How Will Wade's First Roster Fits Together

I think we're done? It would seem that Will Wade's first NC State roster is complete, and if you're a State fan, it's hard to not be pretty pumped about the way this looks. We've covered each of the new additions individually, and now we want to take a look at how the whole thing comes together.

Everything about this team starts with Darrion Williams. A lot of what State wants to do offensively is likely to revolve around his versatility and creation. Williams is the centerpiece of the team. That doesn’t mean he’ll always have the ball as an initiator, but he’s going to be an operative piece in a lot of offensive activity. 

Wade can put him in a lot of ball screens, both on the ball and off it. He could operate 4-out 1-in inverted pick and pops with guys like Paul McNeil or Matt Able. He could short roll or pop in 4-out 1-in pick and roll as the screener. He could also run a spread pick and roll with Lubin or Mbiya. I like the first two options a lot because they offer more counters and lend themselves to secondary actions more. State could pick and pop, short the roll, or catch a pocket pass and go score with Darrion Williams as the screener. It could also initiate any number of secondary actions after Williams catches the ball. The ability to flow into something else off a pick and pop is one way State could create advantages artificially and matchup hunt. 

I like the spread pick and roll less because I don’t feel strongly about what Mbiya or Lubin can do as a screener. The roster was built this way intentionally, I would assume, and you’re likely to see a lot of 4-out spacing on offense. These types of 1-4 exchanges that we’re talking about can have a natural vulnerability to switches with certain rosters, example being NC State last season. Many teams would consider switching a Michael O’Connell/Dontrez Styles ball screen an easy win. Williams is a challenging assignment for a smaller guard and that helps neutralize the weakness.

These types of actions can be really effective and useful for a coach because of the offensive bag of both players. It offers more counters to different types of defenses, and as mentioned, it’s easier to flow into different actions and use the defensive positioning the initial action created to manufacture advantages for playmakers. Williams also offers opportunities to matchup hunt because he’s so difficult to guard in isolation, especially for smaller guards. Creating advantages with secondary actions can also lead to generating defensive switches as a counter to those advantages.

Here are five ways State could initiate with pick and roll using Darrion Williams. 

1-4 Pick and Roll

State could use Williams as a pop man off pick and roll where he can catch and shoot or attack a closeout. He can also short roll effectively, where he can catch below the level of the screen and then can attack and score or be a connector piece for the floor spacers around him.

Inverted Pick and Pop

State could put Williams on the ball with a shooter like Paul McNeil as the screener. McNeil pops out off the screen and Williams can use the screen to get downhill or flip it back to McNeil for a shot. Just as it could above, State could easily isolate Williams if he gets a switch from a small guard.

4-5 Spread Pick and Roll

State could run pick and roll with Williams on the ball and Lubin or Mbiya screening and rolling directly to the basket. Williams can come off the screen and toss a lob to either guy should drop coverage lose contain. He can also attack the rim or hit the pocket pass to either big, although I don't love theses bigs catching the ball away from the rim.

Empty Side Angle Pick and Roll

Empty side pick and roll with some weak side activity can be a great way to steal easy buckets by manipulating help and weak side tags. As a pick and pop action, it also can easily flow into a variety of secondary actions.

Now here are three ways State could pair other action with a ball screen to displace defenders and create advantages or generate switches.

Veer Screen

The veer action can displace defenders because of the consecutive screens. The defense aligning a certain way to defend the initial ball screen can leave them out of position to defend the second action. This can create discombobulation which can force switches.

Pick and Pop into Zoom

State could run pick and pop with Holloman on the ball and then immediately flow into a variety of actions if it flips back to Williams. One of these could be the zoom, which you see above with Jerry Deng setting a down screen for Terrance Arceneaux who then receives a handoff from Darrion Williams.

Pick and Pop into Get

Another version of the above situation could be get, where Williams will catch the ball, immediately pass to the wing, and then get handoff in what's called a get action.

Williams could be effective in dribble handoffs to other creators, such as the zoom action mentioned above. A lot of that stuff is functionally similar to pick and roll, but Williams would be a legitimate threat to keep the ball if the defense overplays the handoff. This is something State was missing when it ran zoom actions last year with Ben Middlebrooks. Williams can also deliver the back door if teams start trying to deny the wing. This is more of the same from a philosophy standpoint. He provides natural counters. 

Tre Holloman would be the obvious choice to run this kind of thing with him, but I actually like Terrance Arceneaux a lot here too. He doesn’t have a lot of tape as a creator, but he is a reliable jump shooter who can finish in the paint. If teams want to play drop coverage off these handoffs, he gives you some scoring punch as a shooter. 

Holloman and Williams will rep on the ball and as initiators at the highest volume, but the secondary creation from guys like Arceneaux and even McNeil or Able helps juice up some of these series-based offensive possessions. For example, State runs pick and pop with Holloman and Williams. The ball kicks back to Williams but he gets closed out. State can flow directly into a zoom action, but the primary creator of that action is no longer one of your main guys. It’s probably a guy like Arceneaux. The presence of Williams’ versatility, multiple creators on the floor, and some guys with secondary creation deepens the offensive bag a lot. 

