Defending Jayson Tatum – CelticsBlog

Jayson Tatum is an MVP candidate and one of the crucial harmful offensive abilities on the planet. He has one of many deepest luggage within the league with the power to attain from all areas of the ground with an infinite array of strikes. Catch and shoot threes? Examine. Off-the-dribble pull-ups or step-back threes? Affirmative. Midrange pull-ups, floaters, and excessive submit recreation? You wager. On-the-block submit recreation? Thanks, sir. Could I’ve one other? Dribble penetration and ending on the rim? He’s him. Attending to the road at excessive quantity and knocking them down? All night time lengthy.

He packs all of these abilities right into a chiseled 6’8” body with a 7’ wingspan. Good luck, defenders.

Regardless of Tatum’s embarrassment of offensive riches, the opposite crew is attempting to win too. Opposing coaches pore over his recreation movie searching for minute flaws that they’ll exploit. With the data they’ve gleaned, these coaches deploy their very own elite athletes to attempt to gradual Tatum down and drive him into errors when doable.

The simplest adjustment a coach could make to try to restrict a star participant is to double him. For a perimeter-oriented participant like Tatum, that double would often come within the type of trapping his ball screens to get the ball out of his arms and make it not possible for him to focus on mismatches. Whereas coaches have actually tried that technique towards Tatum at occasions, he has largely neutralized its effectiveness within the final 12 months or two along with his exponential progress as a passer and decision-maker.

Tatum has turn out to be considerably extra expert at making the passes essential to beat traps, from early pocket bounce passes and mini-lobs to a brief roll to extra superior cross-court skip passes with both hand to hit shooters on the weak facet. Maybe extra necessary than the technical talent improvement has been Tatum’s progress and willingness to get off the ball on time towards doubles. He now not fights the lure or tries to drive his personal offense. With rising frequency, he acknowledges traps, manipulates the protection with a drag dribble when obligatory, after which makes the suitable move on the proper time. It most likely doesn’t damage that the remainder of the roster is stacked with versatile offensive gamers that may drive or shoot successfully so as to punish the 4v3s that come up when Tatum attracts two defenders.

Whereas coaches threat unlocking the remainder of the Celtics’ offense by trapping Tatum, they must do one thing to gradual him down. Any defensive recreation plan will begin with an preliminary matchup. Some defenders which have executed an admirable job making Tatum work for his scoring alternatives over the previous couple of years embody Dillon Brooks, Wesley Matthews, PJ Tucker, Kyle Lowry, Jrue Vacation, and Andrew Wiggins. I’m not saying these gamers are “Tatum stoppers” or something like that, however they do a very good job of competing and making him uncomfortable at occasions. What qualities do these defenders have in widespread that assist them current challenges to Tatum?

1. Decrease heart of gravity with a sturdy base: There are solely a handful of athletes in your complete NBA that may match up with Tatum’s top, size, energy, and mobility. Most of these gamers (Paul George, Kawhi Leonard, Giannis Antetokoumpo, and many others.) are offensive stars in their very own proper and attempt to restrict the vitality they must expend on the defensive finish of the ground reasonably than checking the highest possibility on the opposite crew. Consequently, coaches often have to surrender one thing once they select a matchup for Tatum, and that one thing is often measurement. A participant within the 6’3” – 6’6” vary can at occasions get beneath Tatum on the perimeter, problem his catch factors, and swipe at his dribble from a decrease stance.
2. Physicality and veteran savvy: Whereas Tatum has improved his personal energy and physicality with every passing 12 months within the league, constantly bodily protection can nonetheless put on on him at occasions and drive him into poor choices. As an opposing coach, I might sacrifice some footspeed right here for elevated physicality and energy. Youthful gamers may need extra velocity, however they typically can’t match Tatum’s athleticism, and their inexperience permits Tatum to shake free along with his infinite array of footwork, dribble strikes, and shot selection. Veteran gamers are extra skilled in working the margins of what’s allowed defensively. Off the ball, they clutch, seize, and bump to make Tatum work tougher to return off screens or catch the ball additional away from the ring than he would love. On the ball, they swipe, nudge, and flop (*Kyle Lowry*) their means into being a nuisance on Tatum’s drives.
3. Andrew Wiggins: There’s a cause Tatum struggled to unlock his full scoring arsenal towards the Warriors in final 12 months’s NBA Finals. Sure, he was exhausted from a protracted playoff run and coping with a hard wrist harm. Sure, the Warriors have one of the crucial linked crew defenses within the league quarterbacked by Draymond Inexperienced’s Mensa-level defensive basketball IQ. However additionally they have probably essentially the most perfect Tatum defender within the league in Andrew Wiggins. Wiggins is without doubt one of the uncommon gamers who can match up with Tatum’s athletic profile. However, not like a Paul George, Wiggins is his crew’s third or 4th possibility offensively and may afford to exert the vitality it takes to wrestle with an offensive famous person all recreation lengthy.

