Schuhmann: Examining Blazers' Pick-And-Roll Defense

John Schuhmann of NBA.com takes a look at the Portland Trail Blazers' pick-and-roll defense by digging into the numbers.

According to SportVU, the Blazers ranked 26th in pick-and-roll defense through Monday's games and are up to 22nd after a game against the reeling Hawks on Wednesday. They've allowed 1.06 points per pick-and-roll possession overall, even though they've been pretty good when Lopez has been the guy defending the screener, allowing just 1.01. That ranks 55th among 134 players who had been the screener's defender on at least 200 pick-and-roll possessions through Wednesday. Not great, but above-average.

But near the bottom of the list is Lopez's frontcourt-mate, LaMarcus Aldridge. The Blazers have allowed 1.17 points per possession when Aldridge has been the guy defending the screener. Of those 134 players who have defended at least 200 pick-and-roll possessions, only one - Trevor Booker - has a higher mark (1.18).

The full analysis -- which offers some thoughts on why Aldridge's numbers might not look so hot -- can be found right here.

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