After a bit of a quiet start to the season, C.J. Wilcher has hit his stride over the past few weeks and has emerged as one of Nebraska men’s basketball’s top offensive options.
For the season, the 6-foot-5 junior guard is averaging 8.4 points and is currently in the 50-40-90 club of elite shooters. He’s at 50% from the field, 43.1% from 3 and 92.6% from the free-throw line through 18 games. However, if you narrow the scope to his past seven games, he’s taken his scoring to another level. Wilcher has averaged 12.0 points while shooting a blistering 54.8% from deep (17-of-31) during that span.
Wilcher’s greatest weapon is his 3-point shot, but he’s more than a mere spot-up shooter. Let’s take a closer look with the help of Synergy Sports to see how Coach Fred Hoiberg is using Wilcher and what has made him so dangerous recently.
Overview
While he doesn’t carry the offensive load that you see from star players across the country, Wilcher has emerged as one of the most efficient role players in the country. He’s scoring 1.192 points per possession (PPP), ranked in the 96th percentile nationally. Wilcher is effective at the rim (shooting 65.5% and ranked in the 77th percentile nationally), but his jump shot is clearly what makes him the player he’s become.
Wilcher is ranked in the 95th percentile in points per shot on all jumpers, shooting 43.3% with all but two of his attempts coming from 3. The interesting quirk about Wilcher’s shooting splits is he has shot significantly better on guarded catch-and-shoot 3s (41.9%, 86th percentile) and jumpers off the dribble (56.3%, 100th percentile) than he has on open catch-and-shoot looks (35%). Still, he’s playing like an elite 3-point shooter right now, and the 9-for-15 mark on pull-up 3s is wild.
Handoffs
The hand-off is a major part of Hoiberg’s offense, and Wilcher is among the best on the team at scoring out of those situations. Just over a quarter of his scoring possessions come on handoff plays and he’s scoring 1.31 PPP (91st percentile) while shooting 52% (4-of-7 on 2s and 9-of-18 on 3s).
Here’s a look at Wilcher’s handoff buckets over the past seven games where he’s shot 7-of-15 from the field including 5-of-11 from 3.
Wilcher does a great job setting his feet and squaring his shoulders to the basket when taking handoffs, and if you go under he’s going to make you pay for it. Chase him off the line and he still isn’t shy about letting it fly off the dribble. He’s always looking for space to get a 3 off first, but if a driving lane presents itself he does a good job using his sturdy frame around the basket to finish.
Spot-Ups
Spot-up plays make up just over a fifth of his possessions this season and he’s scoring 1.308 PPP (94th percentile) on 46.2% from the field when letting it fly or attacking closeouts off the catch. He’s 2-of-4 inside the arc and 10-of-22 from 3. However, over the past seven games, he’s at 6-for-10 from 3, which you can see below.
Here you see the same mechanics as above with the way he sets his feet and squares his shoulders, which makes him even tougher to guard in spot-up situations. He’s very comfortable moving off the ball to find space as opposed to camping out in one spot and waiting for the ball. He hunts out opportunities to get 3s off, and Nebraska’s offense benefits.
Off Screen
Small sample size really comes into play here with just 11.2% of his possession and 14 total plays, but Wilcher is also shooting 6-of-12 from 3 and scoring 1.286 PPP (88th percentile) coming off screens. He’s 4-for-6 over his last seven.
Three of those 3s came on the same baseline out of bounds play where he sets a back screen in the lane then runs off a screen from a teammate to catch and fire from the corner. That is not an easy shot to sprint to the corner, halt momentum, catch, square up and fire, but it’s something he’s clearly comfortable with and a very difficult action to guard (Nebraska also got a layup for Juwan Gary in the Purdue game when the initial back screen freed him up).
The one area where Wilcher has struggled to shoot the ball this season is in transition where he’s 1-for-9 from 3, and the only make was a bank. He also hit a toe-on-the-line long 2, but the rest of his transition buckets have all come at the basket. If he starts knocking down those shots in addition to what he’s doing in the halfcourt, look out.
After a rough second season in Lincoln from a shooting perspective, Wilcher has rounded back into form in year three and is a terrific fit for Hoiberg’s offense with his shot versatility and accuracy. With Juwan Gary’s injury, Wilcher could be in store for an even larger role moving forward than the 16.9 minutes per game we’ve seen thus far.
