The Wizards have to rethink how they attack the rim with Bobby Portis in the starting lineup

One of the most interesting dynamics of Scott Brooks replacing Thomas Bryant in the starting lineup with Bobby Portis is how the two players are different ends of the spectrum with finishing at the rim.

Bryant is shooting 80.7 percent in the restricted area, the best percentage in the league among players who have attempted at least 100 shots in the area. Portis is shooting 53.8 percent. That’s the 194th-best percentage among the 212 players in that group. Other than Greg Monroe, every player shooting worse than Portis is either a point guard or a wing player.

To put it bluntly, the Wizards swapped out one of the league’s best finishers at the rim with one of the worst.

The good news is Portis is shooting it better since he arrived in Washington. He’s shooting 60 percent in the restricted area as a Wizard after only shooting 50.9 percent as a Bull this season. That’s a significant improvement but still puts him below your average big man. Markieff Morris, for instance, shot 64.6 percent in the restricted area in Washington.

Scoring at the rim isn’t the only consideration when coaches set lineups, but when Portis is at center, they run the offense the same way they did with Bryant. Now, all the pressure is on Bradley Beal and Jeff Green to get to the rim which means they’ll need Portis to provide extra room in the paint. He’s shooting 41.9 percent from deep on nearly four attempts per game in Washington. They’ll need more of that moving forward to offset what he doesn’t bring around the rim.