BRIGHT FUTURE
How Christian Wood can take his game to the next level
Apr 25, 2021, 9:49 am
Wood relies on length, long strides, and athleticism. Composite image by Jack Brame.
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Christian Wood has proven his worth with the Houston Rockets. Spectators, including the Rockets know that Wood is worth more than he's getting paid. It will be interesting to see the type of extension Wood gets.
Although, Wood has given the Rockets a good season, he still has areas inside his game that need improvement. Wood's weight, low post defense, versatile big man moves, and foot work must come together. If Wood fixes these aspects of his game, he can move amongst the best big men in the NBA.
If Wood fixes his foot work, it allows him to stay in front of guards when switched towards them in pick-and-roll situations. Good footwork will improve his drop coverage and low post defense on big men. Versatility on defense is important in today's era of basketball for big men. Wood is around the 42nd percentile and allows 1.5 points per possession in post defense. His defensive rating is extremely high, which is 111.9. Hopefully, in the future his percentile goes up and makes it harder on big men defensively.
Should Wood gain more weight, so he becomes better in one-on-one situations? This includes offense and defense. Wood gaining weight would be a good idea. This could help him fight off bigger players in the post and get better positioning. Opposing players would have a tougher time backing down Wood in the paint. For example, former Rockets' big man Clint Capela weighed 222 pounds as a rookie. Capela became more dominant within five years with the Rockets because he gained 20 pounds.
Capela averaged 2.7 points per game in seven minutes as a rookie to 15.7 points per game in 30 minutes as a vet with the Atlanta Hawks. Luckily, Wood is more skilled than Capela was.
Obviously, Coach Silas allows Wood to play outside the perimeter because of his small frame. The five-out offense fits Wood well because of his versatility with the basketball. Honestly, he would dominate more if his post package was created in the off-season. Having an in-and-out game would move Wood forward amongst the big men. Wood only averages 1.5 points per possession and is still in the 42ndpercentiles for post offense. As seen below, Wood struggles to back down a 175 pound RJ Hampton in the post but still finished with a put-back dunk.
Christian Wood with the bounce and finish! https://t.co/bcJLQwTUTG— Jackson Gatlin (@Jackson Gatlin) 1618788574.0
Wood relies on length, long strides, and athleticism to blow by defenders from the perimeter. Defenders struggle to guard Wood in pick-and-roll situations. He is in the 70th percentile and averages 1.21 points per possession amongst big men in pick-and-roll opportunities. Silas will disguise the pick-and-roll in various offensive sets so Wood can free himself. John Wall and Wood's connection continues to get better in the pick-and-roll aspect.
Strong take here from Christian Wood. https://t.co/ZFoZadVhhU— Jackson Gatlin (@Jackson Gatlin) 1617407233.0
BEAUTIFUL pick and roll between John Wall and Christian Wood! https://t.co/S6VTMgEUMa— Jackson Gatlin (@Jackson Gatlin) 1619230744.0
"Him [Wall] and C-Wood have a connection in the pick-and-roll," Silas said. "As long as we have a good screening angle, we can get those rolls. Especially if they're going to play C-Wood with a smaller guy, he can go up and get it. A connection between those guys is good and it continues to grow."
Another thing Wood does so well is shooting from three. Wood's 6'10 frame allows him to shoot over the defenders outstretched arms. He shoots 37.6 percent from three off five attempts per game. His true shooting percentage is 59.7 percent while his efficiency field goal percentage is 58.1 percent. Wood's shooting splits are extremely good as a first-time starter. "Definitely a learning experience for me," said Wood when it came to him starting a full season.
Wood does want to become a better playmaker and stronger as a player. He wants to reach the highest ceiling of his career. Wood can potentially become a dominant superstar with the Rockets. A player like Wood could take time. He isn't far from reaching his goal.
"I feel like my playmaking could be better and I will be working on strength and conditioning in the off-season," Wood said. "Those are the two areas that I can take my game to the next level."
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With the Astros now officially ten games under .500 for the season, manager Joe Espada is taking a lot of heat from the fanbase for the team's struggles.
While we don't agree with the sentiment, we even hear fans clamoring for the return of Dusty Baker and Martin Maldonado, thinking the Astros wouldn't be in this mess if they were still here.
Which is ridiculous. First of all, Maldonado has been awful for the White Sox, hitting .048 (even worse than Jose Abreu's .065). And for those of you that think his work with the pitching staff justifies his pathetic offense. Let me say this: Where was Maldy's game calling genius for Hunter Brown, Cristian Javier, and Framber Valdez last year? All of them regressed significantly.
And as far as Baker is concerned, we have no idea how much a difference he would make, we can only speculate. Baker would also be dealing with a pitching staff ravaged with injuries. And let's not forget, Baker was the guy that refused to move Jose Abreu down in the batting order, even though he would finish the regular season with the ninth-worst OPS in baseball.
The reality of the situation is managers can only do so much in baseball. Which leads us to something else that needs to be considered. Is Espada being handcuffed by the front office? Espada and GM Dana Brown both said recently that Jon Singleton was going to get more at-bats while they give Abreu time off to try to figure things out. Yet, there Abreu was in the lineup again in the opening game of the Cubs series.
It makes us wonder how much power does Espada truly have? The Astros have some other options at first base. Yainer Diaz may only have eight games played at the position, but how much worse could he be than Abreu defensively? Abreu already has four errors, and Diaz is obviously a way better hitter. Victor Caratini isn't considered a plus offensive player, but his .276 batting average makes him look like Babe Ruth compared to Abreu. Let him catch more often and play Diaz at first. Starting Diaz at first more often could also lengthen his career long-term.
Maybe that's too wild of a move. Okay, fine. How about playing Mauricio Dubon at first base? I understand he doesn't have much experience at that position, but what's the downside of trying him there? If he can play shortstop, he can play first base. He's driving in runs at a higher rate (11 RBIs) than everyone on the team outside of Kyle Tucker and Yordan Alvarez. And he's producing like that as part-time player right now.
The other criticism we see of Espada is his use of Jon Singleton to pinch hit late in games. Let's be real, though, who else does Espada have on the roster to go to? Batting Abreu late in games in which you're trailing should be considered malpractice. Espada can only use who he has to work with. This all really stems from the Astros poor farm system.
They don't have anyone else to turn to. The draft picks the club lost from the sign-stealing scandal are really hurting them right now. First and second rounders from 2020 and 2021 should be helping you in 2024 at the big league level.
Maybe they go to Astros prospect Joey Loperfido soon, but after a hot start he has only two hits in his last six games.
Finally, we have to talk about what seems like a committee making baseball decisions. Lost in a committee is accountability. Who gets the blame for making poor decisions?
As time continues to pass it looks like moving on from former GM James Click was a massive mistake. He's the guy that didn't sign Abreu, but did trade Myles Straw (recently DFA'd) for Yainer Diaz and Phil Maton. He also built an elite bullpen without breaking the bank, and helped the club win a World Series in 2022.
The reality of the situation is Dusty Baker and James Click are not walking back through that door. And all good runs come to an end at some point. Is this what we're witnessing?
Don't miss the video above as we hit on all the points discussed and much more!
Catch Stone Cold 'Stros (an Astros podcast) with Charlie Pallilo, Brandon Strange, and Josh Jordan. We drop two episodes every week on SportsMapHouston's YouTube channel. You can also listen on Apple Podcast, Spotifyor wherever you get your podcasts.