Four ways Isaiah Thomas overcomes his height in the paint

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Four ways Isaiah Thomas overcomes his height in the paint


by Scott Rafferty 1 day ago Follow @crabdribbles



One of the more impressive parts of Isaiah Thomas’ game is his ability to finish at the rim. Despite being only 5-9 — about five inches shorter than the average point guard in the 2015 NBA Draft — Thomas converted 58.1 percent of his shots within three feet of the basket last season, where over a third of his total shot attempts came from. The former put him on the same page as some of the better finishers at his position, such as John Wall, Russell Westbrook and Kyle Lowry.

That’s significant because many were concerned coming into the 2011 NBA Draft that Thomas wouldn’t be able to finish as efficiently as he did at the University of Washington, which played a big reason in him falling to the Kings with the 60th overall pick. Fast forward five years and he’s making the NBA’s best shot blockers like DeAndre Jordan and Andre Drummond scratch their heads trying to slow him down.

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Marc D'Amico ✔ @Marc_DAmico
Just asked Andre Drummond how Isaiah Thomas can score over 7-footers. He shook his head and said, "I still don't understand it to this day."
9:35 AM - 12 Feb 2016
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Since Thomas wasn’t a volume scorer around the basket when he first came into the NBA — 21.2 percent of his points came within three feet of the basket over his first three years — let’s take a look at how he’s been able to establish himself as a dynamic finisher in that department even though he lacks the size you’d expect to see from a player at his position.


He knows how to get defenders off balance

Thomas can score in a variety of ways. He shot 35.9 percent from 3-point range last season and he’s capable of making teams pay for running him off the perimeter by pulling-up from midrange. While he only converted his 5.9 pull-up attempts per game at a 35.0 percent clip, that number was comparable to the likes of Lowry, Wall, Damian Lillard and Kemba Walker. Plus, Thomas knows how to use the threat of his jump shot to his advantage.

For example, notice how Wesley Matthews has to go over Amir Johnson’s screen to prevent Thomas from shooting a 3-pointer. That gives Thomas the space he needs to get Dirk Nowitzki out of his defensive stance with a hesitation at the elbow — one of his favorite spots to pull-up from — and glide to the hoop for a Rajon Rondo-esque scoop shot.

https://cdn.streamable.com/video/mp4/gt7x_1.mp4

Helping Thomas is Boston’s ability to put at least four players on the court at all times who can space the floor out to the 3-point line. Jared Sullinger, Kelly Olynyk and Johnson each contributed in that area last season, and it’s a role Al Horford can be expected to fill starting from next season. As long as Thomas can break down his primary defender, it puts a tremendous amount of pressure on the defense in those situations because they have to decide between crashing the paint and leaving shooters wide open on the perimeter.

https://cdn.streamable.com/video/mp4-mobile/te4x.mp4


Speed also plays a big factor in his success. Thomas has a lightning quick first step and knows how to evade shot blockers by getting the ball on the backboard before they can react. Watch how he freezes DeMarcus Cousins for a split-second with a hesitation before making a layup over two defenders. His game is built on creating just enough space to get off a shot, which is why his ability to change pace on a dime is so important.

https://cdn.streamable.com/video/mp4/39h0.mp4


He knows how to use his body

Thomas got his shot blocked 109 times in 2015-16, but he’s relentless when it comes to attacking the basket. His free throw rate of 39.4 percent wasn’t far off double the league average last season and happened to be greater than that of Chris Paul (29.4 percent), Kevin Durant (36.1 percent) and LeBron James (34.7 percent). In total, only three players — James Harden, DeMar DeRozan and Cousins — made more free throws than Thomas on the season.

To put himself in positions to draw fouls, Thomas uses his body well to create contact. By jumping into the chest of a shot blocker and using their momentum to push him towards the basket, it often puts Thomas in a favorable situation by neutralizing the only big man in the paint. He makes it look easy, but it takes an incredible amount of core strength to absorb that amount of contact and stay on balance.

https://cdn.streamable.com/video/mp4-mobile/xgil.mp4

Thomas doesn’t only do that to bigger players, either. Watch as he blows by Jarrett Jack in transition and slows down once he’s on his hip knowing Jack’s momentum would lure him into committing a foul. It’s a savvy move that helped him draw nearly 200 shooting fouls last season.

https://cdn.streamable.com/video/mp4-mobile/9r6x_1.mp4

That’s not to say Thomas has to create contact to score. It has more to do with him shielding off defenders so that he can finish at the rim because even the slightest degree of separation can be the difference between him getting off a shot and getting blocked.

One of the ways Thomas does that is by weaving himself in front of whomever is guarding him to take away their opportunity to block his shot. Not only does it put his body in-between the ball and his defender, it usually positions him further away from anyone else lurking in the paint, such as Pau Gasol on this possession:

https://cdn.streamable.com/video/mp4-mobile/2hfk.mp4


He knows how to use the rim as protection

It’s something Kyrie Irving does better than just about anyone. Rather than going up for a regular layup, Thomas will sometimes use the rim as protection by faking as though he’s going to finish on one side only to change direction in the air to keep the rim between the ball and the defender.

If it sounds complicated, it isn’t. This sequence with Robin Lopez trying to chase Thomas down illustrates it as well as any. Notice how Thomas rocks the ball while he’s airborne to keep his options open. It can be a subtle move — especially since he does it so quickly — but it’s incredibly effective when avoiding the game’s best rim protectors.

https://cdn.streamable.com/video/mp4-mobile/jv5f.mp4

Here’s another example of Thomas using the rim as protection. This time, however, he prevents Marcin Gortat from contesting his shot and baits Wall into fouling him by catching him off guard with a right-handed finish. Being able to contort his body midair allows him to make some incredibly difficult plays in the restricted area.

https://cdn.streamable.com/video/mp4-mobile/i3l9.mp4

Thomas uses the rim as protection mainly to avoid a help-side shot blocker, but it can be just as effective when a taller player switches onto him. On this possession, Ersan Ilyasova does a decent job of preventing Thomas from shooting a jumper by guarding him closely while also giving himself enough distance to slide his feet and make it difficult for him to finish on the left side of the basket. With nobody protecting the other side of the rim, though, Thomas floats in the air for a smooth reverse layup.

https://cdn.streamable.com/video/mp4-mobile/qok1.mp4


He’s not afraid of the floater

As good of a scorer as he is around the basket, it’s surprising that Thomas doesn’t have a more efficient floater. According to NBA Savant, Thomas attempted the 10th most floaters in the NBA last season (58) but only converted them at a 31.0 percent clip. Even so, Thomas can finish over bigger players and has a funky hook that he busts out every so often that would make Kareem Abdul-Jabbar proud.

https://cdn.streamable.com/video/mp4/8j2w_1.mp4

This is where being left-handed helps Thomas. It can be trickier to guard players who favor their left hand and Thomas uses that to his advantage by constantly putting pressure on the defense with his dribble-drives. He’s comfortable throwing up floaters with his left hand whenever he’s close to the rim — even when his momentum is carrying him away from the basket — which can be nearly impossible to stop given how much time he spends in the paint.

Just watch how Thomas avoids DeAndre Jordan’s long arms with a sweeping hook shot on the following possession. Thomas bounces off of Jordan’s body to create some space and then puts the ball so far away from Jordan that he has no chance of blocking it.

https://cdn.streamable.com/video/mp4-mobile/iaaz.mp4

Thomas also mixes it up from time-to-time with scoop shots disguised as floaters that reach the top of the backboard at their pinnacle. It helps that he can put the ball where the tallest and best leapers in the NBA can’t reach by using some of the tricks Stephen Curry has made famous.






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