Sullinger Is One Of The NBA's Best Offensive Rebounders

http://www.celticsblog.com/2014/2/7/5387020/jared-sullinger-celtics-offensive-rebounds



Jared Sullinger is one of the NBA’s best offensive rebounders
By Alex Skillin  @AlexSkillin on Feb 7 2014, 8:29a 16



Nelson Chenault-USA TODAY Sports
Jared Sullinger is a beast on the offensive glass.


Jared Sullinger has been perpetually underrated in NBA circles ever since he declared for the draft back in 2012. Despite a track record of solid performances against top competition in college, scouts saw an undersized, short-limbed player with back problems who (they believed) would struggle in the more demanding confines of the NBA.

That’s why he fell to the 21st pick in the 2012 draft. And although he has played well in his second NBA campaign, it still feels like Sullinger’s talents go unrecognized to a certain extent, even by the most observant of Celtics fans.

I’ll admit, for example, that I raised an eyebrow or two when Avery Bradley called Sullinger "the best offensive rebounder in the NBA" on Monday. Sure, I’m aware Sullinger knows his way around the paint area, but Bradley’s comment made me wonder if I had somehow overlooked just how good Sullinger was on the offensive glass.

A simple look at his offensive rebounding percentage shows that Sullinger is indeed one of the better offensive rebounders in the league. The Ohio St. product is sixth in the NBA in ORB% at 13.2%, just behind far taller big men in Andre Drummond, Robin Lopez, and DeAndre Jordan.

According to NBA.com, Sullinger leads all Celtics big men in percentage of rebounds per chance (60.4%). The second-year forward also leads the team in total rebounds (383) and contested rebounds per game (the number of rebounds gathered where an opponent is within 3.5 feet) with 3.5 per contest.

So it’s clear Sullinger is pretty great on the boards, and while it is hard to definitively say that he is the "best" offensive rebounder in the league, it’s obvious he is among a handful of players who truly excel on the offensive glass.

But just how is Sullinger so good at grabbing rebounds? Most of the NBA’s other great rebounders are two to three inches taller and possess far longer wingspans. Sullinger, on the other hand, is just a 6-foot-9 power forward with short arms, supposed shortcomings he shares with another great rebounder in Kevin Love.

Indeed, Love excels in the rebounding department despite being shorter than many of the NBA’s best rebounders. At 6-foot-10, he stands just an inch taller than Sullinger, but uses superior strength, positioning, and anticipation to dominate the glass.

A few highlights from recent Celtics games show how Sullinger is adept at gaining superior position over his opponent, while also using his strength and tenacity to out-fight his man for the ball.




At the 2:09 mark, Sullinger simply out-hustles his man for the ball, grabbing it with one hand and showing a good nose around the basket by laying it right back in.

Later on, at 3:09 of the video, Sullinger outmuscles Spencer Hawes (who is four inches taller), grabbing the ball and then picking up another offensive rebound off his own shot (talk about padding your stats!). What really stands out is Sullinger's non-stop motor and effort. He may be shorter than Hawes, but he never gives up on the play—a recurring theme the more and more you watch him.



Against the Raptors on January 13, Sullinger was even better, grabbing eight offensive rebounds. The first (1:10) is a classic case of Sullinger trailing behind the play, taking up space, and grabbing the weakside rebound.

At the 1:51 mark, Sullinger earns himself two different offensive rebounds in one possession, grabbing an Avery Bradley missed three and then getting the loose carom off a Phil Pressey jumper. This is another pattern among Sullinger's offensive boards, as he often camps under the basket when his teammates take long jump shots, trusting in his strength and positioning to smother the rebound. We see Sullinger do this again at 3:28 and 4:50 of the video.

Ultimately, Sullinger brings in so many offensive rebounds because he frequently gets himself into ideal rebounding position just as his teammate is releasing a shot. From there, he simply uses his body to maintain that position and then goes after the ball with persistence.

The words heart and hustle are used so much in sports that their importance has become exaggerated. For Sullinger, though, they are qualities that are crucial in helping him bring in multiple offensive rebounds on a nightly basis.




bob
MY NOTE:  I don't think I've been shy about expressing my affection for offensive rebounding.  Even contesting for the rebound throws off the other team's rhythm.  Getting even a finger on it slows down their transition to offense as they must first secure the ball before advancing it.  I can't complain about the results of the Doc Era, where offensive rebounding was virtually non-existent, but those were different, much older players.  Sully (and Bass and Hump and, yes, perhaps even especially Kelly) have been very disruptive with their attacks on the O-boards.  Kelly doesn't grab as many as the others, but he probably gets more fingers on them than them and, as I said, that has a positive effect too.  Getting a finger on an O-board is a "Scal-stat", like Scal's overplay of the point guard on the inbound pass, forcing them to inbound to a big and either have the big bring the ball up court more slowly than the point guard or force them to take a few seconds off the shot clock just to get the ball back in the point guard's hands.  It doesn't show up in the boxscore but it helps the team by giving the defense a chance to get back and set up and it also shrinks the amount of time the defense needs to defend.  I figure 2-3 seconds is a pass.  One less pass, because we made them eat clock up in the back court, might be all we need to force a bad buzzerbeating shot.


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One factor that is sometimes overlooked in evaluations of Sully is how much his basketball intellect contributes to his overall performance. Just one example, and I'm going to delight Cowens by using Kendrick Perkins as a comparison. Perk was maybe an inch or two taller than Sully but was even more rooted to the floor than Sully is. Both are very tough.

