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The Miami Heat are reportedly interested in signing Giannis Antetokounmpo during the 2021 offseason, but how does his skill set fit in with Jimmy Butler?
The Miami Heat have positioned themselves as one of the favorites to acquire the services of Giannis Antetokounmpo in 2021. Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports stated earlier this month that people within the NBA bubble believe the Toronto Raptors and Miami are favorites to sign him. in free agency.
Giannis Antetokounmpo’s strengths
But is Miami the right place for Antetokounmpo? No, since Antetokounmpo rose to prominence when former head coach Jason Kidd decided to use him as the main ball handler in March 2016. Kidd told beat writers that Antetokounmpo’s ability to find his teammates and exercise Pressure on defenses made him ideal for the role. .
Kidd’s decision has been the catalyst behind Antetokounmpo, averaging 84.4 touches per game, the highest of his career, over the past four seasons, a 58.3 percent increase from his first two seasons. The touches have allowed him to attack the basket 11.7 times per game, a 91.8 percent increase from his first two seasons.
He resulted in 6.8 points and 1.2 assists, at least a 126 percent increase over his first two seasons in both categories. More importantly, his unit stats equate to 29.7 percent of his points and 22.2 of his assists.
Why Jimmy Butler will have a hard time complementing Antetokounmpo’s strengths
Unfortunately, the main ball handler role dramatically affects the way your teammates have to play the game, as your teammates have to spend most of their offensive possessions as floor spacers. Eric Bledsoe, Khris Middleton and Brook Lopez attempted at least 35.4 percent of their field goals from behind the arc during the 2018-19 season.
The floor spacer role wouldn’t work for Jimmy Butler as three-point shots aren’t his strong suit. Butler has a career field goal percentage of 33 percent from behind the arc at 2.6 attempts per game.
Butler’s mediocre shooting has prompted his defenders to give him space every time he’s behind the arc, as 72.6 percent of his 3s have gone unchecked in the past three regular seasons. Butler’s below-average shot would force Antetokounmpo to deal with the presence of a helping defender.
Sadly, Antetokounmpo would be in the same position as in Milwaukee. Bledsoe was a below-average shooter prior to the 2018-19 season, converting 33.7 percent of his field goals on 2.9 attempts per game.
Bledsoe’s shooting difficulties continued throughout the 2018-19 regular season, as he shot 32.9 percent from behind the arc during the 2018-19 season. 97.9 percent of those field goals were incontestable attempts.
Thus, Antetokounmpo had to deal with the constant presence of an assistant defender, as he averaged 11.2 contested shots per game, 64.7 percent of his total field goal attempts. He made 64.3 percent of those attempts generating 14.4 points per game, 52 percent of scoring production.
How the association can work
The only way a Butler-Antetokounmpo partnership would work is if Antetokounmpo becomes a role man. This is because Butler’s success this season has been based on getting to the paint. Butler hit the basket 15.5 times per game during the regular season, helping him get 5.0 field goal attempts in the restricted area.
The 5.0 field goal attempts accounted for 38.2 percent of his shots during the regular season. Butler took advantage of his ability to enter the restricted area. He shot 63.9 percent in the restricted area, allowing him to generate 6.4 points per game, 32.2 percent of his scoring production.
Fortunately, Antetokounmpo has thrived as a shot man throughout his career, having shot 1.16 times per game over the past five regular seasons. Antetokounmpo is shooting 60.5 percent from the field when he rolls to the basket on 0.9 attempts per game, allowing him to score 1.44 points. He has accounted for 5.9 percent of his scoring average.
However, it would be a redundant skill for the Miami Heat, as the team already has a great player in Bam Adebayo. Adebayo has shot to the basket 2.1 times per game over the past four seasons. Adebayo is shooting 60.2 percent from the field when he rolls to the basket on 1.6 attempts per game, allowing him to score 2.3 points. He has accounted for 21.9 percent of his scoring average.
So the Miami Heat would be better off not chasing Antetokounmpo and instead pair Butler with a star who can shoot from behind the arc.
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