Three Pointers
from Beyond The RK
- Khris Middleton is a Top-5 Spot Up Shooter in the NBA; Middleton rates between “Good” and “Excellent” in nearly every play-type, via Synergy.
Khris Middleton is a three-level scorer who cuts up defenses like a karate kid fresh out of Mr. Miyagi’s dojo. He gets to his move at his pace, whether it be a wax-on wipe, a paint brush stroke, a standing meditation, an elbow middy, a contested pull-up triple, or drawing the whistle on a drive to the hoop. While the CoBrooKailyn Nets set out to disprove the theory that defense wins championships, Middleton’s Miyagi Bucks believe in balance in all things, extreme focus, and self-defense.
Khris Middleton ranks as low as “Good” and as high as “Excellent” in every scoring play-type other than off-screen and transition situations, via Synergy. Overall in the half court, Khris Middleton’s 1.08 PPP ranks in the NBA’s 83rd percentile. Khris has been a solid ISO option and threat running the pickand-roll, scoring 1.013 PPP in 78 ISO possessions (71st percentile) and averaging 1.0 PPP in 184 P&R Ball-Handler possessions. (78th percentile)
While scoring 1.064 PPP on 202 off-the-dribble jumpers ranks in the 84th percentile, Middleton’s most lethal scoring threat remains as a spot-up shooter, where Khris’ 1.438 PPP lands in the 97th percentile and ranks 5th among all players with 50+ Spot Up possessions.
Oddly, Middleton’s catch-and-shoot efficiency might not match what you’re thinking; Khris is a better C&S shooter with a hand in his face than without one. As fellow long-range bomber, J.R. Smith, once said, “I’d rather take a contested shot than an open shot any day… it’s kind of boring when you take open shots.”
In 45 Unguarded C&S possessions, Khris Middleton’s 1.244 PPP ranks in the 59th percentile, while in 56 Guarded C&S possessions, Khris Middleton’s 1.518 PPP ranks in the 99th percentile! With a similar all-around, efficient scoring style to Paul George, it’s wild to see Middleton not make the East All-Star roster this season. He has a real case over multiple bench guys (I’d probably knock out a big); but, there’s only so many spots, and it was a close call.
- Mike Conley is a Top-10 Pick-and-Roll Maestro in the Association
Among all players averaging 4+ P&R Ball-Handler possessions per game, Mike Conley’s 1.056 PPP ranks 8th in the NBA, while James Harden’s 1.193 PPP with Brooklyn ranks 1st and Damian Lillard’s 1.052 PPP ranks just behind Conley at 9th. With Utah’s endless Classical Jazz albums of pick-and-roll schemes, Mike is playing the hits, and pulling up efficiently from all over while doing it. Among players averaging 3+ jump shots off the dribble, Conley’s 1.19 PPP is tied with Lauri Markkanen for 30th in the NBA, one spot ahead of Seth Curry.
Zooming out on Mike Conley’s scoring efficiency:
1.107 PPP in 75 Spot Up possessions
1.017 PPP in 58 Transition possessions
0.909 PPP in 44 Hand Off possessions
0.985 PPP on 67 Runner possessions
1.667 PPP on 36 unguarded C&S possessions
Staying consistent with this All- Snub Team, Mike Conley has a case as the best player on the best team this season. On top of hosting the NBA’s best record at 27–8, his Utah Jazz’s Net Rating of 12.0 practically doubles the rest of the league. (via Cleaning the Glass) Conley’s been a big part of that success, here’s his ON/OFF splits via pbpstats.com’s NBA Wowy Combos:
with Conley ON the court:
+16.14 Net Rtg for Utah Jazz in 817 MIN (120.4 O/104.3 D)
with Conley OFF the court:
-4.6 Net Rtg for Utah Jazz in 527 MIN (112.2 O/116.8 D)
Both Net Ratings are more drastic than Donovan Mitchell’s and Rudy Gobert’s ON/OFF splits. Conley might have deserved one of Utah’s two all-star bids, or maybe the team has been good enough to earn three, which would likely knock off one of the Suns guards like Booker.
- Bam Bam! Adebayo is a Top-10 Roll-Man in the NBA
We’ll end this All-Snub team with someone whose game seems to find a way to improve every season. Bam’s middy game has taken a leap; Adebayo’s FG% and FGA have BOTH increased in every 5ft zone up to 19 ft out since last year:
2020–21
< 5 ft (76.6% on 5.3 FGA)
5–9 ft (43.4% on 2.6 FGA)
10–14 ft (47.4% on 2.4 FGA)
15–19 ft (36.4% on 2.1 FGA)
2019–20
< 5 ft (67.9% on 6.7 FGA)
5–9 ft (40% on 1.9 FGA)
10–14 ft (44.6% on 1.4 FGA)
15–19 ft (20.8% on 0.7 FGA)
Bam Adebayo is the modern two-way big of the league; he brings versatility to both ends of the floor, as a scorer and as a defender. Bam’s gone from a lengthy prospect who could hang defensively with quicker players on the wing to a mid-range assassin who has mastered the art of the handoff alongside grab-and-go shooters like Duncan Robinson and Tyler Herro.
Bam’s 1.347 PPP as a P&R Roll-Man ranks 3rd among players with 50+ possessions and 10th among players with 25+ possessions. Among players with 50+ ISO possessions, Bam’s 1.067 ISO PPP ranks 15th in the NBA . On 45 put back possessions, Bam’s dropping 1.311 PPP, while in 189 buckets around the basket that do not count as post-ups, Bam’s 1.423 PPP ranks in the 92nd percentile.
Few players bring the impact Adebayo does on both ends of the floors, let alone among bigs. Bam’s constantly adding to his game, yet he already holds a rare combination of skills. Bam is one of the few truly positionless defenders in the league capable of guarding 1–5 effectively, who also has the handles and touch to score in and around the paint or set screens and run handoffs on the perimeter to create shot opportunities for others. Bam being a better defender than any of the three East All-Star reserve bigs while being so vital to keeping Miami’s offense afloat makes it hard to believe that Adebayo ended up as the odd man out, but as we all know, there will always be snubs.
(stats as of 3/2 via Synergy Sports, pbpstats.com, and Cleaning The Glass)
(visualizations and words from @ BeyondTheRK on Twitter)
