Goldsberry: Breaking Down Blazers' Elite Offense

Kirk Goldsberry of Grantland.com has a very cheery look at the Portland Trail Blazers, breaking down shot charts and tendencies for the team's key performers while also discussing offensive philosophy with coach Terry Stotts.

Lillard's ascendance has been fast. At times, it seems like he's cutting in line to become the best point guard in the NBA. In a league chock-full of "elite" players at the position, the kid from Weber State has flashed unflappable confidence, breezy poise, and ferocious intensity at the end of games. Though he's undersize by traditional standards, Lillard is the kind of point guard you'd design in a lab: He commands the floor, he shoots well, he's fearless, and he improves.

...

Stotts takes it one step further, suggesting that dismissing midrange shots is a fatal strategy. "It's not easy getting to the basket, and it's not easy getting open shots in this league," he says. "Half of the guys in the league, I would not want to leave open at 15 feet. An open midrange shot is a quality shot in this league. Teams basically make twice as many shots if they're uncontested. If they're contested, they make 30 percent; if they're uncontested, they make 60 percent."

The full piece is here.

Thanks to KVin2 in the FanShots right here.

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