I was looking at our KenPom page and a couple stats leap off the page. Nobody on our team shoots below 50% from 2, and nobody on our team shoots better than 37.1% from 3. Matthew Mayer and Sencire Harris are the only players on the team who score more efficiently from 3 than from 2.
The second noteworthy item is that we are 54th in the country in 3PA/FGA. So we are shooting a lot of 3's even though we are terrible at it. From my observations, Epps and Hawkins should not shoot 3's off the dribble (and Hawkins should not go beyond NBA range.) Mayer can get hot from 3 but if he's not on a heater then he should also be a spot-up 3-point shooter. RJ's shot is just broken right now. Shannon can make them in rhythm from certain spots. Everybody loves taking heat-check 3's but only Mayer ever gets hot enough to justify it.
Everyone on this team thinks they are Steph Curry. They aren't.
I did look back and the 2013 team was similarly challenged from 3. They shot 31.8% to our 31.5% this year. They were 22nd in 3PA/FGA. That team was the Groce team that won Maui, beat #1 Indiana, and lost to #2 seed Miami as a #7 seed. They were #46 in offense to this year's #50 in offense. The difference between the teams is that 2013 team was not good at shooting 2's (175th.) This team is very good at it (16th.) That 2013 team was comparable in offensive efficiency because they almost never turned it over. Since they couldn't score from anywhere (they were also terrible with assists because they had no real PG) it made sense to just go 1-on-1 (they shot FTs well) and jack up 3's because it was better than turning it over.
This year's team has no excuse not to shoot more 2's. They turn it over a ton anyway (so it's not like 2013 where the 3 was a safer shot than working longer for a 2.) They are also 93rd fastest in offensive possession length, which means they are rarely running up against the shot clock where you have to settle for a 3 because that's all you have time for. This is also a very good offensive rebounding team (33.7%) so we thrive around the rim.
Sometimes the 3-pointer is the correct shot and I'm not saying to never take them. Catch-and-shoot 3's generated by the flow of the offense are higher percentage looks and work well for us. The problem is that we settle for 3's and have fallen in love with the 3-point shot. It's a form of selfishness and immaturity because guys want to showcase their shooting for the NBA.
If this team stopped settling for 3's and focused the offense on trying to get the ball into the paint then they would become more efficient. Even more simply, the lesson is to play to your strengths and do the things you are good at. After 24 games, we know what that is for this team. All the fans know this. Half this board is screaming about it every game thread. I just hope the players let it sink in and figure it out.
The second noteworthy item is that we are 54th in the country in 3PA/FGA. So we are shooting a lot of 3's even though we are terrible at it. From my observations, Epps and Hawkins should not shoot 3's off the dribble (and Hawkins should not go beyond NBA range.) Mayer can get hot from 3 but if he's not on a heater then he should also be a spot-up 3-point shooter. RJ's shot is just broken right now. Shannon can make them in rhythm from certain spots. Everybody loves taking heat-check 3's but only Mayer ever gets hot enough to justify it.
Everyone on this team thinks they are Steph Curry. They aren't.
I did look back and the 2013 team was similarly challenged from 3. They shot 31.8% to our 31.5% this year. They were 22nd in 3PA/FGA. That team was the Groce team that won Maui, beat #1 Indiana, and lost to #2 seed Miami as a #7 seed. They were #46 in offense to this year's #50 in offense. The difference between the teams is that 2013 team was not good at shooting 2's (175th.) This team is very good at it (16th.) That 2013 team was comparable in offensive efficiency because they almost never turned it over. Since they couldn't score from anywhere (they were also terrible with assists because they had no real PG) it made sense to just go 1-on-1 (they shot FTs well) and jack up 3's because it was better than turning it over.
This year's team has no excuse not to shoot more 2's. They turn it over a ton anyway (so it's not like 2013 where the 3 was a safer shot than working longer for a 2.) They are also 93rd fastest in offensive possession length, which means they are rarely running up against the shot clock where you have to settle for a 3 because that's all you have time for. This is also a very good offensive rebounding team (33.7%) so we thrive around the rim.
Sometimes the 3-pointer is the correct shot and I'm not saying to never take them. Catch-and-shoot 3's generated by the flow of the offense are higher percentage looks and work well for us. The problem is that we settle for 3's and have fallen in love with the 3-point shot. It's a form of selfishness and immaturity because guys want to showcase their shooting for the NBA.
If this team stopped settling for 3's and focused the offense on trying to get the ball into the paint then they would become more efficient. Even more simply, the lesson is to play to your strengths and do the things you are good at. After 24 games, we know what that is for this team. All the fans know this. Half this board is screaming about it every game thread. I just hope the players let it sink in and figure it out.
