Age: 32

Years pro: 9 in NBA, 1 in China

Status: Free agent

Key stats: Averaged 5 points and 1.9 assists over 13.7 minutes in 65 games, all off the bench.

While many fans regard Aaron Brooks' season as a disappointment, the truth is more complicated than a quick brushoff of the backup guard who was playing on a one-year contract.

Fact is, the more minutes he played, the better he played. Shocking, right? But it wasn't just the stat totals that improved with increased time, it was the substance of them as well.

Brooks averaged 5 points while shooting 40 percent from the field, 37.5 percent from 3-point range and 80 percent from the foul line – fairly typical numbers for a player who averaged 13:42 minutes over the 65 games he played. But when he played 20 minutes or more – something he did nine times – he averaged 11.7 points while shooting 50 percent from the field, 48 percent from 3-point range and 100 percent (13-of-13) from the foul line.

Gallery: Brooks' 2016-17 Season in Photos »

He never did get up to 30 minutes in a game, so we can only speculate what might have happened then.

Brooks' best game came against his former team, Chicago, on Dec. 26. In barely more than 24 minutes, he hit 6-of-8 shots, including 3-of-4 3-pointers, and passed out seven assists. That was ironic, because the previous season, while playing for the Bulls, his best game came against the Pacers – 29 points in 41 minutes.

He also scored 18 points in a blowout loss at Memphis on March 29, hitting 4-of-5 3-pointers.

Brooks is difficult to incorporate into a game plan because he's essentially a 6-foot shooting guard. Playing him off the ball presents an obvious defensive matchup issue against taller guards, but he can create shots for himself by shooting fade-aways off the dribble or hook shots around the basket. He lacks the quickness to penetrate with consistency, but if he's paired with a guard who can find him on the perimeter, he can be effective.

That was the case in the Pacers' homecourt win over Milwaukee on April 6, when he scored 10 points in 19 minutes. Lance Stephenson, playing in his third game after rejoining the team, helped facilitate that production.

At that point, Brooks had averaged 7.9 points in 17 minutes over the previous eight games, reaching double figures in five of them.

2016-17 Player Reviews: More Reviews, Highlights, and Photos »

"Just been playing a little more, getting a little rhythm to the game," he said at the time. "I feel like I'm needed again.

"I had been getting up one or two shots per game, now there's a role for me and I see how I can help out. It's later on in the season, but I'm finally getting acclimated."

His role diminished again as the season wound down, however. He played in just one playoff game, for seven minutes in Game 1 of the series with Cleveland, and scored five points.

Brooks' future is uncertain at age 32, but with the right team and with the right amount of playing time, he likely would remain productive.

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