.
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