Total amount of dribbles in this video: a lot.
Total amount of dribbles in this video performed by Ben McLemore: 1.
I was hoping it was going to be zero dribbles, because that would be way more fun and notable. Zero dribbles, it’s like “does this dude even know that you can do something when you receive the ball other than shoot or pass?”. One dribble means he definitely knows that dribbling is part of the game and just chooses to hardly ever do it.
With the way the Rockets play, there is no reason for him to ever be dribbling, really. If he gets the ball, it’s probably because Harden passed it to him. And if Harden passed it to him, it means that either a.) he’s wide open and should shoot or b.) he’s not wide open and Harden is standing there begging for the ball to be returned to him so he can try again. There is no option c.) there is a wide open lane for a dunk if he just dribbles it a few times.
Basketball is all about getting the most out of your players, putting them in position to succeed by analyzing their respective strengths and weaknesses. Having everyone do everything is a surefire way to have chaos in your arena rather than order. In the same way that Harden shouldn’t try to play defense, McLemore shouldn’t try to dribble. It just works out better that way, as the Rockets are finding out.
The real question is: should I amend the title to read “17 Points/1 Dribble” or nah?