Scouting New Nets: Paul Millsap Edition

For the third and final edition of the video series “Scouting New Nets,” which takes a look at Brooklyn’s biggest offseason acquisitions, I sifted through Paul Millsap’s film in Denver to discover what the veteran big man has left in the tank. It turns out, a lot!

In fact, he could end up being one of the bigger steals in free agency.

SECTIONS:

0:26 Scoring — Paul Millsap profiles as a pick-and-pop big man, exactly the type of forward/center that fits into Brooklyn’s five-out offense. While he doesn’t present the same rolling abilities as his predecessor, Jeff Green, he’s much more able at posting up smaller players on pick-and-roll switches. Also, he’s got himself a nifty right-handed floater.

4:47 Offense — As a passer, Millsap grades out as a positive, though he doesn’t necessarily throw out extremely high-level reads. With a solid handle for his size and great screening capabilities, these three skills work hand-in-hand(-in-hand) to produce apt dribble-handoff creativity.

5:10 Defense — Millsap was used in a “hedge and recover” pick-and-roll coverage as a Denver Nugget, and his biggest struggles were with recovering back to his original assignment. As such, it’s easy to picture him doing a perfunctory job in Brooklyn’s switch-everything scheme. As an off-ball defender, he’s attentive with “shading” help. Oh, and he’s a sturdy rebounder as well.

Takeaways:

Paul Millsap was my favorite Nets free agent signing of the offseason, period, and that includes any of the returning guys. If all goes right, he’ll fit like a hand-in-glove into Brooklyn’s schemes. In fact, the Nets could very well be the perfect fit for him.