‘Tis the season for fans to remove themselves from the head-down, blinders-on grind of football and realize there are basketball games being played in Clemson. Many Clemson fans find themselves in this predicament and might need a crash course on how the Tigers have performed thus far, just so everybody’s on the same page.
As we await tonight’s rivalry game with South Carolina, here are a few notes on the 2015-16 Clemson men’s basketball team through ten games:
The Tigers seem like they’re playing faster, but a better word is “quicker”.
One popular complaint about Brad Brownell’s teams is that they should get up and down the floor more and play at a higher pace. That complaint has all but gone away this season given Clemson’s improvements on the offensive end of the floor.
Surely this means the Tigers are playing faster, right? Well, not exactly.
First of all, everyone is playing “faster” this season with the introduction of the 30-second shot clock. Each game naturally includes more possessions, so an uptick in that department is to be expected.
However, the Tigers have only played—on average—1.8 possessions per game more this season than last. One could argue they’re actually playing slower, which is borne out by the national rankings (294th in tempo last season, 343rd in tempo this season).
There are reasons why this is the case even when it doesn’t seem to be. The Tigers are sharing the ball much better this season, moving from an assist rate of just under 48 percent a year ago to just over 60 percent last season. In the ACC, only Pittsburgh and North Carolina assist on made baskets more frequently. Players like Jordan Roper (40-to-7 ratio) help by assisting on buckets while not turning the ball over, and having Avry Holmes at point guard has helped keep the ball moving on long possessions.
This is also the best shooting team in Brownell’s tenure, by leaps and bounds. Even his first team that went to the NCAA Tournament was barely over 50 percent in effective field goal percentage (different weights for 2s and 3s), but this bunch is at 53.2 percent for the year—good enough for 58th nationally.
It’s a team that relies heavily on the three-point shot.
Piggybacking off of that point, the Tigers shoot deep jumpers at a much higher rate than they have in many seasons. 40.5 percent of all shot attempts have come from three-point range so far, bested only by Syracuse among conference foes in that regard. If that pace continues, it would blow away any of Brownell’s previous teams.
Three of Clemson’s volume shooters should be considered by opponents as dangerous from beyond the arc, at least by my somewhat lofty standards. Holmes (44.4), Jaron Blossomgame (40.7), and Donte Grantham (38.0) are all capable of lighting up the scoreboard at any time, and Roper (35.1) is not far behind.
There are drawbacks to being perimeter-oriented, however. This Clemson team does not get to the line as much as some of its predecessors, which could be a good thing given its 66.8 percent mark on free throws.
Pardon the pun, but Clemson’s four-man is “Blossom”ing into a star.
The redshirt junior leads the Tigers with 16.6 points per game and is second in rebounding (6.7) and blocked shots (1.7). Blossomgame is shooting 57.6 percent from the floor and, as illustrated above, has been a dead-eye shooter from long range.
Brownell has described Blossomgame as an undersized four in the ACC, but his knack for grabbing offensive rebounds and his relentless pursuit of driving lanes allow the Georgia native to play bigger than he is. If Clemson is to achieve anything of significance this season, Blossomgame will need to be the catalyst.
Landry Nnoko and Sidy Djitte have formed a nice combination down low.
Both of Clemson’s long, athletic centers have factored into the season so far. Nnoko has played about seven more minutes per game, but foul trouble has often relegated him to the bench soon after tipoff. Brownell may look to get Djitte some starts in an effort to keep Nnoko from feeling the effects of early fouls.
Per-minute, Nnoko has been more productive as a scorer and a shot-blocker, but Djitte has been better on the glass. The sophomore actually leads the Tigers with an average of 6.8 rebounds per game, including 21 on the offensive end.
Combined, the two are playing about 36 minutes per game and contributing 13.6 points and 12.7 rebounds. Brownell will surely take that from his five spot on the floor.
The primary thing the Tigers lack right now is toughness.
This seems an odd thing to say about one of Brownell’s teams, but he has been open in admitting this isn’t as tough a team as some of its predecessors. No doubt the departure of Rod Hall at point guard is to blame for much of that, although his departure has also led to a more attractive offensive game overall. As far as tradeoffs go, it might be a wash, or even a net positive for the program.
Given a lack of size on the wing, at point guard, and Blossomgame’s relative lack of size as a stretch four, the Tigers will likely be dealing with this all season long. It will come down to players buying into Brownell’s philosophy on defense and playing bigger than they should in order to get enough stops to beat the teams on a gruesome conference slate.
God Bless!
WQ