Duke Ranks Among Jump-Shooting Elite Teams

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Still digesting the tough loss from last night? Sports Illustrated's Luke Winn has good news in his Power Rankings: Duke is one of the best jump shooting teams in the country.

Well, sort of. Yes, as he acknowledges that the Blue Devils have on the whole four shooters with above-average to exceptional 3-point percentages: Andre Dawkins, at 52.9; Seth Curry, at 44.9; Kyle Singer, at 39.8; and Nolan Smith, at 38.6. However, he says that the Blue Devils are very different when taking into account contested and uncontested shots:

Player       Overall   Contested         Unc'tested                 Diff

Curry          1.000          0.286             1.938                      1.652

Smith         1.070          0.647              1.346                      0.699

Singler       1.074          0.800             1.341                      0.541

Dawkins   1.271           1.185               1.381                      0.196

If you don't know what you're reading above: Those numbers mean that when Curry is left open, he averages 1.938 points per attempt. When he's shooting contested shots, that drops to 0.286.

So, what does this mean? First, it would mean that the constant drives to the hoop that Seth Curry attempted last night were offensively inefficient. He's not a complete scorer—he's a guy who benefits best from toeing the 3-point line and waiting for the shot to come to him. Second, Andre Dawkins may just be the most underrated player on the Blue Devils. It is practically unheard of for a player to be as good with a hand in his face than shooting uncontested shots. Dawkins is actually better with that hand in his face. Duke fans should hope he tries to create his own shot more in the future.