Layups

[Casperian]

There was an interesting stat about converting layups on celticshub.com, so I thought I should share it with you in case you´ve missed it.

http://celticshub.com/2009/05/21/i-owe-glen-davis-a-slight-apology/#comments

Though I’ve defended Glen Davis against malevolent statistics that show he may not be as good as we think he is, I have often harped on his seeming inability to finish around the rim. I once remarked on this blog that if the NBA kept track of missed lay-ups, Davis would be among the league leaders.

I was wrong. Last month, I noticed that Eddy Rivera at Third Quarter Collapse had convinced Ryan Parker (aka The Basketball Geek) to send him stats on which teams are best at finishing lay-ups and how well individual members of the Magic complete the short shot. I asked Ryan if he’d produce the same numbers for Boston, and he agreed. The numbers take into account 11 types of lay-ups based on the league’s play-by-play data: alley oop layup, driving finger roll layup, driving layup, driving reverse layup, finger roll layup, layup, putback layup, reverse layup, running finger roll layup, running layup, running reverse layup. They do NOT include dunks.

Here is how the Celtics ranked (with attempt in parantheses):

1. House 68% (25)

2. R. Allen 64% (178)

3. Garnett 63% (90)

4. Perkins 61.5% (177)

5. Rondo 60.2% (382)

6. T. Allen 60% (135)

7. M. Moore 57.1% (21)

8. B. Walker 56.5% (23)

9. Glen Davis 55.3% (130)

10. Leon Powe 53.2% (167)

11. Paul Pierce 51.3% (292)

12. Stephon Marbury 50% (24)

But there´s more

Now, before you go off saying “You were right, Glen Davis can’t finish!” here are some lay-up rates for the Magic regulars: Nelson (57.5%), Howard (56.2%), Lewis (56.4%), Lee (57.3%), Alston (51.3%), Turkoglu (52.4).

So Davis’ percentage isn’t really so bad. In fact, 54 percent was about average for an NBA team this season. Here were the top 10 teams in the league:

1. Phoenix: 60.8%

2. San Antonio: 59.7%

3. Golden State: 59.7%

4. Cavs: 59.3%

5. Boston: 58.6%

6. Hawks: 57.2%

7. Pacers: 56.8%

8. Wizards: 56.1%

9. Kings: 55.3%

10. Hornets: 55.1%

I think it´s interesting that Baby´s percentage is even better than Powe´s at a comparable amount of attempts.

[pengaloo]

Those are interesting numbers, especially Ray Allen's - although him driving to the basket lately makes me hold my breath in anticipation of a turnover. I think what makes Baby's missed layups so jarring is that a lot of times, he's so close to the basket, and he's so big that it's hard to imagine how anyone can alter his shot... and yet he still misses.

Eddie said in one of his postgame press conferences that Rondo's been teaching him how to make layups. Maybe we'll see more from Eddie this fall!

[yoursweatersux]

^^ exactly. Big Baby uses his body really well to clear out defenders when he goes for a layup. So then it's pretty shocking when he misses a point blank shot that's not really being contested.

This is totally different from Pierce, who gets hacked (oftentimes, on purpose) on virtually every layup attempt, and then makes those points up at the line.

[Fafnir]

Powe doesn't lay it up all that often. He tries to dunk it, so that stat doesn't surprise me too much.

[cordobes]

Powe doesn't lay it up all that often. He tries to dunk it, so that stat doesn't surprise me too much.

Yup. These numbers are a nice curiosity, but I wouldn't read much into them.

[Casperian]

Well, considering that he almost always goes for the layup instead of the dunk and his percentage is above the league average, it certainly debunks the myth of "BBD is a poor finisher" around the rim..

[cordobes]

Well, most big men try to dunk their close shots because it's such an efficient shot. If BBD almost always goes for the layup instead of the dunk, he's opting for lower-percentage shots. I can't see how that debunks any myth at all; quite the opposite.

Davis eFG% in inside shots is 56%. Last season it was 55%. Comparing with the other Celtics bigs:

Garnett - 73% 75%
Perkins - 69% 65%
Powe    - 64% 60%
Posey   - 59%
Davis   - 56% 55%
Moore   -     71%

So for a big man Davis is indeed a bellow-average finisher around the rim. The fact that he's solid making lay-ups is negated by his unconventional shot-selection for a big.