It’s no secret Brooklyn’s team last year could be boring to watch on an average night. And instead of adding high-flying athletes, the Nets’ decision to put its chips on veteran stars Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and Jason Terry (aged 37, 36, 36) tempered any hopes of picking up the tempo.
Being old and slow isn’t a death sentence in the NBA, but settling for too many outside shots— especially when you don’t shoot them particularly well — is a definite problem. Now, with the season off to a rough start, it is time for the Nets to start attacking the rim.
To help illustrate this point, the league has added a new tool this season called “SportVU,” a data collection and analysis service that provides a wealth of new statistical info about the game we love. Each arena now has six cameras tracking every player’s movement on every possession, allowing for stats that can often confirm what were previously just the observations of a fan.
The stat of particular interest is drives to the basket, which the system defines as “any touch that starts at least 20 feet of the hoop and is dribbled within 10 feet of the hoop, excluding fast breaks.”
Players are ranked by the number of points they have created for their teams on drives this season. The top Net on the list is ailing point guard Deron Williams at 56th; D-Will’s drives have resulted in 4.6 points per game for Brooklyn. By comparison, Denver point guard Ty Lawson’s drives to the rim have brought his team 15.7 points per game.
SportVU also ranks players by the points they’ve scored individually on drives. The first Net to chart is back-up point guard Shaun Livingston, who has played admirably with Deron sidelined. But Livingston has scored just 3.2 points per game on drives, 38th in the league. Philadelphia guard Evan Turner is leading 8.1 points per night on drives to the basket.
Driving to the rim creates easier baskets. Some teams can get by on sharp shooting from the outside, but the Nets’ current shot selection isn’t cutting it. The team ranks 25th in the league in effective field goal percentage.
Not to mention, it’s fun to watch. If Deron’s ankle problems are going to hinder his explosiveness again this year, Nets coach Jason Kidd should give the rangy Livingston almost equal run. Additionally, Kidd should consider incorporating the youth of his two second-year players: fleet-footed guard Tyshawn Taylor and forward Toko Shengalia — who at times evokes Manu Ginobili in the way he plugs away at the rim — in the team’s plans.
Having a slew of vets should help the Nets in the playoffs, but first they have to get there. And from where we sit today, it’s going to take more than a bunch of old guys jacking jumpers.
Matt Spolar is a nearly 6-foot-1 journalist with a middling high-school basketball career who is sure the Nets win thanks to team’s top-tier guards.
