Not these guys, they were a brute force. At some point, it becomes yours. His midrange shooting percentage improved from 39.3 percent to 41.6 percent, and by 2008-09, it was all the way up to 45.5 percent. Spurs put on a clinic vs. Heat in Game 3 win. With that in mind, its no small matter that one of the most coveted skills coaches in the NBA is about to make a departure from his current team. David Robinson, $14,841,000, 1998-99. -Rookie Leonard gives Spurs unexpected scoring help (LINK), For more on shooting: Moore, the athletic 6-foot-4 forward, played in Mexico after they left the country at the height of the 1986 EDSA Revolution. Yet Leonard's development is the one most germane to the here and now, as the Spurs' quest to avenge their loss in the 2013 Finals might well have been lost if not for his breakout game. RELATED:The Kawhi Leonard companion: A Chad Forcier Q&A. He has that way about him. One area he doesn't get enough credit for is his willingness to take less, a key factor in the Spurs' ability to keep their championship core together for so many years. So its a good thing the Wolves signed two former Spurs this offseason in Kyle Anderson and Bryn Forbes. Since that time, no player who took 150 3-pointers in college before taking the same number of 3sin the pros has improved theirshooting percentage on triplesmore than Kawhi Leonard has: The line to sign Marco Belinelli this past offseason couldnt have been very long. Chip Engelland, the San Antonio Spurs assistant coach who has been working wonders with NBA players' jump shots since the late 1990s, found himself holding court with a half-dozen reporters at. Is that something that is continually tweaked throughout his first year, and down the line? A shots very personal. Thats what evolves once you get to know yourself well.. Engelland insisted that Parker take the 3-point shot out of his game, and he has; after averaging nearly 200 3-pointers per season during his four seasons in the league without Engelland and hitting on just 31.5 percent of them Parker has averaged just over 56 3-point attempts per season since. Chip Engelland-the guy who singlehandedly redoctored Tony Parker's jumpshot! Chip Engelland was hardly a shooting slouch in his own right. And then, as we probably should have expected all along, Belinelli broke out. He counsels and instructs, dismantles and reassembles. After he graduated, Engelland bounced around the CBA and the 76-inches-and-under World Basketball League, and became a legend in the basketball hotbed of the Philippines before retiring. One thing I love is that the change started with simple question: Do you want to be good or do you want to be great?, -The man behind the Spurs terrific shooting (LINK) He has stayed healthy and played 80 games for the first time in his career, loggingmore minutes than ever, but he has simultaneously become a far more efficient scorer in all those minutes. Belinelli instead shot 52.5 percent from 2and 43.0 percent from 3. Engelland might quietly be one of the most undervalued assets in basketball. He is painfully quiet, a 22-year-old whose father was murdered in 2008 and who is extremely discerning about who he trusts. Its not easy to change your shot. 2023 ESPN Internet Ventures. Kerr and Engelland would sit alone on the bench in the Portland practice facility after everybody else had left. Chip Engelland 1982-1983: Jay Bilas 1983-1984: Jay Bilas 1984-1985 . The Spurs will play the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals starting on Thursday. The Spurs saw a lot of things they liked in Leonard, but they happened to have a coach who could fix the part of his game that nobody liked. It was June 25, 2011. Engelland comes to the Thunder after 17 seasons with the San Antonio Spurs , where he had been significantly credited with the shooting development of young players like Kawhi Leonard . -Spurs assistant Engelland explains how he strengthened Leonards outside shot (LINK) Although friends and colleagues around the league universally speak of Engelland as an intelligent, gregarious coach prone to a well-timed prank, he rarely does interviews and was indeed unavailable for comment on this story during San Antonios buildup to the playoffs. Engelland isnt solely responsible for all of that, since the offense helps get Belinelli better shots and the Italian actually has to line up and drain them, but is Engelland responsible for, say, 20 percent of that improvement? -Bob Knight clinic notes Shooting (LINK) As good as Engelland is at helping players improve their shots, these things take time. We thought Kawhi could change, too. There you go. Join in via the comments below or on Twitter and Facebook!TWITTER: http://bit.ly/BBallTweetsFACEBOOK: http://bit.ly/BBallFBWEBSITE: http://bit.ly/BBallWebABOUT BBALLBREAKDOWNBBallBreakdown is devoted to deep-dive analysis of NBA basketball gameplay. "He has a great feel and understanding of what makes players tick and how to deal with them especially Kawhi," Leonard's agent, Brian Elfus of Impact Sports, said of Engelland. The Spurs thrive in obscurity, and nobody exemplifies that more than Engelland, the teams secret weapon.1. He shot more in high school. [2] He was known by Filipino fans as "the Machine Gun" for his superb shooting skills. Its nice when you get to watch it in person. 