Anthony Morrow: Make It Rain!

Anthony Morrow: Make It Rain!

After the completion of a wild New Jersey Nets season, Nets are Scorching will be looking back at the players that made it happen.

Final Stats: 58 G, 47 GS, 32.0 MPG, 13.2 PPG, 1.2 APG, (0.6-2.3) 3.0 RPG, 0.3 SPG, 0.1 BPG, 45.0 FG%, 42.3 3P%, 89.7 FT%, 113 ORtg, 12.1 PER

Morrow is one of the greatest perimeter shooters in the game today. Is that a statement overrating a player, especially when you consider he only scores about 13 points a game instead of 20? All I’d have to retort is, “Have you seen him shoot?” Morrow’s jumper, particularly from three-point range, is a thing of beauty and just about automatic if he’s open. Sure there are limitations to his game, such as attacking the rim with the rock, that doesn’t allow Morrow to drop twenty a night, but that jumper!

I’ve seen him take 20 shots straight from the corner behind the arc during pre-game warm-ups… and he made all 20. But, while that clearly is a nice spot for his shot, dude makes it rain from all over the court!

The Pink Shirt: Despite it being a Nets loss, Morrow’s three-point shot versus the Oklahoma City Thunder on December 1, 2010 to tie the game in regulation was high drama. The Nets entered the fourth quarter trailing 71-62 with the Thunder having just outscored the Nets 27-13 in the third quarter. The Nets made a run in the fourth and clawed back to within three points of the Thunder. With 1.5 seconds left in the game, Morrow produced a beautiful step-through, one-footed stroke to hit the trey and tie the game. Re-live the moment.

The Paper Bag: I can’t come up with anything substantial for this category considering Morrow doesn’t hold the ball much and his defense isn’t noteworthy. Like to the rest of the NBA and its general fans, Morrow is kind of under-the-radar. When he does great, no one (outside of Nets fans of course) really retains it to memory. When he does bad, same thing, including for Nets fans. So, since I need to say something, I’ll say it’s whenever he’s not on the court to drop Js.

Final Thoughts: Morrow isn’t a complete offensive force. Clearly he’s one-dimensional here – set, receive, stroke from outside. Oh, and hear the splash of twine. Morrow is an excellent complementary player that will create space for post players and make slack lay-back defenders pay. He was recently named one of the five core players for the Nets and that distinction is well-deserved. A full, healthy season with Deron Williams dropping the dime will make Morrow shine, but still keep the skies cloudy with a chance of rain for opposing teams.

Grade: B+