Centers | Boston Sports Blog

Name: Ryan Hollins

Height: 7’0”

Weight: 240

Born: Pasadena, California

High School: John Muir

College: UCLA

Drafted: 2006, 2^nd Round, 50^th overall by the Charlotte Bobcats

Previous Teams: Charlotte Bobcats, Dallas Mavericks, Minnesota Timberwolves, Cleveland Cavaliers

Misc: Cleared 6’10” at the Pac-10 Championships his sophomore year in the high jump, finished 9^th in NCAA regionals and 6^th in the Pac-10 championship

Career Stats

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
2006–07	Charlotte	27	0	6.9	.556	.000	.600	1.1	.0	.2	.3	2.4
2007–08	Charlotte	60	1	8.9	.489	.000	.671	1.8	.2	.2	.5	2.5
2008–09	Charlotte	18	1	10.2	.543	.000	.667	2.0	.2	.2	.9	3.6
2008–09	Dallas	27	2	9.6	.525	.000	.515	2.3	.1	.2	.6	2.9
2009-10	Minnesota	73	27	16.8	.558	.000	.690	2.8	.7	.3	.5	6.1
2010-11	Cleveland	70	16	16.9	.598	.000	.681	2.7	.4	.3	.6	5.3
2011-12	Cleveland	24	7	15.1	.500	.000	.600	2.3	.3	.2	.5	3.7
Career		299	54	13.1	.554	.000	.658	2.3	.4	.2	.5	4.2

Career Highs:

Points – 19 Rebounds – 12 Assists – 3

Steals – 3 Blocks – 4

Analysis:

Hollins is obviously a poor offensive player, relying on his athleticism for most of his baskets. But he is a good defensive player who plays hard. The Cavaliers were almost ten points better per 100 defensive possessions when he was on the floor. Even with his subpar offense, his defense made such a difference that they were a net 6 points better per 100 possessions on offense and defense when he was out there.

According to John Hollinger’s scouting report Hollins is a

Lean athletic big man who can run the floor and make spectacular dunks
Poor shooter with no post game. Can make short runners. Loses cool easily
Amazingly bad rebounder. Capable pick and roll defender. Lacks strength

Hollinger goes on to say that Hollins was outrebounded by every single player in the league except for Andrea Bargnani and Brian Cardinal.

He worked out all summer with Kevin Garnett and KG is a big fan of Hollins. KG talks about his work ethic and the way he approaches the game. Also apparently KG had a hard time making friends and Hollins seems to be there for him in that respect. “Summertime’s the time when you’re working on things, but for me, I don’t make a lot of friends, and I can say that I made one in him. I like the way the kid approaches the game. He wants to be more than good. You see it in his face; you see it in his work ethic. I’m a big fan of his, so I’m glad he’s here.” KG’s not the kind of guy who throws around praise about people he’s played against. I’m sure Danny Ainge factored that in when he was looking for big men to sign.

Hollins is an interesting player because he’s a high flying 7 footer who can’t rebound. He looks good running the floor, especially with Rondo running the point. He will definitely help the Celtics on the defensive end and give KG’s knees a break from banging in the post for 40 minutes every night. If he could develop some sort of offensive game or rebound a little more. He could be extremely useful to the Celtics. He sometimes needs to keep his head, he got a technical in the first two minutes of his time with the Celtics, but there nothing new for a team with Rondo and KG.

Not a bad move by the Celtics, personally I was really hoping for Fesenko, but Danny Ainge could do a hell of a lot worse.

Player	Points	Rebounds	Assists	Blocks	Steals	+/-	PER
Kevin Garnett	15.1	8.3	2.6	1.12	.94	+136	20.4

Up until last week, KG would have been placed with the power forwards, but with the injury to Jermaine O’Neal, KG has been moved to center and thrived. KG doesn’t have the quickness that he used to in his prime but understands maybe better than anyone else in the NBA how to use his body defensively and to be in the right position.

Positives: By all accounts KG, has not Pierce or Rondo has been the Celtics best player this season. He has the highest PER on the team as well as the best +/-. As I said up above, KG just understands the game. He is still quicker than most centers and gets to good position defensively and the five game win streak was correlated to KG being switched to center. His jumper from outside is still pure as ever. He stretches the floor just like Bass does, and allows room for Rondo, Ray, and Paul to drive the lane. He is still the heart of the Celtics and he brings the intensity to every single game. Last season according to Synergy, KG was the second best defensive power forward in the game, behind Taj Gibson.

Negatives: He has lost the quickness and the ability to jump that he had as a youngster and it shows on both the offensive and defensive ends of the floor. Quicker players just go right by him as he helplessly looks on. Also, KG doesn’t seem to want or feel the need to box out. If he stuck a body on some players he would have saved at least 30 offensive rebounds this season for the Celtics. His knees are also a constant worry for the Celtics and his minutes need to be monitored.

Grade: B+

Player	Points	Rebounds	Assists	Blocks	Steals	+/-	PER
Jermaine O’Neal	5.0	5.4	.4	1.72	.32	+26	9.7

Positives: Jermaine O’Neal is the rare NBA player who has completely transformed his game. Long gone is the high-flying center that would sky for dunks on one end and have highlight reel blocks on the other. He still blocks shots now, but it is completely due to his great positioning and timing instead of athletic ability. He is also the rare player who has the ability to not only block shots, but be in position to take charges. Before his injury Jermaine was up and away leading the NBA in charges taken this year. He is also one of the Celtics best rebounders and provides much needed big man depth for the team.

Negatives: His offensive game has much to be desired. He has a decent 10-15 foot jumper, but outside of that, does not bring much else to the table. He is constantly hurt and his latest wrist injury, may keep him out for the rest of the season. Poor guy, because his body just doesn’t seem to be able to hold up anymore. On top of the wrist, his knees are farther gone than KG’s.

Due to the uncertainty with his wrist for the rest of the season. The Celtics may look to cut Jermaine O’Neal to open up space to sign another big man for the playoff run. They also were looking to trade his expiring contract. While I love Jermaine and his passion, I am not sure that the Celtics are going to have him on the roster past this season.

Jermaine O’Neal Update

Grade: C+

Player	Points	Rebounds	Assists	Blocks	Steals	+/-	PER
Greg Stiemsma	1.7	2.3	.3	.89	.25	-82	11.1

Positives: The steamer has been a fun player to watch this year. Burdened with big expectations after a big preseason, Stiemsma has played well in some situations and looked lost in others. He is averaging almost a block every 9 minutes and has shown great defensive ability. He also has a better than expected 10-15 foot jump shot that he’ll hit every once in a while.

Negatives: He is not always ready to play and will sometimes just look lost or confused out there. He takes chances defensively going for the big block and can look silly out there. Other than a few jumpers, he is extremely limited offensively and has terrible hands. You gotta love the steamer though.

Grade: C

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