State should be able to space out these actions and present shooting threats with almost every player on the floor except for the big. Arceneaux can fit very easily as a floor spacer that can make threes and attack closeouts a la Jayden Taylor. I think he’s capable of more than that, but that type of role supporting a two-man action is something he can definitely offer. This is also Jerry Deng to a T, and at least for now, Paul McNeil. Matt Able is a capable shooter too, and shooting is probably the most transferable skill from high school to college. There is some experimentation to be done with guys like McNeil and Able to see what they can give you. You can throw Alyn Breed in there too. It creates a considerable distance between the floor and the ceiling.

Quadir Copeland is being mentioned a lot as a creator on the ball, something he did well at McNeese. He'll do some of that here as well, but I'm curious if we'll see him as a screener more this season. He has some similarities to Darrion Williams as a big wing who has a solid finishing bag and is a great passer. He's also a better athlete than Williams, although Williams is a higher caliber player in almost every other way and the obvious distinction comes in the jumpshot.

I don't compare them to suggest they're comparable producers, but I think Copeland off the bench could do some of what Williams might do role wise. He can handle the ball in the pick and roll and at least has the skillset to be really effective short rolling. I don't know if he's done a lot of this in his career, but his ability to see the floor and finish at the rim offers up a lot of potential.

I suspect that Lubin and Mbiya will be primarily rim presences for NC State. We’ve talked already about the 4-out 1-in spacing, and these guys are your 1-in. I think you’ll see them play out of the dunker spot a lot. They’ll be interchangeable in the lineup and make up most of the minutes in that role. 

You could try to spread things out more against defenses that play a lot more drop coverage in order to use the strengths of your bigs to your advantage. One of the few holes in Darrion Williams’ offensive game is he isn’t a great rim runner. He had two dunks last year, so he doesn’t pose any kind of lob threat. Both Lubin and Mbiya can be effective as rim runners and that can put some pressure on teams that play high drop coverage. State has three good lob throwers who can read these plays effectively in Tre Holloman, Darrion Williams, and Quadir Copeland. 

Here are three ways State could use these bigs. 

Cleaner

State could and likely will run a lot of actions with its big around the rim in the dunker spot. Here, he can make himself available on drives, finish plays, and get offensive rebounds. In the diagram, Lubin is switching sides to make himself available for Holloman on the drive. Imagine that Lubin's defender has to come off of Lubin to help.

Flex Screener

Flex offense is something that Bruce Pearl has won a lot with using guys like Johni Broome. I don't expect Will Wade to be building a ton of offense of this concept, but it is something that Darrion Williams could be quite effective in if you had a couple of these in the playbook.

Rim Runner

State could use either as a true rim runner in 5-out pick and roll. Both are legitimate lob threats that can stress a drop big.

Late Action Flare Screener

If State wanted to run 5-out offense without involving its big in the exchange, it could use the obvious decision to help off the big against the defense by skipping the ball to the big and then immediately playing into a handoff. This would take a high-level movement shooter to do regularly, but I'm hopeful that Paul McNeil could become that.

Defensively, I think Paul Mbiya is the x-factor for State. He’s basically a 737 with legs, and he offers pure rim protection that State does not have elsewhere. Lubin is a solid shot blocker but far from elite. How ready Mbiya is to play significant minutes could have a lot to say about the ceiling for this team defensively. Mbiya largely is the ceiling. 

I’ll be very curious to see State’s defensive structure, as I’m less confident predicting this than how the offense will play out. Wade was an aggressive switcher at McNeese State, and I’d bet you’ll still see a lot of those principles. State was in pursuit of Musa Sagnia and James Scott as bigs in the portal, and both were elite switch defenders. I do wonder if the current lineup has that much juice. 

Mbiya certainly has the potential to be a defensive nuke for NC State. I want to see how versatile he is and how many different types of coverages he can be effective in. The Congolese "dictator of the paint" (not my nickname) would be a natural fit as a drop big, but I kind of hate that and I think Will Wade does too. Plus, Ven-Allen Lubin does not offer the size to do that. State's big man targets in the portal pretty directly speak to a team that is not interested in pigeonholing itself when it comes to screen coverages.

One concept to watch is the triple switch concept. Switches on 1-5 ball screens can trigger secondary switches from the corner. This can bring, for example, Darrion Williams or Jerry Deng into the paint to guard the big and push a smaller defender like Alyn Breed or Tre Holloman back to the corner to pick up a guard. The concept helps prevent the interior matchup problem switching can create. It’s something Wade has done before. In basic switches, you’ll often see teams front the post and show help from the corner to defend the entry pass. Terrance Arceneaux should be dynamite in this type of role. His length and range as a help defender could absolutely make this work. 

Lubin is also a pretty solid rotational defender. Wade's teams have switched a lot and helped counter the mismatches they've surrounded with some aggressive help. I think he's set up to have this again with some strong rotational length and some good on-ball defenders with guys like Holloman, Copeland and Arceneaux. While Williams isn't an elite perimeter or help defender, his strength offers a boost to the triple switching concept with his ability to bang around in the paint and keep guys from getting easy positioning.

Overall, this group has tremendous potential on both sides of the court. The floor is relatively high with proven commodities like Williams, Lubin, and Holloman. Guys with gold still to mine like Arceneaux, Mbiya, and McNeil give you quite the ceiling. This has been a home run of a portal season.

For more analysis of Wade's first roster, check out Trinity Road Times Premium