But, when Perk tried to go for an offensive rebound, at least 90% of the time, he'd do it with one hand. At first I attributed that to shoulder problems, but it turned out to be his style. I thnk hypothesized that using one hand was the only way he could reach over opponents who were invariably blocking him out, and thereby he could actually get at least a pinky on the ball (aka false hustle) while seldom actually grabbing the rebound.

What Sully does, aside from positioning himself better than Perk (when he's virtually surrounded by a sea of opponents' arms) is something similar to Perk. He rebounds with one hand and gets a finger on it. But, unlike Perk, Sully doesn't quit, figuring hes done his best. Sully taps the ball to a spot where Sully, himself, can grab it securely. He's the only one who knows where he's going to tap it, so he collects a high percentage of those boards. That's really smart.

Not that Perk wasn't equally smart, Cow. He smarted a lot out there.

Sam

How is Sullinger's 7'1.25" wingspan for a 6'9" PF short arms?

For comparison's sake:
Kevin Love, 6'10" height, 6'11.25" wing span
Blake Griffin, 6'10" height, 6'11.25" wing span
David Lee, 6'9" height, 7' wing span

Players like Sullinger illustrate Bill Russell's observation that most rebounds are taken below the level of the rim and that horizontal angles are far more important than vertical angles.

Celtic games have been painful to watch for the most part but at least they are the best offensive rebounding team the C's have had in many years.

You can see why Sully was considered a top ten pick but for his back problems. He's one smart inside player who really knows how to create space.

Dude knows how to use his caboose.

Outside, sounds like my high school girlfriend.

Sam

Sully has great hands bottomline, combined with an ability to carve out space and get exactly where he wants to go, very quick feet in that space often with a body on him, with his quick feet, caboose he just moves people and if not moving them about, just sheds them to get to the best spot to recover the ball, great instincts....this kid has alot of Moses and Silas in his game. Perk is a load with slow feet, bad hands and relishes contact, he is gonna bruise you all night long.

This kind of ability at boarding is something you can't teach, either you have it or you don't, you can try, but so few can execute and really get it to the extent of a Sully. Like McHale with his low post moves, you can teach it, very very few will get it.

It's a real plus to have quick feet to go with a bruising body.  But what Sally also has that's very unusual is a great pair of extremely quick and strong hands.  His feet help him carve out space, but his hands use that space amazingly—constantly out-quicking opponents to the ball.  Moreover, the combination of very strong hand and a very soft touch is incredible.  He's becoming a very unique specimen.

I know Danny was really prepare for major tanking when he picked the poor cripple, but I'm glad Danny blew it big-time.

Sam

Kyle, excellent point about Sully's wingspan.

Sam, I'm so looking forward to Danny's moves with all his stored up draft picks. Rondo, Sully, AB are came directly from Danny's past draft day efforts. It'll be fun to watch.

W,

Actually, so is Jeff Green, although his route to the Celtics has been a little more roundabout.

Sam

Roundabout that was a great song by Yes.

I wish we could get Wiggins, yesterdays game he really looked good, was really driving hard in traffic, commentators were saying hes made a determined effort to score by driving at the defense, kid is skinny, reminds me alittle of Durant.

worcester wrote:Kyle, excellent point about Sully's wingspan.

Sam, I'm so looking forward to Danny's moves with all his stored up draft picks. Rondo, Sully, AB are came directly from Danny's past draft day efforts. It'll be fun to watch.

all great moves by Danny, the one big blunder was passing up DeAndre Jordan, he took a few years to get it, still has flaws in his game, but this year under Doc, he has really turned into a rebounding defensive stud. Blake Griffen has also really improved, both are at another level than last year, wonder how much of that is on Doc?

Could you imagine our defense the last few years of KG with Jordan? and how good Jordan would be if he had 4 years of Garnett U, plus playing with KG would have made him better.

Woulda, coulda, shoulda.... the best remedy for those regrets is what Scarlett O'Hara had to say:
"Tomorrow is another day."

Worcester,
That was actually Scarlet's final line. Her most frequent line, which gave added meaning to that one, was, "I'll think about it tomorrow." Some years ago, I went alone to Gone with the Wind in Paris. Naturally, I got the time wrong and arrived at the intermission. They wouldn't allow me to enter that late, but I made such a stink that they called the owner at home (mid-evening), and I talked my way in. (I think he just tired of hearing me try to speak French.) The thing I remember most was her "tomorrow" line: "J'y penserai demain." I was so excited to learn that line that I kept repeating it to myself on the way back to my hotel and reeled it off to my wife as soon as I entered the room, where my wife was fast asleep. To which she responded, "Well think about it now and come to bed, Frenchie, because it already is tomorrow."

Shot down in what was supposed to be one of my most triumphal hours!

Sam

It is not just his offensive rebounding but also the lightning quickness with put backs. As quick as I have ever seen.

Dboss

It's those amazingly quick hands, dboss, combined with the space he carves for himself.

Sam

A million guys can jump, hes got the instincts and his strength/quickness allows him to get to wherever he needs to go among all the infighting.

Oui, J'aime bien "J'y penserai demain," mais le meilleur c'est, "Bien, penses à ca maintenant et viens au lit, Francois, parce que c'est deja demain."