9. . He probably could have gotten it, but he would have had to leave his comfort zone in San Antonio. Spurs shooting coach Chip Engelland (center) chats with Spurs' Aron Baynes during the practice and media session at the American Airlines Arena in Miami on Wednesday, June 11, 2014. Just as Engelland rebuilt Parkers shot and helped create a team cornerstone, he has built one again in Leonard. Chip Engelland, an assistant coach for the Spurs, is also the team's designated shooting guru. According to Peltons research, teams pay about $1.6 million for each win in free agency, meaning that the improvement between Belinellis preseason projection and his actual performance this year has been worth around $5.4 million. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. After turning Gary Neal into a deadeye shooter from 3, he built Belinelli into San Antonios latest spot-up monster on the cheap. I remember the first year here, he was just getting comfortable on the wings. And I think he did. My editors are currently discussing what needs to done (on top of the obvious need to write a correction). By the end of the year, Peltons numbers had Belinelli down for 3.6 WARP (wins above replacement player). Hes also become a much better free throw shooter, having hit 69.7 percent of his free throws before Engelland changed his shot and 77.2 percent of his freebies since.4 Altogether, since Engelland came to San Antonio, the only guard who has hit a higher percentage of his 2-point shots than Parker is Steve Nash.5 Chip Engelland might very well be the difference between Tony Parker, very good point guard, and Tony Parker, future Hall of Famer. He taught me to spread my hands out a little wider on the ball and use my index fingers more. Kerr saysthat switch made hima more consistent shooter by allowing himmore control over his shot and makingit far less likely that the ball would slip and roll off his pinky fingers. I showed him pictures of Richard, and pictures of himself. Today Chip Engelland is sixty-years-old. Tony Parker, $13,500,000, 2010-11. He's been heralded for his shooting development of Spurs legend Tony Parker, along with former Spur and current Los Angeles Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard. Popovich credits Engelland for San Antonios free-throw accuracy. The longtime Spurs assistant coach and well-known shooting guru has no. Perhaps owing to the effort Tom Thibodeau shouts and grimaces out of every Bulls player on defense, Belinelli posted a .460 effective field goal percentageduring his season with the Bulls, his lowest as a pro. fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); Manu Ginobili, $14,107,492, 2012-13. Because Warriors Beat Writer Rusty Simmons tells a story about Fraser which will sound oddly familiar to Spurs fans, like us, who were avid readers of Grantland. With Kawhi it wasn't a makeover, it was more of a tune-up, changing the release point. Engelland, in fact, became a naturalized citizen of the Philippines and played for their national team (sponsored inimitably as San Miguel Beer) in the 1985 Jones Cup, where Engelland dropped 43 points on a Gene Keady-coached United States team in a double-overtime thriller.2. MANILA, Philippines - San Antonio Spurs assistant coach Chip Engelland, who became a naturalized Filipino in the 1980s, offered some words of advice for Brooklyn Nets big man Andray Blatche, the latest recruit of Gilas Pilipinas. Its like a great pitcher when do I throw the curve, or the change-up. And for a group that already ranked in the top half of the league in three-point percentage (12th), Engellands coaching would likely be a major boost for the Timberwolves. he San Antonio Spurs have announced that Chip Engelland has joined the team as an assistant coach. Engelland:At a certain point in anybodys rookie season, you back off and let him learn the league, learn the Spurs. Chip Engelland, one of Kerr's mentors, recognized this and recommended he read "Inner Game." Engelland had coached Kerr during summer leaguesboth went to Pacific Palisades High School in Los Angelesand discovered the book near the end of his own playing career, picking it up after returning from overseas, in hopes of improving his . Shooting coach Chip Engelland has worked with Tony Parker since joining the Spurs in 2005, helping the All-Star guard improve his jumper without sacrificing his tear-drop. "(Leonard) had respect for Richard's game (and said), 'Oh, Richard did that; I think I could do that.' Engellands career as an NBA shooting coach started well before his time in San Antonio. Richard made a great adjustment, had some nice shooting years Richard was 29 at the time. Obviously having Chip England here one of the best shooting coaches if not the best in the world here