Carmelo and the Pursuit of Purity

The new thing to do is to call Carmelo Anthony the most pure scorer in the league. When done correctly, it should sound something like, "With all due to respect to LeBron, Kobe, and D-Wade, Carmelo is the most pure scorer in this league." But what does most pure even mean? The analyst's qualifiers are usually that Melo does it on jumpers, drives, post-ups, 3s, and free throws. He's a threat from everywhere; might not be all-around, but the bro can score. While yes, the bro can score, if we look at best pure scorer, is Melo legit or is this just his tag so he can hang around LeBron and Kobe talk? In terms of the high volume scorers, LeBron and Durant both have higher True Shooting Percentages, knocking Melo out of most efficient. But how about the notion that Melo is a threat from everywhere on the court, i.e. the most complete scorer? Thanks to Hoopdata.com, we can take a look.

Melo: 7.6 attempts at the rim, 62%. 1.8 atts inside 10 feet, 31.5%. 2.3 atts 10-15 ft, 42%. 7 atts 16-23 ft, 39%. 2.7 atts on 3s, 50% eFG (33%). 9.8 FTA, 83%. 44% of all baskets are assisted.

So, it does seem like Melo does a bit of damage from everywhere, but he favors attacking the basket and long 2s. Those 7 attempts on long 2s are probably Melo's patented mid-post on the elbow, where he likes to shoot over sagging defenders. Melo inside of 10 feet, probably post-ups on the block, however, seem to be ugly endeavors, at only 31.5%. Melo's numbers, however, can be difficult to contextualize without some comparables. So, in honor of this new Durant vs. Melo debate, let's see how Melo's completeness stacks up to Durant's.

KD: 5.2 atts at rim, 72%. 1.7 atts inside 10 ft, 38%. 3.5 atts 10-15 ft, 46%. 6 atts 16-23 ft, 37%. 3.9 atts on 3s, 57% eFG (38%). 9.9 FTA, 88.5%. 51% of all baskets are assisted.

Immediately, this argument should be put to rest. KD distributes his shots around the court more evenly, and shoots better in every area except 16-23 ft, and by only 2%. Carmelo creates his shot 7% more often, being assisted less than KD, but other than that, Durant owns Melo. Durant gets his better than Melo on 3s, post-ups, and mid-range.

Maybe because giving LeBron everything is a little anti-climatic, or maybe because he seems like more of an athlete than a scorer, LeBron gets knocked out of this running of purity. But since LeBron is already running away from those other guys in TS%, because he's ultra-efficient, what about his scoring completeness? Just for fun, since Durant has already debunked Melo's claim to fame.

LeBron: 6.7 atts at rim, 75%. 1.4 atts inside 10 ft, 52%. 1.2 atts 10-15 ft, 32%. 5.4 atts 16-23 ft, 40%. 5.2 atts on 3s, 52%. 10.1 FTA, 78%. 35% all baskets assisted.

LeBron is the best finisher at the rim, because he's awesome. LeBron is best inside of 10 feet by a wide margin, because he's awesome. LeBron stays out the 10-15 area more than Durant and a little more than Melo. It's safe to say that LeBron finds it smart to just attack the basket from 10-15 rather than to settle. That's also smart because LeBron is much worse from that area than KD or Melo. Melo and Durant are renowned shooters, while LeBron is maligned for his stroke. However, on long 2s, LeBron shoots (slightly) better than both Melo and KD, which is not in line with common perception. LeBron's higher 16-23% is because he is actually a good shooter, and is awesome at basketball. Durant is the best 3 point shooter, but LeBron does edge Melo in 3 pt %. LeBron also creates his own shot much more than Melo and Durant, so the percentages are perhaps a little more impressive, considering he's getting fewer open looks. LeBron is a little less balanced than KD, but is overall more efficient from the floor. The best part of this is finding out that LeBron, who gets called out for shooting too many long 2s, shoots it less and better than people who are doing it 'the pure way.'

That leaves us with Kobe and Wade. For some reason, Kobe gets passed over by Melo for the media's pure scoring hero, while Wade is pretty much seen as a bulldog, who only gets his points up close. Care to look?

Kobe: 5.2 atts at rim, 58%. 2.4 atts inside 10 ft, 46%. 4.3 atts 10-15, 50%. 6 atts 16-23, 43%. 4.1 atts on 3s, 47% eFG (31%). 7.4 FTA, 83%. 38% all baskets assisted.

Wade: 7.1 atts at rim, 65%. 1.9 atts inside 10 ft, 48%. 2 atts 10-15, 34%. 5.6 atts 16-23 37%. 3.4 atts on 3s, 44% eFG (30%). 8.9 FTA 76%. 29% all baskets assisted.

So, looking at this, Kobe should be considered the most complete (or pure) scorer in the league. He's the worst finisher of the bunch, but 58% is good for a lot of people, and he gets there often. He's the most frequent visitor inside of 10 feet, and kills it. He takes the most mid-range shots and shoots them lights-out. And nobody is better on long 2s (of this group). His 3s are shaky, but you know he can beat you from there. He gets little assisted help, and generally is dangerous from everywhere. No way should Melo or anybody be considered more complete from every area. And for Wade, he's ugly on 3s, but isn't as bulldoggy as some might think. He's right there with everybody on long 2s, a little below in mid-range, but like LeBron, Wade doesn't frequent the area. And Wade kills it from inside 10 ft and at the rim, all with the least help of any guy here.

I did stumble on some very interesting things when collecting these shooting zone numbers. Trouble ahead for Kobe. Younger Kobe had been mid 60s% (and probably higher when he was Much Younger Kobe) in finishing at the rim. This year, at a seasoned 31, Kobe is down to 58%. Pretty big drop over one year. That's definitely a sign that Kobe is losing his explosiveness. Undaunted, Kobe is as high as ever in terms of taking it to the basket. Also, Wade's shooting numbers have fallen this year, regressing back to the norm, whereas last year, his jumper was much more 'on.' LeBron has gotten better on jumpers over his career, helping him become historically efficient.

For all of this completeness, I indulged with these shooting zones. But analysts seem to hint that if they had one possession to score, Melo would be their man. TS%, however, essentially tells us who your man should be. One possession, need a point, go to LeBron. His TS% is 61%, Melo's is 56%, Wade's 55%, KD's 60%, Kobe's 55%. The answer to most basketball riddles is LeBron, and this one, often lauded towards Melo, is no exception.