Mar 28, 2014; Orlando, FL, USA; Orlando Magic center Nikola Vucevic (9) celebrates after scoring against the Charlotte Bobcats at Amway Center. Center.The Magic won 110-105 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: David Manning-USA TODAY Sports
Lineup #4: Elfrid Payton, Victor Oladipo, Mo Harkless, Tobias Harris, Nikola Vucevic
“Seal the perimeter.”
Nikola Vucevic is awesome. In fact, I would go as far to call him underrated. He is a relentless rebounder, but doesn’t receive the credit a Kevin Love would because of his seven-foot size. So far in his career, Vucevic has a true rebounding percentage (TRB%) of 19.5%. Kevin Love, the best rebounder in basketball, is at 20.9%. Closer than you think. He’s improved his conditioning the last two seasons, and has become an effective mid-range shooter, finishing with 50% shooting last season. In two seasons with Orlando, Vucevic went from a minor piece in the Dwight Howard trade, to a legitimate center and pillar in Orlando’s rebuild.
However, one problem remains with Vucevic: He’s not a rim protector. Last season, Vucevic allowed 56.4 percent of field goal attempts at the rim to be completed. In a league where protecting the rim and defending the three — the two most efficient shots in basketball— matters, allowing almost two of every three shots to be completed is not a good thing. With this Vucevic lineup, the Magic keep three players — Payton, Oladipo, and Harkless— to help seal the perimeter, in efforts to force long jumpers. The combination of Harris and Vucevic has its value, as both seem like good post defenders. Against stretch power forwards, Harris has the ability to close out and force them to reconsider.
This a fine offensive lineup, but it has questionable defensive potential, especially around the rim.