LaMarcus Aldridge Deserves To Be All-NBA First Team

Portland Trail Blazers star forward LaMarcus Aldridge hasn’t gotten the credit he deserves for the season he’s put together. He deserves a All-NBA First Team nod. I know that might sound crazy, but hear me out.

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Aldridge is averaging a double-double for the second time in his career with 23.4 points and 10.2 rebounds per game. He’s third among forwards in the NBA with 39 double doubles and ninth in the entire NBA in scoring, according to NBA.com.

He is the definition of a go-to scorer. The Trail Blazers essentially built their offense around his skillset. LaMarcus is shooting 46.6 percent from the field and 35.2 percent on three-point attempts. He’s taken and made more three-pointers this season than in his previous eight seasons combined. His Usage Rate is the highest in his career topping 30 percent, which is good for the seventh best in the entire NBA according to NBA.com.

LaMarcus may have the most distinct “sweet spot” of any player in the NBA currently. His work on the left block is magnificent. From that spot his favorite move is the turnaround jumper, but he can turn over either shoulder like vintage Kevin Garnett and use pump fakes and his ball handling skills to dribble away from double teams and draw fouls.

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When the turnaround shot is falling for LaMarcus, he is literally unguardable. His length and high release point make defending him one-on-one almost impossible for the majority of the league.

He feasts on smaller power forwards like the Phoenix Suns’ Markieff Morris or even Defensive Player of the Year candidate, Draymond Green. And as we saw in the first round of the playoffs last season, putting a larger player like Howard and Asik doesn’t exactly work either.

The only player I’ve seen give Aldridge some trouble is Anthony Davis‘ elite combination of length, athleticism, and mobility. Those types of players are few and far between in the NBA and Aldridge still had some success.

Most NBA teams resort to doubling him, but he is adept at shooting over, dribbling away from, or passing out of double teams. He always has multiple options in any offensive situation.

When the turnaround jumper is working early, Aldridge mixes in drives to the middle of the paint and gets to the free throw line at a career high rate. Aldridge is taking a career high 5.2 free throws per game and attempted a career-high 362 on the season.

So much of the Blazers offense is predicated on how the defense has to react to Aldridge on the block. They rely on him to create mismatches where there aren’t any, to bring double teams, and then get the defense scrambling.

Although he only averages 1.7 assists per game, and 0.7 secondary assists per game according to NBA.com, many offensive possessions for the Blazers begin with him on his sweet spot and end with a wide open jump shot or a clear lane to the basket that isn’t reflected in those numbers.

He is the only player in the NBA with a Usage Rate greater than 28 that averages less than 2.0 turnovers per game in significant minutes (at least 1,450 on the season) according to Basketball Reference.

A big improvement for LaMarcus the last two seasons has been his rebounding. It had been a major form of criticism for him early in his career, similar to the way players like Blake Griffin and Brook Lopez have had at various points of their career. Ever since Robin Lopez was acquired by Blazers general manager, Neil Olshey, LaMarcus has been able to play his preferred position (power forward) and has been rebounding very well.

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Before last season, LaMarcus averaged more than nine rebounds only once in his first seven seasons: 9.1 in 2012-13 according to Basketball Reference. This season LaMarcus is averaging 10.2 per game with a defensive rebounding percentage of 22.9.

Another area of criticism for Aldridge in the past has been his defense. He does not have the elite athleticism or mobility that players like Anthony Davis or DeAndre Jordan do. But as his career has progressed he’s become a much smarter defender.

This season the Blazers made great strides defensively finishing with a 101.4 defensive rating, good for 10th in the NBA according to NBA.com, but they were playing at an elite level before the Wesley Matthews injury.

LaMarcus is an important part of that. He posted career highs in both individual Defensive Rating (102) and Defensive Win Shares (3.7) according to Basketball Reference. He’s been a great team defender and he points to the teams continuity and getting smarter as a group as the reason the team has improved this season according to Kurt Helin of Pro Basketball Talk:

"“We played back last year too, but I think our weak side has gotten better,” Aldridge said. “I think just having a couple years in this system of guys just learning where to be has been great for us, too.”"

There are four locks for All-NBA First Team: Stephen Curry, James Harden, LeBron James, and Anthony Davis. That leaves one spot and Anthony Davis is listed as a F/C according to NBA.com.

So let’s move him to center on our All-NBA First Team and that leaves an open spot at forward. I’ve made it clear how great of a season LaMarcus Aldridge has had. What hasn’t Aldridge done this season to deserve this?

Next: NBA Awards Watch: Final MVP Pick For 2014-15

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