How the double high screen could unleash Evan Fournier
Help with ‘pace’
The double high screen set is also highly compatible with how
wants the Magic offense to run – with “half-court pace.”
On many of these plays, the Hornets run directly into their set and screens and force their opponent’s half-court defense to hastily defend their quick offensive motion.
After the Magic played the Phoenix Suns in November, Vogel claimed the team’s failure to consistently push half-court pace had been problematic for the offense.
“At times, we’re running into our sets and we’re running into our screens,” Vogel said. “We call it ‘half-court pace.’ You want to initiate early and then [with] the speed of [our] cuts, the speed of the ball movement has been good at times, and there are times when we’re walking around and not playing with good pace. The ball sticks in those situations.”
This conceptualization of “pace” does not show up in most statistical measures of pace, because it does not necessarily involve getting out in transition and creating more possessions (although that certainly doesn’t hurt). It simply prevents the opposing defense from getting organized enough to defend on its terms.
In the video above, the Hornets get two points about three or four seconds after Walker crosses the halfcourt line.
They run the double high screen set with Williams and Zeller beyond the perimeter, but because the Lakers defense is not even set yet, there is no one for Williams to screen. Thus, he has a wide open three in case Walker decides to back off of the drive.
Vogel is 100 percent correct about the importance of consistently pushing halfcourt pace out of the defense’s comfort zone. It allows the offense to create and exploit disarray, especially among younger or less organized teams, because of the options it gives to a skilled, smart, and quick ball handler like Walker or Fournier.
The Magic make around half their shots that they take before the shot clock hits 15, one of the better marks in the league. After that, it drops by around 10 percent — one of the worst, per NBA.com. It is clear pushing halfcourt pace should be a priority.