Gilbert Arenas addressed a growing trend noticeable in many NBA teams of drafting players who are ‘stat-stuffers’ rather than real impactful team players. The propensity to sign these players hollows the core of NBA teams.
Advertisement
Arenas called out General Managers for their lazy attempts to draft these kinds of players more and more in the league, who provide the semblance of a decent player but are not. The three-time All-Star believes that stat-stuffing should be reserved for the stars of the team, who make a real impact on the team’s winning potential.
Role players should be focused on doing whatever else is necessary to get the team over the hump instead of trying to put up good numbers in multiple categories.
“How they are drafting today is they’re drafting stat-stuffers. So they are looking at guys that can do everything. That makes sense if you’re talking about the Lukas [Doncic], the Wembys [Wembanyama], the Shais [Gilgeous-Alexander]…36 points, 10 rebounds, 8 assists…those guys,” Arenas said.
“But when you’re talking about I’m gonna draft the guy who’s averaging 8, 5, and 4…No, F**k him. He don’t do nothing for me. His stats are good because it’s needed in a game. It’s not impactful what he’s doing,” he added.
Role players have always wanted to stuff the stat sheet because that’s the best way to get big contracts in the NBA. But GMs have always preferred players who are willing to do the dirty work to get their team to the promised land. Arenas thinks that the front office drafting players good on paper is just lazy scouting.
The franchise superstars stuffing the sheet is one thing. They need to do it for MVP and All-NBA nominations and to impress their fanbase, which, in turn, will lead to more jersey sales. But role players stuffing stats makes no sense from any perspective. It’s just a recipe for disaster.
The NBA is declining because GMs are drafting stat-stuffers, not impact players pic.twitter.com/AO99B9mrbA
— Gilbert Arenas (@GilsArenaShow) November 29, 2024
“They’re just getting regular people that are 6’7 and 6’9 that can give me 10 points, 6 rebounds, and 5 assists…Josh Giddey? I don’t want that player. Be good at something first. Be a great passer, a great rebounder, or a great scorer. Don’t be the 7,7, and 7,” Arenas concluded.
The 42-year-old pointed out an issue that has been endemic in the NBA with the growth of advanced stats. GMs often gravitate toward players who can put up numbers in different categories so that they can justify their choices with data. However, numbers don’t always properly assess a player’s impact on the team, especially on the defensive end of the floor.
The example of Giddey provided by Arenas is pretty apt. He’s averaging 12.1 points, 6.6 assists, and 5.5 rebounds for the Chicago Bulls on 44.1% shooting. But he proved to be a liability for the Thunder last season in many games.
Giddey is a below-average three-point shooter with an inside game that isn’t special either. If he struggles to shoot from the perimeter at any given day, he can easily become a liability on the floor, especially since he isn’t an elite defender either. The 22-year-old has been posting impressive numbers since his rookie year in the league, but that is not indicative of his overall game.
The dangers of relying heavily on stats to judge a player can also be seen with Rudy Gobert, who has been criticized for being a liability in the postseason despite putting up the best defensive ratings in the regular season.
So Arenas’ tirade points to a broader issue in the NBA. The attempt to quantify all aspects of basketball can often backfire.
