Paul Millsap: Was He Rated Properly? – CrownHoops
Paul Millsap has always been a consummate professional. He has been since his first day in the league. Even at this point in Millsap’s career, outlets still dub him one of the elite power forwards in the NBA. Millsap is entering the twilight of his career, but that has not stopped him from producing efficient production. With this in mind, Bleacher Report recently ranked Millsap the 10th best power forward in the NBA heading into the restart of the season. Being considered top-10 at your position is no small feat. However, did Bleacher Report actually get Millsap’s ranking correct? Let’s take a look.
Notable Numbers on Paul Millsap
Before we delve into who has ranked ahead of Millsap and who he should be ahead of, it is important to note some of his numbers. He is playing efficiently despite being 35 years old and making the most of his 24.4 minutes per game. Bear in mind he is playing alongside the top-ranked center in the league, Nikola Jokic. This season, Millsap is striking it from the three-point line at a career-high clip of 44.0 percent. He is also averaging 12.0 points, 5.9 total rebounds, and about a steal (0.9) per game. Not to mention, his advanced numbers are impressive as well.
Millsap is tallying an offensive rating of 117 despite his limited role. To go along with this, he is also averaging a true shooting percentage of 59. 8 percent, the highest total since his fifth season in the league. To cap it off, the savvy veteran is also tallying a solid player efficiency rating (PER) of 17. 7, which is not too far off his career PER of 19.0. Millsap may not be putting up gaudy box scores as he did in Atlanta, but he is still extremely vital to the success of the Denver Nuggets.
Notable Names Ahead of the Veteran
The 10th ranking is actually pretty fair to Paul Millsap. However, there are at least two players ranked ahead of him that could be debated. The first being former Denver Nugget, Danilo Gallinari. Gallinari may be more of a potent scorer, but his defense still leaves something to be desired. Not to mention, Millsap is playing on a deeper roster that handicaps his offensive role a bit. Gallinari does share the floor with Chris Paul and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander but is still free to hunt his shot in Oklahoma City‘s frontcourt.
The second name ahead of Paul Millsap that can be argued is Zion Williamson. I know, I know, he has already shown he belongs in the league and is putting up star numbers. Still, there is something to be said about playing a good portion of the season, just ask Rookie of the Year front-runner, Ja Morant. Will Zion be better than Millsap? Most likely. However, one cannot use such a small portion size to justify a top-five ranking at any position. Ranking Williamson in the top-five is not only disrespectful to Paul Millsap but to the other four players ranked behind the Duke sensation. With all of this in mind, Paul Millsap was pretty fairly rated, but an argument is to be made about bumping him up to the ninth or eighth spot on the power forward list.
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