Jalen Suggs: The Backcourt Ballhawk
How a Top-4 NBA Defense is anchored by a lockdown strong safety playing shooting guard
How many teams have an elite defense anchored by the shortest player in the lineup?
Jalen Suggs clocking in: First Team, All-Hustle.
Winning possessions by sneakily flying around the arc and pickpocketing opponents at the point of attack utilizing strength, speed, timing, and awareness, Jalen Suggs is everywhere at once, locking down opposing guards, switching 1-4, and breaking up passes for steals, deflections, and forced turnovers.
Finally seeing consistent opportunity next to the starters, creating the best closeout-attacking offball looks money can buy in an offense, Jalen Suggs has found his niche.
On offense, he plays bullyball ISO as a Handoff extraordinaire 3rd option & floor-stretching secondary scoring creator.
On defense, the screen-dodging, hip-flipping, play-disrupting, lane-jumping, pass-anticipating defensive back dictates every possession.
The Backcourt Ballhawk has spread his wings.
In the Magic’s first preseason game, Jalen Suggs fronted Zion Williamson in the post, breaking up a lob pass to ring in a new year of heart and hustle.
In Orlando’s first regular season game, the crowd roared so loud it felt like 2009 after Jalen drilled the first official Orlando Magic bucket of the season, a three-pointer.
Five games in, Jalen Suggs led all NBA players in Deflections (26), leading Orlando to the 3rd best Defense in the league via D-Rating.
In that time, Suggs and Paolo racked up 10 steals a piece to rank T-8th overall, as the team’s paint protector Jonathan Isaac remained a rim-deterrent, ranking T-28th with 5 total blocks.
Suggs’ statistical improvements as a deflector, defender, rebounder, outside shooter, and decision-maker have been notable.
50/50 plays are where Jalen Suggs leaves his mark, made evident by elite hustle stats.
As of 11/8, Jalen Suggs ranked 4th with 3.9 Deflections/GM and 27 Total Deflections, even leading all playeres with the most Loose Balls Recovered, tied with Steph Curry, Desmond Bane, and Ausar Thompson.
How many players make game-saving loose ball recoveries, let alone make it a habit?
It’s hard to say how many possessions Suggs has saved for Orlando in the clutch already this season, from his masterful hand-eye coordination, timing, and explosive ability to crash the glass, dive into the stands, and sacrifice his body for his team.
Jalen Suggs reads the flow of opposing offenses, waits patiently to seduce opponents into seeing a mirage of open passing lanes, before striking while the iron’s hot.
Suggs is the heartbeat that gives this elite Orlando Magic defense life, the rock disrupting the river from the backcourt, no easy task for a guard, given that tallest players tend to be teams’ last lines of defense.
This elite defense disappears when missing the head of the snake; the drumbeat doesn’t hit the same when someone rips out the bass; the soul of heart and hustle.
As of 11/17, The Magic rank 4th overall in Defensive Rating, 1st in the league at Forcing Turnovers, 4th at Defensive Rebounds, 9th at Offensive Rebounds, and 3rd at Drawing Fouls on Offense, which allows them to set their halfcourt defense.
Orlando’s Point Differential has ranked steadily around 10th overall all year.
13 games into this season, Jalen Suggs individually ranked:
T-1st in Total Deflections (39: Paul George, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander)
2nd in Total Loose Ball Recoveries (18)
3rd in Total Steals (24)
1st in Defensive Estimated Plus Minus (EPM) via Dunks and Threes
T-7th in Defensive Box Score Plus Minus (BPM) via Basketball Reference
As noted in my end-of-season appreciation post for Rookie Paolo's Magic, Stealth Mode Suggs surprises opponents by flying around all the action to beat his man to the ball and force a steal, often taking off the other direction for one pick-six per game.
Suggs sees handoff angles and stagger screens coming before they happen, like a defensive back reading the quarterback's eyes and receiver's footwork for subtle tells, jumping passing lanes for the chance to deflect any ball thrown to his side of the field.
