By Dan Ferrara, NBA International
The awe in watching Kevin Durant has almost worn out over the years due to his superstardom, as everyone has gotten accustomed to his incredible array of ways to score. The four-time scoring champion has also averaged over 30 points per game twice in his career, leaving nothing left for the mind to imagine by way of putting the ball in the hoop.
Instead, it has been Knicks forward Kristaps Porzingis who has taken the NBA world by storm of late. The second-year stud from Latvia has actually been doing things that nobody at his height has ever done. At 7-foot-3, Porzingis’ skill set earned him the nickname the “Unicorn” from Durant because of his uniqueness.
There’s some debate to Durant’s true height, as he’s listed everywhere as 6-foot-9 but recently said that he’s been joking around all these years and with shoes on he’s a 7-footer. In any event, the things that Porzingis and Durant can do on the floor are mind-blowing – the interesting thing is how similar they actually are.
Here’s a breakdown of some of the ways that these players get buckets and a view of some of the moves they use to beat their defenders:
Traditional 7-footers work down low on the block, but Durant and Porzingis have been effective running the floor in transition, as evidenced by this fast-break dunk and alley-oop:
It’s incredible to see big men with some smooth handles – watch as Durant and Porzingis get fancy with the dribble and use their crossovers to leave their defenders in the dust:
It’s one thing for bigs to be set shooters and display their range by hitting open threes – both Durant and Porzingis are shooting over 40% from catch-and-shoot 3s and have effective field goal percentages (EFG%) of over 56 on catch-and-shoot chances.
What separates these two, however is their ability to create their own 3-pointers. Here’s Durant coming off a screen to nail a pullup while Porzingis hits Richard Jefferson with a fake and stepback three he might not have recovered from yet:
Though they are both tall and slender in build, both can work effectively in the post.
Here, Durant uses one bump to create separation and hit the fallaway jumper while Porzingis uses some beautiful footwork and a fake to get his defender in the air and draw the foul:
Incredibly, both Durant and Porzingis have post field goal percentages over 66%. One of the main reasons is because they’re smart and don’t try to do too much each time. Instead, they take what the defender gives them. Since defenders know they can get beaten off the dribble if they play too close, they sometimes back off off the initial post entry pass. In that case, Durant and Porzingis just use their height to get a clean view at the hoop, hitting easy standing post shots:
This just isn’t supposed to happen when you’re a 7-footer, no less 7-foot-3. Regardless, Porzingis and Durant have made a beating defenders off the dribble key staples in their offensive repertoire. They’re just so versatile and quick with their decision-making that they can read the defender and catch him when his feet is moving in the opposite direction. Then they’re quick enough to blow by him for the basket:
There’s legitimate reason for Knicks fans around the world to be excited about Porzingis – he’s not only a highlight machine who churns out awe-inspiring plays on a nightly basis, but he’s a truly productive player that is leading his team to wins. In fact, he’s led the Knicks in scoring in nine of 25 games this season (36%), which is saying a lot considering two-time scoring champion Carmelo Anthony and former MVP Derrick Rose are also on the roster.
Porzingis may not be as good as Durant just yet but his ceiling is just as high, and if he keeps adding moves to his offensive repertoire, there may be no way to stop him.
