Aron Baynes doesn’t have a pleasant job – at least not by NBA standards. He is not a star, on the contrary; most NBA fans know him only because he is constantly being dunked about. Nevertheless, players like him are indispensable in the NBA playoffs.
Giannis Antetokounmpo has caught him, several times. Joel Embiid. Russell Westbrook. One could cut a lush mixtape from this season alone, in which Baynes was posterised – even his own player Jayson Tatum “caught” him once, albeit rather accidentally.
Baynes has never understood the concept of “business decision”, where players prefer to avoid certain situations, knowing that they won’t stop the Greek Freak or LeBron anyway. Or rather: He is not interested in the concept. Just as little as the fact that he is regularly seen as a “victim” in all kinds of highlight cuts.
Baynes sacrifices his body without hesitation, no matter how many times someone enters on his Wikipedia page that he has fallen victim to Player X. Even his fellow players are sometimes irritated by how uncompromisingly the Australian keeps getting in their way. “I sometimes think:’Shit, boy, it’s not worth it’,’ said Jaylen Brown grinning at ESPN after Antetokounmpo Baynes almost “buried” in October.
But of course he too knows exactly what value Baynes has with his mentality. This is currently reflected in the playoffs: the focus is more on Terry Rozier, Jayson Tatum, Brown himself or Al Horford, who (finally!) is recognized as a legitimate star, at least by people who actually watch the games – but Baynes is also essential for the success of the Celtics. Just because he does exactly what Coach Brad Stevens requires of him after a matchup – even if it hurts.
As throughout the season, his role also varies in the playoffs. Against the Bucks, who did not have a dominant low-post player, he initially played relatively much “in space” as the last blockade for Giannis or Jabari Parker on their moves to the basket. In the front he either worked on the offensive board, placed (hard) picks or parked in the corner.
However, when Milwaukee increasingly relied on the litter-strong and fast Thon Maker as a centre, Baynes’ playing time dropped, as this measure explicitly restricted his role in the defense. In game 6, for example, he only played nine minutes without making a big mistake. There simply wasn’t the “right” matchup for him anymore, which is why Stevens started on the five in the last three games of the Horford series.
He likes to forego that in the series against Philadelphia. Baynes is needed against Embiid, so he returned to the starting five and played between 21:11 and 29:16 minutes, clearly above his season average. As far as possible, Stevens reflects the embiid minutes with Baynes, often bringing him back into the game as soon as the Cameroonian gets up from Sixers Bank.
The on/off values of the Australian therefore look devastating. Boston have a net rating of -11.1 when the Australian is on the court, but in minutes without Baynes this is +29.5, but one should not be blinded and conclude that he has no value in this series. Even if it only becomes apparent at second glance.
Embiid is one of the best players in the league – but above all he is one of the most difficult matchups. He towers above almost every opponent by at least one head, is not only incredibly powerful, but is also more versatile than almost any other big man: he can throw, he has post-moves, he gets past most opponents with his speed. It’s inevitable that you don’t always look good against such a player as a defender.
Baynes is currently experiencing this first hand. Embiid has also embarrassed him several times – the All-Star has so far played 24.3 points in the series, 14.3 of which come from a direct duel with Baynes. Pushing and pulling – Baynes will take lots of bruises from this series. But he also forces Embiid to work hard for his points.
Embiid only scores 44.7 percent from the field against him, and only 16.7 percent of the triple line that Baynes is willing to give him. And he doesn’t always need help, which is a win for Boston, because the Wing Defenders don’t have to leave shooters like J.J. Redick or Marco Belinelli blank. This is another reason why the Sixers’ offensive play becomes increasingly sluggish when Embiid goes to the post.
Page 1: The suffering of Aron Baynes
Page 2: Aron Baynes makes Al Horford’s magnificent series possible