It aint easy being brilliant...

Season:

Games- 53

Minutes per game- 23

Field Goal- 38%

Three Point- 34%

Free Throw- 78%

Rebounds- 1.6

Assists- 3.3

Points- 5.2

There is no denying Blake’s importance to this team when he is knocking down his outside shots. The problem is, he doesn’t knock them down on nearly a consistent enough level to earn the $4 million the Lakers paid him in 2011-12. His 38% overall doesn’t concern me nearly as much as his 34% three point shooting. It’s NOT bad, but when you are getting paid almost exclusively to knock down open jumpers, and stretch out the defense, it’s not quite consistent enough. Steve provides a few intangibles that don’t necessarily show up on the stats sheet. Hustle plays such as diving for lose balls, and making the extra pass are a big part of Steve’s game. Although he doesn’t lack the necessary effort, he isn’t quick enough to prevent the games faster guards from blowing by him.

Postseason:

Games- 12

Minutes per game- 26

Field Goal- 42%

Free throw- 71%

Rebounds- 3

Assists- 2.3

Points- 6.3

Steve Blake’s numbers were up across the board in the Lakers’ 2 playoff series against the Nuggets and the Thunder. His 42% three point shooting was clearly what the Lakers would like to ALWAYS see from him. Most importantly of all, anybody who watched couldn’t help but notice that it was Blake, NOT starting point guard Ramon Sessions who was logging ALL of the playing time down the stretch. Blake has 2 years remaining on his contract, and barring an interesting turn of events, he will be back in Lakers’ purple and gold for the 2012-13 season.

GRADE: C