As with all offensive star within the NBA, inflicting them issues is commonly extra reliant on crew defensive schemes than one defensive participant attempting to lock them down. So, what schemes can current challenges for Tatum’s skillset and drive him into much less environment friendly play?

1. Ball display protection: I already coated why I might be hesitant to lure Tatum on ball screens. Switching ball screens presents points as effectively since Tatum would then be capable to choose his most well-liked defender to focus on in isolation. Not many groups have the defensive versatility of the Celtics who can continuously flip to lineups filled with plus defenders, permitting them to change screens with confidence. I might lean in the direction of a slight drop protection towards Tatum whereas instructing the defender guarding the screener to remain inside a step of the three level line to problem pull-up 3s. This protection would process Tatum’s defender with preventing by means of, over, or across the ball display to get again into the motion from behind. Whereas Tatum is greater than able to strolling right into a pull-up 3, he usually shoots from proper on the 3 level line (versus somebody like Steph Curry or Dame Lillard who will pull from 30+ toes with no conscience). Moreover, whereas Tatum knocks down catch-and-shoot 3s at a 42.4% clip, his share on dribble pull-ups drops to twenty-eight.6%.
2. Late however constant assistance on Tatum’s dribble penetration: I might be asking my main defender on Tatum to be bodily and aggressive with him, work always to problem his catch factors, drive him additional away from the basket, and harass him with ball stress on the level of assault. That technique of prolonged stress means it will likely be tough for the defender to remain in entrance of Tatum when he places his head down and drives to the rim. At this level, it might be as much as assist defenders to help the person guarding Tatum as he drives to the basket. Whereas NBA groups don’t usually dig in from the sturdy facet since they don’t need to hand over a kick out move to a nook three, I might be keen to dig in on Tatum beginning on his second dribble. Tatum has gotten a lot better at ending on the rim on his drives, however he nonetheless prefers to complete off one foot reasonably than coming to a two-foot bounce cease. A late dig from the wing can catch Tatum after he has dedicated to a collect right into a ending transfer, making it much less probably that he creates an open catch-and-shoot three for a teammate on a kick out move. Moreover, the inside rim protector must rotate to problem Tatum on the rim with size. Once more, Tatum has turn out to be adept at making the suitable learn (a lob to Rob within the dunker spot or a weak facet skip move to a nook 3) if he sees the assistance early, so it will be important for that rim protector to have a robust sense of timing once they contest.

If opponents marry these defensive methods collectively (intense ball stress from the first defender, slight drop protection on ball screens with out giving up uncontested pull-up 3s, and late assist from a number of instructions on drives to the paint), Tatum would primarily by no means see a cushty catch-and-shoot look all through the sport (barring a defensive breakdown) and can be always induced to drive into visitors. By taking part in with constant physicality and forcing Tatum to drive into visitors within the paint, the protection would probably run the danger of fouling Tatum and sending him to the free throw line continuously. Nevertheless, that is likely to be a helpful commerce off if it saved Tatum from reaching a consolation stage along with his shot making from the ground. I took a take a look at a few of Tatum’s worst capturing performances from this season and chosen 4 video games towards playoff caliber opposition when Tatum struggled.

