Brick by Brick: Post-ups and Virtues

Posted by Rob Mahoney on January 10, 2012 under Commentary |

For perhaps the first time in the Dirk Nowitzki era, those looking for reasons for optimism in the Mavs’ offense have been forced to retreat to their microscopes. The overarching offensive success that has guided Dallas for so long is gone, if only temporarily; the Mavs currently rank 21st in the league in offensive production per possession, and have yet to establish the basis of any kind of sustainable offensive flow.

They get buckets here and there, and have a solid offensive game on one night or another. But none of it is part of a truly constructive process, as those lone bright spots stand independent of all others.

There’s no reason to fret; even age-related decline couldn’t possibly explain the weirdness the Mavs are experiencing on offense right now, leaving virtually no logical basis on which to claim the possibility for long-term futility. Dirk Nowitzki isn’t going to be flirting with single-digit point totals forever, and Rick Carlisle is too creative to let the Mavs’ stagnation hinder them forever.

In the meantime, we can all enjoy the little things, albeit without the big-picture accomplishments that typically act as their selling point. This isn’t Nowitzki’s brilliance on the block vis-a-vis one of the best offenses in the league, but an appreciation of the foundation of an offense that’s currently being reconstructed.

One interesting component, even if it’s something less than a cornerstone: Vince Carter’s inefficiently efficient post game.

Carter isn’t a terribly reliable post threat in the most straightforward sense; according to Synergy Sports Technology, VC has converted just 25 percent of his 12 field goal attempts from the post this season, and has turned the ball over on 10.5 percent of his post-up possessions. But thus far, Carter has been able to work his time in the post toward two specific and reassuring ends: drawn fouls resulting in free throws, and smart passes to exploit the overcommitment of gang defenders.

This should come as no surprise; Carter doesn’t exactly have an array of low post moves, meaning that anything produced down on the block is likely the product of 1) a turnaround jumper, or 2) a quick spin off of his defender. That doesn’t at all preclude him from being an effective post player, but it creates a situation — not unlike Jason Kidd’s post-up game — where the threat of a post-up opportunity might actually exceed the likelihood of a made shot. Carter’s size and strength are incredibly handy for generating mismatches, and though he isn’t the most efficient post scorer by the numbers, he’s excelled this season by making opponents uncomfortable. Carter posting up on a smaller guard is an action that opponents feel obligated to respond to, and the frequent result is either a trip to the line for Carter or a nice set up for a teammate.

Carter’s post-up playmaking doesn’t only come out of the double team, though. Check out these clips from this season in which Carter uses the post — or even the mere threat of posting up — as a creative tool:

Earlier this season, I asked Carter about his read and response process when playing out of the post.

“You just have to play off of how the defense is going to play you,” Carter said. “Some teams double team from the low side, some double team from the high side. It depends on how they play you. Sometimes they want to take away the left shoulder. It’s all about opportunity, and with this team we have so many guys that can shoot the ball. You just have to figure out their rotation. It’s more patience than anything.”

Despite his reputation as a gunner, Carter exhibits that patience beautifully. On the perimeter, he waits for the second and third wrinkles of the pick-and-roll to develop before committing to a decision. In the post, he backs his man down deliberately, waiting for an opponent to overcommit while posturing as a serious threat. He waits and he reads, and though he knows opposing defenses could throw a counter his way from virtually any angle, he’s been committed to feeling out the pressure rather than force his play.

“[The coverage] is game-by-game, because everybody’s different,” Carter said. “Some teams who feel they have a defensive guy who’s a good matchup will play you one-on-one. So you just have to figure out how you can get your shots. You might not get it the first time, or you might get something but then they start playing it a little differently. Throughout the course of the game, you learn.”

And in the short course of the season thus far, the Mavs are learning, too. After posting up Carter just once in the first two games of the season, Dallas put Vince to work on the block against the Oklahoma City Thunder, and have gone to him in preferable matchups since. Twenty percent of Carter’s offensive possessions have been used in the post as a result, and that number doesn’t even include the fine shot-creating work he’s done on the block for his teammates.

The heavy-hitters of the Maverick offense are no surprise at this point: Nowitzki will work the block (or the wing…or the elbow…), and Jason Terry will milk the high screen-and-roll. But having another player — in addition to Nowitzki, Shawn Marion, and eventually Lamar Odom — capable of creating in the post is quite the luxury.

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