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A closer look at the Jazz offense: Isolations (last one guys!)

Presswire

According to the data at mySynergySports.com the Jazz are the #27th best team in the league on isolation plays, and smartly rarely elect to finish a play this way, only 6.9% of plays end in Isolations. That said, you still need guys who can make their own shot. Especially with the clock ticking down after you abort a play (when the post up is stopped, and when the other team closes out well on a spot up shooter who hesitates just a second too long). You have to have guys who can be 'money players' -- especially with all the close games we seem to be having lately. You need guys who can isolate and produce. Let's take a look at isolation plays:

Isolation
Bigs # of plays % of plays PPP Rank FG%
Al Jefferson 54 5.4% 0.94 16 49.0%
Paul Millsap 74 8.1% 0.77 89 38.2%
Derrick Favors 16 3.0% 0.50 NA 22.2%
Enes Kanter 4 1.3% 0.00 NA 0.0%
Jeremy Evans 0 0.0% NA NA NA
Wings
Raja Bell 6 2.9% 0.83 NA 25.0%
Josh Howard 58 13.0% 0.84 55 38.5%
C.J. Miles 48 8.4% 0.50 184 17.9%
Gordon Hayward 34 5.3% 0.68 140 34.8%
Alec Burks 33 8.8% 0.61 167 28.0%
DeMarre Carroll 4 10.8% 0.00 NA 0.0%
Point Guards
Devin Harris 43 7.5% 0.95 13 53.3%
Earl Watson 21 8.1% 0.52 NA 26.7%
Jamaal Tinsley 22 17.1% 0.55 NA 31.6%

Here is where Devin Harris and Big Al really prove their worth. They are both #20 in the NBA rank on isolations. That's huge. And well, it kinda means we should be winning more close games I think . . . except for the fact that we (as a team) never go to isolations. Perhaps with more attempts our proficiency or deficiency would be only more pronounced? I think that's what it is. Also, our playbook is based upon sharing. The flip side is that we spend a lot of our forth quarter with the ball in Big Al's hand as he eats 4 seconds off the shot clock before even making a move to the basket.

Paul Millsap and Josh Howard are both our next best isolation performers. I kind of think we need Hayward and Burks to get there though . . . we need them to get better so badly . . .

Btw, I asked earlier today on twitter who was better: Enes Kanter in isolations or Jeremy Evans off of Spot-Ups. The answer is no one. They both have had 4 attempts and missed all four tries. Evans was fouled once, and made a FT though, so technically, he's better. But technically if the game comes down to isolating for Kanter or getting Evans to take a spot up jumper we've already lost the game.