If you're looking for someone to blame for the Utah Jazz's recent struggles, don't point your finger at
Deron Williams.
The All-Star point guard is frustrated these days, and rightfully so. He's doing all he can to keep the 27-18 Jazz relevant in the Western Conference this season, which is no easy task. Though he may not admit it, he's finding it increasingly difficult without
Carlos Boozer at his side. No,
Steve Nash isn't the only elite point guard in the West who has missed the company of an All-Star big man this season.
But like Nash, Williams is realizing he can't do it all by himself, despite his best efforts. Instead of wallowing in Boozer's absence, the 26-year-old point guard has responded by playing some of the best ball of his six-year career. Williams' 22.8 player efficiency rating, 59.9 true shooting percentage and 118 offensive rating are all career highs. If he continues at this torrid rate, he'll join
Chris Paul as the only players to average 21 points and nine assists since
Tim Hardaway in the 1992-93 season for the
Golden State Warriors.
In a Darwinian sense, Williams has evolved to adapt to his new surroundings. The Jazz hoped to replace Boozer's production by promoting
Paul Millsap to the starting lineup and acquiring former
Minnesota Timberwolves center
Al Jefferson to man the center position. Millsap has filled in nicely but he's not as lethal in the pick-and-roll as Boozer, who was the fourth most efficient roll man in the NBA last season, according to Synergy. (Boozer scored 1.28 points per pick-and-roll finish last season, while Millsap has scored just 1.14 this season.)
As a result, Williams has moved away from ball-screen attacks and migrated toward creating offense for himself. He's shouldered more responsibility on the offensive end, raising his usage rate -- the percentage of team possessions a player uses while on the floor -- from 23.8 percent last season to a career-high 26.4 percent in his Boozer-less campaign.
How has Williams maintained his efficiency while taking on more offense? The versatile point guard has put a greater emphasis on the two most efficient weapons for a scorer: getting to the free throw line and raining from beyond the arc.
No point guard can match Williams' overwhelming combination of strength and speed. As such, he has elected to take his man off the dribble and to the rack far more than he's done in the past. According to Synergy, Williams has upped his share of isolation plays from 18.7 percent to 23.3 percent of his offense, which ranks as one of the biggest increases in the league.
Defenders are finding it near impossible to stop his inertia once he gets into the lane. The 6-foot-3, 210-pounder is earning seven trips to the free throw line per game, which is an incredible mark considering where he was four seasons ago. In the 2006-07 season, Williams was a below-average foul-drawer and averaged 3.7 free throws per game. Now, Williams finds himself among the very best at his position in free throw rate (free throw attempts per field goal attempt). When defenders send a career 81 percent free throw shooter to the line, it's the equivalent of relinquishing a wide-open layup -- only they pick up a foul, too.
Williams is embracing his long-distance stroke, as well. The point guard has always been a formidable 3-point threat from downtown, but the Jazz didn't need him to flash that part of his game as much with
Mehmet Okur,
Wesley Matthews and
Kyle Korver manning the arc. But without them, Williams has become the team's leading 3-point shooter, with 4.9 attempts per game at a 37.4 percent clip. Last year, he took just 3.4 3-pointers a game.
Williams has taken his game to the next level, but you may not have noticed with fellow point guards
Russell Westbrook and
Derrick Rose improving by leaps and bounds this season. Rest assured, Williams is padding what was already a top-notch resume this season and making the summer of 2012, when he can become a free agent, all the more intriguing.
With Williams
already expressing concern over the direction of the team, the Jazz's front office better hope Jerry Sloan can right the ship soon or they risk jeopardizing the future of their franchise, one that should revolve around their star point guard.
