Delay-Weave and the relationship between play calls and improvisation within an NBA offense

In late January of last year, Michael Malone reflected on his team’s recent struggles on offense and arrived at the conclusion that he had been over-orchestrating the offense from the sideline. The team was running too many “plays” and had become too predictable. He wanted the team to operate offensively with more creative freedom and more trust.

“This is one thing I keep on saying to myself - I am calling way more play calls than I did my first two years,” Malone told reporters after a team practice ahead of their matchup with the Portland Trail Blazers. “We have gotten away from just playing the game. When you play the game you’re hard to guard cause it’s not a play call where you can take…