at the Thunder is someone thats perfect for me to use as much as possible. During the 1999-2000 season, he became a shooting consultant with the Detroit Pistons. Feb 1, 2019 No basketball. Again, the fix seems impossibly simple in hindsight. Engelland:On a lot of drafts, you hear somebody is a gym rat, loves the gym. Or worse. Unlocking all the things that make a player great and creating an environment where they can thrive is key to establishing a championship culture. Engelland, described as a shot whisperer, helped former Spurs star Kawhi Leonard work on his jump shot after turning pro. 7. Kawhi Leonard, $16,407,500, 2015-16. Or is it a little of both? Bill Barnwell is a staff writer for Grantland. Earlier today, I read an interesting article about Golden State Warriors assistant coach Bruce Fraser in the San Francisco Chronicle: The Curry Whisperer: Shot guru Fraser has MVPs ear.. I think we did one different thing this summer. 4. When San Antonio acquired Kawhi Leonard in 2011, they got a player who was a defensive stalwart, but very limited offensively. He joined LeBron James and Luka Doncic as the only NBA players to record at least 600 points, 400 rebounds, and 300 assists before turning 20. The NBA lockout was coming quickly that year, meaning players and coaches would have to part ways until there was resolution, so Leonard headed straight for San Antonio with Elfus and spent the little time he had left listening to the charismatic coach with the impressive track record. Engelland wasn't much of a defender or playmaker but he totaled 1,025 points in his Duke career before going on to. Three years later, he signed with the Denver Nuggets as the director of player development, holding the position for two seasons. He is currently an assistant coach for the Oklahoma City Thunder of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He served as a ball boy for coach John Wooden and the NCAA champion UCLA Bruins in 1975, before arriving at Duke University four years later where he played under coach Mike Krzyzewski for four seasons. Ginobili has only made two All-Star teams in his career. After 12 minutes passed, hed dart for the ball, shuttle it to Kerr for another three-pointer.. Once you start adding other pieces to his game drives and post-ups and turnaround jumpers, etc do you ever have to come back to the shooting form, to make sure theres no slippage? Engelland has become one of the more underrated faces in the game of basketball during his time with the Spurs. Interest-Based Ads. "I love the players that want to play. Shooting coach Chip Engelland has worked with Tony Parker since joining the Spurs in 2005, helping the All-Star guard improve his jumper without sacrificing his tear-drop. Engelland:We know what he likes. Leonard blossomed into an offensive superstar, due in no small part to Chip Engelland. Repeat six more times and youve got the leagues most unlikely and simultaneously most logical shooting workout. He had a similar shot, behind his head. So, Fraser had Kerr re-enact his usual 48-minute game without Kerr realizing it. Both turned into productive shooters under Engelland after entering the league not known for their shooting capabilities. In fact, the entire team has gotten much better from the charity stripe. Engelland, the Spurs' shooting coach, was firing off passes and instructions intermittently to the likes of Da'Juan Blair and Tiago Splitter as San Antonio looked to take a commanding 3-0 lead on the Los Angeles Clippers in the Western Conference semifinals. Booty Patrol' truck spotted in South Texas, San Antonio woman shows strength of single moms on 'Naked and Afraid', Kyle to open first Costco Wholesale this March, Former Boerne quarterback allegedly gave plays to other XFL teams, Massive alligator shocks South Texas locals in Atascosa County. The Calgary 88's was a professional basketball franchise based in Calgary, Alberta, from 1988 to 1992.The team played in the World Basketball League.The 1992 season saw the league fold before the season was completed. Deadspin reporter Kevin Draper found numerous examples where Simmons cut-and-pasted press releases for copy in his own articles, so maybe what were seeing here is just sloppy or lazy journalism. In that episode, Fraser flew to Portland, but didnt want Kerr to pick up the airfare, hotel bill or food costs. With Engelland's help at every shot along the way. UPDATE #2: I received an email from Rusty Simmons. Six of those players have won an MVP award. They both had this (mimics the behind-the-head form). As such, there was an expectation Giddey could struggle early in the 2022-23 season as he made small tweaks. Who, every day, stared up into the stoic eyes of Tim Duncan, my sports hero growing up. The Spurs shooting coach turns 60 today. So, if Engelland can have this dramatic of an impact upon his charges shooting ability, how much is he worth to the Spurs? What is his psychological makeup like as a shooter? Engelland, the former dead shot swingman of the NCC squad, is now an assistant coach