Zooming out on the league landscape of hustlers, the two data visualizations below reveal the number of Hustle Plays Per Game Compared To The Average Player, which lets us put every player on one hustlin’ scale to best measure effort and energy.
As of 11/17, Jalen Suggs makes the 4th most Hustle Plays Per Game compared to the average player and ranks 14th overall in combined Steals + Blocks (Stocks) Per Game:
Zooming in on the upper right quadrant of the chart above, here’s a look at this season’s hustle leaders who average 2+ STL + BLK per game, data as of 11.17.23.
(Suggs rating similarly to Joel Embiid, Paul George, Marcus Smart, Xavier Tillman in these hustle metrics, and only slightly behind the league’s most active hustlers this year in Ausar Thompson, Herbert Jones, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander)
Most effective speeding around the perimeter on either end, whether to create a burst advantage for his team or take floor-stretching advantage away from the opponent, Suggs flying around at full speed unlocks his side-to-side mobility and pummeling downhill brutality.
Like savvy point guards before him, Jalen locates extra rebounds by waiting at the free throw line for ricochet rebounds and look-ahead grab-and-go opportunities.
At his best when able to utilize his burst, body control, strength, size and upper-echelon athleticism for the guard position, Suggs plows through and speeds past opponents with ease.
Jalen rounding out his offensive game to be more consistent would bring incredible two-way winning impact, making team-first decisions to not hurt his team with the upside of scoring 20 any given night on handoff halfcourt sets, catch-and-shoot threes, mismatch bully ball ISOs, and north-south flybys to the rack.
In a starting role playing next to the best offensive creators on the team and guarding the other team’s best wings, Year 3 Jalen Suggs has increased his efficiency across the board with the best opportunity of his career in playing time and a well-fitting role.
While still early into the year, Jalen is drilling an above average 37% 3P% on 4.4 3PA per game, making 51% on twos, converting 84% from the FT line, scoring 13 PPG on 58% TS%, and shooting .533% eFG% from the field, all of which are Career-Highs. (as of 11/17)
Jalen fills a myriad of roles for of a guard playing off two All-Star level big wing scorers: Lockdown Point-of-Attack Defense; Versatile 1-4 Switchability; Team-First Connector; ISO/Handoff Secondary Creator; 3pt Floor-Stretching Closeout-Attacker.
Synergy Scoring Efficiency by PPP s of 11/17:
His 1.5 PPP on Cuts and 1.3 PPP on Put Backs are his most efficient playtype, though only add up to an average of one possession per game.
Jalen's scoring at an average rate of 0.9 PPP on 0.8 Handoffs per game and 1.0 PPP on 3 Transition plays per game.
His ISO efficiency rates very good in a small sample, the 67th percentile, according to Synergy, rating 1.0 PPP on 0.7 possessions per game.
His 0.7 PPP as P&R Ball-Handler and 0.9 PPP on Spot Ups rates below average.
Over a month later, one can see Suggs’ off-ball impact rounding out into form:
Synergy Scoring Efficiency by PPP s of 12/27:
1.06 Spot Up PPP in 94 poss rates in 59th percentile
1.17 Transition PPP in 87 poss rates in 60th percentile
0.61 P&R Ball-Handler PPP in 44 poss rates in 13th percentile
1.1 Handoff PPP on 19 poss rates 78th percentile
1.06 ISO PPP in 18 poss rates in 70th percentile
1.56 Cut PPP in 18 poss rates in 88th percentile
0.9 PPP on 41 Drives
Check The Tape
Suggs most’ effective scoring halfcourt playtype last season was easily Handoffs.
On Opening Day in Houston, it’s no surprise Jalen’s first basket of the season arrived from downtown off a handoff from Wendell, after the fake-handoff from Franz.
Jalen flashes his fast break throttle and off-ball readiness for catch-and-shoot looks that will inevitably arrive off Paolo and Franz sprayouts.
