Yeah, I think Ayton would benefit most from a player who attacks the basket and dumps it off to him. I think Scoot will get there next year, And it felt like Simons was making more of an effort before he got hurt. I think only 6 of his 16 shots were from 3pt range. (4 assists) Shae can do it as well
But I would argue that the Blazers have reasonable ball-handlers and it seems like they do have good court vision. I believe Scoot has good court vision, once he adjusts to the speed and has more space to work with and penetrate, it will be much easier for him to deliver these kinds of passes, we have already seen that when he has been able to penetrate, he made good, short passes to Grant for example within the paint - so having him able to penetrate because the paint is not crowded will help his passing game. I also think we have seen that Shae is pretty good with the pocket pass - once again, if the paint is not crowded and he can penetrate, he can deliver these when working with a mobile big like DA. We have also seen in that last game when Shae had the ball, DA was fronted, Shae was able to make an easy entry pass because DA is so mobile that he can move within the painted area. If that paint is crowded, you make it harder for the ball handlers to get in and have people collapse on them to make the pass easier and you also restrict the movement of a big like DA within that area. So, once again, I think you are underselling how importance spacing is, even with Portland's current roster.
if all that was the true, the Blazers wouldn't be dead last in assists/game, almost 7 assists below just the NBA average. Ayton is actually taking about his average rate of shots at the rim and in the 3-10' zone. He's just not getting the volume of shots. Last season, in Phoenix, Ayton took a bit less than 15% of the Suns' shots. This season, he's taking about 8% of Portland's shots. That rate is unlikely to increase with Ant out there shooting 16-19 times a game.
DA is a mobile 7 footer. He does not have to be in the paint at the beginning of a possession for him to score. He can be out by the 3-point line. The reason Ayton isn't getting shots is because Billups offense doesn't care about getting him shots.
Personally I'd like to see him ask for more shots. A guy who shot 65% out to the free throw line and beyond, just 2 years ago, should be taking more shots.
I’m not entirely sure if it would make even a bit of difference if we had Chris Paul. Getting him the ball is pointless if 2-3 guys immediately swarm him because they aren’t afraid of any of our shooters. Just having Ant isn’t enough. Grant is shooting poorly. Scoot can’t hit the broad side of a barn. Thybulle had a decent game against Toronto but has otherwise sucked. Our team can’t shoot and thus our opponents are packing the paint. This prevents Scoot from finding lanes to drive or Ayton from getting the ball and having time to score before he’s swarmed.
Chauncey found some stuff late against Toronto that gave DA more room to operate. Horns Rip DHO Love this action for Scoot. That angle makes it much harder for Scoot's defender to go under the screen and opens up the pocket pass. Like exit screen to the corner for Jerami as well to occupy the strong side help. Simple flat ball screen with Scoot cutting to weak side dunker. Like the first play, the main thing here is to space the floor to help take away the heavy nail help that Ayton is seeing when we run spread ball screen--where each corner and one wing is filled. Big problem when both Tisse and Scoot are out there. Teams don't care about them off ball and are loading up damn near past the nail to muck things up in the middle. Need to continue to move these guys around. The throwback pass is there to Scoot if he does find himself on the wing. He's quick enough to catch on the run and beat even a sagging recovering defender. Would also like him cutting behind that help more as well. But nice to see the guys put some good things on film after a brutal start to the year. Excited for tonight.
It looks like Shae could have easily boxed out Schroder there and gotten a putback tip/dunk instead of strolling under the hoop and watching. Perhaps he didn't want to be in Ayton's space but either way I wish Shae had some more hustle in him. He also lost a ball on the floor at one point because he didn't hustle. Too casual.
Chauncey's offense using Ayton is pathetic. Ayton is supposed to go "set up" and stand and wait for the ball. In Phoenix, Ayton started a lot of scoring possessions near or outside the 3-point line. The first possession, I thought was NBA basketball 101. Not for a Billups offense. Ayton starts outside the 3-point line, rolls to the hoop, gets the ball, and passes it to a cutter. Yes, that's pretty damn effective. In the second possession in the video, Ayton again starts outside the 3-point line and CUTS to the hoop. What a novel idea! In the third possession, Ayton again starts outside the 3-point line and runs to the hoop and gets an ALLEY OOP pass. Didn't Chauncey promise this kind of offense? Where the hell is it? That Ayton isn't not constantly used as a cutter threat, starting from the 3-point line, by the Blazers makes me want to scream at Billups. For Billups, on offense, Ayton is only the cleanup man for other players' misses. Chauncey has no inclination to relieve us from Jerami Grant's atrocious chucking.
I agree that DA could be better used, but I will say a lot of these plays are result of the attention the guards are getting. Without Ant, we are not going to see many sequences like you see in that first clip.
I agree that Chauncy really needs to bring an offensive coordinator for lack of a better term, but the reality is that we have a rookie, 19 y/o PG whose advantage in the half court is to make plays by attacking the rim given his athletic ability - and read the situation once the defense collapses from there. The opposing teams packing the paint really hinders him and thus limits his effectiveness in the half court. I also do not think that you want DA starting handling the ball from out of the 3 point line, he is not a good enough ball handler for that. His comfort zone should be close to the basket and extended mid-range. That means he needs to get the ball, hopefully on the move, within the paint. That's the place you want to feed him for maximum efficiency. That requires spacing.
Yes, you get Ayton the ball as close to the basket as possible and have him dribble as little as possible. But, to make that happen, Ayton should Not be standing still, and he should start moving toward the hoop from the 3-point line or just outside the 3-point line. He doesn't need to score either. If the defense comes to meet him, there should be a cutter to the hoop. We are not seeing that with the Trail Blazers. Ayton is a big target. Everyone on the team should be able to hit him with a pass.
Motion offense, with cuts. Ayton should be cutting to the basket. He's not outside the 3pt line as a threat, he's out there because that leaves one less person in the paint. At the 3pt line he is 1 step away from his mid range money. Teams will have to honor that.
I don't think it matters where he starts his movement as long as it is movement. To be able to move within the paint, spacing is required. It is required both for the guards to penetrate and for DA to move. That's why 3P shooting is important in the modern NBA.
