Milwaukee Bucks: Matthew Dellavedova’s screens are impactful

Matthew Dellavedova has been a polarizing player among Milwaukee Bucks fans since signing with the team as a free agent in the summer of 2016, but his willingness and ability to set effective screens for his teammates ensures he will continue to be an impactful role player whenever he’s on the court.

Entering his third year of a four-year, $38 million contract with the Milwaukee Bucks, Matthew Dellavedova’s tenure with the team has certainly had its ups and downs.

Although largely playing as advertised, Dellavedova failed to become the starting point guard complement to rising superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo that the Bucks hoped he could be upon his signing.

A regression in three-point shooting has also plagued his first two years in Milwaukee, making his fit next to Giannis less obvious.

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Consequently, many Bucks fans soured on Dellavedova quickly due to the expensive and lengthy nature of his deal.

However, Dellavedova has proven to be a steady playmaker who takes care of the ball, posting an impressive 2.76 assist to turnover ratio since joining the team.

He also adds veteran leadership to a squad filled with young talent and shows maximum effort on defense and hustle plays.

Dellavedova has also been known to shine in big moments, including this play in the 2018 playoffs:

But perhaps the most underappreciated aspect of Dellavedova’s game is his screen-setting ability.

Setting effective screens

Screens have become a staple of modern NBA offenses. The Golden State Warriors are a prime example of a team that takes advantage of setting screens to get their shooters open.

While NBA bigs are typically the most utilized and effective at setting screens, having guards who can set hard screens can open up limitless options for an offense.

A screen assist is defined as a screen set for a teammate that directly leads to a made field goal by that teammate.

Last year, Dellavedova ranked first among Bucks guards in screen assists per 36 minutes with 1.1; Eric Bledsoe ranked second with 0.6.

What makes this more impressive is the fact that he was able to do so in an offense that ranked 26^th in screen frequency last year at 3.6 percent. For context, the Warriors’ screen frequency ranked first at 11.9 percent.

Jason Kidd ran more of an old-school style of offense during his tenure as head coach that relied less on setting screens than the majority of the league’s more modernized offenses.

New Milwaukee Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer’s Hawks offense last year ranked second only behind the Golden State Warriors in screen frequency at 8.3 percent.

His offenses have consistently ranked in the top 10 in screen frequency since such stats were recorded on NBA.com, beginning in the 2015-2016 season.

Dellavedova should have plenty more opportunities to utilize this skill in Budenholzer’s new offensive scheme when he sees the floor.

The Psychological Effect

Not only are Dellavedova’s screens effective at setting up his teammates, but they have been able to get under opposing teams’ skins on more than one occasion.

Take a look at this screen he set on Marcus Smart.

The screen is effective in getting the defense out of position, leading to a Giannis slam on the feed from Henson. But Dellavedova is still in Smart’s head at the other end, causing them to get into an altercation after Smart flopped when feeling contact on a screen he set on Dellavedova.

Another instance came in the Bucks’ 2017 playoff series against the Toronto Raptors.

After Game 1, some Raptors players and even head coach Dwane Casey had some comments and complaints about the legality of the screens set by Dellavedova during the game. Casey had this to say before Game 2:

"“He’s not in our minds, I didn’t go to bed last night worried about Dellavedova, you know, no, not at all. But he did set 18 screens, and a lot of them weren’t legal… He’s one of the great screen-setters in the league, just like John Stockton was, you know, so it’s no disrespect by saying that, you know, it’s a respect factor for Dellavedova that he does set hellacious screens.”"

Dellavedova was one of only two Bucks reserves with a positive BPM in the Bucks’ 97-83 road victory in Game 1.

Dellavedova had this to say about his screening following Game 1:

"“I think in the playoffs, my game is suited to that. Where there’s a lot on the line, it’s going to be even more physical. If you want to win, you’ve got to put your body on the line. Internationally the game is a lot more physical. The way they set screens, if you go under a screen internationally, the big man is going to roll you down in to the paint, so you really can’t go under any screens. Often times when I go back and play with Australians in the summertime, it’s a lot more physical.”"

He talked about how from a ball-handler’s perspective, he knows what he wants in a screen from his teammates and tries to emulate that in his own screens:

"“Being a ball-handler all my life, coming off ball screens, I know what I like and what is effective. So I just do that as a screener: How the defender is playing, what the offensive player likes to do, where they are on the floor, where everyone else is on the floor. It all plays in to it.”"

Dellavedova takes pride in doing the little things to help his team win, even if he himself doesn’t get the credit he deserves for them.

While minutes may be harder to come by this year for the veteran guard, Dellavedova’s energy and ability to keep the offense flowing like a well-oiled machine with screens and smart passing should give Coach Budenholzer enough reason to give him a role off the bench.

As long as he continues to play with the effort he has his entire career, there will be a place for Matthew Dellavedova to make an impact on the Bucks’ roster this coming season.