FanPost

10-7 3rd in defensive eFG% TS 56.5% ranked 19th


Yeah

There defense is actually ranked well right now. 3rd in defensive eFG%.
I wish NBA reference had defensive TS% but they don't

Where they are lacking is in scoring efficiency. They were higher earlier in the year. That one horrible game against BRK really weighed things down.


WAS is currently TS 56.5% ranked 19th

Top 5 is 59.4%. Top 3 is 60%
So if you are a player not scoring at that rate or higher, you are pulling the team average down.
The more shots you take at those lower levels, the more you affect the weighted average.
Are there other things player do that can help? Sure there are. They can help other increase their TS, that I believe is captures in the TS Add data. Do they contribute defensively is another. But end of the day, teams have to be top 5 TS team and ideally top 5 lowering others teams TS% to be top level teams.

So here is what WAS roster looks like.



Beal 61.3% 16.8 FGA
KP 58.3% 15.1 FGA
Corey 73.8% 5.9 FGA
Goodwin 64.5% 4.7 FGA

The player pulling them down below TS 59-60%
Kuz 55% on 15.7 FGA a game.
Kuz is the single biggest drag on TS because of the volume of shots he takes. But there is more to the story because of the combined attempts of others at even lower rates. The thing with Kuz is, he has consistently been at this level. Never higher and not much lower. 55% is actually a career high by a smig. Previous high was 54.9%. His FT% is 72.6% which is MEH. Ast/TO is bad. 3.4/2.8. He is WS/48 0.52 which is bad given his starting role and value. His 3 ball is all over the place from 31% to 36% with no clear pattern from year to year. So Kuz is operating with in Kuz perimeters. Given his age 27 1/2 and games logged and mins, there is a much smaller chance he improves. This is more likely then not a, he is what he is.

Rui 54.2% on 9.9 FGA a game. He is the 2nd biggest drag on TS. Rui was 57.9% last year age 23 in his 3rd year when his 3 ball was falling so as a younger player who has done better there is a chance he can return to a higher rate. Rui was on a nice improvement projection regarding TS. He went from 53.5% to 54.9% to 57.9%. This year he regressed back to 54.2% so far. This increase and decrease follows his 3 ball. From 28.7% 32.8% 44.7%back to 33.3%. Rui is still just 24. Almost 25. So this is still in that range where he is defining what is normal for him. If he can get back to last year levels on offense with improved team defense, he is a better keep, if at decent value, the Kuz is.

Between Kuz and Rui is a place this team needs to figure things out. Rui gambled on not taking the extension offer and Kuz has a player option for another year at 13M. Id do Kuz at 13M to come off the bench shooting less FGA. Rui still has the rest of the year to add data that help us understand, is his still progressing to a TS 58-60% player, or is he going to be another Kuz at TS 55%. One is worth 20-26M. One is worth 8-13M

Morris 50.6% on 8.0 FGA a game. Morris has been 57-58% 3 years of the 4 he played. So there is a way to play him in a roll like he had in DEN where he can be better then he has been here. He needs someone else to drive and pull the defense to pass to him. That would be Beal but Beal isn't an efficient assist player and he himself needs to get off ball where he is most effective. I just don't think Morris fits well here. We have Goodwin and Wright. I guess in a small ball line up with those two he could be a catch and shoot guard who can assist to turnover efficiently.

Barton 47.7% on 7.9 FGA a game.
Dude hasn't ever been that efficient and again, best used as a catch and shoot 3 ball shooter mainly where he has shown he can post 36-38% from 3, but he isn't playing that way. Also working against Barton, he hasn't been a positive TS Add level player.

Deni 50.4% on 6.5 FGA a game. Deni is young and does other things so while his TS% isn't good at all, I see him developing his game. He is still just 22. His handles look better. He is learning to initiate the offense. He is still one of the teams best defenders. His TS is down from last year 53.6% in large part because he got worse at FGA 3-10 feet. He is just 32.1% on 25% of this small amount of attempts. So more 0-3 foot shots 62% and an improved 3 ball, just 31.8% still but 39.6% of this shots, and we have a place from Deni on the team. So as we knew, Deni needs to keep working on his 3 ball. If/When it starts falling, he can help improve the team TS by not being a drag on it, though its a small drag right now because of low volume.

Corey get just 5.9 FGA a game at team best 73.8% TS. He should be getting more shots. 6 in 25 mins isn't enough. Should be getting something more like 10-12 in 30/32 mins and he should continue to start.

Conclusion
Kuz is what he was coming into the year. Looks like he is something. Get rebounds, good vet, etc. Looks close to being something you want starting, but has never been a +TS ADD player. His TS is to low and on volume. He just isn't good enough to eat the shots he eats so over paying him would be a trap. They should probably be starting Rui to see if they can get him going. Kuz should probably be moved. At 13M he is good value. Should be playing off the bench an starting sometimes if needed. At 25M its hard to have a good team with him while paying Beal and KP so much and over paying Gaf next year. Its hard to raise team TS when your 2nd most FGA a game player is 4-5% less efficient then needed.

2020 Kuz is likely the best Kuz you get. 28mins 11 FGA, not 16 and paid 12/13M max. Kuz is our new Markef Morris. Plays like an AS sometimes and for spurts, but ultimately a step away from being what you really want as a starter.


Barton isn't good enough for his mins or attempts. In a limited role catch and shot 3, maybe. Maybe he improves in a Goodwin, Wright, Barton, Kuz, Gaf line up where he doesn't have to handle the ball. That just might be the formula right there to get everyone in a good slot to use them properly. Some two man with Gaff mixed with drive dish to 3 ball shooters.

Morris isn't a good fit here in the role he is in. He is behind Goodwin and Wright as a guard. He could be a nice piece in the right slot as a back up guard playing the Corey roll but as a better assist player.
Goodwin, Morris, Wright or
Goodwin or Wright, Morris, Deni could work.

This is what the team needs to work out.

They still might be able to improve with the pieces they have if if if. But it very well might take moving something pieces for things that a better fit.

This represents the view of the user who wrote the FanPost, and not the entire Bullets Forever community. We're a place of many opinions, not just one.