Toronto Raptors: 3 Ways Cory Joseph Can Improve in 2016-17

3 Point Shooting

Each player has a part of their game that needs improvement that allows them to continue evolving over time. Joseph’s next evolution needs to be the acquisition of a reliable three-point shot.

Despite being a player borne of the San Antonio Spurs’ system, Joseph’s glaring weakness appears to be his three-point shooting. The 2015-16 season marked the first season in which CoJo’s three-point shooting took a downturn.

Joseph averaged 1.4 attempts per game last season and shot an abysmal 27 percent. He shot 31.6 percent and 34.6 percent from range in his last two years with the Spurs, but only took 38 and 44 attempts respectively, which is below Dwyane Wade levels.

CoJo attempted 110 threes this year and 35 of them were from the corners, while in his previous year with the Spurs he attempted 25. With him being a primary ball handler on the second unit, it shifted where he gets his looks from.

Joseph’s three-point shooting opportunities originated from the corners: 56.8 percent during his last Spurs season, but reduced to 30.9 percent during the 2015-16 campaign.

The Raptors second unit typically has CoJo with the ball in his hands and it led to the deterioration of his three-point percentage, but not necessarily his skill. He actually shot better from the corners last season, than he ever has in his entire career.

What is killing Joseph’s percentage is the volume and efficiency of his three-point shot above the break: 19.2 percent on 73 attempts.

In San Antonio, CoJo was a secondary, or tertiary, ball handler during his time on the second unit with Manu Ginobli or Tony Parker, meaning he found himself only shooting the ball when wide open in the corners or driving the ball in rhythm of the offence. Now he’s open for three as a direct result of pick and roll situations, instead of being an escape valve when the defence breaks down.

Instead of just taking wide open set shots from the corners, the majority of Joseph’s attempts are now off the dribble and from a further distance. His shots have a higher degree of difficulty than ever before and his percentage has suffered the consequences.

The three-point shot is the root of all evil, but also the bastion of all good in today’s NBA. It’s a necessity, on a macro scale three-point shooting is the way of the future, from Chino Hills to Believeland. You either shoot the three well as a team or become the Memphis Grizzlies.

On a micro scale, the lack of a three-point shot can turn possessions from magical Spursian passing symphonies into ‘record scratch’ plays.

In fact, the only thing that’s worse than being a bad three-point shooter, is not shooting it at all. Russell Westbrook was a bad three-point shooter at 29.6 percent last year, but the defence still has to honor him beyond the arc, because he’ll always be a threat to shoot it.

Joseph’s meager 1.4 attempts per game allows the defence to sag and rotate off him, with little fear of recompense. The floor shrinks for those around him, making it that much harder for everyone else to score.

Not having that shot beyond the arc hinders not only the flow of the offence, but makes it less opportunistic. What makes three-point shooting so devastating is its ability to punish the defence for making serendipitous mistakes.

Offensive rebounds have a way of leaving people open for three. When the ball ends up in CoJo’s hands and since he doesn’t (can’t) take (make) the three in these situations, he manufactures another instance of stagnation in an offensive system that is notorious for its sticky hands.

Joseph has to make the decision to hold the ball to set up a new offensive play or drive into the teeth of the defence, wasting the awesome opportunity to exploit opponents for their past transgressions. He loves using his drives to the rim to create openings – he’s a slasher at heart, but without that three-point shot even his drives to the rim suffer.