We’re back, and we’ve played some good basketball as of late! Welcome to the five highest-IQ plays of the week!
Sure, we love the high-flying dunks and the deep, off-the-dribble step-back threes, but this is a place for the under-the-radar plays that might not get the credit they deserve. The plays that get the basketball psychos and nerds out of their chairs. The plays that even YOU could make in your weekly rec league game.
Each week, the plays will be ranked from five to one—one being the smartest—and
will only be taken from games that occurred within the past week. In this week’s case, games from November 12th to November 19th are considered.
5. Modern NBA movement
The NBA is always changing, and it’s important to not get left behind. One of this year’s innovations seems to be the increased movement we’re seeing from off-ball players on drives. Memphis started their “wheel” concept last season, and Miami has taken it to a new level this year. Now, everybody is stealing it. In the play above, Anfernee Simons does a good job executing this modern spacing concept. On Pritchard’s drive, he moves in the SAME direction as the drive, forcing his defender to lose sight of him and make a longer closeout. Then, without thinking, he attacks the closeout and kicks out to a relocating Pritchard. It’s so simple, but these little off-ball movements can make the difference between an open look and a contested one.
4. End of clock double-team
In the first week of high IQ plays, I wrote about an ill-advised late-clock double team from Anfernee Simons that resulted in a wide open three. Simons needs to take notes from White, because THIS is how you execute what he was trying to do just three weeks back. White doesn’t double right as Harden begins his move to the hoop, because he knows an overhelp could result in an easy Dunn three or Collins dunk. But once Harden makes his patented step-back move, White knows there isn’t enough time for him to also kick the rock to Dunn for a buzzer-beater – so he doubles aggressively, resulting in a terrible look. Beautiful stuff from Derrick.
3. The Kornet special
Queta must’ve learned a little something from Luke Kornet. The super niche skill of getting out screens early was something the Green Kornet excelled at, and Neemias seems to be understanding it, too. On this play, he notices that Pritchard’s defender is aggressively trailing the play; so even though the initial call is for him to dribble hand-off and make contact with the defender, he realizes he doesn’t have to because Pritchard has a free lane without his assistance. Once PP gets the ball, Queta is already behind Jaren Jackson Jr. and puts Memphis in an impossible position from a coverage standpoint. Easy lob.
2. Playing the numbers
This play might seem super simple, but it’s a perfect example of the strategic decisions that NBA players are consistently making at a rapid pace. Garza slips out of the screen and makes a really nice short roll pass. It’s great stuff, but it’s not what I’m most impressed with on this play. Instead, I love everything he does AFTER he gives the ball up. Luka knows two things; one, that three-point misses are usually going to bounce outside the restricted area, and two, that corner misses most often fall to the opposite side of the rim. As a result, Garza boxes out the defensive player (who said boxing out can only happen defensively, anyway?) in the optimal position to receive the offensive board. And the numbers pan out for him in this specific scenario. Excellent rebounding positioning.
1. Starting Walsh
Starting Jordan Walsh has brought a meaningful jolt to the Celtics’ first five – mostly on the defensive end. He brings unique versatility in that he can defend both guards and forwards, which makes him a feasible option to defend virtually any team’s best player (unless it’s a center like Jokic).
This play is a good example of his ability to guard forwards, but I’m more so using it as a placeholder to shout out Joe for his continued trust and belief in Walshy. Many coaches could’ve given up on Jordan after his underwhelming first few seasons, but Mazzulla is clearly using this year’s roster unknowns as a way to give Walsh a real shot. And it looks to be working out quite well. Walsh knows his role and sticks to it.
