2014 1st Round Rookies Minutes and Noah Vonleh

[cbarrier90]

The Noah Vonleh Project has been well-documented on this board. He is very skilled, but also very raw, and missed an entire preseason due to injury. His play hasn't exactly brought the house down, but neither has the frontcourt rotation playing in front of him, leading some frustrated fans on here to complain about his lack of minutes given the investment of a lottery pick.

 

Therefore, I decided to investigate and see whether or not the lack of minutes for Vonleh is a common theme across the league or is he really that far behind the rest of his class. Keep in mind that each rookie comes into a unique environment and that affects the minutes distribution (Ex: Wiggins playing on a bad MIN team vs. McDermott on contending CHI team.)

 

2014 Draft (www.basketball-reference.com/players)

 

1. Andrew Wiggins - CLE (traded to MIN) - 36 GP, 36 starts, 32.6 MPG

 

2. Jabari Parker - MIL - 25 GP, 25 starts, 29.5 MPG (currently injured)

 

3. Joel Embiid - PHI - yet to see game action (injury)

 

4. Aaron Gordon - ORL - 11 GP, 0 starts, 15 MPG (currently injured)

 

5. Dante Exum - UTA - 38 GP, 1 start, 18.6 MPG

 

6. Marcus Smart - BOS - 22 GP, 3 starts, 20.8 MPG

 

7. Julius Randle - LAL - 1 GP, 0 starts, 14 MPG (currently injured)

 

8. Nik Stauskas - SAC - 37 GP, 0 starts, 14 MPG

 

9. Noah Vonleh - CHA - 7 GP, 0 starts, 7.6 MPG (spent time in NBDL)

 

10. Elfrid Payton - ORL - 40 GP, 21 starts, 26 MPG

 

11. Doug McDermott - CHI - 17 GP, 0 starts, 11.6 MPG (currently injured)

 

12. Dario Saric - PHI - yet to see game action (Europe)

 

13. Zach Lavine - MIN - 33 GP, 21 starts, 24.8 MPG

 

14. TJ Warren - PHX - 12 GP, 0 starts, 10.2 MPG (spent time in NBDL)

 

15. Adreian Payne - ATL - 1 GP, 0 starts, 13 MPG (spent time in NBDL)

 

16. Jusuf Nurkic - DEN - 25 GP, 2 starts, 14.1 MPG

 

17. James Young - BOS - 8 GP, 0 starts, 6 MPG (spent time in NBDL)

 

18. Tyler Ennis - PHX - 7 GP, 0 starts, 7.9 MPG (spent time in NBDL)

 

19. Gary Harris - DEN - 17 GP, 0 starts, 13.9 MPG

 

20. Bruno Caboclo - TOR - 3 GP, 0 starts, 5 MPG (spent time in NBDL)

 

21. Mitch McGary - OKC - 1 GP, 0 starts, 7 MPG (spent time in NBDL)

 

22. Jordan Adams - MEM - 9 GP, 0 starts, 8.1 MPG (spent time in NBDL)

 

23. Rodney Hood - UTA - 22 GP, 5 starts, 18.2 MPG

 

24. Shabazz Napier - MIA - 26 GP, 0 starts, 20.3 MPG (spent time in NBDL)

 

25. Clint Capela - HOU - 4 GP, 0 starts, 3 MPG (spent time in NBDL)

 

26. PJ Hairston - CHA - 27 GP, 2 starts, 15.1 MPG

 

27. Bogdan Bogdanovic - PHX - yet to see game action (Europe)

 

28. CJ Wilcox - LAC - 4 GP, 0 starts, 4.3 MPG (spent time in NBDL)

 

29. Josh Huestis - OKC - yet to see game action (NBDL)

 

30. Kyle Anderson - SA - 25 GP, 8 starts, 13.4 MPG (spent time in NBDL)

 

So where does Noah fit into all this?

 

-13 out of 30 draftees have spent time in the D League this year

 

-21 out of 30 draftees have yet to start in an NBA game, and of those that have started, only 4 out of the 9 have started double digit games.

 

All of this is to say that it's very rare to see NBA first rounders get a ton of minutes, especially on teams that have veterans and playoff aspirations as the Hornets do, despite the bad start. Compound that with the fact that Vonleh missed preseason and is a project player, and his lack of PT should be expected. Also remember last season there was a frustration amongst fans because Cody wasn't getting minutes over McBob, and Cody has turned out to be an okay starter this season, albeit (hopefully) with more room to improve.

 

On the flipside, if you're giving rookies a lot of minutes, as Minnesota is, that generally signals that you're going to have a tough rebuilding season, and Minny only has FIVE wins. I need not remind you all what happened when rookie Kemba and rookie Bismack got a ton of minutes...

 

On another note, look at PJ's minutes. He has carved out a nice bench role on the team and even started, which is impressive considering how full the depth chart is on the wings for the Hornets. He is out there because he has NBA size and professional experience already and looks like he belongs out there, even though his shot selection and defense still leave alot to be desired as he makes the transition into the big leagues.

 

tl;dr: It's too early to call Noah a bust, Noah isn't ready for big minutes, and "redshirting" rookies is a common practice in the NBA.

[bLACKpANTHER]

let me tell you a story about a guy named Tiago Splitter....

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

drafted in 2007 at the end of the 1st round, played through his rookie contract with 0 meaningful minutes, finally gets a shot in 2010 against the Charlotte Bobcats because of an injury to Tim Duncan. Now one of the better big men to come off the bench in the league.

 

Now, Noah was drafted in the lottery, but is still considered Raw like Splitter was. He should be a potential starter down the road, but im not losing any hope or faith in him just because he isnt getting solid minutes. We are a sub .500 team that is pushing to make the playoffs. If Cliff feels Maxie and Biz give us a better chance to win games right now (which are paramount with Al out) then I will let the NBA coach who is in practice with him everyday to make the judgement.

[MichaelNewtonII]

Vonleh is a Multi-Year project. I didn't expect him to have immediate impact. I doubt the Hornets did either.

[Dexterity]

He played extended minutes against the 5-32 NYK 3rd string & looked like garbage.

He's a special talent but he isn't ready to play. He should've stayed in college.