Rodney Hood came into the 2017-18 season as the player to fill Gordon Hayward shoes following his departure to the Celtics via free agency. No one could’ve seen the rise of Utah Jazz first round pick Donovan Mitchell. Hood unfortunately became a victim to Mitchell’s outstanding production and the Jazz decided that he was expendable. In an interview with, Quentin S Albertie for USA Today, Hood explains his reaction to his minimized role:
“I just thought it was weird,” Hood said. “I’m one of the leading scorers… then I’m demoted to the bench. Donovan plays the 1 and the 2 and sometimes the 3… I play the 2 and 3. I thought we could work together… They just felt like they had to make a choice.”
At the time of the decreased playing time Hood was having a career year in numbers but the Jazz decided that they prefer Donovan Mitchell and he was subsequently traded to the Cavs at the NBA trade deadline. Hood was now reunited with his former Jazz teammate George Hill along with Jordan Clarkson and Larry Nance who all came in separate deals.
Hood like many other NBA players was not ready for the scrutiny and constant spotlight that comes with being Lebron’s teammate. The transition from Utah to Cleveland was not as smooth as one might think since they’re both not the most glamorous cities like a New York or Los Angeles. In Cleveland, Hood dealt with an unclear role and was expected to hit any and every shot Lebron provided him. Not to mention that the Cavs already had a glut of players playing the same position as Hood. He mentions:
“Everything runs through LeBron because he’s the best player in the world. Then you still have to run plays for [Kyle] Korver. [Kevin] Love. Jordan Clarkson. J.R.[Smith]”
“It wasn’t a good fit,” Hood lamented. It was “tough on everybody.”
During a slump and falling out the rotation, Hood infamously refused to enter Game 4 of the Cavs series during garabge time as the game was already decided. Hood finally got an opportunity to remind the league of the kind of productive player he could be as he rose to the occasion in the NBA Finals. During Game 3, Hood scored 15 points on 7 of 11 shooting against the Warriors who are an excellent defensive team.
Hood is now a restricted free agent and will have an opportunity to take his talents to whichever team he desires unless the Cavs of course decide to match a deal he signs. Hood did take some positives with playing for the Cavs. Referring to Lebron, Hood mentions:
“He don’t cheat the process,” Hood said. “I would think it would be easy for him to. LeBron is a special guy… With everything he deals with with the media and being scrutinized, he’s a cool guy, not standoffish, puts in [input on] film from every team and player.”
Hopefully Hood can take the trials and tribulations from this season and apply them to become the best version of himself on whichever team he suits up for next season.