How does Chicago Bulls wing Zach LaVine compare to other players in regards to the different ways he scores?
As the rebuild gets underway, Zach LaVine will be tasked with leading the Chicago Bulls offense. LaVine, acquired in the deal that sent Jimmy Butler to Minnesota, is Chicago’s most capable offensive player. He’s developed into an elite shooter, and the athleticism that he’s displayed since his days at UCLA hints at more to come (if, of course, he can bounce ball fully from a torn ACL he suffered last season).
LaVine averaged 18.9 points, 3.0 assists and 3.4 rebounds per game last season, while shooting 38.7 percent on 6.6 3-point attempts per game. He increase his scoring by four points from his first to second season, and by almost five points from seasons two to three. Now in a contract year, LaVine will need to take another leap in his first season with the Bulls.
With the Timberwolves, LaVine was the third scoring option behind Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins. He’ll be no. 1 when he’s on the court for the Bulls.
So what kind of scorer is LaVine, exactly? We can take a look at where he ranks in certain play types, via NBA.com, and make some comparisons to paint a clearer picture.
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Pick-and-Roll Ball Handler
LaVine rank the pick-and-roll 22.2 percent of the time he was on the floor and scored 3.4 points per game as the ball handler in pick-and-rolls. That puts him in the 64.5 percentile among NBA players. In other words: above average.
That puts him in the company of Denver’s Will Barton and, if he were to run it a bit more, point guard Darren Collison. His best-case scenario might be someone like Bradley Beal, who ran the pick-and-roll as a secondary ball handler as often as LaVine, but was a much more efficient scorer, with a field goal percentage (48.3) significantly higher than LaVine’s (40.7).
Isolation
Despite the athletic gifts, LaVine isn’t a strong isolation scorer. He ranks in the 50th percentile with an effective field goal percentage of 39.5. Luckily, he doesn’t try to go ISO a whole lot, attempting just 1.3 field goal attempts in such circumstances last season.
You can be an effective offensive player without being a great isolation player. Gordon Hayward’s isolation numbers, for example, are nearly identical to LaVine’s, but scored 21.9 points per game on 47.1 percent shooting last season.
Transition
This is where LaVine’s speed and hops translate into production. He’s one of the best transition players in the league, averaging 4.6 points in transition per game last season. He’s like if DeMar DeRozan forced more turnovers, or if Goran Dragic grew a few more inches.
The Bulls want to play faster this upcoming season, and LaVine forcing turnovers and scoring in transition would be a big part of that.
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Spot up
LaVine is a great spot-up shooter. If the Bulls can rely on Kris Dunn (or anyone else besides LaVine) to handle the ball and facilitate the offense, they’ll be able to take advantage of LaVine’s elite off-the-catch shooting.
LaVine’s numbers compare to elite off-the-catch shooters like Dirk Nowitzki (2016-17 vintage, of course), Jae Crowder and Klay Thompson. Chicago has a major weapon in LaVine’s spot-up shooting, and they’ll need to a find a way to deploy it.