Myles Turner enters his third season as the undisputed centerpiece of the Indiana Pacers. With Paul George and Jeff Teague departing for the Western Conference, Turner will be asked to fill a much larger offensive role than he has in his first two seasons.
Turner’s jumpshot is his primary offensive weapon at this point. Although his 3-point shot is a work in progress — 34.8 percent on 115 attempts last season — Turner made 43.0 percent of his mid-range jumpers, about the same as Anthony Davis or Blake Griffin. Almost 90 percent of his 2-point jumpers were of the catch-and-shoot variety and a great deal of them came out of pick-and-pop action.
Turner only scored 1.03 points per possessions as the screener in pick-and-rolls last season, a mark that placed him in the 50th percentile. That stat seems a little discouraging but it’s situational more than anything.
In the clip below, the Pacers are running a high pick-and-roll with Turner and Monta Ellis. As Turner comes off the screen, he floats laterally for a step and then has a choice between stepping forward to the elbow or drifting back behind the 3-point line.
In this case, Turner steps up to the elbow, catches the pass from Ellis and knocks down a jumper over the out-stretched arms of Dwight Powell. It worked out for the Pacers but in the aggregate, over hundreds of possessions over the course of a season, playing this slightly differently could generate more efficient offensive outcomes.
If Turner were to retreat to 3-point line on the play above it would put more pressure on Powell and Wes Matthews, who is defending George in the corner. If Powell stays with Ellis, Turner has much more space to launch his jumper and this time he’s behind the 3-point arc. Even though Turner is an above-average mid-range shooter and a slightly below-average 3-point shooter, the expected value of the longer shot is actually higher because it nets 3-points. Using Turner’s percentages from last year, the difference is 1.04 points per shot against 0.86 points per shot, a difference of roughly 18 points per 100 shot attempts.
The other option is that the space Turner creates by sticking to the 3-point line creates an opening for Ellis to turn the corner on Harrison Barnes, or George to cut backdoor for a dunk as Matthews has to step out on Turner. Teague dribbles away from the screen here, but watch how the threat of Turner behind the 3-point line freezes Channing Frye and keeps the paint open for Teague.
Going back to the original pick-and-roll against Dalas, there is also a clear lane for Turner to roll hard to the rim, either receiving the ball in the paint, or forcing Matthews to crash down and leave George open in the corner. According to Synergy Sports, 189 of Turner’s possessions finished as the screener in the pick-and-roll were of the pick-and-pop variety, about 56 percent of his total pick-and-roll possessions. But when he did roll to the rim, Turner’s length and soft touch made him an excellent finisher.
Turner shot 71.6 percent in the restricted area last season and cut his turnover rate, despite seeing more touches in traffic and on the move. In addition, his assist rate has edged up slightly and he has shown the ability to start hitting open shooters when he catches the ball on the short roll.
Turner’s results in the pick-and-roll last season were statistically average, not because he lacked skills or abilities but because they too often drifted towards the one-dimensionality of the mid-range pick-and-pop. As he extends his range out to the 3-point line on those sets, he’ll open even more driving lanes for his teammates and drag opposing shot blockers away from the rim. As he mixes up his decision-making more, with a balance between rolling and popping, the defense will have more variables to keep track of and his own scoring efficiency should increase.
Next: Five big questions for the NBA's rookie class
Myles Turner’s mid-range pick-and-pop game is an incredibly useful tool. As he continues to diversify in the pick-and-roll, his offensive ceiling will climb.
Add us as a preferred source on Google