Paul Millsap: His underrated ability to stretch the floor

Paul Millsap is a great star who will help the Denver Nuggets, but one of the most overlooked aspects of his game is his ability to stretch the floor.

Paul Millsap has an overlooked ability in his arsenal of skills. Many forget about his ability to stretch the floor which gives opponents fits.

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With how well Nikola Jokic shoots the rock, especially from beyond the arc, it is easy to forget about Millsap’s ability to stretch the defense as well. Many forget he can hit it from three point territory. Per basketball-reference.com, Millsap shot 31.1% from three point land last season. The season before, he shot 31.9% from downtown. His best years from three point territory were the 2014 and 2015 seasons where he shot 35.8% and 35.6% from the same territory.

Millsap is also a terrific mid range shooter as well. The reason this is important is because it draws capable rim protectors away from the paint. This clears the land for perimeter players to cut or for the center to operate down low against the big man matched up with him. This served Millsap well in his Atlanta years as Al Horford was there for many years and now he will be able to do this same thing with Nikola Jokic who happens to possess the same ability as well.

It also gives Millsap an opportunity to showcase his passing as it allows guards and small forwards to cut to the paint for an easy shot at the rim, or even find a way to get open for a three pointer.

The ability to stretch the floor is becoming an important skill for today’s modern NBA big man and Paul Millsap is great at it. The surprising thing is, it is one of the most overlooked aspects of his well rounded overall playing style.

Next: Expect Denver's defense to improve

Millsap’s skill in this department will fit perfectly in Denver’s offensive scheme.