Tonight will likely be the first and last time for the rest of his career that Antawn Jamison wishes he were still a Wizard.
Jamison came off the bench for 18 minutes and shot 0-12 from the floor, scoring only two points and being blocked five times in the Cavs’ 110-93 loss to the Charlotte Bobcats Friday night. Let those numbers wash over you for a minute, then take another minute to let the nausea pass, especially if you’re a Cavaliers fan.
How bad was Jamison’s performance, historically? Our own John Krolik touched on the subject at Cavs The Blog:
Basketball-reference’s database for individual games goes back to the 1986-87 NBA season.
Since 86-87, 14 players have shot the ball 12 or more times without making a field goal. The last time it happened was in December 2008, when Vince Carter went 0-13 against the Raptors. It has happened five times since LeBron came into the league.
Jamison also only had two free throws, and they came in garbage time. A player going 0-12 or worse from the field and making two or less free throws has only happened seven other times since 86-87. Zach Randolph is the only one to accomplish the feat since LeBron entered the league.
Jamison also only had one assist. When you add that to the previous criteria, only four games qualify. The only players to go 0-12 or worse, make two free throws or less, and record zero assists in a game are Zach Randolph and Dino Radja. And Jamison’s assist set JJ Hickson up with a mid-range jumper.
So I’d say that Jamison had a bit of an off night.
Yeesh. But that said, it’s important not to go all bonkers over this. Already there’s a flood of “Do the Cavs regret their trade?!"foolishness blooming across the internets. This was Jamison’s first game in a new system after leaving his home and one of the most disappointing and tumultuous situations in the league. It was the second game of a back to back (SEGABABA) for Cleveland, meaning the offense was running slow.
To think that Jamison’s career in Cleveland will be marked with failure because he had difficulty on his first night after lots of traveling, rearranging his life, and trying to integrate into a brand new system is just plain silly, and ignores one significant factor in this outcome: the Charlotte Bobcats.
The Bobcats defense is one of the best in the league, beset by talented, versatile defenders, especially bigs. They operate well in man, man-help, zone, and hybrid schemes, meaning essentially they can affix their approach to any opponent. Throw in their effort and ability and it’s not at all shocking that Jamison struggled. Throw in the other factors and a cold shooting night, and it’s simply one of those things that happens. Let’s wait to see how Jamison responds for the remainder of the season before sounding the panic alarm.
More on this game in our Baseline to Baseline recap tomorrow morning.