How Can Mike D’Antoni Unlock LaMelo Ball?
Monday afternoon, NBA Insider Adrian Wojnarowski announced that Mike D’Antoni will meet with owner Michael Jordan later this week. Kenny Atkinson is also supposed to meet with Michael Jordan on Tuesday, making them the two finalists for Charlotte’s head coaching vacancy. Charlotte is expected to hire a coach following these final rounds of meetings with Jordan.
If I were the Hornets' decision-maker, Mike D’Antoni would be my number one option for the head coaching job. With a coaching record of 678-533, D’Antoni is the most experienced head coach out of the finalists and the most successful. He’s had multiple 60-win seasons and conference finals appearances. But most importantly, Mike D’Antoni is the head coach that will put LaMelo Ball in a position to become the superstar that Charlotte needs him to be.
It’s a tale as old as time. No, literally I mean D’Antoni is 71 years old. From Steve Nash to Jeremy Lin to James Harden and even Russell Westbrook, Mike D’Antoni’s offensive philosophy has been able to take point guards to unimaginable heights. A case can be made that LaMelo Ball has impressed more at a younger age than any of the guards D’Antoni has coached. At 20-years-old, LaMelo has already been named an All-Star in his second season averaging 20.1 points, 7.6 assists, and 6.7 rebounds on 39% shooting from outside. LaMelo is already one of the league's best guards but imagine what he could become under the coach that helped make Steve Nash a two-time MVP and James Harden an MVP finalist every season he coached Houston.
So what exactly does D’Antoni do to get the most out of his guards, and how could LaMelo fit under a D’Antoni system?
Let’s take a look at D'Antoni's offensive system with the Steve Nash-led Phoenix Suns.
D’Antoni changed the game back in 2005 and is one of the main reasons for the current pace and space style of play that’s dominated current NBA basketball. D’Antoni ran a seven seconds or less offense, launching a record-breaking number of three-pointers. But what D’Antoni did with Steve Nash specifically was running high pick-and-rolls with a big and three shooters spaced out around the perimeter. This is probably D'Antoni's favorite play and what it does is it gives Steve Nash the freedom and space to attack the paint and collapse the defense running downhill.
Now the personnel does matter. This offense worked so well because of the type of player Steve Nash is. Not every point guard can push the ball at that pace and orchestrate a high-level offense. But D’Antoni is adaptable and is capable of switching things up to fit the needs of his guards. Steve Nash put it very simply on the Dan Patrick Show, “He trusts [his point guards], he gives them a lot of freedom to get downhill, and make plays for their team.” This is what sets D’Antoni apart from other coaches and this is the freedom that LaMelo needs to take the next step as an offensive engine.
With James Harden, D'Antoni developed a new offense. James Harden was a much different player than Steve Nash. In Houston, he was a gifted ball-handler and scorer in the isolation, so D’Antoni adapted to that play style. In 2018 with James Harden and Chris Paul, the Rockets played at a much slower pace than other D’Antoni-coached teams. They ranked 14th in pace that season which is a large difference from the Steve Nash Suns teams which led the league in pace for multiple seasons.
In contrast to 7 seconds or less, it became more like 16 seconds or less with James Harden going deep in the shot clock to find ways to manipulate the defense. D’Antoni surrounded Harden with shooters like Ryan Anderson and Eric Gordon to space the floor and play off Harden’s isolation scoring. In 2020, D’Antoni once again adapted to his players. With the new acquisition of Russell Westbrook, the Rockets had to clear the paint for him to be most effective. After Houston traded Clint Capela away, D’Antoni went small ball and sped up the game with Westbrook & Harden attacking the paint and shooters spread out around the perimeter. Westbrook had one of the best seasons of his career that season averaging 27.2 points, 7.9 rebounds, and 7 assists on a career-high 47.2% from the field. Houston was 2nd in pace that season and attempted an NBA-high 45.3 three-pointers a game.
Steve Nash had high praise for D’Antoni’s offensive mind, “I think it’s just Mike’s ability to read his team, the evolution of the game, the pieces that he has and how they fit together,” Nash said. “So in some ways, I’m not surprised. That’s part of Mike’s brilliance, is his ability to adapt and adjust and tweak, according to who he has and how the pieces fit together.”
Charlotte’s fast-paced young team would be a great fit with Mike D’Antoni. Charlotte had the 5th highest pace in this past season which can be attributed to LaMelo Ball’s high-level ability in transition. Charlotte also ranked 4th in points per game, and 6th in both three-pointers attempted and 3P%. This already elite offense can be taken to new heights with LaMelo becoming a better game manager under D’Antoni. LaMelo is already an exciting transition player; we've seen him throw full-court underhand passes and in between the legs lobs off the backboard. But to reach the next level, Ball needs to learn to manage the ball under high pressure, make difficult reads, and orchestrate an offense. There's no coach more qualified than Mike D’Antoni to help develop him into that player. LaMelo needs a coach that’ll put the ball in his hands and trust him to make decisions for their team. This season Borrego often micro-managed LaMelo, taking him out for a careless turnover and sitting him for extended periods of time. Ball only averaged 32 minutes per game this season, ranking 54th in the league. , “When they really put them keys in my hand, I feel like it’s gonna be a whole new situation… I ain’t gonna lie, every game I feel like I can do more than what I’m doing,” said LaMelo.
I envision Mike D’Antoni running a similar offense to the Steve Nash-led Phoenix Suns in Charlotte. Bringing back the old seven seconds or less offense with Ball at the point running a high amount of PnR and shooters like Terry Rozier, Gordon Hayward, and PJ Washington spacing the floor around the perimeter. While LaMelo isn’t as good of a player as Steve Nash was in Phoenix, he is one of the best transition players in the league and an elite playmaker. He creates easy looks for his teammates and with D’Antoni giving him room to operate it should be a match made in heaven.
It’s going to be interesting to see which route Charlotte management will go within their head coaching decision. The best way for Charlotte to build long-standing success is for LaMelo Ball to grow into the best player he can become. If Charlotte wants to secure that, I believe that hiring D’Antoni is their best bet.
