Portland Offense (part 2)
This is not the offense we know Previously, I broke down some of the quick hitting variations of Portland's basic horns set. I want to continue by demonstrating how these quick hitters flow into their continuity so that as opposed to most NBA offenses, the ball and players are constantly moving rather than ponderously moving from one set to the next. I also want to demonstrate why LeMarcus Aldridge is so key to a lot of what Portland does.
The following two plays illustrate both Portland's continuity and Aldridge's importance to that continuity nicely.
The following two plays illustrate both Portland's continuity and Aldridge's importance to that continuity nicely.
Unfortunately, the final pass was fractionally too hard, resulting in a turnover. But still, a beautiful play. What happens if the defense defends this initial action well, you might ask? Well, this:
Interestingly, this variation occurred without any of the pin down/downscreen action from Lopez on the backside, leading me to believe that the play vs. Brooklyn was a called play, especially since that possession was out of a time out. However, from the perspective of Butler and especially Udoh the most salient action on the play Batum's wheel cut into a back screen, which forces Udoh to drop just enough leave the Bucks at a disadvantage on the ensuing pick-and-pop.
Aldridge is vital to this set because there is no way the lob play ever works if his defender is not terrified of his game from the elbow area. Viewing the Brooklyn play from a different angle demonstrates this:
Aldridge is vital to this set because there is no way the lob play ever works if his defender is not terrified of his game from the elbow area. Viewing the Brooklyn play from a different angle demonstrates this:
In part one, I also looked at variations of Aldridge receiving the ball on a quick duck in to left mid post as another way in which Portland gets into some half court continuity. But what takes his contribution to another level - and perhaps a level of usefulness to this offense even beyond that enjoyed by Dirk Nowitzki in the Dallas offense upon which this is based (Terry Stotts was an assistant to Carlisle in Dallas for 4 seasons before getting the Portland gig), is Aldridge's ability to run the floor.
Though Aldridge's speed doesn't necessarily lead to fast breaks (again, Portland is around 20th in the league in pace), it does allow for numerous opportunities in transition. For example, we've seen how Portland likes to get the ball to him in the high or mid post on the left side of the floor. Sometimes the simplest plan is the best, and what could be simpler than running fast to the spot you want to go?
Even where the opposition manages to transition from offense to defense more or less perfectly, Aldridge's combination of speed and ability to handle the ball on the move allows Portland to gain small advantages from working against a defense not totally set and prepared:
The end of this play demonstrates another of Aldridge's qualities which greatly aides the offense: his passing ability. While he's not especially well known as a passer, he is quite effective as a distributor, averaging between 2.5 and 3 assists per game every year. This is very respectable for a big, though not quite at the level of the Gasols or David Lee. However, he is comparable with other bigs known for their playmaking such as Dirk and Kevin Love. Additionally, Aldridge is very sure handed, turning the ball over extremely rarely for how much of the offense runs through him. Much like Nowitzki, his turnover rate is always in the single digits, borderline absurd for such a high usage player.
His height and vision allow Portland to use him as a distributor from the top of the floor:
His height and vision allow Portland to use him as a distributor from the top of the floor:
Or from the elbow/mid post area:
Not to mention his ability to make plays out of double teams and rotations:
So though it's a common narrative to criticize Aldridge for shooting too many jumpshots and not getting into the low post enough, these complaints are largely misguided. It's Aldridge largely unique combination of size, agility and shooting touch from the mid range area which keys a great proportion of the things which make Portland's offense so effective thus far this season.
Since we're writing about the Blazers anyway, I'd be remiss not to link to Zach Lowe's piece on Portland's analytically driven defensive principles, which in the early going have helped improve Portland from a bottom-5 defense last year to something closer to the middle of the pack this year. Though he doesn't directly address it, Lowe confirms something I've observed as to part of their success. Portland leads the league in 3% allowed, it seems based largely on the fact that they don't help much if at all in post up or iso situations, choosing to live with opponents doing well from those situations while avoiding the more dangerous 3 point shots and/or free throws which drive many high efficiency offenses.
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