(Photo: Steve Dykes/USA Today Sports)
According to Sam Amick of USA today, the Golden State Warriors are interested in trading for Chicago Bulls point Guard Kirk Hinrich.
This comes after last night’s deal that sent Luol Deng from the Chicago Bulls to the Cleveland Cavaliers in exchange for Andrew Bynum. Amick writes:
According to a person with knowledge of the situation, the Golden State Warriors are among teams that had been showing serious interest in Hinrich long before the Deng trade.
The Warriors appear ready to wheel and deal for a point guard to run the second unit.
The Warriors have reportedly shown interest in Kyle Lowry of the Toronto Raptors, the disgruntled Andre Miller of the Denver Nuggets and now Hinrich.
These rumours suggest the Warriors aren’t happy with their current point guard options and may make room for one of these players.
Mark Jackson has shown an affinity for running the bench ‘mob style’ at the end of the first quarter, group substituting his starters for the second unit. It hasn’t proved to be all that successful, with the bench either failing to contribute positively.
If you’re looking for a player that can lead these men on the offensive end, then it would be good if the new player the team brings in either shoots well or creates efficiently.
Hinrich has averaged career lows from the field this season, shooting just 34% from the field and 28.6% from three-point distance. If the Warriors are looking for a shooting spark off the bench, it may not be him.
However, he is averaging 4.7 assists this season, albeit in starter minutes (30.7).
If you look at the ‘per 36 minutes’ stats though, he’s averaging almost twice as many assists as Toney Douglas, who is the first Warrior point guard off the bench.
Hinrich is an above average defender, with a slightly better defensive rating than Douglas (102 compared to 105).
This says quite a bit when you realise that Douglas is also known mostly for his defensive ability.
If he does indeed comes to Golden State, Hinrich has had a lot of experience running the point in Chicago due to Derrick Rose’s injuries. Leadership is invaluable, not just now, but in the playoffs. The Warriors need every last bit of help to reach their potential.
Whatever the Warriors choose to do, all signs point to this team adding a piece from another team, and #FullSquad will evolve once again.
keywords: hinrich trade
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