Thunder End of the Year Report Card: Zavier Simpson

Originally posted on FanNation Inside The Thunder
By Ross Lovelace | Last updated 5/2/22

The sky hook phenomenon from OKC’s G League team was must see television is his four games with Oklahoma City. Zavier Simpson stuffed the stat sheet for the summer over the last week of the season.

The Michigan product averaged an impressive 11 points, 7.5 assists and 5.3 rebounds per game. He recorded five or more assist in every game played.

His problem was scoring efficiently, though. Simpson shot just 36.5% from the floor and an abysmal 12.5% from 3-point range. Again, these are very small sample size numbers from the rookie, but the percentages weren’t positive.

The thing to appreciate about Simpson is that he didn’t change his game when the lights got bright. He was the same undersized, hook shot shooting point guard. He brought his flair to the NBA and did something the community hadn’t seen from a point guard. While he was only on the roster for less than a week, his name was much more memorable than some of the other 10-day contracts.

By his senior year at Michigan, Simpson was putting up similar numbers to the ones we saw in Oklahoma City this season. He averaged 12.9 points and 7.9 assists in Maize and Blue, bringing that same steady, consistent style of basketball. He’s not one to take a high volume of shots, but he’s a smart player with great court vision and a high basketball IQ.

His unique hook shot was actually able to work in the NBA because of his patience on the way up and accuracy off the glass. It’s clear he’s taken this shot so many times.

He understands just how to position his body to where it would be nearly impossible for the defender to block it. Without the patience and separation, he wouldn’t even be able to get his shot off.

Report Card Grade: C+

Simpson was a great story and was actually really entertaining to watch. It gave fans something to follow along and by excited about.

His numbers were solid, especially for a rookie. He stuffed the stat sheet and did everything that was asked of him. His shooting splits made him a negative on the court, though, as he struggled mightily in every category.

The reason his grade didn’t plummet with the low percentages is because of how he ran the offense. Simpson had 7.5 assists per game compared to just 2.5 turnovers. He valued taking care off the ball and it showed down the stretch.

This article first appeared on FanNation Inside The Thunder and was syndicated with permission.

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