In Will Wade’s four years as LSU basketball’s modern major general, his teams have averaged 80.9 PPG. For comparison, he’s surpassed each of LSU’s past three coaches’ offensive averages and has already put his name alongside legendary LSU coach Dale Brown, who guided his teams to an average of 79.2 PPG over his tenure.
It is no secret Wade’s teams are offensive powerhouses, but this year’s offense may be his best yet, and the best since Shaquille O’Neal played in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center.
The 2020-21 Tigers are averaging 85.2 PPG, best in the SEC and 10th in Division 1. Their 48% team FG percentage is also a conference high and ranks 41st in D1. The last LSU team to put up these types of numbers was the 1991-92 Tigers, featuring O’Neal in his junior season, shining with 24.1 PPG and 14.0 RPG. A whopping 114.7 ORTG, another conference leader, puts an exclamation point on LSU’s claim as the best offense in the SEC.
With freshman juggernaut Cam Thomas, whose favorite part of the floor to score from is “everywhere” and looks very comfortable doing just that, and veterans Javonte Smart and Trendon Watford who are having career seasons, the Tigers have a three-headed monster that has proven to be virtually impossible to stop.
Thomas is averaging 22.0 PPG, the SEC’s leader, but his unique value lies in his determination to attack. As a result, he gets to the free throw line and converts unlike any other scorer in the conference, with an average of 6.5 FTM on 7.2 FTA per game. Smart’s junior campaign has been tremendous, bumping his FG percentage up from 41.5% to 48.5% and his 3P percentage from 32.6% to a scintillating 46.4%. Watford has settled in as LSU’s second leading scorer, with his 18.1 PPG helping take the weight off the frontcourt from doing everything.
Wade’s teams have had offensive-minded players in the past: Duop Reath, Tremont Waters, Skylar Mays. But this team’s ability to have three legitimate shot-creating options that defenses have to be wary of sets it apart from the others. In 2018, LSU’s best team of recent memory, if Waters and Smart were not penetrating the defense and creating openings for other players, LSU’s offense could and would stall. Mays represented the idea of what the Tigers needed in a slashing guard but ultimately lacked the quickness and decision making to be a 20 PPG player. Thomas has turned into that guy. He has been fast yet methodical, breaking down on ball defenders in one-on-one scenarios. Teams have had to start helping much more on him, so it will be up to others to help give him the space he needs again to isolate and work.
LSU does not have the hulking size in its backcourt like it did in 2018 with Naz Reid and Kavell Bigby-Williams, which is most likely contributing to its defensive struggles (teams are shooting 52.4% from two-point field goals, ranked 274th in D1), but Watford and Darius Days have done their part on the offensive end, with solid finishing from the paint and strong perimeter shooting to create more spacing for LSU’s aggressive guards.
While the defense has had its struggles, most notably in a gut-punch loss to Alabama on Tuesday where the Tigers gave up 105 points, just the slightest improvement on that end of the floor could launch this team from upper-level SEC contender to a top 16 team in the country, positioning itself well for a run in the NCAA Tournament. This offense is that good.
The LSU men's basketball starters group together on the court Saturday, Jan. 16, 2021 during LSU's 85-80 win against South Carolina at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center on N Stadium Drive in Baton Rouge, La.
