Jerryd Bayless Has Advantage In Starting PG Race

With more tangible results to back up his NBA experience and a more fitting presence in the Philadelphia 76ers’ unique rotation, Jerryd Bayless seems like a clear frontrunner in Philly’s starting point guard race.

The Philadelphia 76ers’ starting point guard spot is still up for grabs in many respects, with neither Jerryd Bayless or Sergio Rodriguez being able to make any clear statements as to who would be the better option prior to training camp. With that said, there does seem to be a fairly distinct frontrunner when you look at their different skill sets and how their resumes stack up in relation to the Sixers’ organization. While neither is vastly different in terms of aptitude on the court, Bayless has laid the groundwork to earn the starting spot with the assumption that he shows well in the upcoming months.

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The Sixers have built an entirely new rotation in hopes of making legitimate strides en route to inevitable contention, but their focus still remains of developing for the future. Ben Simmons‘ success in acclimating to a prime role in Philadelphia will be the primary focal point for Brett Brown and company all season, while clearing out space for whichever big men remain underneath is key to establishing a functional offensive regime. Bayless, albeit somewhat underwhelming in comparison to other starting point guards around the league, has established himself as somebody perfectly capable of aiding in each of those areas.

When you look at team fit, Bayless has a well-defined edge over Rodriguez when you look at the talents that will be placed around them. Simmons is likely to man a point forward role of sorts for most of the season, and Dario Saric will be able to come in off the bench and operate as a playmaker in his own right from time to time. That makes someone like Bayless, who can spot-up for threes on the perimeter and provide more of a scoring spark rather than a static facilitator, a more likely option–especially as Simmons becomes more in tune with being the primary ball handler for an NBA offense.

Rodriguez, while remarkable at times with his creation skills off the bounce, doesn’t have the same punch Bayless does as a scorer, and could fit more seemlessly into the rotation as a secondary playmaker off the bench behind Bayless’ much-needed scoring burst in the starting rotation in Brett Brown’s eyes.

This is only backed up by the direction the Sixers’ offense has taken ever since Sam Hinkie instituted ‘the process’. Philadelphia has been in chronic need of outside scoring, and has lacked any form of reliable perimeter production and floor spacing for the majority of their stint among the league’s bottom dwellers. Bayless, despite being unspectacular at times, certainly provides a steady hand at the one spot.

Bayless shot 44% from beyond the arc last campaign, while tallying up an average of 10 points in reserve for a Milwaukee Bucks team that lacked perimeter spacing in a way much akin to that of the Sixers. He was a near-flawless fit into their second unit at times, and was an ideal compliment for a ball-heavy forward like Giannis Antetokounmpo. While Michael Carter-Williams was the Bucks’ starter for the most part, his fit as a lacking scorer was evident throughout the campaign.

Rodriguez’s career average from beyond the arc in the NBA (2007-10) is just 31.6%, while Bayless has outperformed that by over 5 percentage points (36.5%) over the course of his 8 year career thus far. While that difference may seem minimal, the sheer increase in production we saw with Bayless is a very promising sign, and likely lays the foundation for an advantage heading into training camp when being directly compared to Rodriguez on the court.

In addition to his benefits on the court, the simple fact that Bayless has been able to show more prowess at the NBA level gives him a massive advantage. During his four seasons in the NBA prior to going overseas, Rodriguez averaged just 13 minutes per contest, only surpassing the 16 minute per contest once during a 27-game stretch with the Knicks in 2010. Bayless’ career average is currently a shade over 21 per contest, while he hasn’t averaged less than 20 minutes per game since an 11-game stay with the New Orleans Hornets during the 2010-11 season.

Bayless, quite frankly, has more NBA experience to fall back on, alongside a proven record that likely will appeal not only to Coach Brown, but Bryan Colangelo in the front office given his willingness to shell out a three-year contract on the journeyman point guard.

While there’s certainly going to be a continual debate over who the better overall player is, an accolade that could likely be given to Rodriguez in a vacuum, Bayless has all the necessary attributes of the top option for starting point guard coming into training camp. He’s the better fit on the court, and has a greater level of professional experience at the NBA level to draw on as he begins the first year of his new contract with the team.

Regardless of how you feel about both point guards, we will, in all likelihood, see Jerryd Bayless in the starting rotation on opening night.