Providence’s Kris Dunn is a special kind of player. How many times have we heard that this season? His ascent to stardom came at an almost unprecedented rate, going from “good player who plays a supporting role to LaDontae Henton” to Big East Player of the Year in just one season. In the ensuing offseason, Dunn found himself in discussions as not just the best player in the conference, but the best player in the entire country. He’s seen his draft stock rise from completely off the board (DraftExpress on 12/3/2014) to surefire lottery pick in just 12 months’ time.
But while much of the national media spotlight has been focused on Dunn’s flashy passing and bevy of offensive moves, his instinct on the defensive end of the floor hasn’t received proper attention. What many of those fail to realize about the junior All-American is that much of his playmaking ability is driven by the havoc he creates on defense.
Without much interior size, Providence fares poorly in defensive field goal percentages across the board. The Friars are allowing opponents to shoot 35 percent from three (222nd nationally), 51 percent from two (220th), and allowing offensive rebounds on 29 percent of opponents’ possessions (134th). Combining that with an average shooting offense might lead you to believe that this is a team struggling to stay afloat. Instead, Providence currently sits at 7-1 with significant wins over Evansville and Arizona along with a tightly contested loss to Michigan State. How is this possible, you ask? The answer is through an unusually prescient defense led by the prolific play of its superstar, Dunn.
As a team, Providence forces a turnover on nearly 24 percent of opponents’ possessions, ranking 26th nationally in this category. This turnover-hungry defense kickstarts an offense that converts on shot attempts in transition at a 54 percent clip (compared with 48 percent in non-transition settings). It also helps to explain why teams have only been scoring 68 points per game (seven fewer than the national average) in spite of the Friars’ poor field goal defense. Spearheading this defense is Dunn, who ranks second nationally in steal percentage at 6.5 percent. How does he do it? Let’s examine what makes Dunn such a great defender and how that propels the Friars’ offense.
While his gamble rate is high, Dunn’s length and defensive awareness enable him to read passing lanes and generate easy points.
Being 6’4″ gives Dunn a height advantage at his position, but the most impressive part of his defensive ability lies in his lateral quickness. Watch as he cuts off Kadeem Allen’s drive and forces a turnover here.
Here again Dunn leaves his defender little breathing room while simultaneously tracking the ball-handler. It seems that almost all of his steals are tipped toward the opposing basket, leading to uncontested transition points.
Given his rare combination of quickness and size for a point guard, it isn’t surprising that he also possesses an ability to block shots. Here, despite going under the screen, Dunn tips the shot of Butler’s 6’6″ Kellen Dunham, leading to yet another offensive runout.
Dunn’s help defense is also tremendous. Here, he senses an entry pass and properly distances himself from the ball-handler in order to deflect the pass.
It’s easy to see why NBA scouts rave about Dunn’s defensive playmaking abilities. Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress notes that, “Defensively, Dunn has all the tools you look for in a guard — elite size and length, a great frame, quick hands and feet, and outstanding instincts getting in the passing lanes — resulting in some extremely impressive plays.” Ed Isaacson of NBADraftBlog agreed with this sentiment, but also expressed some concerns around his gamble rate, stating that Dunn “tends to gamble, including often leaving his man completely, no matter where he is on the floor, to try and force a turnover. This will work to some degree at the college level, but wouldn’t at the NBA level.” All in all though, few argue about Dunn’s general defensive instincts. Isaacson went on to say that “Dunn’s greatest strength is probably his awareness to see where the offense is moving and to react quickly enough to jump passing lanes when he has the opportunity.”
Highlight reels and game recaps all too often only show offensive plays. Doing that for Kris Dunn would be omitting the most unique part of his game.
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