for the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA. There was good reason for Leonards haste; the league was about to lock out its players, meaning that Engelland had just 72 hours to work with his new charge before he would be forced to cease all contact. Instead, inverting the Parker story, Belinelli has taken 3s more frequently, been better at hitting them, and has come to dominate in the paint; after hitting just 90 of 177 layups (50.8 percent) in 2012-13, Belinellis converted 91 of 124 layups (73.4 percent) in 2013-14. While Leonard was still considered a talented player and was only 19 on draft day, his primary contributions at the professional level at least at first were expected to come from his defense, effort, and rebounding. Leonards effort was well worth it. But they still traded for him anyway, one of the rare miscues of R.C. He replied: Kerr told me it was Engelland when I interviewed him for the piece in 2014. Spurs Notes: K. Johnson, Primo, Wesley, Branham, Engelland. Both have been instrumental in growing Leonards game. https://t.co/fDfLzgJuBW, Curtis Fitzpatrick (@cfitzfox) July 27, 2022. Engelland served as an assistant coach for the San Antonio Spurs starting from the 200506 season, and won two championships with the Spurs in 2007 and 2014. He backed off some, because he knew he had a long season ahead.. And hes still getting better as a shooter. Engelland hit 55.4 percent of the ACC's 17'9" three-point shots in 1983. Who suggested a never-before-tried drill to Kerr? While hes now known for his ability to reconstruct a players shot, he actually began by helping an old friend who just happens to be one of the greatest shooters in league history. How does that work? They have a potential star on their hands with Holmgren, and fans are getting even more excited about Giddeys projected development: I just bought all of the Josh Giddey stock that was left. He would have needed a ticket or a television to watch the contest that time a year ago, let alone participate. Kerr gave me the anecdote in March, and I wrote about it when Klay Thompson was in a shooting slump. In an interview with fan podcast "At The Line," Eubanks spoke about expanding his game away from the rim and working with the team's shooting coach guru, Chip Engelland. Is that the point in the project where Kawhi is right now? Jake Fischer (@JakeLFischer) July 11, 2022. So youget his form where you want it. And of course, the lockout hits a week after hes drafted, and youre not going to be able to help at all during that time. En 1995, Chip Engelland a mme cr Chicago les . Then it occurred to me, maybe Warriors Coach Fraser took credit for a shooting drill actually developed by Coach Engelland? The changes had an instant impact. Its not unreasonable to think either could end the season with a shooting percentage in the high 30s under Engellands tutelage. His team went a league-best 62-20, without a single player averaging 30 minutes per game and after an offseason in which the Spurs lost Popovichs two primary assistants. "It was kind of remarkable if you look back at it," Elfus said. Engelland:I went back and looked at his high school stuff. ESPN Sources: The Oklahoma City Thunder are hiring Chip Engelland as an assistant coach. I Ccd Draper in the aforementioned letter to Barnwell. The Oklahoma City Thunder are reportedly hiring longtime San Antonio Spurs assistant coach Chip Engelland, per ESPNs Adrian Wojnarowski. "We had worked with Richard Jefferson in San Antonio before, and we felt that there were some similarities," said Engelland, who also is renowned for his work with the likes of retired Grant Hill (while a shooting consultant for the Detroit Pistons) and the Heat's Shane Battier, both fellow Duke alumni. He grew up watching Kobe play. The following offseason, the Spurs even made a serious run at Nets point guard Jason Kidd in free agency, a move thatlikely would have ended Parkers tenure in San Antonio.3 We all know how that worked out, but by the time Engelland joined the Spurs in 2005, the missing outside shot remained the obvious hole in Parkers game. That creates a perpetual advantage that goes beyond one player and one shot. Josh Giddey's outside shot needs development. With just a tune-up, he could become a very good shooter, if not great shooter., Are there ever guys you take one look and say, This shot is broken, its not worth the time?, Engelland:What helped with Kawhi the previous year, Richard Jefferson, we had changed his shot. I recently wrote a story for the Express-News Spurs Nation magazine third in a three-piece installment onKawhi Leonards developmentfrom a draft-day gamble into a potential All-Star. I got to see it in person. By now youre most likely familiar with the story of how Kawhi Leonards shot reconstruction. Deadspin reporter Kevin Draper found numerous examples where Simmons cut-and-pasted press releases for copy in his own articles, tweeted Simmons, and his Editor at the Chronicle, Audrey Cooper, I wrote about it when Klay Thompson was in a shooting slump.