March 20, 2020

Ukrainian pro sports update: basketball. Len a free-agency bargain for Hawks and Kings

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It was a most challenging first five years in the NBA for Alex Len. Drafted by Phoenix as the fifth overall pick in 2013, the Ukrainian’s career did not pan out the way most may have expected.

After signing a qualifying offer with Phoenix in 2017, Len opted for unrestricted free agency in 2018, electing to sign a two-year deal with Atlanta. The Hawks viewed Len as a part of their present and future. He’s only 25 years old with lots of upside, capable of providing rim protection on defense and a big body to set screens to get the skill guys open looks on offense.

Most experts did not expect much from Len in his new environment and with a new team, but he proceeded to pleasantly surprise by enjoying his best season so far with the Hawks. He averaged a career-high 11 points per game on 49 percent shooting from the field and 36 percent from three-point territory. His minutes per game remained the same as in his final season in Phoenix (20.2 with Suns, 20.1 with Hawks). The most noticeable development in Len’s game was his ability to shoot from three-point distance.

In five seasons with Phoenix, Len tried 25 threes. He totally smashed that number by attempting 204 threes in 2018-2019, hitting on 74 of them. The reason for the high FG percentage and respectable 3-point percentage was that he was the beneficiary of great looks on most of his attempts. In year five with Phoenix, the frequency of Len’s shots that were open/wide open was just 20.6 percent. In Atlanta, 27.9 percent of his shots qualified as being wide open, 42 percent were rated as open.

Len was not only a beneficiary of coach Lloyd Pierce’s three-point happy offense, but also the team’s ball movement. Len was worked into great looks.

The successful strategy with the ball works both ways – Len’s ability to shoot the three at a decent percentage really helps the Hawks in their offense by opening up the floor and allowing one-on-one isolations. Atlanta loves to stretch the floor and throw up threes – almost everyone on the team can take and make threes, adding to the offense’s versatility with no limitations.

What was the main key to Len’s newfound success? “Repetitions,” said Len during the Hawks’ exit interviews (courtesy of Peachtreehoops.com). “Being in the gym, just shooting. The more I shot, the more comfortable I got. As soon as I started making them in the game, my confidence kept growing and growing, and I got more comfortable with it.”

The shot from the perimeter together with Len’s inside game equaled a most effective combination and was a specific part of his game he intentionally worked on throughout the season – the inside-out game.

The practice routines were varied – “one day with the big man coach, next day I’ll go shoot with Nate [Babcock] and the guards,” said Len. “Helping with Trae [Young] and Kevin [Huerter], shoot with them. Hop back and forth, I don’t want to do the same routine over and over, you have to switch it up.”

In 2018-2019 he mostly came off the bench (46 games), but due to injuries and resting other big men, he also got into the starting line-up quite a few times (31 games). Whether it be starting or coming off the bench, he had a career-high 33 points late in the season in an April game against the Milwaukee Bucks.

The first year in Atlanta was mostly solid, yet did have some hiccups. Len has always had issues with fouling over his career and was limited by more foul trouble this past season. Occasionally, his hands let him down near the rim, especially in the beginning of the 2018-2019 campaign. Point guard Trae Young was left frustrated at times when his pinpoint passes were sometimes dropped or mishandled by Len. Young would lose an assist, Len and the Hawks an easy two points.

For the most part, Len enjoyed a strong season in Atlanta where he finally established himself in the NBA after five mostly mediocre seasons in Phoenix, and he did it with a smile on his face.

“This season was great, probably the most fun I’ve had in a while,” said Len in his exit interview. “I know we didn’t win a lot of games, but we definitely proved a lot of people wrong. I think ESPN had us for like 17 or 18 wins before the season and we had almost 30. We have a great future ahead of us and a good young core, so we just have to put in a good summer and then go out and god things are going to happen.”

Formerly viewed as a defensive liability, Len worked his big body into better positions to both contest shots and gobble up rebounds. Much of his success can be attributed to coach Lloyd Pierce, along with the rest of the Hawks’ growth. Pierce was a defensive guru during his time as an assistant with Philadelphia and has already instilled much of his prowess into this young Hawks team, which seems eager to learn.

Things were looking up in Atlanta and for Len at the start of the 2019-2020 season until the NBA trade deadline. Atlanta abruptly decided to make a change and Len is now onto his third team in six seasons following a trade to the Sacramento Kings, a deal that sent him and Jabari Parker from Atlanta in exchange for Dewayne Dedmon and draft picks. Len averaged 8.7 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game in 40 games for the Hawks. He began the season as a starter before moving back into a bench role. Immediately prior to the February 6 trade he had missed the previous six games with a hip injury.

In his first five games with Sacramento, Len averaged 8.6 rebounds in just under 20 minutes per game, including a 13-rebound, five-block effort on March 1 against Detroit with a 106-100 Kings win. He was initially viewed as little more than an expiring contract in the deal. Most of the discussion was that the Kings would use the opportunity to look at Jabari Parker, whom the Kings have chased in years past.

Due to injuries to Marvin Bagley and Richaun Holmes, the Kings have struggled to match up with opponents down low. Len’s size is critical, as his big body allows him to match the physicality of opponents’ big men. His size and solid defensive instincts can deter the opposition from attacking the paint.

He will not be a star for the Kings, but should prove to be a valuable bench contributor as Sacramento chases a playoff berth. Len provides the Kings with a solid backup center who plays within himself and within the team.

 

Ihor Stelmach may be reached at [email protected].

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