All Mid-Major SG: Dionte Christmas

As a former 07-08 All Atlantic-10 First Team member, Dionte Christmas may not be “flying under the radar," but he is certainly one of the best mid-major shooting guards out there.

Christmas’ production has been steadily increasing each season and this year he has made Temple a very dangerous team. The Owls have had some ugly losses (UMass, Long Beach St), but also some stunning victories (Tennessee, Penn St), which proves that although they may not be the most consistent team, they are fully capable of beating bigger programs.

Temple is currently 2-1 in the A-10 with an unexpected loss to UMass, but they still hold a 10-7 record and fourth place in the conference. The A-10 is bigger and better than last year though and Temple will need to pick up some huge wins against the likes of Xavier, St. Joe’s, Dayton, and Richmond if they want to have a shot at an at-large bid.

Christmas is a leader in every possible way for this team. He emotionally carries them through tough shooting nights and has the uncanny ability to take control of games when the rest of his team is struggling. Christmas is currently averaging 20.8 points per game on 40 percent shooting from downtown and also pulls down over six rebounds a game, despite being only 6'5".

He has a very high release on his jump shot, which makes it nearly impossible for defenders to block and has demonstrated his ability to focus on the defensive end (1.5 steals per game).

Perhaps Christmas’ most impressive performance was his 35-point showing against Tennessee, a game in which he scored 30 of those points in the second half alone. The Volunteers had no answer for his hot shooting, which included seven threes and 55 percent from the field.

The Owls though, who shoot 39 percent from three as a team (23rd nationally) and score 35 percent of their points from beyond the arc, will need similar outings from Christmas in order to remain competitive in conference play. A loss to UMass is simply inexcusable and a 6-5 road record does not help their case either.

Nevertheless, Christmas seems to be ready for the challenge ahead and may be able to put his team in position for a tournament bid. He is projected to go in the early second round of the 2009 NBA Draft and will definitely be a vital component to any team.

His ability to score in a variety of ways and shoot over defenders will prove to be valuable and he has lived up to his comparisons of a less athletic Michael Redd. A little work on ball control and shot selection would be beneficial, but all in all, Christmas is one of the most deserving players to be named to the All Mid-Major team.

This article is also featured on www.thebracketbusters.com