Film Room: LaMelo Ball’s improvement as a finisher at the rim in his rookie season

Whether LaMelo Ball’s rookie season is over, the impact he had on Charlotte’s season was felt in multiple ways. Even the most optimistic Ball supporters could hardly have expected Ball to play the vital role he has for the Hornets, helping lead them into the middle of the playoff race.

One of the many surprising aspects of Ball’s game this season has been his ability to score at multiple levels. According to Synergy, Ball finished in the 65th percentile as a spot-up shooter and shot 37.8% from range. On catch-and-shoot opportunities, he ranked in the 74th percentile across the league, also per Synergy.

His in-between game has been documented with much of the damage coming on his floater. Ball finished as a slightly below-average shooter in the mid-range, ranking in the 43rd percentile according to Cleaning the Glass.

The area that came as perhaps the biggest surprise was his ability to finish at the rim. A broad look at his season doesn’t suggest he had too much success at the rim as he ranked in the 39th percentile (57% shooting), per Cleaning the Glass. But a strong second half of his rookie season saw him flourish as a three-level scorer.

“I think that’s one of the things that’s surprised me the most this year with LaMelo is his finishing ability,” head coach James Borrego said. “Just the ability to get down there and finish with both hands, absorb contact and still finish. It’s only going to get better from here. His finishing is only going to get better from here. I think he’s already surpassed where I thought he would be and now it’s about continuing to grow. I think the strength is only going to help him at the rim as he goes.”

His success in that area came with time in the league. Ball struggled around the hoop to start the season. Through his first 12 games, Ball shot 47% at the rim, ranking in the eighth percentile among point guards.

Often early in the season, Ball attacked the rim out of control without anticipating how a shot-blocker might react at the rim. Here, he gets a step on his defender but doesn’t account for JaVale McGee.

In the same game, he overcompensates by trying to throw it over McGee’s contest, resulting in the shot being long and well off.

One of the workarounds Ball often attempted early in the season was switching hands in mid-air to get around a potential contest. Expectedly, that did not have many great returns.

Each of those clips comes from the opening 12 games of Ball’s season in which he shot just 21-of-45 at the rim. As time went on, Ball adjusted with reps in practice and in-game action. Both paid dividends and were important in his improvement as an attacker.

“A little bit of both,” Borrego said of whether practice or in-game adjustments played a role in his improvement. “Obviously, we want him more at the rim. He got more comfortable getting there and finishing. Those are things he works on every day in practice. It’s part of his development process and growth. And then that’s just Melo finding his spots. He got more and more comfortable as the season went along to take those opportunities at the rim.”

That level of comfort began showing itself later in the season. Over his final 28 games, Ball shot 60% at the rim, ranking in the 53rd percentile. It was a stark improvement that came with multiple types of adjustments.

First, Ball attacked under control. Compare the first clip with the above clip and notice how, instead of trying to beat his defender to the rim, Ball stops short gets up an uncontested look.

He also began attacking with more conviction than early in the season. Ball left a lot of the flair behind and realized he could just rise up and dunk the ball. Earlier in the season, he may have tried switching the ball to his left hand to avoid Millsap’s contest and left the shot short.

Again, this clip shows him under control. He gets around Markieff Morris here but instead of an off-balance up-and-under like above, he takes an extra step and finishes easily on the other side of the rim, protecting the ball from the shot blocker.

The added benefit of Ball’s impressive finishing as the season has gone on has been that, as defenses key on him at the rim, Ball is able to find the open man whether under the basket or at the 3-point line.

“He’s one of those unique guys that can get to the rim and still make plays and passes there,” Borrego said. “He’s got the size and the knack and the ability with both hands to pass when he gets at the rim. A lot of guys don’t have that ability. He has the ability to go up and finish or to drop it off to a big or kick it to a corner or wing and those are things that he’s just going to only get better over time with.”

While there is no stat to measure Ball’s passing ability at the rim, the tape shows how effective he’s been.

Here, Ball gains the attention of both big men, and really the entirety of the defense. Ball makes the right play: Kicking it out to Miles Bridges in the corner who swings to Terry Rozier, who is shooting 45.2% on catch-and-shoots this year, for a 3-pointer.

Ball’s improved ability to be under control when attacking the rim also has meant more dump-off chances. As he attacks and spins here, he’s fully aware the help defender is Cody Zeller’s man and lays off a perfect pass for an open dunk.

While Ball showed an ability to get to the rim in his pre-NBA days, it was often simple plays in which he was faster than his defender in the NBL and didn’t have to make reads at the rim. Once in the league, it’s most often a situation of needing to experience those moments in real-time on the court to learn.

Ball took his lumps early in the season and quickly adjusted, something that he is quickly gaining a reputation for. If the second half of his rookie season is indicative of Ball’s ability at the rim, it again opens his game as a shot creator.