Found this article written on January 6th Interesting
"Why Is The Offense Worse When John Henson Is On The Floor?
John Henson confuses me. I think he confuses a lot people. First of all, his dominant hand is not actually his dominant hand. He looks smooth and skilled when operating as a southpaw, and anything he does with his right hand either doesn't work (he's a terrible at shooting jumpers and free throws) or looks mechanical and unnatural (his right-handed hook shots are downright ugly). Let's just call him a lefty and move on, okay?
The next issue is a bit more dicey. Larry Sanders and John Henson aren't a perfect pair, and for some people Sanders' elite defense might not look as attractive as Henson's presumed potential as a two-way player capable providing more value on offense. Larry has learned to avoid jumpers and limit his involvement to hand-offs, rolls, and crashing the offensive glass. Henson is trying to stretch his range and absorb more iso post looks. In fact, some of his penchant for hook shots may dig into his offensive rebound opportunities. So is Henson really a potential impact player on offense? I'm not sure.
The big problem for me is that post offense isn't a particularly efficient way for an offense to score. Henson has converted 25 of his 63 post opportunities (39.7%) this season and ranks 81st in the league at 0.72 points per possession, according to MySynergySports.com. That ppp mark is below the NBA average for post plays over the last two seasons (0.83 ppp), but the fundamental issue is that post play just isn't efficient -- at least on its own.
In theory, good post play will draw a second defender and open up valuable spot-up opportunities on the arc, ala prime Dwight Howard. The problem is that opponents aren't doubling Henson. They seem perfectly content with the eight-foot hook shots he hoists up, and John doesn't consistently have the vision or awareness to pass out of bad looks in time to get better chances for teammates. Why double a below-average post scorer when he will take a low-percentage shot that keeps him away from the offensive glass and limits his chances of getting fouled?
Here's the stat worth pondering: When Henson is on the floor the Bucks average 18.2 3PTA per contest; when he is on the bnech the average rises to 21.9 3PTA. For the entire roster, no other player's on-court team 3PTA average is lower, and no other player's off-court team 3PTA is higher. The theory of post play is not being put into practice.
Instead, the Bucks just look kind of old school and dumb. They've set a baseline as one of the worst offenses in the NBA, but the unit has been markedly worse when Henson is on the floor. If he's a two-way buiding block for a future contender, don't think it's too much to ask to have him improve the worst offense in the league.
But maybe the on/off stats in the chart are misleading. Maybe ezPM is wrong. Maybe the on/off stats from last year were misleading too. Maybe RAPM was wrong. Maybe there's a perfectly good excuse for all of this and it is reflected in his career-high personal numbers. All I know is that I'm not yet comfortable with assuming Henson brings a lot of value to an offense. Maybe he should be a garbage man and energy player on offense like Larry Sanders.
For all of his craftiness in the post and boundless length, he hasn't shot better than 50% from the field since high school. Should we be able to say that about a big man with his size and skill? As I've previously pointed out, his jumper appears to be broken and isn't likely to get better. He shot 18-81 (22.2%) beyond eight feet last season, and even amid his best shooting season -- he's on track to crack 50% shooting from the field this year and has a nifty 54.7% TS mark that's far better than anything from the previous four years -- Henson is still just 19-66 (28.7%) from outside eight feet." @StevevonHorn
Topic: Target: John Henson (Read 2039 times)