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Position: point guard Height: 6-1 Weight: 190 College: UCLA Born: June 12, 1979, Kansas City, KS Opening day (2002) age: 23 Drafted: 2001, second round, pick 42, Seattle NBA exerience: One year (one with Sonics) Hand: Right Acquired: Signed by Memphis as a free agent on July 19, 2002 Nicknames: EJ, The Pearl Contract status: Signed through the 2004-05 season |
2001-02 in Review: Earl Watson entered training camp last October as a bit of a question mark to even make the Seattle Supersonics. With point guards Gary Payton and Shammond Williams locks to make the team and a pair of players who had spent time in the NBA the previous season -- Anthony Johnson and Eddie Gill -- invited to camp, the 40th pick of the 2001 Draft wasn't guaranteed a spot. Even if he made the team, the thinking was, Watson would sit and watch, learning from Payton and coach Nate McMillan. Despite an injury sustained early in camp, Watson impressed enough during pre-season that despite a broken finger suffered by Williams, the Sonics cut loose the veteran points and handed Watson the role of backup -- at least while Williams mended. After playing sparingly in the team's first four games, Watson finally got his chance against the Miami Heat. In 27 minutes, he scored just seven points but impressed defensively with two blocks and steals. He really solidified himself as the Sonics' third guard against Golden State on November 16, catalyzing a Seattle win with 13 points, four assists, and an astounding five steals. Even when Williams returned, Watson stayed in the role of third guard, backing up both Payton and off guard Brent Barry, through mid-January. McMillan determined at that point that Watson had hit the proverbial rookie 'wall' and dropped him from the rotation for six games. Watson had just begun to solidify his role in early March, coming off 28 minutes in a victory over Memphis, when he went down with a separated shoulder. Watson would miss essentially the entire month, being replaced in the rotation in the interim by Randy Livingston. After the Sonics clinched a playoff berth on April 8, Watson was re-inserted into the rotation, finishing his season strong with averages of 3.6 points, 2.0 assists, and 0.9 steals in 15 minutes per game. Nevertheless, the Sonics stung fans and Watson by leaving him off the playoff roster in favor of Livingston and Williams.
Shooting/Scoring: Watson did not come into the NBA with a reputation as a great shooter.
In the early part of the season, he was a very pleasant surprise in this regard in particular, making
52% from the field in the month of December. By season's end, he was at a more typical 45%,
though this could improve with practice and more regular playing time. Watson definitely did better
than expected from beyond the NBA three-point line, making 16 threes at a 36% clip. Not Dale
Ellis, but respectable. Watson does not have much of a mid-range game or any post game
whatsoever. His shots come either from in the lane or on the perimeter. On the break, Watson
prefers to keep the ball and finish himself, which he does well for a 6-1 player, though he has
excellent leaping ability and can dunk. Watson's 64% free-throw shooting was in line with his UCLA
numbers; he is a very poor free-throw shooter for a guard.
Grade: C-
Floor Game: Watson posted a respectable 2.5 assist/turnover ratio last season, about
average for a backup point guard and a significant improvement from the numbers he posted in
college. He was not a particularly adventurous distributor, which was probably at least partially an
effect of his role with the Sonics, where he was asked not to make mistakes. Paired with either
Payton or Barry, both of whom are very good ballhandlers, Watson spent significant time away
from the ball.
Grade: B-
Rebounding: On a per-minute basis, Watson was the Sonics' worst rebounder last season,
which was a bit of a disappointment given the numbers he posted in this category as a Bruin. While
Watson did a very good job on the offensive glass, sneaking in amongst the trees to pull down
boards using his leaping ability, he was far below average on the defensive boards and will need to
improve in this regard next season.
Grade: D
Defense: UCLA's all-time steals leader, Watson lived up to every part of his stellar
defensive reputation. Watson finished the season fifth in steals per minute amongst players with at
least 500 minutes (he played 964), but counting only the months he was part of the regular rotation
would put him second in the league to Indiana's Ron Artest. At times, Watson served as an
effective one-man press in the backcourt with heavy defensive pressure and should thrive in a press
defense should the Sonics institute one in the future. In the halfcourt, Watson is quick enough to
keep up with virtually any NBA point, leading fans to wonder if he might have made a difference
defending San Antonio's speedy Tony Parker in the playoffs. At 6-1, even though he's fairly strong
for his height, Watson's size is a liability which would be a problem as a starter. Against reserves,
however, he did not usually have much trouble and was only infrequently posted up. Watson has
some of the league's quickest hands; big men should not put the ball on the ground with him
around.
Grade: A
Intangibles: Watson is a true success story out of the rough neighborhoods of the Kansas
part of Kansas City who learned well during his four years at UCLA and was able to fit in nicely with
the Sonics. Watson is not the most vocal point guard, but has strong leadership skills nonetheless.
He happily learned from the point guard experts around him last season.
Grade: A
Overall: Backup point guards are not the most talented group of players -- witness the fact
that both Gill and Johnson played regularly in the NBA by season's end, with Johnson backing up
Jason Kidd in the NBA Finals -- and Watson definitely has some skills. Last year, his shooting was
right around where it has to be to make him worth playing regularly because of his defensive skill
and ability to inject energy into a team. If he drops below where he shot last season, it's likely back
to the bench; if he can improve his playmaking and shooting, he could be one of the league's best
reserve points along the lines of a smaller McMillan. Watson played much better last season when
he was part of a regular rotation and knew what minutes he would be getting. If Williams, as
expected, is dealt, he could show continued improvement over his strong first-half play last season.
Of course, that assumes that Watson himself is in Seattle next season. A restricted free agent,
the Sonics would very much like to have him back. Watson might have been stung by being left
off the playoff roster, but he hasn't shown it publicly and might not have a choice since Seattle
would match any reasonable offer made to him. Then it's back to the gym, working on that jumper.
Assuming the Sonics deal Williams and don't end up with another point guard in a trade, Watson
will come into training camp next fall with his role as backup point guard fairly safe.
Grade: C
I make no secret that Earl Watson became my favorite Sonic player with that Warrior game on the
16th. In one memorable sequence, he stripped a Warriors player, raced downcourt and made a
layup while being absolutely flattened by Adonal Foyle. (Of course, he missed the free throw that
would have made it a three-point play, but we'll conveniently ignore that.) It was a play unlike any
I had seen in several years. My last truly beloved Sonic was Eric Snow, a very similar player to
Watson, so it was easy to adopt him as my favorite and get the jersey that hangs in my closet
and was worn to most of the home games in the second half of the season. Oh, yes, other people.
They seem to like Watson for the most part, as he is definitely the favorite in the playing-time
competition with Williams. Watson always received loud applause when he checked into games.
July 19 Update: Watson has signed an offer sheet with the Memphis Grizzlies that will pay him $4 million over the next three years. Though the Sonics have the right to match any offer made to Watson because he is a restricted free agent, they lack the means to match this offer. The Grizzlies cleverly structured the deal so that it would be too lengthy for the Sonics to use their "million-dollar" exception to match.
August 6 Update: The Sonics' 15-day period to match Memphis' offer to Watson expired today, allowing him to officially join the Grizzlies and ending his time in Seattle.