The Nets have officially announced the signing of Paul Millsap, and after the departures of DeAndre Jordan and Jeff Green, Millsap will carry the Nets' interior line with Blake Griffin and LaMarcus Aldridge in the new season. So, what can Millsap, who is now 36 years old, help the team?
The Nets have Kevin Durant, James Harden and Kyrie Irving, and have a good configuration in offense, passing and defense, letting go of Jordan Jr., who was once one of the big three, but not bringing in a real center announced that the Nets are bent on playing a small lineup, whether it is to renew Griffin, welcome back Aldridge or now sign Millsap. Although all three of them are playing in the center position today, they are all big forwards after all.
Griffin was bought out by the Pistons in the middle of last season and joined the Nets after the two were judged to have been recognized by the Nets management and fans, and Aldridge's brief experience with the Nets last season also had a remarkable performance, what is the reason for signing Millsap, which is now "overcrowded"?
Born on February 10, 1985, Millsap was about to celebrate his 37th birthday, and was selected with the 47th overall pick in the second round of the 2006 NBA Draft, he only averaged 9.0 points, 4.7 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 56 regular season games last season, and millsap's average per game in the playoffs last season dropped to only 6.4 points, 3.9 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game. Although Millsap has stepped up his three-point shooting in recent seasons, he only averaged 0.9 three-pointers per game with 34.3 percent three-point shooting in the regular season last season, and only 0.7 three-pointers per game with 26.1 percent in the playoffs last season.
Millsap does have a certain shooting ability, but compared to Griffin and Aldridge, Millsap's shooting has no advantage, and the existence of the Nets' Big Three also determines that role players do not need to invest too much experience on the offensive end, and because of the presence of James Harden, the Nets do not use Millsap's ability to respond; the Nets value Millsap's defensive ability.
Millsap, who has been named an All-Star for four consecutive years, was named to the All-Defensive Team in 2015-16, while Griffin and Aldridge have never been named to the NBA's All-Defensive Team so far. Although Millsap's 48.5 percent shooting percentage in the regular season last season was his worst in nearly eight seasons, he still reduced his opponent's two-point shooting rate by 1.9 percentage points (only 51.9 percent); Griffin made his opponents shoot 56.3 percent in the regular season last season, and Griffin and Aldridge's defensive intensity was never as good as Millsap.
In addition, the Nets also valued Millsap's rich playoff experience. Although Millsap has never been on the stage of the Grand Finals, he has had three sessions of the Divisional Finals. Millsap in his rookie season has followed the Jazz in the Western Conference Finals with the NBA champion Spurs that season, led the Eagles to the Cavaliers led by LeBron James in the 2015 Eastern Conference Finals, and helped the Jazz play against the Lakers who won the championship that season in the Western Conference Finals in 2020. In terms of the number of times he has played in the divisional finals alone, Millsap has more playoff experience than the likes of Griffin and Aldridge. Therefore, the rich playoff experience and Yu Yongkejia's defense is the help that Millsap can provide to the Nets in the new season.