There are few players who are given the green light to let it fly from the floor. In his recent games as a new member of the Golden State Warriors, Kelly Oubre has gotten a lot of flak for his inaccurate shooting lately.
One Reddit user, GuyCarbonneauGOAT posted a list of all the players with more shot attempts then points so far into the 2020-2021 season:
Donovan Mitchell (62-61), Andrew Wiggins (49-44), Devonte’ Graham (44-37), Russell Westbrook (41-36), Kelly Oubre (40-17), LaMarcus Aldridge (38-36), Marvin Bagley (38-37), Eric Bledsoe (33-30), Jae Crowder (25-23), Killian Hayes (25-20)
The striking part of this list is when you remember that the other number is total points, not shots made. The most understandable of these players is Killian Hayes, a rookie whose class had no summer league and a shortened training camp and preseason. The learning curve for rookies adjusting to the physicality and pace of the NBA is big enough but the 2020 draft class is going to be thrown into the deep end.
Donovan Michell is a surprising name to see on this list, the high-volume scoring guard has been the focal point of the Utah Jazz’s offense throughout most of his young career. Russell Westbrook has been praised for the chemistry he brings to the Washington Wizards yet has struggled to help the team produce a win. Westbrooks misses and resulting lack of scoring are probably a large factor in Washington’s failure to get in the win column.
It is also discouraging to see both Warrior stars Oubre and Wiggins on this list. Both put up fine numbers last season and are now playing alongside Stephen Curry, widely regarded as the greatest shooter ever, one would hope that some of that shooting touch would rub off on Oubre and Wiggins, but it has yet to happen this season.
It is important to keep in mind that these numbers are from just the first three or so games of the season. There is plenty of time for these players to right the ship and improve their accuracy from the floor.
