Belinelli

With Eric Gordon out for the next month or two, Belinelli will continue to get starts. Does that make him a worthy pick up? Streaky shooters like Belinelli are always a risk to pick up, especially when the only stat they really help you in is shooting. He is currently averaging 10.5 points per game on 40.4% field goal shooting, which is the 2^nd lowest percentage in his short career, with 1.5 3’s a game. He is currently shooting a career low in 3-point percentage, at 36.9%. He also averages 2.5 rebounds, 1.2 assist and about a steal a game. This makes him a very category specific choice, with that category being 3 pointers. I had him a few years back and he really helped me with 3 pointers, but when I picked him up, I knew that was all I could expect. The most important part about picking up players like Belinelli, or any waiver wire pick-up really, is knowing what you’re going to get.

In his last six games he has averaged a little under 16 points per game, a little over a steal a game, over 2 3-pointers a game and has shot 45% percent from the field. On the other hand, in that same span, he has averaged about 1 rebound a game and 2 assists. While one good sign is that in this six game stretch he is being given 34 minutes a game, which is 4 minutes more than his season average. That means he MIGHT have a chance to contribute a little bit more than his season stat line, however I would only expect a slight increase in points and 3’s, assuming that he continues to get 34 minutes. He had an increase of 4 minutes a game from last season to this season and it has not affected his stats positively. From last season to this season, his points and assists per game have stayed the same, while his fg% has gone down. He has doubled his steals per game to about 1 a game, but that’s the only positive thing to happen to his stat line with the minutes increase. That being said, if you have some deadweight on your team, or you just really need 3’s, then Belinelli can definitely contribute and help you. Other than those two cases, I don’t see any reason anyone should be picking him up.