"(1) teams should take more threes and evenly distribute them among the players in each lineup (e.g. teams should spread the floor with multiple shooters) and (2) the role of initiating the offense should be narrowly defined, limited to few players"
I am in complete agreement with these rules, but there are limits to the application of these edicts. The Houston Rockets are attempting to apply this strategy, but to limited success. Currently, the Rockets rank out first in the NBA for three point attempts (via HoopData), averaging a whole two of them more than the second-ranked New York Knicks.
So what's the problem? Well, Houston isn't making many of these threes. They're twenty-third in the NBA on three point percentage, probably because the greenlit players are just chucking. It's easy to tell your team, "Shoot many, many threes" and harder to rein that impulse in to only include open shots.
James Harden used to be a deadly three-point shooter. With Houston's blessing, he's chucking a massive 5.7 per game (the number would be higher had he not gotten hurt in the last meeting), while only hitting .286 from deep. Jeremy Lin, never a great three-point shooter, is taking three deep shots a game, while only hitting .242 of the tries.
The research speaks to a lot of information that should be intuitive. I emphasize the "should" because many basketball teams stray from such principles as "narrowly defined distribution" and "avoid midrange shots."
As stated in the piece, there are some players who can take the midrange shot without sacrificing efficiency. Guys like Kevin Garnett, Dirk Nowitzki and Stephen Curry are rare, though. For the most...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Los Angeles Lakers
