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| Jared Dudley joins the Wizards |
From our friends at the Washington Wizards...
Wizards Acquire Jared Dudley from Bucks
The Wizards announced that they’ve acquired 6’7” wing Jared Dudley from the Bucks after they lost Paul Pierce to the Clippers. Dudley certainly doesn’t have the resume of Pierce, but has a reasonably similar skill-set in that he can play the three and the four, and shoot from long distance.
Dudley was selected 22nd overall by the Bobcats in 2007 out of Boston College, where he finished as the sixth all-time leading scorer in school history. He was named ACC Player of the Year during his senior season, the only BC player to ever do that (BC has been in the ACC since 2005-06), and also was a second team All-American.
The Wizards are Dudley’s fifth NBA team over eight seasons, after parts of two seasons with the Bobcats (now Hornets), five with the Clippers and one each with the Clippers and Bucks. He was a reserve for his first five seasons in the league, before his breakout campaign (also his best NBA season) with the Suns in 2011-12 when he averaged 12.7 points on 48.5% shooting in over 30 minutes a night. The next three seasons with Phoenix, LA and Milwaukee he split his time between the first and second units while playing minutes in the mid-twenties, and averaging between seven and ten points a night. Over his career, Dudley averaged 8.5 points on 47% shooting, 40% from three and 3.4 rebounds a game.
Dudley comes with plenty of playoff experience, as he’s made 29 postseason appearances, averaging 5.9 points a game. His best postseason run came in 2010 with the Suns as he helped them make it to the Western Conference Finals, where they fell in six games to the Lakers.
Dudley will be jack of all trades sort for the Wizards off the bench this season and is the early favorite to lead all non-starters in minutes. He will be the primary backup to Pierce, but can also play as a small ball four or in the backcourt next to Wall. Helping space the floor will be where Dudley will do most of his damage offensively, as he’s always been an effective long distance gunner. Dudley excels at the catch-and-shoot game, which is exactly what Wall should get him a lot of. Last season he shot 44.2% on catch-and-shoot attempts and had a 57.8% eFG% (accounts for the fact that a three is worth more than a two). He should get at least a percentage of the over six catch-and-shoot attempts per game that Pierce got during the playoffs, playing both the three and the four. Last season Dudley shot 38.5% from three, an average season by his standards as he’s had seasons where he’s shot as high as 46% from deep. With the addition of Dudley (and others), Wall will have the best compliment of shooters to feed that he’s had in his career.
Dudley brings plenty of defensive acumen to the table as well. He is a guy who can defend three positions effectively (the two through four), playing mostly on the wing but can also take on power forwards. On an elite defensive Bucks team last year, Milwaukee had a defensive rating of 96.8 when Dudley was on the floor and 101.1 when he was off. While a lot of his defensive value comes from his ability to help on pick and rolls and get into passing lanes, he was also an elite individual defender at the rim, forcing players to shoot 2% below their season average at the hoop.
