The missing forward: a poll

[KillerLeft]

It happens 1.7 times a game.  It is 10% of THJ’s volume and he scores 1.06 PPP coming off of screens.  

His spot up (1.12) and isolation (1.18) numbers are better.  Heck, DJJ’s spot up number (1.12) is better.  As a team we score 1.02 PPP, so it is a positive play.  But, we aren’t winning or losing games based on THJ coming off of screens well.

I disagree, vehemently. I think THJ’s skills have contributed quite a bit to winning games this year. Like, a LOT. 

And it’s not the amount of shots he gets off coming around screens that matters, is the amount of screens he runs around that matters. That’s the entire point, obviously. When the defense adjusts and plays him tightly, that is when the ball goes inside to Lively or Powell, or to some other player on a cut. 

It obviously also works in reverse, and THJ is one of the best at knocking down those shots when they sag off of him to cheat towards Lively, etc. I think it’s fair to say that the guys you mention, along with Green and Exum, can do THIS fairly well, but none as lethally as THJ. 

Are we not noticing that they are running like 10 plays for him in every game now? It has shocked me how involved in the offense he has been. They designed a significant portion of it around him, and no, freaking Tobias Harris cannot fill in for him.

There is no doubt in my mind that trading Hardaway, while possibly a good idea depending on the deal, will result in a marked uptick in minutes for either curry or Hardy. Literally, no doubt in my mind.

I also totally object to labeling him a “defensive sieve” especially the last couple of years. Honestly, I don’t even care if they trade him at this point, but he gets treated worse than Powell (for whom I also stick up) and he’s a way better player than Powell. WAY BETTER.

---

 A Tobias Harris ISO is just as efficient as THJ coming off a screen (and easier to manufacture)

Please kill me before I ever have to discover whether or not this is true. I can’t do it.