ESPN Has Scheyer On Front Page And Highly Overrated

It only occurred to me today to actually check Jon Scheyer's basketball statistics. You know, the quantifiable, measurable, numerical evidence that allows us to draw conclusions on athletes without biased, subjective opinions. With Duke in the final four for the first time since 2004, every media outlet is hyping up Jon Scheyer. Some have even claimed him as a legitimate national player of the year candidate. His reputation is even more pristine if you happen to reside in Chicago, his home town, because every conversation ends with us berating Bruce Weber for not keeping Scheyer in the state.

What if I told you that Scheyer is shooting 39% from the field this year? That's pretty low, especially for college basketball. And it is not an aberration. Scheyer has been a remarkably consistent 39% shooter for 3 out of his 4 years of eligibility. I think the only worse professional shooters are Jannero Pargo and Baron Davis. Yes, he is a great 3-point shooter at 38%, with more than half his shots coming from beyond the arc. Yes, he is a great free throw shooter(88%) and a decent distributor(4.8 assists). Since nearly all of his points come from outside the paint, with very limited ability to create his own shot, his shooting percentages are down. I'm pretty sure most NBA teams are not looking for anorexic white guys who can barely out-shoot Jannero Pargo in a game.

You may be screaming at the computer screen, "what about Stephen Curry? He's an anorexic white-ish guy who shoots 3's and made it in the NBA". Let's look at the numbers, shall we. In Curry's 3 years in college, he shot over 40% from 3 point land twice. Topping out at 44% his sophomore year. In addition, he shot between 45-48% from the field as a whole, much more impressive than Scheyer's 39%. This was mainly a result of Curry's ball handling skills and ability to create open shot and drive to the basket. Scheyer is white and has no such skills. Curry also outrebounded, assisted, and stole Scheyer while being the only player on his team that people worried about.

Jon Scheyer has had a very productive college career and god damn Bruce Weber for letting a jewish, chicago boy who played HS ball under Weber's brother go to Duke. But to inflate his game to legendary status the way ESPN and Coach K himself have done is misleading to say the least