Harper: Praising Blazers F LaMarcus Aldridge's Post Play

Zach Harper of CBSSports.com with some praise for Portland Trail Blazers forward LaMarcus Aldridge's post game.

When he switches to a smaller guy in the post, he's so good at using his arms on his drop-step to create space. A lot of big guys can get tricked or rushed into hooking his defender and getting charged with an offensive foul. But Aldridge knows to keep his hands in and let his triceps do the work on the clearing. On the drive against Derrick Williams, he quickly shows his back before turning over his right shoulder for the fadeaway jumper.

And once he has you in the post and uses that quick gather step to release his fadeaway jumper, you have a better chance at getting a 12-foot ladder on the court and getting to the top of it to block the shot, rather than out stretching his arms. That seemingly infinite reach is probably why 58.2 percent of his made baskets on post-ups come from jumpers and not hook shots or layups. It's becoming an impossible shot to defend, much like Dirk Nowitzki's jumper out of the post.

One scout told me: "You can't stop that fade shot because of his length and his touch. You can try doubling him but he's become such an underrated passer that the doubles don't bother him anymore."

When I asked him how you stop it in a one-on-one situation, the scout simply said, "You don't. You just hope his muscle memory falls asleep."

-- Ben Golliver | benjamin.golliver@gmail.com | Twitter