Breakout seasons can come in different shapes and sizes. They don’t always require a major uptick in statistics.
For Tim Hardaway Jr., the disjointed 2019-20 season has been every bit of a huge success. His numbers – scoring, rebounding, assists – aren’t much different than they’ve been the last few seasons.
But there’s one major difference.
Hardaway is putting up 15.8 points per game and shooting a career-best 40.7-percent from 3-point range on a high-caliber playoff team.
That sets it apart from what Hardaway did the last two seasons when he was on teams that were not close to sniffing the playoffs.
Players throughout the NBA will tell you there is a big difference between posting numbers on a lottery team and contributing heavily to the offense (and defense) of a team that is solidly in the playoff mix.
For Hardaway, it brings back memories of his third and fourth seasons in the NBA, when he was on an Atlanta team that had a loads of talent and made the playoffs both seasons, advancing to the second round in 2016.
“Very similar situation with the star power we had on the floor with Paul Millsap, Al Horford, Dwight Howard, Dennis Shroder, all those guys,” Hardaway said Monday as the Mavericks continued to prepare for Wednesday’s departure to Orlando for training camp as the NBA shoots for its July 30 restart.
Though Hardaway’s role as the Mavericks’ starter at shooting guard is more evolved than it was when he was in Atlanta, his job hasn’t changed that much. He’s still in charge of making shots, spreading the floor, playing defense and supporting the stars, Luka Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis, however he can. He credits a consistent role for his ability to prosper in Dallas.
“I’m just trying to do whatever I can to make two guys’ life as easy as possible – KP and Luka. Or Luka and KP, however you want to put it,” he said. “My time on other teams, I’ve had different head coaches for every season. In Atlanta, I had a coach for more than one season there (Mike Budenholzer). And I had a coach here (Rick Carlisle) for more than one season. It just goes to show that once I’m in a system and know my role and what I have to do, it makes my job and everybody else’s job a lot easier.”
So much so that Hardaway appears to have earned the job of being the No. 3 option in the Mavericks’ arsenal.
Going into the season, he wasn’t even in the starting lineup. That job went to Seth Curry. But after 13 games, that experiment was ditched and Hardaway has been a starter ever since.
It has suited both him and the Mavericks very well. The 6-5 Hardaway has averaged 17.3 points, 3.1 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 53 starts. He has shot 43 percent from 3-point range as a starter. He was under 30 percent when coming off the bench.
As for planting his flag as the third option behind Doncic and Porzingis, Hardaway doesn’t really have a great deal of interest in that.
“At this point, I just want to win,” he said. “I’m just trying to produce the best I can and do my job and control what I can control on the floor. Everybody forgets Seth started the season for us and did an amazing job.
“It doesn’t matter whether I’m the third or fourth or if one of those guys are out, I’m the first or second (option), I’m just out here trying to do the best I can to make everybody’s job a lot easier and I’m happy with the role I’m in right now.”
That’s the right attitude to have. But Hardaway has made his presence known around the league. Of the eight Western Conference teams that are in the playoffs as of now, only the Clippers and Thunder have a No. 3 scorer who is averaging more points than Hardaway.
His ability to score when defenses lock down on Doncic and Porzingis will be crucial when the playoffs get here.
Speaking of which, Hardaway’s 15 games of playoff experience in 2016 and ’17 should come in handy. A few other Mavericks have playoff experience, too: Delon Wright, J.J. Barea and Seth Curry, most notably.
But Doncic, Porzingis, Dorian Finney-Smith and Maxi Kleber – in theory, that could be 80 percent of the starting lineup – have never set foot in the playoffs.
To that, Hardaway hopes to be able to impart some wisdom.
“It’s going to hurt not having fans there,” he said. “That’s one of the reasons the atmosphere won’t be as electrifying as in the past, like when I was in Atlanta. Not having the fans, that plays a huge role when you’re talking about home-court advantage.”
So what’s Hardaway’s key advice for Doncic and Porzingis?
“Control what you can control,” he said. “There’s going to be a lot of calls not going your way that you may get in the regular season. And there’s some things you’ll get away with.
“But at the end of the day, you have to know what you can do on the floor and you can’t lose focus – enjoy it. Also, guys are going to key up on you in a seven-game series. You’ll probably get away with a couple things one or two games. But that third or fourth or fifth game, it’s not going to come easy. You just got to find ways and lock in. And defense is definitely going to win those ballgames.”
Hardaway, like most players, had a rough time making it through the last four months without getting cabin fever. It helped that he spent most of the time in Miami at his home there. He said it felt like a real offseason.
But as the players prepare to go to Orlando after hearing that several teams (Sacramento was the most recent) have had to shut down their training facilities after somebody tested positive for the coronavirus, getting to the so-called “bubble” with everybody healthy is Job One.
“I love the game of basketball,” Hardaway said. “I don’t care where it’s getting played or the circumstances. When you have an opportunity to do the one thing you love, you just go for it.
“And I think the NBA and NBPA and everybody involved with the season restarting in Orlando, they’ve done an amazing job of making sure our lives are safe and eveyrbody’s safe when they all get into the bubble.
“The guys in our franchise, they’re following the rules and they’re staying safe.”
Twitter: @ESefko
We’re No. 3!
A look at the third offensive option (by points per game) for the eight Western Conference playoff teams as they stand.
Team: Dynamic duo, ppg…………………………………………………Third scorer, ppg.
LA Lakers: LeBron James, Anthony Davis, 52.4…………..…… Kyle Kuzma, 12.5.
LA Clippers: Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, 47.9………..……….Lou Williams, 18.7.
Denver: Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray, 39.0………………….……..Will Barton, 15.1.
Utah: Donovan Mitchell, Bojan Bogdanovic, 44.4……………….Rudy Gobert, 15.1.
Houston: James Harden, Russell Westbrook, 61.9……….……..Eric Gordon, 14.5.
Oklahoma City: S. Gilgeous-Alexander, D. Gallinari, 38.5……Dennis Shroder, 19.0.
Dallas: Luka Doncic, Kristaps Porzingis, 47.9………………….…..Tim Hardaway Jr., 15.8.
Memphis: Ja Morant, Jaren Jackson, 34.5………………………….Dillon Brooks, 15.7.
Notes: The Clippers also have Montrezl Harrell averaging 18.6 ppg; The Thunder have Chris Paul averaging 17.7 ppg.
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