Mason Plumlee
Phoenix Suns

Player Facts

Height: 6'11"
Weight: 254lbs.

Wingspan: 6'11"

Date of Birth: Mar. 5, 1990
College Experience: Duke (4 years)

Selections

All Star: 0
All-NBA: 0
All-Defensive: 0

Player Grades

Speed/Explosiveness: 6
Physical Strength: 10
Positional Size: 10
Positional Wingspan: 6
Paint Scoring: 9
Midrange Scoring: 2
Three-Point Scoring: 1
Dribbling: 5
Passing: 7
Perimeter Defense: 4
Interior Defense: 8
Rebounding: 9

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JUMP TO SECTION

> Intro

> Offensive Passageway

> Athletic Diving

> Rim Running + Putback Scoring

> High-Energy Defense

> Rotating Over

> Quick/Accurate Hands on D

> Glass-Cleaning

> No Jump Shot

> Poor FT%'s + Overzealous Passing

> Fouling + Defensive Questions

> Beacon Bacon

>Link to Player Contract & Salary Info

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*All statistical data courtesy of NBA Advanced Stats

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STRENGTHS

Intro

Mason Plumlee is a mobile big man who brings energy and athleticism. The 6'11" Duke product can have some offense ran through him as your handoff-heavy five-man. He supplements that with accurate paint finishing, solid interior defense, and productive rebounding.

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Offensive Passageway

Mason has great dexterity with his DHO's. He smoothly flows into another action if the handoff is well-defended initially. Plumlee also recognizes the "keep" option for himself to rumble down the lane.

His big frame and perfect handoff deliveries make it hard for opposing guards/wings get over top. He is also skilled at the art of screen angles and screening footwork to maximize the advantage he gives to his perimeter players.

His screening prowess also means that Plumlee pairs exceptionally well with teammates who can shoot off movement (i.e. Damian Lillard, Jamal Murray, Malik Beasley, Terry Rozier). Moreover, in the high post, the big man will keep his eyes peeled for back cutters away from the play (i.e. past teammates Gary Harris, Michael Porter Jr., Jerami Grant).

All in all, the Indiana native generated 13.3 points per-36 for teammates in 2019-2020. That figure was very close to those of offensive hubs Bam Adebayo and Domantas Sabonis. All three of these players have strong short roll passing in common.

Athletic Diving

Plumlee scores by being a good dive-man and an athletic lob catcher. It all starts with a forceful pick on the ball to foster a true 2-on-1 scenario. His 6.0 screen assists per-36 minutes bested Karl-Anthony Towns, Jonas Valanciunas, and Andre Drummond (2020-2021).

The former Blue Devil proceeds to roll hard to the cup. He always goes up with force and conviction on his interior attempts. Plumlee's got a great vertical for a 250-pound-plus big man – 36" max vert recorded at his draft combine (identical to wings Robert Covington and Otto Porter Jr. that year).

Mason was in the 69th percentile overall for his roll man scoring in 2021-2022. Many of the 108 dunks he had that year came on these dives. 2020-2021 had him at an elite 76.5% clip right at the rim. 2021-2022 saw him keep this conversion rate up at a lofty 73.1%.

Rim Running + Putback Scoring

That very same athleticism at the center slot allows him to beat people down the court. He can even handle a bit in these transition scenarios, allowing his perimeter players to fill the lanes or spot up.

Plumlee can score via putbacks as well with some soft touch on tips. He is a workhorse under the rim and has a very physical style of rebounding. Mason was in the 79th percentile scoring off putbacks as a Denver Nugget (2019-2020) then the 75th in 2020-2021 (Detroit Piston).

This board-getting also gets him to the line quite a bit too. He typically posts very high free-throw rates, meaning he gets there much above average on a per-minute basis. While he doesn't hit them very consistently, getting fouled provides indirect team value such as through being able to set up the half-court defense.

High-Energy Defense

Mason plays hard on the defensive side. His man defense against fellow bigs, help defensive positioning, and his active hands are all strong points for the big man. He blends solid physical tools with defensive IQ and a high motor to be effective.

Against other frontcourt players, he looks to get physical with them. He can bang in the post but also just be a tough guy to move in general. Plumlee is a decent option to have against the bruiser types such as a Joel Embiid.

Rotating Over

He slides over nicely to protect the basket. Mason lives in that 1-2 blocks per-36 minute range for his career. His bounce, size, and ability to beat a slasher to the front of the rim allow for quality inside defense. The Plumlee brother also hustles to get into the paint in open court defensive scenarios.

Quick/Accurate Hands on D

Mason has fast and active hands compared to his positional contemporaries. He plays passing lanes well at his size. That mobility helps out too, and he collects some deflections against pick-and-rolls as well.

As with most of Plumlee's box score stats, his deflections too should be examined on a per-36 minute basis. After all, he's spent many seasons as a backup five to guys like Brook Lopez and Nikola Jokic. In 2019-2020 his 2.7 deflections/36 outpaced perimeter guys like Jaylen Brown.

Glass-Cleaning

The last value-add to mention for Mason is his overall rebounding adeptness. He's pretty much always been a 10+ boards per-36 player for his NBA career. When he can't get his hands on it, he blocks out for a teammate to swoop in cleanly.

WEAKNESSES

No Jump Shot

Mason does not shoot much beyond the painted area. He attempted a grand total of 16 treys from 2017-2018 to 2019-2020. His non-shooting nature means that he must be played beside an at least capable shooting four-man.

Plumlee's on-ball offensive value is just not very high as a scorer. He has a power-first post game that works against mismatches but not necessarily against other bigs. All told, he was in only the 18th percentile scoring out of the post in 2019-2020.

Poor FT%'s + Overzealous Passing

Abysmal free throw shooting is right in line with his lack of touch on jumpers in general. A productive offensive rebounder, teams really look to hack Plumlee before he can go back up. From 2017-2018 to 2019-2020, his best mark at the stripe was 56.1%.

As a last offensive weak point, he can try some ambitious passes. Plumlee has nice playmaking feel at the five but will press sometimes. His turnovers are a smidge higher than you'd like as a result.

Fouling + Defensive Questions

Defensively, he's pretty sound but has a couple of areas to shore up. His verticality is not always on point and as a result, he fouls people. Mason's sub-7'0" wingspan at the center position is somewhat of an issue as well.

Less bouncy slashers can have a hard time finishing through the sturdy Plumlee but can finish over/around him at times. The natural reaction to stop this is bringing his arms down from a straight-up position, often begetting a foul. He'll also just slap down over-aggressively and unnecessarily against like-sized attackers.

He's finished in the top-20 for fouls committed in multiple seasons, with 4.9 per-36 in 2019-2020. He lessened that ever so slightly to a still-troublesome 4.5/36 in 2020-2021.

As with most centers, Mason can struggle with containment away from the basket. He's agile for his size but is still best suited to be a drop big. Players shot a combined 71/158 (44.9%) from three-point range when Mason was there in 2019-2020.

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Mason came third behind Zach LaVine and Victor Oladipo in the 2015 Slam Dunk Contest