Currently sitting at 48th in the nation in adjusted defensive efficiency, the Gators haven’t exactly locked down on their own end this season. They have had difficulties containing the pick and roll, and lack elite perimeter defenders on the outside to plug up driving opportunities.
While there have been holes on the defensive end, there has been one saving grace.
Shot blocking.
Florida is currently 1st in the country in defensive block percentage, swatting away an astonishing 16.2% of their opponent’s shots. That number is set to smash Florida’s program record, currently 13.5% set by Joakim Noah, Al Horford, and the 2007 National Championship team.
That right there speaks to how impressive Florida’s shot blocking has been this year but it doesn’t even tell the whole story. Back in 2007, far more two-point attempts were taken than threes. The average team took 33% of their shots from three in 2007, versus 38% which is what we’re seeing in 2021. Three-point shots are seldom blocked, so most blocked shot opportunities come from two-point shots. That means despite the fact that their year’s Florida team has had 5% fewer opportunities to block shots than a team that featured one of the best defensive frontcourts in college basketball history in Noah and Horford, they’re still blocking roughly 3% more attempts.
That is how special the shot blocking has been for Florida this year.
And, considering how lackluster Florida’s offense has been on a whole this season, it has been desperately needed.
You see, Florida is allowing a ton of dribble penetration this season, far more than any team wants to see. Currently, 41% of their shots against have been at the rim from a drive or a cut. That is well above the national average, and far more than they have allowed in recent seasons, even last year when their defense was below-average:
2020: 35%
2019: 31%
2018: 36%
2017: 32%
2016: 31%
So, as you can see, Florida’s 41% this season is not one you’d like to see. Drives and cuts ending in shots at the rim are high-percentage looks, whether it’s on the layups or dunks that are going to be converted at a high rate or the fouls that come with defending those plays.
Many people have pointed out how much Florida has fouled this year, a fair observation given they are 286th in the country in shooting fouls committed. Well, when you see how many shots at the rim they’re giving up, it makes sense why they have been forced to foul so much.
Since Mike White and his staff have come to Florida their defensive philosophy has always been to try to limit three-point attempts. When it comes to three-point defense the best thing you can do is limit the three-point attempts entirely, so this is a sound philosophy. However, if you’re going to run people off the three-point line, you need perimeter defenders all over the floor that can slide over to help before recovering to their man with a good closeout. Right now, the Gators lack those pieces.
They also lack solid one on one perimeter defenders. When the Gators play small with Tyree Appleby and Noah Locke on the wings they’re giving up a lot of size and athleticism, something that has stung them. Scottie Lewis came to Gainesville with a reputation as an outstanding defender but while he doesn’t lack motivation to defend, the quality hasn’t been there and he is currently giving up over 1.1 points per possession as a primary defender, set to be the worst individual defensive grade in the Mike White era. Anthony Duruji’s athleticism was expected to bring some defensive effectiveness but his explosiveness is more vertical than lateral and he has been surprisingly clunky moving his feet side to side on the perimeter.
For all the reasons stated, Florida is giving up all kinds of straight line drives which are the bane of any defense, no matter the style.
Luckily for the Gators, they have had players step up as last chance hero defenders, starting with Michigan transfer Colin Castleton.
Castleton has been a god-send for a Florida defense that lacked a center who could defend the rim a year ago, and right now he is doing that at historic levels. His 11.2% block rate is the highest in Florida history and he has swatted away shots as both a secondary defender coming from the weak side or as a primary rim defender walling up at the rim and using his 7’3” wingspan to swallow up attempts. His shot blocking numbers are impressive on their own right, but don’t even tell the whole story.
Of course, it’s always great when a shot blocker gets his hand on the ball. However, for every shot a player does block, he’s going to have a chance to affect many more. Castleton has only allowed opponents to shoot 42% at the rim, an incredible mark since the national average on those shots hovers around 53%. For him to block so many shots and then force misses on so many more speaks to just how good a rim protector he is and how valuable he is to the Gators.
Right behind Omar Payne in the shot blocking department is Omar Payne who has a 9.3% block rate, good for 33rd in the country. That number is fantastic, and if he didn’t have Colin Castleton on his team his shot blocking would be much more noticeable. Payne is one of the best weak side shot blockers in the country, someone who uses his foot speed, length, and leaping ability to rotate over from one side of the paint to the other to meet a shot at it’s apex and send it into the empty stands. This was the style of shot blocking that Kevarrius Hayes was so good at when he was in Gainesville, and Payne is keeping the tradition alive as someone who seemingly can come out of nowhere to swat a shot away.
While he thrives as a weak side shot blocker, Payne has had some issues as a primary rim protector. Payne isn’t an awfully big player by SEC center standards and when he is walling up in the paint stronger players have been able to initiate contact, push him off his spot, and then finish. Payne is actually allowing 57% at the hoop, an unflattering number that speaks to where he has to improve as a rim protector. He has the length and leaping ability to thrive when rotating over to a driver on the opposite side of the floor, but sometimes rim protection is all about holding your ground against a straight line drive when the offensive player knows where you are and comes right at you.
What has made Florida such a good rim protecting team when Omar Payne is on the floor next to Colin Castleton is that they are both great shot blockers but they do it in different ways. When Castleton has been the primary rim protector and Payne has been a weak side shot blocker, the Gators have been nearly impossible to score at the hoop against. Castleton will deter drivers from coming into the paint at all as they see him forming a wall ready to take contact, and when they focus on contorting around him Payne will come out nowhere to reject the shot.
Payne isn’t the only elite weak side shot blocker on the Gators as Scottie Lewis has sneakily been one of the best shot blocking wings in the country. His 5% block rate is 168th in the country, putting him well ahead of many centers, and to put it further into context it’s significantly higher than Kerry Blackshear’s 2.6% block percentage a year ago.
With Lewis, his shot blocking is all about timing and pure athleticism. He does well to read plays as a help defender, diagnosing when to leave a shooter to help in the paint and contest a shot.
Watching Florida’s defensive clips, Lewis is far more effective as a help defender than a primary defender. Florida has often put him on the opposing team’s best perimeter scorer and while he might be better equipped to handle that assignment than the Gators’ smaller guards, it doesn’t get the best out of his gifts and tools. As mentioned earlier, his numbers as a primary defender are downright poor. However, his numbers as a help defender are excellent, suggesting that perhaps the Gators would be better served to have him off the ball as much as possible as a defender.
If the Gators are going to continue to hemorrhage straight line drives they’re going to need their shot blocking to continue. To best do this, they’ll need to continue to play the two-big lineups with Omar Payne next to Colin Castleton, and it would help greatly to have Scottie Lewis at the three as well. That trio has barely played together this season, but when they have it has suffocated opponents defensively. Opponents have only shot 0.63 points per possession against the Gators with Colin Castleton, Omar Payne, and Scottie Lewis on the floor together and considering how Florida has struggled defensively this season, they might be wise to give that lineup some more looks.
Truthfully, if Florida’s defense improves their shot blocking numbers will likely go down. The Gators would be well-served to do whatever possible to lower that 41% of opponent shots coming from drives to the rim, and lowering that would take away some shot blocking opportunities. However, for the time being Florida is putting pressure on their shot blockers and they are delivering. While the Gators’ defense on the whole has been lackluster, the efforts of Colin Castleton, Omar Payne, and Scottie Lewis shouldn’t be overlooked.