Asking Kent Bazemore To Do More

There was a moment in Shanghai, China, in the Global Games of 2013, when Kent Bazemore took the ball, put it on the floor, dribbled then weaved and drove to his left. He was being guarded by Steve Nash, a laughable thought made palpable only because it was an exhibition game. Bazemore, in his youthful exuberance, treated the elder and broken superstar as if he was nothing more than a piece of chewed up gum on his shoe. Bazemore turned on the speed, finished at the rim, and in his purely Bazemore way, grinned all the way back up the court.

Kent Bazemore was a member of the Golden State Warriors for the first half of the 2013 season. In February of 2014, he was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers because the Warriors needed a Steph Curry backup to run the offense and thought Steve Blake was the answer. He wasn’t.

But for Kent Bazemore, a player who never got past towel waving and high fiving and being the most popular player on a team with young talent, it opened up an entirely different world. Not only did he play on the Los Angeles Lakers stage of self absorption- albeit as a member of a sorry, pathetic team- Bazemore was introduced to Mike D’antoni’s freedom offense. The brakes were off and for the last 15 games of the season Kent Bazemore was a starter.

The NBA took notice when undrafted Kent Bazmore averaged 13 points on 45% shooting.

Of course, Mike D’antoni is the scoring whisperer. He can turn ragcloth into silk with his offensive system that reinvents scoring. It’s not necessarily translatable when player’s leave D’antoni’s warm embrace. Players often revert back to the same old thing they were before D’antoni rescued their drowning careers and Kent Bazemore surely did.

For the Atlanta Hawks, Bazemore averaged 5 points on 42% shooting, starting 10 regular season games.

May 22, 2015; Atlanta, GA, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard Kent Bazemore (24) drives to the basket against the Cleveland Cavaliers during the first half in game two of the Eastern Conference Finals of the NBA Playoffs at Philips Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

A defensive specialist, Bazemore has a skill set that is not only valued but hard to come by. He uses his length well and has an innate instinct for ball motion. He makes his man beat him off the dribble and recovers to defend him in the lane. He takes defensive execution with the same seriousness and dedication as his shooting guard peers regard a change of direction three-sixty dunk.

The question about Bazemore is, can he get better on the offensive end or is this what he is, for better or worse, a situational three point shooter that is often streaky, Or a transition player gifted in the open court.

Two point shots: 46%, reg. season; 56% playoffs
0-3 feet: 60%; 73%
3-10 feet: 33%; 30%
10-16 feet: 16%; 25%
Long two’s: 38%; 33%
Three point shots: 36%; 21%

The facts are Bazemore is a big guard, at 6-5. When he was at Old Dominion, he won the Lefty Driesell Award which is presented to the best defensive guard in the country. He was the Defensive Player of the Year in the Colonial Athletic Conference.

Bazemore’s biggest professional moment was in the playoffs in 2013 in San Antonio. He was put into the game at the most dramatic and intense moment, when everything was on the line. He hit what should have been a game winning shot with three seconds left to give the Warriors a road win in game 1. But, Manu Ginobli tied the game with one of his desperate makes and the Warriors lost in overtime. Still. It was a brief moment of anonymity being reversed; Kent Bazemore was on SportsCenter.

This year in Atlanta, coming off the bench, was Kent Bazemore’s most productive year as a professional for two very specific reasons: consistency and maturity. Bazemore knew he was going to play in every game. That eliminated what had been an annual rite of passage, the guessing or wondering about what the coach was thinking. Or, more specifically: does he trust me? Add to that, Bazemore finally had the comfort of a two year deal which exercised all of those sleepless nights when he stressed over the idea of being waived.

There is no inventing the wheel with Kent Bazemore; the numbers suggest he’s not skilled enough offensively to be a starter and that he’s an important glue guy that every team needs. Imagine the Clippers and their woeful second unit with Bazemore out on the floor when the Houston Rockets were making their historic comeback in game 6 of the semi-final round. Slide Bazemore on Corey Brewer, Jason Terry or Trevor Ariza and the comeback might have had some stops and spurts.