Luke Ridnour begins his 12th season joining his fifth NBA franchise. The newly acquired point guard averaged 5.0 points, 1.6 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 0.5 steals, and 0.1 blocks in 19 minutes per game through 61 games for the Milwaukee Bucks and Charlotte Bobcats last season. He shot 39 percent from the field on 5.4 attempts and 65 percent from the free-throw line on 0.4 attempts. It was a less-than-stellar season for the 33-year-old as he accumulated a career-low point total in conjunction with career lows in field goal and free throw percentage. Prior to last season, he furnished a career 87-percent free-throw mark. Ridnour is an established caretaker, averaging 1.7 turnovers throughout his career. At this point in his career, he's a minus defender by virtue of age and lack of athleticism. Ridnour is a pass-first point guard sporting a quality mid-range game, doubling as a serviceable pick-and-roll artist and steady, reliable floor manager who projects to be a backup at point guard.
Like Delfino and Pachulia, Ridnour returns for his second rendezvous with the Bucks. He’s proven to be a very capable backup throughout his career and will help aid in the development of Knight. Though Ridnour played the two-guard spot in Minnesota last season, he’ll likely see the majority of his minutes at point guard in 2013-14.
Ridnour was a versatile player for Minnesota last season as he gave the T-Wolves needed depth at point guard but was also surprisingly effective when playing shooting guard. He was relatively efficient, shooting 44 percent from the field and 32.2 percent from three-point range. He even added a 89.1 percent free throw percentage. Last year was a high-volume shooting year by Ridnour's standards. He averaged 10.4 field goal attempts per game and 2.9 three point attempts per game, both figures the highest of his career. The only negative was that he missed 13 games with a nagging ankle injury. With Ricky Rubio out for the start of the season with a torn ACL in 2012-13, Ridnour has a good chance to win the starting point guard role until Rubio is ready to return.
Ridnour took over as the starting point guard last season when Jonny Flynn was sidelined after hip surgery and started 66 games. He averaged 11.8 ppg and improved his three-point shooting by making 44 percent of his attempts from behind the arc. However, he'll likely have a reduced role this season with the signing of Ricky Rubio and Jose Barea. Ridnour could fall to third on the depth chart. It's also possible Ridnour could be traded once Rubio is ready for more minutes. Either way, it looks like Ridnour's fantasy value will take a hit, although it's possible the point guard position for Minnesota could be unsettled early in the season.
Although Brandon Jennings got most of the hype, Ridnour was often the most effective point guard on a surprising Bucks team in 2009-10. But Jennings is the future of the franchise, so Ridnour was not retained, instead signing with the T-Wolves, who lost Jonny Flynn to a significant hip injury. The move won't do wonders for Ridnour's fantasy value. He'll open the season as the starter, but will most likely shift to a backup role by December. And even when he's playing, Minnesota's version of the triangle offense doesn't do wonders for point guards' statistics. (Just ask Flynn.) But Ridnour does have the ability to can an open three (.381 from downtown last season), a skill that should serve him well in this offense.
Ridnour doesn’t seem like an ideal guard for a Scott Skiles team, but he managed to beat out Ramon Sessions and hang on to the starting job in Milwaukee. This season he’ll face another threat, from rookie Brandon Jennings – but Jennings is pretty raw, having spent the last year as a part-time player in the Euroleague, so don’t be surprised if Ridnour hangs on to the starting job for far longer than fantasy players would prefer. Ridnour is an excellent free-throw shooter and a pretty decent three-point bomber, but probably won’t rack up huge assist totals, especially on a Milwaukee team that figures to be one of the league’s weakest.
This unimposing point guard fell out of favor in Seattle over the course of the past two seasons. GM John Hammond sees hope, however, and Ridnour should be a decent second-tier source of assists with the playing time he'll be handed. Ridnour is a fantastic foul shooter and fair three-point stroker.
There will be lots of interest in Seattle’s point guard spot as it appears unsettled as we enter training camp. Ridnour has been the primary starter the last few years, but he will be pushed by Delonte West and Earl Watson. Ridnour doesn’t play very good defense, something that will no doubt irk new coach P.J. Carlesimo. But Ridnour’s jumper is improving, he’s a smart passer and he gets his teammates involved. That should be a prized commodity with Kevin Durant in town. He’s the likely starter and may increase his assists now that Ray Allen isn’t around to dominate the ball. You’ll have to monitor the battle during training camp before selecting Ridnour for your fantasy team.
It’s been a grim year for Sonics fans, living with the ongoing threat of losing their team to Oklahoma City. Ridnour has been one of the few bright spots, with a double-digit scoring average and seven assists per game in his third season. He hasn’t been as consistent as most would prefer, but that could be due, in part, to the situation. Bob Weiss was notorious for constant lineup and rotation changes. Bob Hill committed to Ridnour as his starter, but the midseason arrival of Earl Watson cut into Ridnour’s minutes. And heading into this season, the Sonics still haven’t made a decision about extending Ridnour’s rookie contract. (News on that front is expected some time in September.) With a little more consistency, Ridnour could be a nice fantasy player.
Ridnour could be on the verge of a breakout campaign as the Sonics move to a fastbreak offense. Instead of coming back to retrieve the ball from a rebounder, Ridnour will start the break, taking the outlet pass and then feeding a streaking scorer. That's the plan, at least. If all goes well, Ridnour, who shot 37.6 percent from 3-point range, likely will increase his 5.9 assists per game from last season. His minutes still will be in the low 30s, but the new offense might make him more productive than the 10.1 points he averaged last year.
Ridnour has been annointed the starting point guard, but that is not set in stone. As a rookie, Ridnour went through the typical first-year ups and downs. His potential was evident, though. He averaged 16.1 minutes, which should increase signigicantly this season as a starter and without Brent Barry in the rotation. Ridnour also worked out with John Stockton during the offseason, for what that's worth.
Ridnour will be a late addition to camp as he recovers from a fractured pelvic bone. The Sonics hope he is their point guard of the future, but don't expect much this year. It will take a while to get healthy and even then he will do more watching than playing.
