Matt Bonner: Regular season vs. playoffs

by

The following are a few infographics comparing Matt Bonner’s numbers from the 2010-11 regular season to the 2011 NBA Playoffs, when the Spurs were beaten in the first round by the Memphis Grizzlies. Long story short, one of these things is not like the other ones.

Minutes per game

Here is a look at the minutes Bonner averaged per game. Bonner’s slice of the pie compares to the whole of a 48 minute game.

Points per game

Here we take a look at Matty’s points per game. In these graphics, Bonner’s slice compares to the averages of the entire team. For instance, Bonner’s 7.3 regular season points per game compares to the 103.7 the Spurs averaged as a team.

Perimeter shooting

Here we see how Bonner’s 3-point shooting changed from the regular season to the playoffs. Bonner’s slice of the pie compares to a 100% average.

Rebounding

Much like in points per game, Matty’s slice of the pie compares to what the Spurs averaged as a team rebounding the ball.

←  Older Comments
 →
  • Titletown99030507d

    I don’t think so look at Neal he doesn’t start and he comes in and gets the job done. What gets me is that if Bonner hasn’t impressed anybody in any playoff series then why did they reward him with a contract extension? That is mind boggling!Â

  • Titletown99030507d
  • Bob

    I agree. The problem I have with Bonner is he doesn’t hustle. You look at the impact a guy like Brian Cardinal can have because of his hustling. Just standing on the court and waiting to shoot doesn’t help the team as much as hustling.

    The team would probably have been better of going after Tyson Chandler last summer than trying to resign Jefferson and Bonner. Chandler would have provided Duncan help on defense and rebounding and 10 points per game. He would also have guarded the tougher matchup at the 4 or 5. Instead Duncan spent energy trying to grab every rebound, block every shot, and help defend every frontcourt player. I was hoping Splitter could have had a Chandler like effect but Pop never gave him a chance.

  • Bob

    The Grizzlies didn’t need a man glued to Bonner. They just needed to run him of the three point line. He has a very slow release so as long as they could close the gap they didn’t need to worry. That’s why Tony and Manu had so much trouble. The Grizzlies were helping off the shooters with impunity. By the time Tony/Manu decided to dish the Grizz simply closed the gap.

    To really be effective in the playoffs you need a trigger fast release which Bonner simply doesn’t have. Now someone like Ray Allen or even Horry you need to be smelling their breath.

  • Bob

    I don’t understand why people make a big deal of Bonner hitting those wide open 3’s. In the playoffs you better hit wide open 3’s since most shots are going to be contested. The Grizzlies allowed few open 3’s after game one.

  • Bob

    It’s probably not a start idea to try changing the way you play in the playoffs. If Bonner is not going to help in the playoffs he shouldn’t be playing during the season.

  • Bob

    It’s probably not a start idea to try changing the way you play in the playoffs. If Bonner is not going to help in the playoffs he shouldn’t be playing during the season.

  • Bry

    That’s all fine and good, the video of him getting his career high in a blowout over GS which has awful defense. The point is, if he’s as good as you think (starter, solid all-around player) then why would Denver dump him to us for two bench players? I mean, if you luck out and find a solid starting-quality player for 4 million, then why get rid of him? And you can apply that to the whole league. Why would any NBA team dump a valuable piece like that for Bonner, Blair, and maybe McD’s partial contract? Another question is why he’s never started for any of the teams he’s played for. On an awful Minnesota team he should have been the very first big off the bench. On Utah he could have taken a starting spot, and on Denver two of their power forwards were injured half the season. It looks like he’s not even ahead of Mozgov in the rotation right now. And, I don’t know if he can play power forward to begin with. Does he have enough of a mid-range game? And, more importantly, can he guard a starting power forward in the NBA? And, to keep beating my dead horse, if the answers to those last two questions are yes, then why the heck would Denver get rid of him?!

  • Bry

    Because the contract extension payed him next to nothing. The average salary in the NBA was 5.5 million, and Bonner made 3 million last season. In the NBA, that’s nothing. Even if he disappears in the playoffs, you still get a guy for 80 games in the regular season that lead the league in 3-point percentage. And the money paid to Bonner is a drop in the bucket of the Spurs overall payroll. He’ll make 3.3 million this year, while the Spurs are paying at least 73 million. To put that in perspective that’s a third of what Jefferson will make, and about a quarter of what Manu and Tony will make. I have no problem whatsoever with resigning a role-player who is good in the locker room, is not injury prone, knows the Spurs system, and is willing to play for peanuts. The problem is how much they used him (20 minutes is too much) and how they used him. If you took seven or eight of Bonner’s minutes and gave them to Splitter, I’d be pretty happy. Why do you have such a problem with Bonner’s contract?

  • Bry

    I do blame Manu for that play. That’s probably the worst moment of his career. It was out of a time-out, as well, so there is absolutely no excuse for a no-brain play, and he did it at home, in game 7 of the conference finals. The game depends on the big-money players. We have a big three, and B&B are not part of it, nor should they be. They are bench players and are paid as such. Parker is starter in his prime. Obviously I don’t blame everything on Parker. He had some good moments, but got outplayed by a lesser opponent. The blame is shared by everyone. But, having said that, Bonner and Blair have far smaller roles (and salaries) than the Big 3 and the other starters, and they therefore should share a far smaller share of the blame. That’s where I disagree with you.

  • Bry

    I agree. I’ve always said that neither should be starting (at least not with this roster) and they are just role-players. I also said all season that Splitter should have more minutes (although I didn’t advocate making him  a starter in his rookie season). What I didn’t agree with was you constantly blaming Matt Bonner and Dejuan Blair for the failures of the Spurs. Looking at their minutes, salaries, and roles, your criticisms seem unjustified to me. And when people advocate “getting rid” of them for little to nothing in return, I think it’s insane.

  • Pingback: Matt Bonner silences critics as he comes through in playoffs()

←  Older Comments
 →