The NBA’s Worst Defensive Teams
Contents
- The NBA’s worst defensive teams
- The teams with the worst defensive rating
- The teams with the worst defensive rebound percentage
- The teams with the worst defensive field goal percentage
- The teams with the worst defensive three-point percentage
- The teams with the worst defensive free throw percentage
- The teams with the worst defensive turnover percentage
- The teams with the worst defensive foul percentage
- The teams with the worst defensive steal percentage
- The teams with the worst defensive block percentage
There are a few teams in the NBA that just can’t seem to get it together on the defensive end of the court. Here’s a look at the worst Defensive Teams in the league.
The NBA’s worst defensive teams
There are a number of factors that can contribute to a team’s defensive struggles. Poor individual defense, lack of effort, and poor scheme fit are just a few. In the NBA, there are a handful of teams that have really struggled defensively this season. Here are the five worst defensive teams in the league so far this season.
The Phoenix Suns have been the worst defensive team in the NBA this season They allow 118.6 points per 100 possessions, which is over six points worse than the next closest team. The Suns have struggled to stop opponents from scoring in the paint and from beyond the three-point line They also haven’t done a great job of forcing turnovers or contested shots. As a result, they’ve been one of the easiest teams to score against in the league this season.
The Los Angeles Lakers have also struggled defensively this season. They allow 113.5 points per 100 possessions, which is fourth worst in the league. Like the Suns, they’ve been vulnerable to opponents scoring in the paint and from three-point range They’ve also allowed their opponents to shoot a high percentage from the field overall. The Lakers’ defensive struggles have been a big reason why they’ve struggled to compete for a playoff spot this season.
The Sacramento Kings have been another poor defensive team this season. They allow 112.8 points per 100 possessions, which is third worst in the league. The Kings haven’t been able to stop opponents from scoring inside or outside, and they’ve also struggled to force turnovers or contested shots. As a result, Sacramento has one of the worst defenses in the NBA this season.
The Houston Rockets have also been among the worst defensive teams in the NBA this season. They allow 112 points per 100 possessions, which is second worst in the league only to Phoenix Suns . Like many other poor defensive teams, Houston has had trouble stopping opponents from scoring inside and outside, and they’ve also failed to generate many turnovers or contested shots. As a result, they’ve been one of most easy teams to score against in the NBA this year..
Finally, the Dallas Mavericks have also had issues on defense this season despite having some good individual defenders like Kris Dunn and Dorian Finney-Smith . The Mavericks allow 111 points per 100 possessions , which is fifth worst in iveenligaDespite having some good individual defenders like Kris Dunn and Dorian Finney-Smith , lack AA unified effort has allowed Dallas’ opponents to score easily against them..
The teams with the worst defensive rating
The following is a list of the NBA’s worst defensive teams, according to defensive rating.
--Minnesota Timberwolves 111.6
--Los Angeles Lakers 111.5
-New Orleans Pelicans 110.7
– Sacramento Kings 109.8
--Denver Nuggets 109.4
The teams with the worst defensive rebound percentage
In the NBA, there are a few key stats that tend to be the most important when it comes to success on the court. One of those stats is defensive rebound percentage, which measures the percentage of missed shots that a team rebounds on the defensive end.
There are a number of factors that go into having a Good defensive rebound percentage, but one of the most important is having big, strong, and athletic players who can go up and get the ball. With that in mind, here are the five teams with the worst defensive rebound percentage in the NBA.
5. Phoenix Suns 66.9%
4. Los Angeles Lakers 66.8%
3. Brooklyn Nets 65.9%
2. Cleveland Cavaliers 65.5%
1. Sacramento Kings 64.6%
The teams with the worst defensive field goal percentage
There are a lot of ways to judge a team’s defense. One way is by their defensive field goal percentage, which is the percentage of shots an opponent takes that they make.
The teams with the worst defensive field goal percentage in the NBA this season are the Charlotte Hornets Philadelphia 76ers, and Cleveland Cavaliers
The Hornets allow their opponents to shoot 47.5% from the field, the 76ers 46.8%, and the Cavaliers 46.5%.
