Portland Trail Blazers: Rodney Hood is in career best form

Rodney Hood hasn’t had the easiest NBA career so far. After spending his first three years on the Utah Jazz, he was traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers in February of his fourth year. Within 12 months he had played for three teams and had to accept a qualifying offer from the Cavaliers when it came time for free agency. After a great post season with the Portland Trail Blazers he re-signed in rip city and has now consistently shown he can be an efficient scorer in this league.

How has Rodney Hood remodelled his game with the Portland Trail Blazers and what can fans look forward to for the rest of the season?

Finishing at the rim

Hood is one of the biggest wings in the league at 6’8. With a strong body and big long strides he has always been a strong finisher at the rim. This year and last year though, he has taken massive steps when finishing in the paint.

An amazing improvement this year has seen him well over 70%. Anything over 67 percent is considered élite if you are a wing.

By using his big body and long arms he can finish through and around contact, he has attacked mismatches more and when playing the three he can dominate opponents in the switch heavy NBA.

With the spacing provided by Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum, Hood has been able to maximise his game. While playing at the three ( his best position ) he can bully smaller opponents in either post up or transition opportunities.

Three point shooting

Hood has always been an above average three-point shooter, but this season he has taken this to a new level. By playing off Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum he is able to get better shots. He invariably ends up with larger players on him who he can beat off the dribble. If the opposition puts a bigger guy on Lillard or McCollum then Hood can shoot over the smaller defender that he is matched up with.

Hood’s size and ability to attack close-outs means he now may be able to rise into the NBA’s élite when it comes to three-point shooting. The threat of him attacking the basket means that defenders can’t close out to hard or too quickly.

So far this season Hood is shooting a whopping 50 percent from three. Though this may drop to 40 percent as the season wears on, its important to note that Hood started this year with a career average of 37 percent.

His growth as a shooter comes as he accepts a role as the third option on this team. This role may give him less shots, but it gives him better shots.

Attacking as the ball handler

Coach Terry Stotts has put Hood in more situations to succeed this season. By letting a 6’8 athlete like Hood attack with the ball in his hands, he has opened the floor for the entire team. When Hood has the ball in his hands with the starters he creates all sorts of mismatches on the floor.

As mentioned above, when Hood has the ball in his hands, the threat of McCollum and Lillard off ball is magnified for the opposition. Hood is excellent at attacking in transition as opposition defenders help off him to corner shooters or cutters.

With lob threats like Nassir Little or Hassan Whiteside in tow, Hood has become a real threat in transition or in isolation. As evidenced by his clutch score on DeMar DeRozan in the win over the Spurs this week, he can thrive in single coverage situations. His ability to put the ball on the floor and shoot hooks or floaters in the lane is a real strength.

Rodney Hood is putting the work in this season that may give him a first big pay-day in the NBA. Though the Portland Trail Blazers haven’t started well as a team, Hood has been one of the bright sparks early on. Still just 27, his best years are ahead of him.

If this team can recover and make a run for the playoffs, Hood will be a big part of their success. Lets hope his new-found efficiency continues this season.