Have New NBA Trends Rendered LA Lakers Center Roy Hibbert Obsolete?
LOS ANGELES—Roy Hibbert was on the bench when the final horn of his very first game with the Los Angeles Lakers blew. Their opponent, the Minnesota Timberwolves—and more specifically, Ricky Rubio—were pick-and-rolling the Lakers to death, tossing in wide open jumpers down the stretch; the exact type of shot Hibbert can force but not contest.
“Roy is not a show guy, he’s a plug guy,” Lakers head coach Byron Scott said after the game. “So Rubio’s coming up just wide open, so we had to change it up.”
Brought in to upgrade a defense many confused for a layup line last season, one might argue that benching Hibbert on opening night was hasty. Rubio is not Steph Curry. The predicament popped up again last Friday night against the Toronto Raptors, when Hibbert sat the entire fourth quarter after Jonas Valanciunas left with a hand injury.
“They went with a small lineup,” Scott said. “I even told our coaches, I said, 'Man, this is a game I wish I could get Roy back in there,' but they had Patterson, James Johnson, and they were pretty small, and they had us pretty much spread out.”
But Hibbert is L.A.’s starting center for good reason: He’s a broomstick around the basket. Opponents are nearly 10 percent less accurate within five feet of the rim when he’s on the floor, per NBA.com. And despite a few noisy on/off numbers that reveal far more about L.A.’s leaky perimeter than they do about Hibbert’s immobility, most of his defensive metrics top out at an elite level.
But here's the harsh reality: The skill set that catapulted Hibbert to All-Star status just two years ago is suddenly insufficient in today's NBA.
The NBA has officially become a league of shooting, speed, two-way versatility and more shooting. The Golden State Warriors are the gold standard on both sides of the ball—seamless switching, non-traditional post-ups, shot-makers who can defend, etc.
Meanwhile, statues in space are increasingly unplayable. Small ball essentially turns Hibbert into a situational cog who, right now, just so happens to anchor one of the worst defenses in the league.
You won’t find any of this context on his resume, or anything about his inability to punish those smaller lineups on the other end. According to NBA.com, the Lakers are the worst offensive rebounding team in basketball with Hibbert on the court.
His usage percentage is unprecedentedly low, his turnover rate is at an all-time high and he currently averages fewer shots per 36 minutes than anyone on the team. Just over a quarter of Hibbert’s possessions are from post-ups, where, so far, he’s been one of the least efficient options in the league, per Synergy Sports.
About a week into the regular season, Scott was asked how important it was to involve Hibbert in Los Angeles’ offense.
“It’s not,” he said. “We’re not trying to get him going in the offense. And Roy knows that. That’s not his role with us. But if we can throw it to him every now and then on the post, if he gets some open shots, we expect him to take those. But as far as featuring him and trying to get him the ball on a consistent basis, that’s not his job.”
Despite a steadily increasing level of aggression and a few improving technical skills, Hibbert understands what his main responsibilities are, and he’s accepted the role.
“I’m just trying to find my spots,” Hibbert told Bleacher Report after practice last week. “You know, coming in here, I know defense is my thing … but they didn’t bring me in here to be hoisting a lot of shots.”
When asked if there was a correlation at all between post touches and defensive effort, Hibbert laughed: “No, I mean, would I like more [post touches]? Yeah. But, like I said, I know that’s not what they brought me in to do. I’m a professional and my job is defense, rebounding and making things tough for people. So post touches are a plus.”
In large part due to his low volume, careful shot selection (he's finishing around the rim and nailing open mid-range jumpers) and impressive free-throw rate, Hibbert has the league's fourth-highest True Shooting percentage (.636).
“I don’t get that many opportunities on offense, which is fine,” he said. “So whenever I get to the free-throw line, I just try to take my time and knock them down.”
Hibbert is shooting 87.3 percent at the charity stripe, and is the most accurate big man in basketball who attempts at least 4.0 free-throws per game. He’s been reliable from that spot throughout his career, but there’s nothing wrong with sanding the edges on a known strength. Over the summer, Hibbert couldn't leave the gym until he made at least 50 of them.
Hibbert is verticality’s greatest beneficiary, a terrifying wall of a man who gobbles up floaters and singlehandedly alters offensive game-plans. Some match-ups are less convenient than others, but NBA coaches around the league aren’t (publicly) selling Hibbert stock quite yet, and hearing them rattle on about his impact is a bit like watching paint dry:
Stan Van Gundy, Detroit Pistons: Well, Hibbert’s a very, very good defender, I mean, you know, he’s one of the best rim protectors in the league, something that we need more of. Andre [Drummond] could learn from him. Andre does a lot of great things but he’s not protecting the rim at all. Hibbert’s a great, great rim protector and I thought he did a good job of that today. That’s what Roy Hibbert does.
Mike Malone, Denver Nuggets: 7-foot whatever problems. I mean, his length, you can’t teach size. So he puts a tremendous amount of pressure on your basket. He’s got great length, so we have to account for that.
Dwane Casey, Toronto Raptors: Well, he protects the rim. He’s one of the best rim protectors in the league. He’s 7-plus. One of the moves to protect the rim is named after him. “The Hibbert.” That speaks alone for itself. He’s a known defender, shot blocker, deterrent. Again, he’s one of the best in the league at it.
For all his flaws, most of Hibbert's qualities are timeless, like a navy blue suit worn with a scuffed pair of wingtips. No matter how popular the three-point line gets, the most hunted shot in basketball will always be a layup; rim protection won’t ever go completely out of style.
Unfortunately, his skills are mostly going to waste on a team that’s overflowing with defensive inexperience and incompetence. The Lakers have the third-worst defense and fifth-worst net rating in the league. Perhaps the single largest reason why is their poor perimeter defense. Lou Williams, Jordan Clarkson, Nick Young, Kobe Bryant and D’Angelo Russell are all below average on and off the ball.
Once their man gets by, Hibbert has to step up to stop the ball, leaving his own assignment (typically the other team’s biggest body) open for an easy dunk or offensive putback. There’s no help rotation from the weakside, and very little boxing out.
But Hibbert's teammates aren't solely to blame. Even in tight spaces, L.A.'s starting center can stand to move a lot quicker than he sometimes does.
Here’s an example against the Dallas Mavericks. Deron Williams gets a step on Clarkson, drives middle and forces Hibbert to slide over and prevent a layup. Williams responds by dumping it off to a cutting Zaza Pachulia, and Dallas scores in the restricted area. Hibbert’s slow recovery was largely why.
“I just try to be a little faster,” he said. “Anticipate a bit more.”
All in all, Hibbert says he’s happy in Los Angeles’ system and won't compare it to what he experienced with the Indiana Pacers. He's content with incidental offensive contribution, even though it's the final year of his contract.
But as it would for most, mounting losses might change his attitude. Hibbert’s one-dimensional body of work may not be very popular at the moment, but it still holds value in a more relevant environment. Some match ups are obviously better than others (Tuesday night against the Golden State Warriors won’t be a minutes explosion), but rim protection will always have value.
It may not be the most en vogue quality right now, but Hibbert’s still as good as anyone at the one skill that makes him so appealing. And don't even try to imagine what the Lakers would look like if he wasn't their anchor.
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