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Denver Nuggets: Five cheap options at point guard

By Grayson Moore

DENVER, CO - JANUARY 3: Jamal Murray #27 of the Denver Nuggets dribbles the ball against the Phoenix Suns on January 3, 2018 at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images)
DENVER, CO - JANUARY 3: Jamal Murray #27 of the Denver Nuggets dribbles the ball against the Phoenix Suns on January 3, 2018 at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images)
Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images) /

Option #1: Rajon Rondo

Rajon Rondo 2017-18 Stats: 8.3 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 8.2 apg, 1.1 spg, 0.2 bpg, 46.8% FG%, 33.3% FG3%, 15.3 PER, 3.6 Win Shares

Rondo is certainly not the player he used to be. He averaged below his career standards in points per game, assists per game, rebounds per game, PER, and FT%. That doesn’t mean he isn’t still serviceable.

He led the 2017-18 Pelicans in APG and points generated by assists, ranked 4th in SPG, and tied for 2nd in steal percentage. He also has added a semi-consistent 3-point jumper to his game, posting the 3rd highest 3-point percentage of his career on the 2nd most attempts. Rondo also posted the highest 3-point attempt rate of his career, with 30.4% of his field goal attempts coming from beyond the arc.

He isn’t quite the defensive menace he used to be. With 4 All-Defensive teams and 1 season as the steals champion on his resume, teams have come to expect a lot from him on the defensive side of the ball. He didn’t really deliver this year, however.

Mr. Triple Double posted the lowest steals per game average and steal percentage of his career, with marks of 1.1 and 2.0% respectively. He also had the worst defensive box plus/minus, total box plus/minus, and defensive rating of his career. That doesn’t necessarily mean he’s become a bad defender, however.

Of the 3.1 three-point attempts he faced per game, he allowed just 1.1 to go in. That’s a percentage of 35.5%, under the league average of just over 36%. He was also an above average swiper, posting 0.4 more steals than the league average player according to clutchpoints.com.

So while Rondo is not the 4x All-Star that teams would like him to still be, he is still a decent defender with vision and passing ability few players can match.