In the road opener at Portland, Jalen Suggs maximized that downhill burst and body control balance, attacking the rack with no remorse, throwing down a tomahawk slam, putting Thybulle in jail-dribble behind him coast-to-coast crab-walking to a euro-step finish in transition, driving into the paint throughout the game.
Against the Lakers in L.A., Jalen finds his groove off the ball, knocking down multiple catch-and-shoot threes, beating D’Angelo Russell backdoor for the baseline cut, weaving downhill through gaps as Fultz and others penetrate the paint, even flashing his improved 3pt jumper with the stepback fadewaway corner three before halftime.
Jalen made life difficult on both ends of the floor for D’Angelo Russell, stealing his cookies right out of the cookie jar without even asking first.
Suggs made big plays throughout this Lakers game to keep Orlando close, crashing the boards, staying alert using vision to find the open man with the extra pass.
In the clutch, Suggs stayed active, creating a second chance possession by crashing the offensive glass with 3 MIN to play, fighting for the loose ball with 30 seconds to play, crashing the boards again to create a one last chance for himself to tie the game at the buzzer.
Against the Clippers soon after, Jalen showed off his play-finishing skills to score, crashing the glass for two putbacks, spacing the floor for a corner three, running the floor for a breakaway layup and semi-transition middy.
Showing off his ability as a passer now in a secondary creator role, Suggs hit Wendell on two rolls to the rack off familiar handoffs and found an open Paolo for a drive-and-kick corner three.
Jalen Suggs forces Russell Westbrook into a turnover by pulling the chair out from under him on a drive into paint postup, snatching rebounds in traffic, including a putback on his own missed lob pass to Wendell.
Jalen doesn’t just anticipate steals.
Target acquired.
Suggs chasedown blocks Paul George’s eurostep layup attempt on the fast break.
Target locked.
In Utah, important hustle plays were made by Suggs, fighting for offensive rebounds in traffic, winning 50/50 loose ball possessions that help decide the game in the clutch.
Defenses underestimate his sneakiness.
Pick-Six Suggs stays sneaky sneaky, breaking up passing lanes that opponents are convinced looked open just a second ago, keeping hands and feet active on ball, deflecting everything in sight.
In a major speed mismatch, Suggs catches Markkanen sleeping on the swing for the backdoor baseline cutting reverse slam dunk off the nice feed from Paolo after an effective double off-ball screen spread out the defense and distracts from the cutter.
Super Connector Suggs reads the floor, views his options, finds open man for three C&S 3PT kickouts and extra passes.
How to lose a guy and record a Deflection, Steal, and Foul Drawn in 1 second
Against the Wizards, Pick-Six Suggs wasn’t playing around, pouncing on two sad pass attempts for highlight breakaway steals and slams, driving coast-to-coast off a stop for a third fast break flush.
22 PTS — 3/6 3P — 6/9 2P — 3 Dimes — 2 Pick-Six Steals
HOLD ON — WAIT A MINUTE — RUN THAT BACK
WAS THAT SUGGS TO COLE OR WADE TO LEBRON?!
An interesting change happened once Markelle Fultz and Wendell Carter Jr. went down to injury; this time, the Magic were prepared to stay afloat.
Promoted from the third unit straight to first, Anthony Black and Goga Bitadze stepped into the spotlight with confidence, ease, and tenacity.
In fact, the two sparked Orlando’s best run of the season, with the roster depth of talent stepping up as a collective, finding two-way team-first balance to both ends.
Since Black and Goga stepped into the starting lineup (11/04/23), the Orlando Magic posted these League Ranks in the month of November: T-2nd Best Record (9-3); 4th Point Differential; 11th Offense; 3rd Defense; via Cleaning the Glass.
The Magic's 8-game winning streak was the longest in the league at the time, taking down Denver, Boston, Toronto, Indiana. Orlando tied the longest win streak in team history with 9 straight one game after, the 2nd-longest of any team this season.