All three teams are in the bottom 10 in points allowed per game as well. The Hornets give up 109.8 points per game the 76ers 111.2, and the Cavaliers 112.7.
So if you’re looking at just defensive field goal percentage, these are the NBA’s three worst teams
The teams with the worst defensive three-point percentage
There are a few teams in the NBA that have struggled immensely when it comes to defending the Three-Point Line These teams have allowed their opponents to shoot a high percentage from beyond the arc, and as a result, they have found themselves near the bottom of the standings.
So far this season, the team with the worst defensive three-point percentage is the Charlotte Hornets They have allowed their opponents to shoot 41.8% from three-point range, which is over five percentage points higher than the league average. The Houston Rockets are second worst, allowing their opponents to shoot 39.9% from deep.
The bottom third of the league in defensive three-point percentage includes the New Orleans Pelicans (37.8%), Brooklyn Nets (37.6%), and Sacramento Kings (37.3%). All of these teams have struggled mightily on defense, and it has cost them dearly in the standings.
The teams with the worst defensive free throw percentage
There are a number of ways to assess how bad a team is defensively. One metric that’s often used is points allowed per 100 possessions. But that number doesn’t take into account one important factor: Free throws
Teams that allow their opponents to shoot a high percentage of Free throws are generally worse defensively than teams that don’t. That’s because free throws are worth more points than field goals so a team that allows its opponents to shoot a lot of them is giving up more points per possession
The chart below shows the teams with the worst defensive free throw percentages this season. As you can see, the worst defensive team in the league is also the Worst Team in the league overall.
The teams with the worst defensive turnover percentage
The teams with the worst defensive turnover percentage in the NBA are the Brooklyn Nets Chicago Bulls Denver Nuggets and Los Angeles Lakers These teams have struggled to defend opposing teams’ shots, and as a result, have given up a lot of easy points.
The teams with the worst defensive foul percentage
According to basketball-reference.com, the team with the worst defensive foul percentage in the NBA this season is the Los Angeles Lakers The Lakers have fouled on 22.8% of their defensive possessions, which is nearly two full percentage points worse than the 29th-ranked team (the Brooklyn Nets).
This season, the Lakers have had a lot of trouble keeping opponents off the Foul Line In addition to their high foul percentage, they also rank last in the NBA in opponent free throw rate. Their opponents have shot a free throw on 21.1% of their possessions, which is well above the league average of 17.8%.
The Lakers’ poor defensive foul percentage is part of the reason why they have been such a struggle on defense this season. They currently rank 27th in the NBA in defensive efficiency and their opponents re shooting 47.8% from the field, which is also 27th in the league.
If the Lakers want to improve their defense, they need to start by cleaning up their fouling habits. Their high foul rate has put them at a disadvantage all season long and it’s something that needs to be addressed if they want to turn things around defensively.
The teams with the worst defensive steal percentage
During the 2019-2020 NBA season the teams with the worst defensive steal percentage were the Cleveland Cavaliers Sacramento Kings and Atlanta Hawks The league average was 7.2%, while these teams were all below 5%.
The teams with the worst defensive block percentage
There are a lot of different ways to measure how good or bad a team is on defense. One popular metric is defensive block percentage, which essentially measures how often a team blocks a shot while they’re on defense.
The worst defensive teams in the NBA, according to this metric, are the Charlotte Hornets Los Angeles Lakers and Brooklyn Nets All three of these teams have had below average defensive block percentages for the past few seasons.
What makes these teams so bad at blocking shots? There are a number of factors, but one common thread is that they all struggle to rebound the basketball. Rebounding is important on both ends of the court, but it’s especially crucial on defense because it allows you to immediately transition into offense after a miss.
If a team can’t rebound, they’re going to have a hard time stopping their opponents from scoring. That’s why teams like the Hornets, Lakers, and Nets have been struggling to keep up with the rest of the league on defense.