Atlanta Hawks Player Profile: Kyle Korver

The Atlanta Hawks have a group of talented offensive players, and when they all play in sync, the team reaches a level of productivity that is the envy of most teams in the league. One of the most important cogs in that machine is Kyle Korver, the 6’7″ shooter whose efficiency numbers can only be replicated in a video game.

Korver has bounced around in his 12 years as a pro, sometimes being an important starter and sometimes being the instant offense off the bench. His three years in Atlanta have been some of his best, and last season was easily the most impressive of his pro career.

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Besides making his first All-Star appearance, Korver came close to having 50-50-90 shooting splits. He finished with a 48.7 field goal percentage, a 49.2 three-point percentage, and an 89.8 free throw percentage.

Korver is primarily a spot up three-point shooter. Nearly 75 percent of his shots came from behind the arc, Basketball Reference. There’s a good reason one of his listed nicknames is “Threezus.”

He is an extraordinarily efficient offensive player, and a variety of factors can explain what makes him so good.

Individually, Korver is a formidable assignment for any defender or defensive set. He moves around a lot the Hawks offense, doing funky, pick-and-roll like moves but then floating back for open jumpers.

It’s easy to see why defenses usually follow Korver wherever he goes (side note: that sentence originally read “follow him like a hawk” but I couldn’t bring myself to make that pun). If any defense ever tries to cheat and play off of him, he makes them pay. In this clip, Jimmy Butler wanders away from Korver in the corner to cover Mike Scott, and Nikola Mirotic doesn’t switch (though he probably couldn’t in time). Butler realizes his mistake half a second too late.

Korver is also a disciplined professional and devotes exhaustive effort to perfecting his craft. He has a 20-item checklist that he outlined in an interview with Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today. That rigorous practice translated into what Korver called “…the best I’ve ever shot, for sure.”

That said, Korver is not entirely a buttoned-up, calm decision maker. He does take double-covered threes off the bounce, which is totally acceptable because he hits them.

Korver is also a solid transition scorer. His body control allows him to get into a comfortable shooting stance in a split second, and his ability to rise and release quickly leaves transition defenders hopeless.

Taj Gibson isn’t blocking that shot. Not even disrupting it. He just isn’t.

He’s also a cerebral defender, an aspect of his game that I would argue is underrated. Jokes and comments about his on-ball defense are a little harsh, but generally true. He’s not an athletic stopper, and guys can get around him on the drive and shoot over him if lightly covered.

However, he is a solid team defender and generally knows when to help. Essentially, you wouldn’t want him as the on-ball defender on a given possession, but you’d love him as your help defender from the weak side.

It’s funny because there’s a perception of Korver as a very mild-mannered guy. Jordan White of VICE Sports described his game face as “a look bereft of emotions”. His face certainly says cool cat, but his actions are more like that of a hyperactive child.

On both sides of the ball, he is always running around doing things, a trait that has a bit of a double-edged sword aspect to it. On one hand, he wears out the wing defender assigned to guard him, and his help defense can be a difference-maker on a given set.

On the flip side, sometimes his freelancing hurts the scheme and doesn’t work out. As coach Mike Budenholzer said to Grantland’s Zach Lowe “sometimes it’s like ‘What the hell are you doing?'”

Beyond his individual ability, Korver plays on a team geared to maximize his talents. The Hawks offense likes to have substantial shooting and ball movement, and Korver takes full advantage of that. 95 percent of his made field goals last season were assisted.

Furthermore, Korver came off screens 34.8 percent of the time, the highest figure in the league. He also led the league in total catch-and-shoot points (638) and catch-and-shoot three-pointers made per game (2.6).

Korver is not a complete player. Most players aren’t. He can’t run traditional pick-and-roll and attack the rim, and he doesn’t do that much on his own off the dribble, a consequence of playing in Atlanta’s offense.

The coming season, unfortunately, is going to be a test for Korver. In Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals, he injured his ankle, which required surgery. In late June, Korver had another surgery. This was to remove loose bodies in his right elbow, according to Sports Illustrated. The Hawks remain hopeful he will be ready for training camp.

On top of that, Korver will be much important to the Hawks next season. For one, he may end up playing small forward much more often, given the absence of DeMarre Carroll and the addition of Tim Hardaway Jr.

Without Carroll as a spot-up threat, it is possible that Korver’s touches and usage will go up, putting more strain on him. Korver can probably handle it if he recovers from injury, but the future is a little murkier both for him and his team.

There are people who look at his base stats and laugh at him being an All-Star. I think the merits of him being selected to that group can be reasonably argued, though I still stand by the conclusion that he was deserving of the selection.

What cannot be debated is Kyle Korver’s value to his team. A perfect match of individual player, surrounding personnel and team system is a lucky find. He is a great teammate and is a master at what he does. He has the size, intelligence, and enough of the skills a modern wing player needs.

He may not score in volumes like some the other best shooters in the league (yes, that was a veiled reference to Steph Curry), but on both sides of the ball, Korver has substantial value. If he can overcome the challenges ahead of him, he’ll be back to putting on the same epic shooting displays next season.

*stats courtesy of NBA.com unless otherwise noted

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