RIP Rollin'

When asked to assess how RIP Hamilton has performed as a reserve, team president Joe Dumars said: “I think RIP has handled this exceptionally well.” Has he ever. As a reserve, Hamilton has essentially matched his averages as a starter despite playing far fewer minutes. Hamilton has thrived as the leader of the second unit, in part because he has the green light to be much more aggressive.


Hamilton’s point per minute and assist per minute numbers have both been substantially better as a reserve. When the Pistons played small ball, Hamilton began halves on the floor at the same time as Rodney Stuckey, Allen Iverson, and Tayshaun Prince, and Rasheed Wallace; this put the Pistons’ top five offensive players on the court simultaneously. With only one ball to go around, there were not enough shot opportunities to fully utilize the skills of all five players. With Hamilton in a reserve role, he has typically been on the court with one to three of the aforementioned players. As a result, he has had his number called far more frequently while in the game.

While Hamilton is no longer starting games or playing as many minutes, he is finishing games and attempting just as many shots per game as he had previously. Manu Ginobili, Jason Terry, and J.R. Smith are among the perimeter players with starter talent who have excelled as high-scoring backups. Hamilton appears to be well on his way to earning that description.