2015 Year in Review: Chandler Parsons

The Mavs gambled and won to acquire Chandler Parsons last summer in free agency, and it’s already paying off. Not only was the small forward one of the best players on the team this season, but he hasn’t reached his potential yet, he’s under contract in the future, and he’s a talented recruiter of other players as well. He might not yet be the type of talent a club can build around, but he’s certainly on his way there.

His knee injury appears to be under control — he’s no longer on crutches — and he hopes to be ready to go by the beginning of training camp and preseason come October. In lieu of basketball activities so far this summer, Parsons said recently that he’s working on his hips and strengthening his core, which will have myriad benefits once he can get on the floor: balance, quickness, strength, and more. The Mavericks clearly hope their young forward is ready to go by October, as a lot rides on Parsons’ health moving forward. He has a chance to be a star in this league, after all.

SEASON STATS

PERFORMANCE EVALUATION

There was plenty of pressure on Parsons to produce immediately at the beginning of the season, but it took him a few weeks to get used to his new role in the offense. Early in the season, Parsons was used more as a spot-up shooter and less as a playmaker in the pick-and-roll. As Rick Carlisle’s offense slowly began to favor Parsons more and more in the ball-handler role as the year went on, he began to fill up the box score more, all while getting more efficient.

Parsons fulfilled a coach’s dream, playing his best basketball at the end of the season. 2014-15 was truly a learning year for Parsons, whose role changed several times as the players around him did. He finally appeared very comfortable in December, and then the Rajon Rondo trade threw a wrench in the offense, leading to another adjustment period for the young forward. He ultimately found his footing after another brief rough patch, but a knee injury robbed him of playing down the stretch of the regular season and for most of the playoffs. I think we all would have liked to see what he could have done in the playoffs against his former team, the Houston Rockets.

Dallas’ offensive system perfectly fits Parsons’ strengths. He excels in the pick-and-roll, both as a spot-up shooter and a facilitator. He finished in the 83rd percentile in the NBA in points per possession as a spot-up shooter this season, scoring 1.11 points per 100 possession, per Synergy. And according to NBA.com, he shot 38.4 percent on catch-and-shoot threes this season, an efficient mark for any player, but especially so for someone who’s also a threat off the drive. We saw how lethal Parsons’ pump fake can be, and it only becomes more dangerous when he’s hot from deep.

But attacking the lane is where Parsons truly is a special talent. Among players with at least 100 possessions as the ball-handler in the pick-and-roll, Parsons finished fifth in the NBA in points per possession, according to Synergy. The only players ahead of him are Sixth Man of the Year Lou Williams, perennial All-NBA point guard Chris Paul, MVP Stephen Curry, and his runner-up James Harden. That’s the company Parsons finds himself in with his 0.951 points per possession in the P&R, shooting 48.9 percent from the field and drawing a shooting foul nearly 10 percent of the time.

STANDOUT SHOWING

Can we have a tie in this competition? I suppose there are no rules, are there? OK, it’s a tie: Parsons’ two most important performances of the season both came against the Oklahoma City Thunder, and both came down the stretch of the season.

First, on March 16, Parsons put together a 31-point performance on 10-of-14 shooting, including this late play to put Dallas up four with just over a minute left on the clock.

Then, there was the April 1 win on the road vs. the Thunder, in which Parsons scored 22 points on 10-of-15 shooting with six assists and led the fourth-quarter offense down the home stretch, giving Dallas a win that, for all intents and purposes, locked up a playoff spot.

There’s the famous pump fake. Parsons has the ability to turn violent closeouts into easy points, and it’s all because of his terrific body control on that fake. Defenders don’t really fall for that move anymore, but Parsons always makes them look silly. For good measure, his last-second mid-range fadeaway locked up the game.

CONTRACT STATUS

Parsons is under contract for this season and the next, though he possesses a player option next summer. It’s difficult to claim that the forward is happy with how this season ended, as his injury prevented him from playing a majority of the first-round playoff series. Still, he appears happy and comfortable in Dallas. His friendship with Dirk Nowitzki is well-documented, and his on-floor relationship with Carlisle was stronger than ever toward the end of the campaign, as the head coach began running the offense more and more through Parsons. When Dallas acquired Parsons via free agency, the goal was to make him a Maverick for life. We’ll see in the future whether than plan becomes a reality, but he’s a Maverick for now and that’s all that matters.

FUTURE OUTLOOK

Parsons will be 27 by the start of next season, still a youngster by NBA standards. He’s seven months younger than reigning MVP Stephen Curry, for reference, and Golden State’s point guard is considered just a baby. What’s more, because Parsons spent four years in college, he doesn’t have a ton of NBA wear and tear on his frame. LeBron James, for example, had already played nine seasons in the league by the time he was 27. Next campaign, meanwhile, will only be Parsons’ fifth in the league. He still has plenty of learning to do and plenty of growth to achieve, and the truth is he’s not far off from becoming an All-Star-caliber player in this league. The tools are already there; now it’s just time to put them to use.