A Detailed Look at LSU with and without Xavier Pinson

Let's look at the numbers to back up my statement that Xavier Pinson is the most important player on the team.

Xavier Pinson was averaging 27.9 minutes, 10.9 points, 4.1 assists, 1.8 steals with a 42.2 FG% and 81.4 FT%. (1st 3 SEC Games before injury: 11.0 Pts, 4.7 Ast, 3.7 Reb, 1.7 Stl)

Xavier Pinson before injury: 27.9 Mins, 10.9 Pts, 4.1 Ast, 1.8 Stls, 42.2 FG%, 81.4 FT%

Anyone who has played organized basketball at high school or above, or has coached it, understands that no team can win without a floor general. For most teams, it is the Point Guard because he runs the offense and controls the pace of the game. For LSU, Pinson was that guy. Take a look at how this team played with him vs. when he was out.

*I am not going to include the two games he played recently because he was still fighting the injury and played 7 mins against TCU and 16 against Ole Miss.


The first image shows how LSU's offense performed with Pinson and then without. The differences that are green represent a reduction in that category. Without Pinson, we score 13.9 less points on offense, shoot 6.6 less Field Goals, etc...




For the Opponent sheet, this shows how our opponents numbers looked with or without Pinson. Once again, you can see how many things have changed on defense too including giving up nearly 12 points more per game without him.






I hope this helps you see the importance of having him in the lineup and get a better understanding of how things can change quickly when your team loses their floor general. Announcers keep calling our offense chaotic and that is the best description.