Fron Z Lowes article.
New York has allowed the eighth-most attempts from the restricted area, more than a team playing this style should give up. Teams have only hit 31 percent of wide-open 3s against New York, and that number is already trending up.Still, the Knicks seem to know which shots they should discourage on defense. That makes their shot selection on offense even more puzzling. "It's the exact opposite on offense," Afflalo says, laughing.
This is the largest question hovering over the franchise: Should the Knicks really tether themselves to the triangle? We are barely a half-decade removed from the triangle ruling the league, but the NBA has changed a ton in that short span. The evolution has happened so fast, the severity of it almost doesn't hit you until you really stand back, like Dave Kujan from "The Usual Suspects," and look at the big picture.
No team has taken more mid-range shots than the Knicks. Only two teams have attempted fewer shots at the basket. The Knicks rank dead last in both drives per game and fast-break points, and 22nd overall in points per possession. Mangled tweets aside, triangle teams aren't triple-averse; several of Jackson's peak Laker teams ranked above the league-average in 3-point attempts.
But the league was only starting to embrace high-volume 3-point shooting then, and the triangle may not be able to keep up. "The triangle really sets you up for mid-range shots," Afflalo says, "with all the pick-and-rolls in tight, the cutting, and the post-up work."
The triangle turns post players into scorers, and that isn't working so well. Lopez attempted 52 shots via post-ups all of last season for Portland; he's already 10-of-31 for the Knicks, with a sky-high turnover rate that comes from trying to thread passes through tight triangle spacing, per Synergy Sports.
so here is what phil is thinking ....
11/30/2015 9:19 PM
