How is this guy so allergic to getting to the line? He is shooting 0.3 FT attempts a game? How is a guy so big playing the most physical position not end up at line at all?
How is this guy so allergic to getting to the line? He is shooting 0.3 FT attempts a game? How is a guy so big playing the most physical position not end up at line at all?
To this point the Blazers haven’t played through Ayton in the post. He has been playing well though overall. Main factor is likely that all of our guards die before getting a rapport going with him. Scoot, Simons, and Brogdon all out so we are playing a 2 way guy and THE GOAT Skylar Mays.
The Blazers offense is currently built around an unstoppable combination of putrid 3 point shooting and Jerami Grant isos so not a lot of post offense for Ayton.
Yeah Ayton has the lowest usage of his career, the lowest assist rate of his career, and the lowest dunk rate of his career. He’s still scoring efficiently around the basket (70%), and he’s actually been an elite midrange shooter thus far (58%) but he’s not a guy who can create for himself so he needs the guards to get him the ball in his spots, which the Blazers haven’t been yet, as you say, in part because the offense itself is in turmoil due to all our lead guards facing injuries.
Hard to lay the blame at Ayton’s feet when he converts the opportunities within the flow of the game- he’s certainly overpaid for his current role, but I wouldn’t necessarily accuse him of underperforming, he hasn’t exceeded expectations, but he has been a plus defensive anchor, cleaned the glass at a high level, and offensively he hasn’t complained about a lack of touches but has been passing well, moving to his spots, and finishing with deftness whenever the shot is his to take.
It’s still weird. He’s 16th in the NBA in paint touches, ahead of Embiid, Porzingis, and Zion. For him to have attempted 3 free throws in 9 games as a centre is comical.