The sad truth about Rashard Lewis

One of the interesting things I live about 2k's overall ratings is they are calculated differently for each position. Passing ability and ball handling ability are obviously more important to guards than they are to centers for example. For guards those attributes are a necessity, for a center, they're a luxury.

However, there are occasions where a player gets "shafted" in overall rating because he is a good player, but is playing out of position. Monta Ellis is one of those players who I might detail in the future. But for now, let's stick with Orlando's "Power Forward" Rashard Lewis.

ATTRIBUTES
Overall 79 (down from 84)
Close 81
Med 88
3pt 96
FT 84
Layup 76
Dunk 79
Handle 74
Pass 63
PostOff 72
PostDef 72
Block 56
Steal 70
RebOff 64
RebDef 68
Speed 76
Stam 95
Dur 85
DefAwr 77
OffAwr 83
Potential 87
Strength 70
Vertical 85
Off Dribble 84
In Traffic 79
Quickness 75
Hustle 71
Hands 89
Ball Defense 74

I didn't change a single rating and Rashard went down. All I did was change his position. Still the same exact player, yet he takes a 5 point overall dive!

Rashard is a great shooter, but he isn't much for rebounding or traditional bigman defense. Which makes him miscast as a PF. This is where we need to look past overall rating. It does not determine how good the player is, it determines how effective the player is at a given position.

In the association I just ran, Rashard Lewis was 6th man of the year, because he only started 3 games. The CPU was not smart enough to start him at PF so he could play together with Hedo Turkoglu. Switching his position is necessary for the intents and purposes of an Association.


The truth is, Rashard should not be the starting PF in Orlando. Rashard is not even an average rebounder for a SF, which makes him horrendous for a starting PF. D-Howard needs help, but he's not gonna get it with Rashard, who will be 30 years old next year. His contract will be nothing short of a disaster if he spends his entire Magic career at PF.

(Un)Fortunately for Magic fans, they are going to have to say good bye to Hedo Turkoglu at the end of the year (or earlier) because they can't have two non-PFs locked up to big money into their 30s. Lewis has the worst contract in the NBA and thus has no trade value. Orlando would be best served getting a PF via trade at some point. I've heard Shawn Marion tossed around though I think a guy like Udonis Haslem (who excelled next to Shaq) is probably closer to what they should be looking for (Dwight is already getting all the lobs, and Marion isn't a consistent shooter past 10 feet).

It is obvious they had no reason to sign Lewis to such a huge deal when they already had Turkoglu, but we can't cry about spilled milk here. Lewis had better hope he fills Turkoglu's shoes adaquately or there will be a lot of angry fans in Orlando.

Still, it would be great for Lewis value if he rebounded a bit from last year. I know that when people look at a 79 they are going to immediately start cursing calling me a loon but as I show, I didn't even touch him. In all likelyhood, this is his last year as a PF, so we're just gonna have to bear with it.