Everything Serge Ibaka

[3inthekeon]

JaVale McGee with a 11.3 BLK% this season. From Shaqtin a Fool to DPOY.

[planetmars]

That's also a bit problematic because if wings are just letting their man blow by them to the rim that stat could look bad for the big because they simply have to protect too many easy opportunities for the defense. Also it doesn't take into account the "Champ Bailey" effect I mentioned earlier where they just refuse to even attempt a shot against the guy. Think it's a bit better than just using block percentage though.

Gobert has that issue.. but I think its a defensive strategy for Utah more so than bad perimeter defense. I think their guards funnel their defender to Gobert so he can stop them at the rim.

Some stats have to definitely be taken with a grain of salt.. but I don't really like BLK%. Just getting the guy to miss the shot (without fouling of course) is a better testament to defense than blocking a shot.

[Shaolin Fantastic]

Gobert has that issue.. but I think its a defensive strategy for Utah more so than bad perimeter defense. I think their guards funnel their defender to Gobert so he can stop them at the rim.

Some stats have to definitely be taken with a grain of salt.. but I don't really like BLK%. Just getting the guy to miss the shot (without fouling of course) is a better testament to defense than blocking a shot.

Bingo. Altering shots into a miss is what you're looking for with the top rim protectors. It's really hard to isolate it to just the big though.

[3inthekeon]

Yeah teams often weak opposing guards on D.

JV also with a minuscule BLK%, but he's caused a lot of misses at the rim with that verticality thing he's seemingly mastered.

[Shaolin Fantastic]

I think the best thing would be some kind of stat that aggregates FG% at the rim with a team's perimeter defense. Something like weighting the likelihood of a blow-by against the FG% or some metric measuring shot quality and weighting it against that.

[DanH]

I don't disagree that BLK% is not descriptive of rim protection. I was just pointing it out considering the common discussion point around Ibaka's decline has been how his block rate dropped, with the usual counter being that it's because he's been defending shooting PFs more, and yet this year at C his block rate is still low. Suggesting that he has indeed lost athleticism and is in some respects indeed on the decline. It's possible he's just smarter now and challenges shots more than looking to block them, but considering his propensity to launch blocks emphatically out of bounds, I doubt that's the case. In any case, it would be quite the change of story.

The alternatives to BLK% are all also fraught with downsides, for the record - DFG%, even at the 6 foot range, has proven to be essentially entirely noise, even for players who stay on the same team and largely surrounded by the same players. The extreme rim protection numbers (3 foot range) are still mostly powered by noise, and only the very elite and very terrible manage a consistent result at the extremes.

[Ebonhawke]

Some analytics whiz will come up with the DPres (depress, get it?) stat that involves an opponents' FG%, in combination with the relative difference in height and/or vertical leap of the shooter and defender, combined with the distance that the defender had to travel to reach the point of shot contest.

[Beneperez]

We're sorry, we're sorry, we're sor...

[S.R.]

We're sorry, we're sorry, we're sor...

Nurse saw something there most of us didn't see, I think. Not just that Ibaka could float out near the 3 pt line but as the 5 instead of as the 4, he's actually still inside a lot and taking far fewer 3's than past season, but having only him or JV out there one at a time really changes the game for the whole team. The space is amazing.

Interestingly, JV hasn't exactly lost his minutes to Serge (Serge's minutes are the same, though coming at the 5 now) so much as he's lost them to Siakam's increase and OG/Kawhi sliding up the 4. Anyway, I'm not sure anyone predicted those changes invigorating Ibaka the way they have. He's really embraced the responsibility of being the lone big (more or less) while on the floor.

Edit: One other thought - not at all trying to throw shade here, but replacing DD and Poeltl with Kawhi and DG another huge reason why the offence has so much space now, it's not all just about sliding Ibaka over.

[Spark]

Hoping JV doesn't feel ways not starting as often anymore. Ibake production is way up since last year and its amazing just by changing positions.

Our 1st year coach ain't that bad

[LJ2]

Dare I say, Serge is playing as well as he has at any point in his career?

[MixxAOR]

Dare I say, Serge is playing as well as he has at any point in his career?

Statistically he is

[DanH]

Dare I say, Serge is playing as well as he has at any point in his career?

Yeah, he's playing about on par with his peak days in OKC right now. It's fantastic.

[Beneperez]

Nurse saw something there most of us didn't see, I think. Not just that Ibaka could float out near the 3 pt line but as the 5 instead of as the 4, he's actually still inside a lot and taking far fewer 3's than past season, but having only him or JV out there one at a time really changes the game for the whole team. The space is amazing.

Interestingly, JV hasn't exactly lost his minutes to Serge (Serge's minutes are the same, though coming at the 5 now) so much as he's lost them to Siakam's increase and OG/Kawhi sliding up the 4. Anyway, I'm not sure anyone predicted those changes invigorating Ibaka the way they have. He's really embraced the responsibility of being the lone big (more or less) while on the floor.

Edit: One other thought - not at all trying to throw shade here, but replacing DD and Poeltl with Kawhi and DG another huge reason why the offence has so much space now, it's not all just about sliding Ibaka over.

I agree with this analysis and the reason I highlighted the first line is to emphasise something that hasn't been talked about at all during the off season. While many people would point to it being a Nurse vs. Casey approach to Serge, I would argue the real influence has come from Scariolo having so much experience with Serge on the Spanish NT. If you take a peak on YT, it's clear that Serge has been a five for a good 5 years on that team. I'd even go as far to say is he's been a more well rounded, diverse Capela if that helps to paint the picture. Having someone who doesn't have to envision what it would be like, but rather have the experience of seeing it first hand is a great tool Nurse has at his disposal.

[A.I]

I’ve always thought about it but never said it. Not that Ibaka should play the 5, but that he should be used around the rim more than hovering around the perimeter. He isn’t a stretch big, he has the 3 in his arsenal, but he is better around the rim and on mid range shots.

He is quicker than JV on pick and rolls and he has the ability to pick and pop to a mid range shot, along with the ability to run the floor alongside Pascal.

Ball movement opens up general because Ibaka has the ability to shoot. Kawhi can post up, Lowry and Pascal can take his man off the dribble. Its fun to watch.

Nurse is showing why people praise his offensive capabilities as a coach.