A statistical deep-dive on the best season so far for third-year Atlanta Hawks player DeAndre’ Bembry.
When the Atlanta Hawks selected DeAndre’ Bembry out of Saint Joseph’s University with the 21st pick in the 2016 NBA Draft, coach/GM Mike Budenholzer didn’t expect he would play much in his rookie season.
As self-fulfilling prophecies often do, this idea came to fruition as Bembry only played a total of 371 minutes – mostly in the dingiest corners of garbage time on a Hawks team that made the playoffs.
How quickly plans change. Two seasons later, Coach Bud is long gone and the Atlanta Hawks have a complete different front office, roster and coaching staff. Even the arena was renovated and renamed!
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However, Bembry remains as one of the few player holdovers from the previous administration – the others being Taurean Prince and Hawks stalwart Kent Bazemore.
Many were high on Bembry’s combo guard skill set coming out of the draft, but he has had a star-crossed start to his NBA career after being beleaguered by injuries last season and the aforementioned lack of opportunities in his rookie year.
Finally, Bembry is fully healthy and has grown considerably after playing sparingly in his first two seasons. Let’s take a look at some of Bembry’s numbers from his third year in the NBA.
So far, DeAndre’ Bembry is on pace to shatter some of his meager career-highs from previous seasons – most of which due to the fact that he is playing a lot more minutes than he ever has. And with good reason, as Bembry has proven himself as one of the team’s most consistent defenders (on a Hawks team that has one of the worst defenses in the NBA).
In the 2018-19 season, Bembry has already notched a career-high in total rebounds (78) and three-point attempts (39).
On a per-game basis, the volume of his production is way up from previous years. All of the following numbers would be career-highs for Bembry if the season ended today: 2.8 field goals made and 7.4 attempted per game, 0.8 three-pointers made and 2.3 attempted per game, 1.4 free throws made and 2.3 attempted per game, 4.6 rebounds per game, 2.2 assists per game, 1.2 steals per game and 7.7 points per game.
Bembry has gotten a lot of play as one of the team’s best wing defenders, as 73 percent of his minutes have come at the small forward spot and 21 percent at the two.
One of the most notable areas of improvement for Bembry has been his confidence in his long-distance jumper as well as a notable increase in confidence in his outside shot.
Last season, Bembry shot 36.7 percent from deep – about league average – but it was only on a total of 30 attempts.
Though he has cooled off recently, Bembry started the year quite hot from distance, which has already led to career-highs in triples made (13) and attempted (39).
If you’re going to be an effective wing in today’s NBA, you at least have to be willing to take three-pointers, and the growth that Bembry has displayed this season stems from the fact that he is not hesitating or pump-faking a triple then driving into traffic.
If Bembry is open, he will not hesitate to hoist up a three – even with a defender lurking nearby, but don’t worry, he never forces them.
That willingness to shoot from deep is born out in his three-point attempt rate of 31.2 percent. While that’s bottom-third among Atlanta Hawks players, it still stands as a vast improvement over his previous numbers, as well as a career-high by more than 8 percent.
The shot looks quite good too, even if it is only going in at a 33 percent clip. With more reps and more attempts, that should improve.
The one major hole in Bembry’s game is quite apparent even when watching an Atlanta Hawks telecast. Whether it be a mental block or bad luck, DeAndre’ Bembry has a very hard time finishing at the rim.
That is not to say that he blows high-profile chances frequently or that he rarely gets layup chances within the flow of the game. To the contrary, Bembry actually leads the Hawks in shot attempts at the rim relative to his position.
According to Cleaning the Glass, Bembry has attempted 51 percent of his shots at the rim, which is in the 96th percentile for wings. Bembry is able to carve out space nicely with his crafty, deliberate dribbling skills, and he is also a whirlwind in transition – easily cutting to the rim for wide-open looks. But those looks just don’t fall with regularity.
However, of those 51 percent of shots taken at the rim, Bembry is only connecting on those shots 49 percent of the time – a horrendous showing that lands him in the 14th percentile relative to his position. That number is only ahead of Jeremy Lin and Kevin Huerter among his Atlanta Hawks teammates, but those players have attempted almost 20 less shots at the rim than Bembry.
It has been a strong start to the season for one of the longest-tenured Atlanta Hawks, and it’s clear that GM Travis Schlenk and Coach Lloyd Pierce have seen enough of Bembry to ensure that they picked up his fourth-year option earlier this year – meaning Bembry will return to the Atlanta Hawks for the 2019-20 season (unless he’s traded).
With every team in the league looking for multifaceted wing players that can create off the dribble, defend in space and hit threes off the catch, the Atlanta Hawks hopefully have one of the most valuable commodities in the NBA with Bembry.
If his three-point shot continues to develop, and he continues to stay comfortable taking that shot at any point, Bembry will be an important piece for Atlanta.
Though his finishing around the rim remains a problem point, it has been fun to watch Bembry develop as a member of the Hawks, and let’s hope he remains healthy and productive for the Hawks this season.
Stay tuned for more in-depth player profiles as the season progress on Soaring Down South, which is also your one stop shop for all the Atlanta Hawks news and updates you can fathom.
Stats Courtesy Cleaning the Glass and Basketball Reference, Current as of 11-20-18