What jumped out to me was that in a number of of his poorest capturing video games, Tatum nonetheless bought to the free throw line at a excessive frequency with 12 makes an attempt in three of the 4 video games I spotlighted. Nevertheless, these groups have been capable of restrict the frequency of Tatum’s 2-point subject aim makes an attempt and drive him to shoot considerably decrease than his season common percentages from each 2 and three. These stats bear out the potential impression that constant defensive physicality can have on Tatum, even when it finally ends up with him capturing a number of extra free throws than common.

Each Tatum and the Celtics are actually very conscious of what opponents could attempt to do to disrupt Tatum’s rhythm offensively. Whereas Tatum was ridiculously productive throughout final 12 months’s playoffs, he additionally had essentially the most turnovers ever in a single playoff run because the Bucks, Warmth, and Warriors constantly employed a number of the methods I’ve outlined right here. Tatum bought within the lab along with his coach, Drew Hanlen, final offseason so as to add to his offensive toolbox, and the Celtics have additionally launched some new wrinkles into the offense to assist Tatum counter the defensive consideration he garners.

Counters:

1. Utilizing Tatum as a screener with elevated frequency: The Celtics have clearly emphasised incorporating extra units and actions wherein Tatum serves as a screener early within the shot clock. Celtics Weblog’s personal Adam Taylor lately did a movie breakdown on Tatum’s effectiveness as a roll man when he units ball screens. Utilizing Tatum as a roll man leverages the defensive consideration he receives to release his teammates whereas additionally permitting him to obtain catches on the elbows or on the transfer rolling or diving into the paint when the assistance is not going to have time to react to him on the rim. Along with utilizing Tatum as a ball screener extra continuously, additionally they use him to set double stagger pindown screens, an motion that enables him to slide right down to the block at occasions for paint catches. Units like these have seen Tatum’s display assists practically double from 0.5 per recreation in 2021-22 to 0.9 per recreation in 2022-23. However the display assists are solely half the story as Tatum really creates higher catch factors and photographs for himself the extra successfully he screens for others.
2. Tatum’s elevated choices to attain within the submit towards smaller defenders: Since we mentioned earlier the advantages of guarding Tatum with shorter personnel, it stands to cause that Tatum ought to be capable to use his top benefit within the submit. Previously, Tatum has not all the time been capable of make the most of smaller gamers like Kyle Lowry or Jrue Vacation. They’ve been in a position to make use of their low heart of gravity to stonewall him on the block or poke his dribble away if he places the ball on the ground. Tatum has added some easy however efficient submit strikes this 12 months to make use of his measurement to make him extra harmful in these conditions.

Tatum 2-Hand Publish End In opposition to Bruce Brown

Right here, we see Tatum preserve two arms firmly on the ball as he brings his arms up into the chest of Brown, a sturdy defender. Tatum’s two hand grip permits him to soak up and end by means of the contact from the defender.

Tatum And-1 2-Hand Publish End In opposition to Jamal Murray

On this play, we see a really comparable transfer the place, after going through up and giving Murray a jab step, Tatum sweeps by means of sturdy with two arms on the ball into Murray’s chest and as soon as once more absorbs and finishes by means of contact. This time, towards a slighter defender, Tatum earns an And-1 alternative.

Tatum Rise and Hearth Publish Bounce Shot In opposition to Zach Lavine

On this submit catch towards Zach Lavine, Tatum sees Nikola Vucevic lurking within the paint, and Patrick Williams is beginning to shade over in the direction of a double crew. Quite than placing the ball on the ground and driving into visitors, Tatum makes use of his superior size to easily rise and hearth excessive of the protection.

Some of these strikes permit Tatum to punish smaller defenders within the submit, and so they give him an alternate the place he can generate inside paint photographs (and the free throw makes an attempt that include them) with out having to always drive right into a thicket of assist defenders.

As we strategy the playoffs and the stakes for every recreation and possession develop larger, it will likely be fascinating to look at Tatum proceed to evolve to satisfy the defensive challenges thrown his means as he elevates to the best ranges of superstardom.