Will Burton is a 10-year NBA veteran, so most basketball fans are familiar with the player the Wizards acquired in July’s trade with the Denver Nuggets. But Washington fans will soon find out even more about him after watching him play night after night for their favorite team.
In the meantime, let’s take a closer look at the numbers to get a better sense of Burton’s game, which is poised to kick off the Wizards chapter of his career…
money from the corner
Burton is a league-average 3-point shooter overall, but shoots much better from corners. Last season, Burton shot 44.1% in corner 3, and over the past three years he’s shot 46.3% on those plays. The only Wizards regular to beat Burton’s 44.1% corner-kicking percentage last season was Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (46.8%), whom Burton was traded to.
What’s interesting about Burton’s 3-point shooting is that he knocked down 42.7% of his open 3s. That is, if the defenders are at least 4 feet apart. The Wizards ranked him 19th in that category in the NBA last year.
Other drives
Burton led the team in drives per game (6.1) and points driven per game (3.5) last season and was the Nuggets’ most frequent driver to the rim. He didn’t shoot particularly high on those plays compared to his teammates (47.8%), but he wasn’t terribly inefficient either. The main thing to know is that he drives quite often and takes those drives seriously.
That skill could work well for the Wizards, who drive a lot as a team.They were ninth in drives per game (47.7) in the NBA last season, ahead of best driver Bradley Beal had only played 40 games. Beal was 7th in the league in drives per game last season (17.4), so considering he played most of the season and the addition of Burton, the Wizards are ahead of 9th this season. may be ranked in That said, they lost two important contributors in that area, Raul Neto and Ishu Smith.
playmaking
One of the ways Burton is likely to help the Wizards this season is through ball movement. Last season, he averaged 3.9 assists per game for him, and has averaged 3.6 assists over the past five years. His total of 276 assists last season put him fifth among his forwards in the NBA’s smalls.
They also had more than any Wizards player recorded last season. Beal led Washington with 265 assists. Burton averaged 10.0 assist points last season, but Beal (16.8) was the only Wizards returning player with a higher assist point average. Burton did all of this while playing on the wing, running much of his offense through MVP Nikola Jokic.
Selecting suitable shots for analysis
Monte Morris’ shot profile is evenly spread, while Burton’s shot is analytically more standard. He’s pretty fixated on his three shots and shooting from around the rim. On the field of Burton, only 15.4% of his goal attempts reached his line from 10-foot to 3-pointer. The remaining 84.6% of him are either outside the arc or within 10 feet. He shoots from the perimeter on almost half of his attempts (48%).
That number may also continue to grow. His share of 48% was by a large margin the largest in his career and more than double his average in his youth. Burton now shoots more accurately and comfortably from distance, so he adjusted his three-point attempts accordingly. It wouldn’t be surprising if Burton stole more than half of his three shots this season.
3 or more than 2
This should probably be taken with a grain of salt the size of Kristaps Porzingis. He played 65% of his time as a player. Historically, he has played for three teams more often, accounting for 88% in 2018-19 and 71% in 2019-20.
These numbers may not currently be completely accurate. These are just estimates based on the line-ups he’s played in. Additionally, positions are not as tightly defined as they used to be. Still, given the Wizards’ roster dynamics, what’s notable is the question of who will start with his threes. Not only does Burton have a history of head coach Wes Unseld Jr. working to his advantage, but in this regard, he has more experience in the position than anyone else.
Comments
Post a Comment