Post by Rog on Oct 6, 2016 1:21:55 GMT
The 48th nominee for the NBN Hall of Fame, Captain Kirk Hinrich, was a steady, reliable force at a volatile position. He wasn't flashy but you could count on him to steadily be the leader of your team while the teams true stars did their thing. Was his stats good enough to be considered among the elite ever, or was he really good for what he was, but not a star enough to be a Hall of Famer? Let's take a look.
Career Stats
32.2 MPG, 13.5 PPG, 7.8 APG, 4.1 RPG, 2.0 SPG, 0.2 BPG, 2.3 TOPG on 45.6% from the field, 89.9% from the line, 39.9% from three
Best Season
Hawks(2002) - 21.9 PPG, 10 APG, 5.2 RPG, 2.2 SPG, 0.1 BPG, 2.4 TOPG on 48.1% from the field, 90.5% from the line, 41.7% from the three
Career Highs
Points: 43
Rebounds: 14
Assists: 19
Steals: 9
Blocks: 3
Achievements
Championships: 1
Player of the Game: 159
Player of the Week: 4
Player of the Month: 0
Double Doubles: 352
Triple Doubles: 14
Awards
2001 - All-Star Rookie Game Participant
2001 - All-Rookie Second Team
2002 - All-Star Rookie Game Participant
2002 - All-Star Game Participant
2002 - All-League Second Team
2003 - All-League Third Team
2003 - All-Defensive Team
Reasons for Induction
- Kirk played in one All-Star game, was named to an All-Defensive team, as well as an All-League second and third team. He also won a title with the Celtics as CP3's primary backup.
- You could really count on Kirk to be the driving force behind your team and not lose games for you. Hes like the Alex Smith of the NBN, will make fantastic plays, win you some games here and there, but more than anything he will allow your stars to do the things they need to do for you to be largely successful. As a point guard, Kirk was good for 9.5 assists and 2.5 turnovers for basically 10 years. Those seem like Hall of Fame numbers to me, especially with that long of a time period.
- He was also a really good defender, as proven by his one All-Defensive team, but with Francis, and later CP3, it was hard for him ever to get on the list more than he was. During that 10 year stretch talked about above, he got you 2.2 to 2.8 steals a game all but one year. That is impressive. Plus he carried an A rating til his final year, proving he really was a great defender.
- While he was more focused on getting the ball to the stars on his team, he was a decent to good scorer averaging 13.5 PPG for his career but focusing on that 10 year stretch, he was pretty damn reliable to get you 16 points a game. Again, never a true superstar, but that helps more than it hurts, combined with his other abilities is a great aspect of his game.
- Overall Kirk had a 10 year stretch where you could count on him to give you 16 points, 9.5 assists, 2.5 steals on good to great percentages and rely on him not to turn the ball over. Sure the scoring numbers weren't amazing, but the assists and steals really are elite for a point guard and you have to ponder his case, even if you don't think he was elite enough.
Reasons Against Induction
- Not enough awards and his only title he won was with a backup role. In fact the majority of his career he spent on the Magic, which wasn't exactly the model for success over the time he was there. You can't rely on his winning or awards, so what is there?
- You also can't rely on his stats, hes not elite, even if he has elite aspects like his assists. He was a game manager, nothing more or nothing less. Game managers don't make the Hall of Fame, period.
- Overall you have to ask what case does he have? Game manager, no titles where he started, little to no awards, if you vote for him what exactly are you voting for? Good stats, great passing? Nothing. He is not a Hall of Fame, and there is no argument you can make otherwise, period.
Vote carefully, and remember to throw out arguments regardless of which side you're on. This should be a discussion that eventually gets the league to the proper decision on him. Your vote can also be retracted after it's been cast if you feel like switching to the other side based on the arguments that have been made. To be inducted, a player needs 70% and to be considered in a later class they need 50%. Vote carefully!
***BONUS - Don't forget that everyone who votes gets $25 and the person that makes the best argument or contributes to the discussion the best will be awarded an extra $25***
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