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Brooklyn Nets: 5 reasons to be excited for 2019-20 NBA season

By Adam Taylor

LOS ANGELES, CA - AUGUST 1: Kyrie Irving of the Brooklyn Nets attends the game between the Las Vegas Aces and the Los Angeles Sparks on August 1, 2019 at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Chris Elise/NBAE via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - AUGUST 1: Kyrie Irving of the Brooklyn Nets attends the game between the Las Vegas Aces and the Los Angeles Sparks on August 1, 2019 at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Chris Elise/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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(Photo by Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images)
(Photo by Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images) /

Jarrett Allen fighting for Defensive Player of the Year

Finishing ninth in Defensive Player Of The Year voting in only his second season while posting a defensive field goal rating of 50.4 percent and finishing 10th in blocks per game, Jarrett Allen’s defense is serious. He is a lynchpin in the paint. Standing at 6’11” with a 7’6″ wingspan, the 22nd pick in 2017 is as impressive as he is imposing.

Having finished in the 82nd percentile for defensive rebounds off free-throws, the 82nd percentile for blocks and pulling down 15.5 percent of opponents missed shots, Allen was unfortunate to have been overlooked for the All-Defensive Team voting.

Allen now has another defensive big man to learn from in DeAndre Jordan. Allen’s 15.5 percent defensive field goal defensive rebounding (fgDR%) was only good enough to rank him in the 37th percentile of centers in the league as per Cleaning the Glass. Jordan can be an invaluable addition to the roster simply because of the impact he can have on Allen’s improvement.

Defensive rebounding is as much about timing as it is boxing-out. This needs to be Allen’s main area of improvement on that end of the floor. Jordan finished last season in the 99th percentile for his time with the Dallas Mavericks and 96th percentile while with the New York Knicks for fgDR%, the exact area Allen needs to improve.

Synergy has Allen ranked as excellent in defending isolation schemes too, managing to cut off the driving lines while using his length to contest shots from mid-range. Minor improvements to his game can make a huge difference to his trajectory as a premier defensive talent in the NBA.

Those improvements are boxing out more after an opponent shoots, enabling him to improve is fgDR% and locking down bigger guys in the post. Both of these will improve over time anyway, but anything he can learn from Jordan will expedite his progress.

It’s only a matter of time until Allen wins DPOY honors, and it’s exciting to think it could be this season.

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