In the modern NBA, the game has moved away from the mid-range jumper. Analysts say this is not efficient. But while the debate about the mid-shot has been going on, it has always been a staple of several players' matches.
"In this day and age, mid-range is considered a bad shot, I guess. But I shot 19,000 points from mid-range, so you told me it was a bad shot and I don't believe you," Aldridge said of his expertise. "We know the team is going to give up certain things and my mid-range tonight is one of them. Not every night, but tonight against Philadelphia. ”
Aldridge played his 16th season in the NBA, where he built his prolific career at both high and low mid-range. At a time when three-pointers are still more valuable than two-pointers, the Nets veteran integrates three-pointers while still staying true to his craft. That mid-range advantage has left the seven-time All-Star player 25 points behind 20,000 points — a historic feat that only 47 players in NBA history have accomplished.
Since 2000, the NBA's three-point revolution date began to rise slowly — 17 percent of shots were three-pointers at the time — but in the 2016-17 season, that huge rise disappeared from the table. The league sees that 40 percent of the shots made by the top teams are shot from the inside. Other teams noticed. The number of teams is close behind, with the number of teams with a p-value of more than 40% surging to 9 teams by 2020.
Still, from the rise of the three-point revolution to today, Aldridge remains true to his signature mid-range shooting technique — while implementing more three-pointers at a higher speed. Fittingly, his shots look like a hard-working brain!
LaMarcus Aldridge shooting chart 2017 to date
Aldridge scored 65.6 percent in mid-range in Brooklyn last season (five games), compared to 61.1 percent from his last full season (2019-20 with the Spurs). That's a growing number.
Although the Nets have only played two games, Aldridge's mid-range has had an impact on Brooklyn so far. Despite a poor regular season start against the Bucks — a game he scored just one point in a 16-minute game — it was his Friday night game against the 76ers that helped Lift Brooklyn off the 14-point deficit and push them into a tough phase. Won the victory.
"Obviously, he shot well," Steve Nash said after the Nets' 114-109 comeback victory over the 76ers. "It was good. He's also just a smart defender. He knows the game plan and feels good. I think he influenced the game at both ends of the pitch. Proud of his performance. ”
As Brooklyn tried their frontcourt selection throughout the game, Aldridge rehearsed his signature extended free throw line jump shot with a block breakout and finished the game with 23 points on 10-of-12 shooting and scoring 5 points. Rebounds and two blocks in 23 minutes per game.
"It's natural," Aldridge said after Friday's win. "If I say I think I'm going to do what I do, I'm lying. We discussed my blocking before the game, so we definitely put it in our bags and then James [Harden] found out I was late. It's just trying to take advantage of people outside. I thought we were all just starting to play basketball and basically just reading. ”
In both games, Aldridge's 50.0 percent of his points came from the mid-range, while 83.3 percent came from two-pointers.
Ramacus Aldridge shots (2 games)
"He's a force there. He knows how to play. He has a high IQ," said Kevin Durant, another mid-range master in Aldridge. His game is simple and basic. That's what I enjoy the most; the players who can do things quickly, catch the ball and shoot, turn around and jump shot. That's his game, he can finish the game under the basket," "He's just a smart player. So we just need to build on that. You know, La Marcus will build on that, and we'll start there. ”
As the 76ers learned, there was already.