Numbers behind Zach LaVine’s torrid start to the 2020-21 NBA season

Zach LaVine is getting better and better.

In the two and a half seasons since the recovery from the ACL break that sustained his June 2017 switch to the Bulls, his growth as a top scorer has been linear.

This trend continued in his first year with new coach Billy Donovan – with some notable steps as an added facilitator:

But let’s go into some layers. Here are the numbers behind the offensive display that LaVine is displaying:

• LaVine’s current 27.4 points average is fifth in the NBA, behind only Bradley Beal, Kevin Durant, Steph Curry and Damian Lillard. He entered on Tuesday immediately leading Luka Dončić.
• To reach that average, LaVine is trying to shoot 8.9 out of 3 points per game (7th in the NBA), making up 38.7% of them.
• 2.9 of those attempts were from glances and snipers, in which LaVine is shooting at 40%.
• He is also generating 1.46 points for possession (84th percentile) in cuts. Both a terror outside the ball and with the stone in the hands.
• But he has been very good there too. LaVine’s 12.4 pick-and-roll ball handler possessions per game is fifth place in the NBA. His 1.08 points for possession produced the fifth place among 17 ball handlers with more than eight pick-and-roll per game (min. 7 games).
• LaVine is also one of 45 players (minimum 7 games) that generated more than 10 drives per night. He scored points in 72.6 percent of those units, the fourth of 45. His 59.2 percent of pitches in units ranks sixth in that group …
• … And its turnover rate of 12.6% at 44º.
• Stay positive.
• LaVine’s 76.6% success rate in the restricted area (4.6 attempts) is mind-boggling. That’s 14 points better than the current league average of 62.6 percent for that place.
• In fact, LaVine is filling you up with better than average efficiency of all areas of the ground – except the right corner, where their 4 to 11 mark (36.4%) falls slightly below the league average of 38.3%.
• By cleaning the glass count, 30 percent of LaVine’s shooting attempts took place over the edge this season. 28% came from medium-sized people. 42 percent came from behind the arch. He’s a threat from everywhere all the time.
• Just ask the Kings, Lakers, Clippers and Thunder. LaVine’s streak of four consecutive 30-point games from January 6 to 15 is the longest in the NBA so far this season.
• In this sequence, LaVine averaged 37.5 points and 58.2 percent of field kick (22.8 attempts) and 52.1 percent of 3 (12 attempts).
• According to ESPN, he is the first bull since Michael Jordan to post four consecutive points out of 30 points in pitches better than 50 percent.
• The Bulls, of course, were 0-4 in those games.
• That streak was interrupted by LaVine’s fifth double-double assist point – and the first since his debut season with the Minnesota Timberwolves – with 10 points and 10 dimes in the victory against the Dallas Mavericks.
• LaVine had 74 total assists, good for 5.3 per game. The best career brand.
• His most recent penny came with 46.9 seconds to play in Friday’s victory over the Houston Rockets. A LaVine swing for a Lauri Markkanen 3 put the Bulls ahead 119-113 and effectively froze the game.
• LaVine averages 35.6 minutes per game, almost a full minute longer than last year.
• But its usage rate (which accounts for possessions that end in an attempted kick, draw or spin) actually dropped two points this season – from 31.7% to 29.7%.
• Of 17 players with usage rates of 29 percent or more (min: 7 games), LaVine is: 3rd in percentage of true shot (64 percent), third in percentage of effective field goal (59 percent) …
• … And 15th in the assistance-turnover ratio.
• Still, his easy tick has been real in the face of persistent pressure from the ball. LaVine’s 24.3% assistance rate is currently a career record.
• As well as its 14.6 points of assistance created per game – which continues an upward trend in all seasons since 2016-17, which was shortened by the torn ACL.
• This means that LaVine accounts for 42 of the Bulls’ 117.4 points per game in fourth place (35.8 percent).
• Combine your scoring made easy and efficient, and LaVine averages 27.4 points and 5.3 assists with a 64% real shot percentage.
• Two players have surpassed these benchmarks over the course of an entire season: Giannis Antetokounmpo (2019-20) and Stephen Curry (2015-16). On Tuesday, Kevin Durant (30.6 points, 5.7 assists, 67.5% TS) is above that limit this season.
• Last season, only Antetokounmpo, Devin Booker, Damian Lillard and James Harden scored better than the minimum of 25 points per game, five assists per game and 60 percent true shooting. Solid company, albeit early.

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