Last night Phoenix beat up on the Sixers, 112-96, but Goran Dragic struggled from the field, going just 1-of-6 from downtown and 3-of-13 overall on his way to 10 points. He also had 10 rebounds, three steals and a blocks, playing beyond his 6-3 frame. But finds it’s easiest against Indiana’s lumbering 7-2 center, Roy Hibbert, as he told Bleacher Report’s Jared Zwerling in a piece published yesterday.
Per Zwerling’s Q&A portion to the piece:
B/R: Goran, who’s the hardest and easiest player to finish over in the NBA?
Goran Dragic: Dwight Howard is the hardest because he’s so strong and athletic. Roy Hibbert is the easiest for me. Everyone says he’s a great defender, but he doesn’t jump very high. You just need to lean into him and you can finish over him, or get the foul.
The numbers back up Dragic’s claims about Roy, too. Goran is averaging 17.1 points per game in 10 games against Indiana over his career, the highest scoring average against an individual team in the NBA. He’s also shot 55.6 percent against the Pacers, which is higher than what he’s shot against any other team in the NBA (per basketball-reference).
Take, for instance, this drive against Roy for the layup in Phoenix’s win last year on January 22; Goran had 21 points that night:
Or his 28 points and seven assists against Roy and the Pacers just eight days later. In that win, Dragon Dragic routinely throws his body into Roy — and Hibbert’s stand-up-straight verticality defense — to get enough separation for the bucket:
Goran answered correctly. Roy Hibbert is the easiest person for him to score over.
(B/R)
What do you think?
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