Monta Ellis

The image above is from nba.com, http://www.nba.com/playerfile/monta_ellis/index.html?nav=page

If you don't know who Monta Ellis is by now, you need to broaden your scope. The 6'3" guard out of Lanier High School is now in his fourth year in the NBA and is averaging 26.1 ppg, 5.3 apg, 4.2 rpg, and is second in the league in total steals (averages 2.24 spg).

He is one of the most explosive guards and is a fan favorite because he is reminiscent of the vintage Allen Iverson. Ellis is second in the league in field goal attempts per game; which means he audibles his own number often.

What is there to say about him? He plays for the one of the worst teams in the league, the Warriors, as their record is 11-27 (the only two teams that are worse are the Nets and T'Wolves).

Last night during their game against the Bucks, he scored 33 points with 8 assists (no steals surprisingly as he has only done that nine times in the season). The bigger story is what he did in the first quarter.

Ellis did a spin-move, then drove in on two defenders and did a reversal with his off-hand and somehow put spin on the ball to kiss it off the glass. I have never seen a player do this--especially with such ease.

After this play, the crowd went wild and so did the commentators and of course SportsCenter put it on their top-ten. The amazing thing to me is that Ellis has evolved into such a dominant force and hasn't played nearly as many games in the past four years.

He played 49 games his first season and started only 3. Then in 06-07, he played 77 games while starting 53. In 07-08, he played 82 games while starting 72. Then last year, he only started and played 25 games in the season. His averages have been increasing and he is consistent.

Now it's easy to say that he matured really quickly in the NBA but unfortunately there's one thing about him that completely shows otherwise. Ellis leads the league in Turnovers Per Game, and is averaging 4.24 every night on the court. His turnovers have been increasing every year and he is now a player that has the tendency to throw the ball away.

With the NBA growing and developing their players, we have a new generation of talent. Players such as Jennings, Evans, Ellis, Brooks, and even Durant are becoming key youth in the league--problem is, they are so focused on scoring that they don't know how to take care of the ball as well.

Jennings almost had a double-double with points and turnovers the other day. The basketball world has become highly focused on the scoring champion, that we don't see the game in the multiple layers it has to offer anymore.

I'm not saying I wouldn't want Ellis on my team; I would love to have him play for the Knicks (we hire guards all the time anyways), but I would like to see the future of basketball become more efficient with turnovers. At the end of the day, in any sport, unforced errors are the deciding factor in a teams loss.