Suggs being free to roam leads to easy scoring opportunities for the team off turnovers.
The poster of Orlando Magic defense.
The heartbeat of the team.
The soul of heart and hustle.
Suggs doesn’t just force turnovers by jumping passes for steals; Jalen’s one of the best high-flying chasedown block artists around.
Fast foward to today, Jalen still brings high-level two-way 3&D impact.
Suggs’ has made huge strides in 3pt shooter and scoring efficiency, a fine example of player development not always happening overnight.
Here’s a look at Jalen’s 3pt and scoring efficiency by playtype as his volume increases year-by-year.
Jalen Suggs is now a 39+ 3P% shooter on and off the ball, an above average scorer in possessions where the Magic involve him in Spot Ups, Handoffs, and ISO.
Jalen Suggs has shot up from 21% 3P% in Year 1 to 32% 3P% in Year 2 all the way to 39% 3P% in Year 3, with 100 more three-point attempts this season to boot.
Suggs is shooting 38.8% on 1.4 Pull-Up 3PA per game and 39.8% on 3.8 C&S 3PA, suddenly highly efficient on and off the ball from downtown.
Here he is hitting a possession-saving pull-up three from “inside a phone booth”.
In maybe his most impressive lockdown performance of the season against Denver playing in the mile high, Suggs logged 6 minutes 47 seconds guarding Jamal Murray.
In this matchup, Jamal scored 4 PTS on 2/12 FG, got blocked once at the rim, and drew 0 fouls.
This video with 1+ million views on Twitter highlights Jalen Suggs screen navigation at its finest.
Below are 4 clips of Jalen Suggs slowing down Trae Young; Suggs forces Trae into 3 TOs +1 airball in spite of a big outing.
Watch Suggs' active hands and quick footwork hound the ball at POA, navigate screens, change directions, recover quickly, and break up passing lanes.
In Sacramento, Jalen Suggs further revealed his two-way upside, filling up the box score: 24 PTS — 6 3PM — 4 AST — 2 STL — 2 BLK
Hitting C&S treys and pull-up middies, attacking closeouts, making the extra pass, deterring opposing star guards at POA, stealing two Monk fastbreaks from behind, and blocking two Fox shots.
Super Connector Stealth Mode Suggs: Engaged
Ball Denial. Forcing Direction. Flipping Hips. Getting Thin. Dodging Screens. Removing Driving Lanes. Jumping Passing Lanes.
In 8 games since the All-Star break, the 7-1 Orlando Magic have the 2nd-best defense, beating teams by 11 points per game for the 5th-best point differential of any team.
Orlando is the 2nd-best team in the NBA at forcing turnovers, rating 4th in the same stat in 8 games since the All-Star break.
The Backcourt Ballhawk never sleeps.
Orlando’s two best scorers and two best defenders in the same lineup together brings an incredible two-way attack of lengthy strengthy impact.
Suggs-Franz-Paolo-Isaac lineups have a +3.4 Net Rating in 52 MIN on the court together, via PBP Stats.
Zooming out to just Orlando’s young core of Paolo-Franz-Suggs, The Magic maintain a +3.2 Net Rating in 984 MIN.
Add Wendell’s cerebral team-first all-around play to that core trio, and Orlando jumps to a +5.84 Net Rating in 483 MIN.
Mix in Fultz with Suggs-Paolo-Franz, Orlando holds a +4.54 Net Rating in 282 MIN.
The full starting unit of Fultz-Suggs-Franz-Paolo-Wendell this year?
+7.1 in 262 MIN
“Jalen Suggs is just a game-wrecking defender”
- Jackson Frank (@jackfrank_jjf)
Comparing Suggs 2023-24 Defense to other All-NBA candidates (Data as of 03.11.24)
Jalen Suggs is 1 of 37 players averaging 2.0+ STL + BLK per game and 1+ Hustle Plays Per Game, sharing company with the league’s premier defenders.
