Bam's Blues, Poeltl's Delays, Suggs' Swats, New NBA Tools & More

Welcome to the NBA Librarian Weekly, where we curate and summarize the best NBA content of the week.

<1000 words each week. I consume so you don’t have to.

In Today's Edition:

1. Shotcreator - New Basketball Stats + Video Site

2. Deep Dive into Bam’s Struggles Offensively

3. Democratizing NBA Play-by-Play Data

4. Wolves Decline on Defense

5. The New King of the Chasedown

6. Comparing Efficiency

7. Jokic…then Jakob Poeltl?

Shotcreator - New Basketball Stats + Video Site

I’ve been obsessed with this new website. You can get crystal clear video clips of any play from any game this season, create your own aesthetic leaderboards for various stats, and even access shot charts for players. It feels like everyone on my timeline is using it for different things. If you haven’t seen it yet, check it out!

Deep Dive into Bam’s Struggles Offensively

This is one of the most in depth breakdowns I’ve seen.

It goes into Bam Adebayo's struggles on offense this season, touching on everything from his shot profile to his role in Miami’s system.

Bam is facing career lows in scoring efficiency, with a 50.1 TS% and a negative Offensive EPM (-0.6). A lot of his inefficiency stems from a sharp decline in rim attempts (25.1% of his total shots, down from 30.5% last year) and poor finishing (lowest since 2020 at 63.0%). Additionally, his shot diet remains problematic, with heavy reliance on tough mid-range jumpers and fadeaways, shooting 33.3% on pull-up 2s, down from 45.1% in prior seasons.

Beyond his shooting slump, systemic issues in Miami's offense have contributed to his struggles. Early-season confusion about his role led to fewer touches, inconsistent usage, and an increased spot-up frequency that hasn't translated to success (31.2% from 3). While Bam’s pick-and-roll efficiency has dropped (0.91 PPP, a noticeable decline from 1.32 PPP in 2021), the Heat’s failure to fully integrate him into consistent actions—like handoffs or rolling to the rim—has further limited his offensive impact. While some of these issues may resolve with shooting regression, the bigger picture requires changes in his role and more clarity in the team's offensive design.