The other day, in my article about Carmelo Anthony's start to the season, I mentioned three of the players who signed contract extensions in the summer, namely the Sixers' Andre Iguodala, the Bulls' Luol Deng, and the Bobcats' Emeka Okafor.
None of these guys have been All-Stars, but each has the capability to become one, and have been close in the past. At some point they have all been "the man" for their respective teams, but so far this season it just hasn't been there for them.
Let's look at each individual case:
Andre Iguodala
After losing an Answer to the Nuggets, Andre quickly lost the 'other A.I' status and was seen as the new franchise player for the Sixers. Though he wasn't quite enough to get the Sixers into the playoffs, he did kick up his scoring average to 18.2 ppg in the only season in his career he didn't play all 82 games.
Last season Andre stepped up again, averaging a career-high 19.9 points a game. He was a huge part of the Sixers' run into the postseason, and you can't blame Philly for wanting to re-sign him.
This Season
Obviously the biggest difference this season is the arrival of Elton Brand, a new superstar for Andre to play with. The team has struggled to incorporate Brand into their team, while also coping with Louis Williams not being as productive off the bench. The team is a mere 7-8 so far, and are standing just out of the playoff berths. (Yes, behind Miami.)
Andre's struggles have been part of this. His scoring has dropped by six points, down to 13 per game. Last year he was shooting a decent 45 percent and 32 percent from three-point range, but both have plummeted to 39 and 26 percent, respectively. His steals have also dropped from 2.1 last year to 1.6. However, in fairness his rebounds and assists have both increased.
Some have mentioned that this drop has been due to playing more of the two-guard position, taking him away from the small forward role that he has become comfortable with. He lacks his aggressiveness of previous seasons, leading to the drop in percentages.
Perhaps it is the fact that Elton Brand is now clogging the lane, taking away opportunities for Iguodala to drive?
What could happen
There have been glimpses of hope through the season. He has scored 33 twice, but these have been marred by a two-point performance (against Miami?) and a seven-point game against New York. His assists and rebounds have risen, as mentioned earlier—but the team needs him to be the same spark that he was last year if they desire to make the playoffs in the tougher Eastern Conference.
Luol Deng
In 2005-06 and '06-07, the Chicago Bulls made the playoffs for the first time in years, and the team finally looked like a contender. This was largely due to the play of Luol Deng, whose numbers improved steadily each season.
He and Ben Gordon combined to make a devastating scoring duo, and Luol improved the other parts of his game as well. His defense became renowned, as he rarely committed fouls but was still able to stop players who were bigger and sometimes better-skilled than him. He had a reputation as tough, being the only Bulls player to start all 82 games.
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about 1 month ago
Andre and Luol were so close to becoming all-stars...
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