Here’s a zoomed in look at the NBA’s biggest hustlers, the players who force the most turnovers without fouling, based on how many steals and blocks they make per foul:
What defines the Defensive Player of the Year award?
The most valuable defender in the league? The most impactful defender? The most important defender? The best defender on the best defense? The player who plays the best defense the most consistently?
How often does an elite defense feature a guard as its most impactful defender?
Notable Defenders from Top-5 NBA Defenses
#1 Minnesota — Rudy Gobert, Nickeil Alexander-Walker
#2 Boston — Derrick White, Jrue Holiday, Jaylen Brown, Tatum, Porzingis
#3 Cleveland — Jarrett Allen, Evan Mobley, Isaac Okoro
#4 Orlando — Jalen Suggs, Jonathan Isaac, Franz Wagner
#5 Oklahoma City — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Chet Holmgren, Lu Dort
10 players make an All-Defensive team. How many are locks this season?
With the new 65gp minimum rule, many players could have cases.
Rudy Gobert, Jrue Holiday, Derrick White, Herb Jones, Anthony Davis, Victor Wembanyama, Alex Caruso, Jarrett Allen, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, to name a few.
Orlando is the only Top-8 defense not also ranked top-10 in defensive FG%; so, how do The Magic keep winning defensive possessions?
Ranking T-9th in Steals Per Game himself, Jalen Suggs leads a Top-4 rated defense that relies on forcing turnovers (ranked 2nd) and defensive rebounds (ranked 3rd), as Jonathan Isaac holds down the bench with high impact as a rim protector.
Jalen rates in the 96th percentile with +2.5 Defensive EPM, tied with players like Shai Gilgeous Alexander, Tari Eason, and Draymond Green, ranking 6th among guards.
Suggs ranks T-26th with Herb Jones with +1.4 Defensive BPM.
Like Caruso in Chicago, Suggs anchors his team’s defense from the backcourt, both leading their teams to Top-5 ratings in forcing turnovers. Unlike Caruso, Suggs leads a Top-4 Defense, while Caruso’s Bulls rank below average, 18th.
In an interview with @JustEsBaraheni of Swish Theory, Jalen Suggs detail how he translates his defensive back football mentality reading and reacting as the last line of defense to backcourt defense on the hardwood:
“My competitiveness has been there since I’ve been a little kid, and I think it comes out in anything I do; whether it’s on the court, off the court, watching more film than the next person, beating somebody to the gym, beating somebody to breakfast, it’s something I can carry over all the time.
I think at the end of the day, defense is about heart, you know, and then how hard you want to play defense. Coach says it all the time, ‘You want to leave this game on your own terms’ and I really took that to heart.
I think just acting instinctively, defense, especially in football, is so much just reading and reacting, if you second guess it, you’re going to be half a second late.
It’s about being a ball hawk, and not only how hard you do it, but doing it intelligently.
And that’s what we’ve been talking about a lot over here: I see everything but how can I anticipate? I see what’s going on two, three steps ahead on that end, but how can I put myself in a position to not always go for it and just to be in solid positions, show my body maybe just force a tough shot, not give up a shot.
I really just kind of look at it as a safety in football, you know, being that line of protection for the team, being a communicator and I get to see everything on the floor.
I think defense is fun to me. And I think that’s why I take so much pride in it. And, as you continue to grow, everyone works on offense. You rarely see people work on their defense.
You either have that or you don’t.
Competitive fire is not something that you can teach, so just trying to continue to be myself with it, embrace it, and just continue to learn how I can apply it in different ways.”
Voters for DPOY and ALL-D teams this season should ask one simple question:
Does any elite defense depend on a single player more than the Magic’s Jalen Suggs?
The Backcourt Ballhawk has spread its wings.
Stealth Mode Suggs: Engaged
Data sources: Cleaning The Glass, NBA Stats, Dunks and Threes, BBall Reference, Synergy Sports