The ups and downs of Elfrid Payton
By S.W. Guest
Whichever way you look at it, Elfrid Payton will be crucial to the Orlando Magic’s plight this season. The Magic point guard has gotten off to a rough start
Through the first three regular season games, the second-year guard Elfrid Payton is averaging 9.7 points, 4.7 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game. Not bad.
But, as is often the case in the NBA, the numbers fail to tell the full story.
A closer look at the box score shines a light on some of the problems likely to haunt his — and by extension the Magic’s — game early on.
For instance, his shot has been shaky, he has found himself in foul trouble (against the Oklahoma City Thunder and Chicago Bulls) and his defense has been lacking.
Of all these issues, his inability to stop opposing guards is perhaps the most surprising, as Payton is a player who prides himself on doing just that. Last season, for instance, he notched a defensive win share of 2.3, a solid contribution considering how awful the Magic were on that end of the court.
This season on the other hand he has already seen opposing point guards score a combined 76 points, in just three games. Granted, those guards were John Wall, who scored 22 in the opener on Wednesday, Russell Westbrook, who scored a whopping 48 in the double-OT thriller on Friday, and Derrick Rose, who scored a more modest six points on 2-for-8 shooting Sunday.
Even against the best in the NBA, Payton is bound to be disappointed nonetheless.
The fact two of those three players made such huge shots, Wall’s game-winning floater and Westbrook’s game-tying three pointer from half court, will not help (even if he was not on the floor for the latter). Payton has been caught on screens allowing those two to seal their respective games.
But whichever way you look at it, Payton looks like a player trying to shake off the rust right now.
That is not surprising since he missed the last five preseason games with a hamstring injury, putting him some way behind his teammates in terms of preparedness and experience within the offense and defense.
That did not stop new head coach Scott Skiles from starting him for the first two games after Payton participated in the Magic’s final two practices ahead of the season tip-off.
Skiles set his starting lineup, as he told Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel before the season began, and he plans to stick with it for a while:
"I guess my sort of simple goal is just that we’re not changing the starting lineup all the time. But I’ve said it before: The record and how we’re playing is going to determine that [as will] injuries."
Despite the addition of veteran point guard C.J. Watson, Payton’s long-term development is crucial for the Magic. Skiles is clearly keen to cement the sophomore’s place in the starting five early.
Although a calculated risk, delving deeper into the boxscore reveals he may have paid the price for doing so.
Against Washington, for instance, Payton’s shot (something he spent a great deal of time working on this offseason) was way off as he made just 5 of 15 attempts, going 1 of 3 from deep.
This is not a huge issue, as Payton’s not exactly out there to knock down jumpers. But it is proof he has to be more disciplined when using his new tool.
In fairness, he was when the Thunder came to town Friday, as he made a marginally better 5 of 11 attempts in that one, making 2 of 4 from deep. And again against Chicago on Sunday, as in that one he took just 7 shots, making 2.
Hopefully Skiles will reign this in a little more moving forward, at least until Payton is more confident in his stroke.
In the meantime he needs to focus on penetrating, getting into the teeth of the defense and either creating opportunities for others or getting to the line.
His inability, or reluctance perhaps, to attack can limit the Magic at times, and it would be really good to see him build on the 2.6 free throw attempts he averaged last season.
Another problem he had against Oklahoma City came in the form of fouls, as he committed a worryingly high five in total. Payton also faced foul trouble agains the Bulls, limiting him to just 22:27 in the game.
This provides further proof he is some ways off the pace and still getting back to game speed. Instead of employing his quick hands and feet as a means of staying in front of Westbrook, he had to employ brute force as a means of slowing him down.
Payton, unsurprisingly, emphasized the team’s need to keep working after the Oklahoma City game, but he could just as easily have been referring to himself. That is, after all, what he will have to do if he wants to shake off the rust brought about by a disjointed preseason and get back to the top of his game.
That will not be easy, especially as Orlando’s difficult start to the season continues on the road this week.
This is the NBA though, where the games come thick and fast and the opportunity to recover from injuries is minimal.
It all serves as a valuable lesson, and one that Elfrid Payton is hopefully now getting to grips with.