Three Pointers from Beyond The RK
(3/18/21)
- Nikola Jokic forgot how to miss; he’s scoring 1.0+ PPP in all seven play-types where he has recorded 50+ total possessions. Jokic has the 2nd-most Post Up Pass Out possessions (153), scoring 1.34 PPP.
Nikola Jokic hasn’t looked this hyper since his last 3-liters of Coke infused sugar rush. The Joker is leading a one-man top-5 offense in Denver (118 O-RTG) while shooting 56–41–87 from the field! Jokic has piled up 50+ possessions in seven different play-types; he’s scoring more than 1.0 point per possession (PPP) in every last one of them, via Synergy. Nikola rates “very good” or “excellent” in all seven play-types. It’s easier to find his inefficient play-types than it is to keep track of his efficient ones. Jokic’s half court overall scoring efficiency of 1.143 PPP ranks 3rd behind only Zion and Kyrie, among high-volume players with at least 500 half court possessions.
Nikola Jokic’s been on the money from everywhere on the floor, and in nearly every play-type. Nikola’s 1.275 C&S PPP in 204 possessions ranks in the NBA’s 82nd percentile, while Jokic’s 1.249 PPP on 249 Jump Shot FGA ranks in the 95th percentile. The Joker’s jump shot stays on point at all three levels: 1.292 PPP on Short Jumpers (95th percentile), 1.158 PPP on Medium Jumpers (97th percentile), 1.252 on Long Jumpers (86th percentile). Jokic’s other half court shot play-types all rate as “very good”, with Runners (1.085 PPP), Post-Ups (1.163 PPP), and non-post-up shots around the basket (1.307 PPP) ranging from the 78th to 81st percentile in all three categories.
Jokic’s highest scoring rates by PPP are in ISO situations and Off Screens, where Nikola ranks in the 87th percentile with 1.138 ISO PPP and 1.279 Off Screen PPP; however, The Joker’s used more often in traditional big man roles. He’s posted up 236 times, resulting in 1.055 PPP for Denver; he’s been the P&R Roll Man 169 times, where Denver scores 1.237 PPP. Jokic’s 1.27 PPP on 111 Pick-and-Pops rates in the 88th percentile. The NBA’s Nikolas have passed out of the post more than anyone else in the league. Vucevic’s team is scoring 1.15 PPP in the 160 possessions where Vooch passes out of the post, while Jokic’s team is averaging 1.34 PPP in 153 of those occurrences. Jokic’s 1.34 PPP is tied with Kawhi for the most efficient rate of any player averaging one possession per game with a Post-Up Pass-Out.
- Welcome to Joel Embiid’s Left Block, the high-volume (50+ poss) scoring leader (1.223 PPP) against single coverage
When the Sixers run a post-up through Joel Embiid, the team scores 1.082 PPP on 282 possessions, which ranks in the 75th percentile; Embiid’s scoring 1.106 PPP on the 188 possessions where he has a shot attempt out of the post.
Like most players, Joel is most efficient against single coverage, where he’s scoring 1.195 PPP. When the defense commits, Joel is averaging 1.019 PPP in 106 possessions, and when the defense sends a hard double team, Joel is averaging 0.979 PPP in 142 possessions.
Against single coverage, Joel Embiid has nearly twice as many Post-Ups on the Left Block as anyone else in the league, where his 1.223 PPP is the most efficient scoring rate of anyone with 50+ possessions. On the Right Block, Joel’s 1.111 PPP on 54 possessions against single coverage ranks in the 71st percentile.
Looking closer at the Left Block, Joel is far more effective turning to his right shoulder than his left. Joel has scored 0.963 PPP in 27 possessions turning his left shoulder, while scoring 1.294 PPP in 17 possessions turning the right shoulder. In the 85 times where Embiid faces up his defender in a Left Block Post Up, he’s scored 1.282 PPP, which is the most efficient rate in the league other than Zion, who only has 10 possessions in that situation.
When the defense commits while Embiid is on the Left Block, Joel has passed out of the post in 80 possessions, where the team scores 1.025 PPP. In 24 Right Block Pass Outs, Embiid’s team is averaging 0.958 PPP. When the defense sends a hard double team to Joel on the Left Block, the Sixers score 0.982 PPP in 109 possessions; when the defense sends a hard double team to Joel on the Right Block, Philadelphia scores 0.967 PPP on 30 possessions.
- Nikola Vucevic, The NBA’s Old Timey Pick-and Popcorn Machine, has the most P&P possessions in the league this season (160)
Watching Nikola Vucevic is as reliable as eating plain popcorn, a vanilla snack that lacks flavor but gets the job done. Sure, the average person may enjoy a little more razzle-dazzle by sprinkling some salt or drizzling a little butter on top, but when you’re wandering around an upscale dive bar or old school movie theater hungry for a late-night bite, you’re always taking the bucket from the Old Timey popcorn machine. You might not enjoy yourself much afterwards, or even during, but at least you found something good enough to munch on. “The Pick-and-Popcorn Machine” and “A Walking Bucket of Pick-and-Popcorn” are fighting it out for a spot on the corny nicknames section of Vooch’s basketball reference page.
Nikola is the NBA’s premier high-volume pick-and-popper this season. Vucevic leads the league in total possessions as the P&R Roll-Man with 209, while his scoring rate of 1.177 PPP ranks twentieth among players with 50+ possessions. Vooch has racked up 160 pick-and-pop possessions, another league-leading total. Vucevic posts the second-highest per game rate with 4.1 P&P possessions; the only player averaging more per game is LaMarcus Aldridge with 5, who has 54 fewer P&P possessions in total. Vucevic’s 1.156 PPP is the 2nd-most efficient scoring rate of any player averaging 2+ P&P possessions per game; it’s also the 2nd-most efficient scoring rate of any player named Nikola. (Jokic, 1.27 PPP)
As a floor-spacing threat, Catch-and-Shoot Vooch stays packin’ heat. Vucevic shoots the 2nd-most C&S 3PA (256) and the 3rd-most C&S 3PA per game (6.6). Vooch’s 41.4% C&S 3P% is tied with Lauri Markkanen for the 14th-best rate among players shooting at least 4 C&S 3PA per game. (via NBA Stats) Nikola is scoring 1.041 PPP in 195 Spot Up possessions, 1.147 PPP in 319 catch-and-shoot (C&S) shots, and 1.235 PPP on 204 Long Range 3PT Jump Shots. (via Synergy) The Magic big man is great posting up mismatches and creating out of the high post, but he might be most efficient in a secondary off-ball finisher role of spacing the floor for C&S looks and creating shots against scrambling defenses.
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