‘Selfless’ Canadian Khem Birch steps up efforts with Raptors

Khem Birch’s best statistical streak of NBA career came in a 19-game streak at the end of last season.

After joining the Toronto Raptors when he was sidelined by the Orlando Magic, the Montreal great has shot more than at any point in his career, scored more than he has never done in his career and took different hits than he never had in his career. .

As a standby free agent, he felt the need to demonstrate abilities that he rarely obtained in reinforcement with the Magic. It worked for everyone involved, but he felt like he was out of his basketball comfort zone.

He almost looks like he wished it never happened.

He felt like he was taking care of himself – especially on offense – and that took him away from the way he likes to play.

“I hate contract years just because you have to do things outside of your element,” he said Thursday after the Raptors trained at the OVO Center. “Last year I had to score, and all the other things I don’t like to do. I just like to win. “

So what kind of basketball outside of character was Birch playing?

Well, on a 36-minute basis, Birch was taking 10.7 shots per game, compared to his career average of 7.8, and he was taking 1.9 threes per game after peaking at 0.8 per game. when he was in Orlando. Keep in mind that he was efficient, converting 55.6% of his hits. And even though his hands were on the ball more than at any time in his career, his use rate was still only 15.8%, which is low even for a role player.

So it wasn’t as if Birch was trying to deflect the offensive in any way. By comparison, last season Pascal Siakam had a use rate of 26.3% and an average of 17.2 shots per game to dominate the Raptors in both categories.

So clearly what Birch defines as chasing his own blow was an extremely mild case. But a player has his values, and Birch’s are just that: he wants his teammates to eat first, second and last, if necessary.

“Since I’ve been playing basketball, I never care about the stats,” said Birch, who is in his fifth NBA season after starting his career in Europe and rising through the ranks of the G-League. “I used to watch the Detroit Pistons and how they played on defense, and in high school people told me they liked playing with me because I was so selfless. I remember doing well in high school and never had a lot of points on average or anything. The way I played got me where I am right now, so I would never change it.

He doesn’t need it. The Raptors appreciated what he brought to the table at the end of last season and gave him the best contract of his career – $ 20 million over three years.

“He’s got a really selfless team mentality,” said Raptors head coach Nick Nurse.

They didn’t pay him to put in numbers, which is a big reason Birch feels so comfortable now.

“It doesn’t matter what people think, the organization gave me a good contract this summer, so if anything, it should tell me and others what they value,” said said Birch.

It’s not like Birch is trying to walk around the training center unnoticed. He has his own confidence, perhaps best exemplified when he delivered the best line of the season when asked about the noticeable improvement in defensive production from Gary Trent Jr. – another player who seems to be settled with it. a new contract in his pocket and who is among the leaders in the league for interceptions and deflections this season:

“Gary is like one of the best players I’ve ever seen – like, no offense – doesn’t play defense and all of a sudden becomes a good defenseman,” Birch said. “It’s crazy. I swear I’ve never seen this before. He may be one of the best two-way players in this league. I think he leads the league in interceptions. It’s amazing. .. I told him that.

But aside from a surprisingly good quote, Birch’s contributions are more subtle. He averages just 6.6 points per game and 4.6 shots per game in 23 minutes per night, but he was plus-10 in 22 minutes on the bench in the Raptors’ win over the Washington Wizards on Wednesday. and over-20 in 31 minutes in Monday’s victory over the New York Knicks.

In the pivotal moments against the Wizards, he found a way to open up for a key basket in some pick-and-roll action with point guard Fred VanVleet. He is among the Raptors’ leaders in onscreen assists and stray bullets collected, and in net ranking. He’s a smart passer, low risk of rotation and a good offensive rebounder. All the benefits add up.

The Raptors are fortunate enough to lead their six-game winning streak against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday night, and it might not be a coincidence that their streak of good plays coincided with Birch returning to full strength after missing the first 10 days of training camp. with COVID. This kept him out of the starting lineup as Precious Achiuwa’s solid preseason earned him the green light. But as Achiuwa struggled – the second-year great man has shot just 28.9% in his last five games – Birch has taken it up a notch. The nurse may or may not start it, but Birch will likely be a staple in the closing lineups for the foreseeable future.

Gaining that kind of confidence is another category that is not easy to measure, but it’s good too. Birch says he never looks at box scores because raw basketball numbers don’t really resonate with him.

But what about advanced data and player tracking information, which gives a better understanding of how he can help a team without scoring a goal? Don’t the Raptors have this information?

“I think they do, but they don’t tell me when I ask, so it doesn’t matter,” Birch says. “It’s just a game. You can’t dwell on just one game. I just feel like you have a good game, you have to move on. You can lose and it didn’t matter what you accomplished before. I just feel like you can’t focus on the individual distinctions and all that.

“You just have to focus on the team.”