Are The Reno Bighorns Preparing Players For Bench Roles In The NBA?
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The Reno Bighorns are the Sacramento Kings’ science experiment. They play a brand of basketball that the professional level has never seen before, deemed as “organized chaos” by the brains behind the operation, David Arseneault Jr. The System, as it is known, has never made it past that of Division III basketball, but it now finds itself in the D-League to see whether or not it can better prepare players for bench roles in the NBA. While we’re still waiting for a definitive answer, it’s clear that their non-traditional system raises a number of red flags.
D-League Digest recently brought up the subject of how The System can help a sharpshooter like Brady Heslip find a home at the next level. The thought process behind it is if he were to receive a call-up, he’d be filling a very specific role that wouldn’t garner many minutes. He’d be a specialist, an injection of energy, for a second unit lacking firepower.
In theory, playing for the Bighorns better equips Heslip for that opportunity because he’s forced to produce in short spurts. Although he’s playing 30.5 minutes per game, he’s averaging 1.09 points per minute he’s on the court. He also finds himself frequently checking in and out of the game thanks to Arseneault’s hockey-like substitution patterns. As a result, he has proven that he can come in cold and produce at the drop of a hat, which is an asset teams could use.
The issue is, however, that the Bighorns may be breeding players with bad habits. While they are the highest scoring team in the D-League, the way they get their points is concerning. Their offense is built on pushing the ball and shooting within the opening 12 seconds of the shot clock, resulting in forced opportunities and inflated statistics across the board. They attempt 113.3 shots per game, by far the most in the league. In comparison to the Dallas Mavericks, who lead the NBA in scoring, they attempt just 86.5 field goals to get 110.4 points on a nightly basis.
The Bighorns’ defense is another, and perhaps even bigger, issue. It’s predicated on pressing teams for 48 minutes and forcing turnovers in the open court. They’re able to make it work by using a platoon system (all but three players on the roster are playing over 20 minutes per game), similar to that of the Kentucky Wildcats. While they are able to force turnovers by pressing teams all game long and turn them into easy opportunities, they gamble far too often. In the process, they give up easy looks and allow teams to score a whopping 138.4 points per game.
NBA players are far too skilled and well regimented to crumble under that level of pressure, which is why teams rarely press one another unless it’s their last chance to extend the game. The worry is players in Reno aren’t practicing the right fundamentals and that their weaknesses are being covered up by their helter-skelter approach.
It’s unclear what the Kings are aiming to get out of their experiment in Reno. In a recent interview with Cowbell Kingdom, the Kings’ assistant general manager, Mike Bratz, wasn’t shy in admitting that they don’t know how it’ll benefit them in the long run. Right now, it’s very much in the beginners stage and they’re still waiting to see if there’s anything concrete they can work with.
There are a few things to take away from how they’ve performed through their opening seven games, though. On one hand, players are thriving in The System, which brings attention to both the team and individuals. On the other, there’s simply too many caveats to get a true indication of how a player could transition to the next level, leaving reason to approach any individual success with trepidation.
If the Kings aren’t clearly looking to mold certain players for their own system, it could prevent other teams from testing the waters in Reno. Seeing as call-ups work on a 10-day basis, players have little time to prove themselves if they hope on working their way to a guaranteed contract. Breaking bad habits, like the ones that are being nurtured in Reno, can be tough in such short stints.