NBA's officiating crackdown is helping Stephon Castle expand his game

San Antonio Spurs guard Stephon Castle is having to adjust to new officiating guidelines and, in doing so, is expanding his game. Prior to the season, the NBA announced that they were going to crack down on offensive players extending their off-arm to gain separation.

Castle is among the league's worst offenders at stiff-arms. But thus far, he has managed to avoid picking up offensive fouls by taking more threes.

In fact, he's playing much more off the ball this season, forcing him to focus on being more of a shooting threat.

NBA's officiating crackdown is helping Stephon Castle expand his game

He's connecting on 34.0% from three on 7.1 3-point attempts per game, an encouraging sign. After all, the Spurs need him to be a reliable 3-point threat to make their three-point guard lineup work.

On the flip side, Castle has been driving into the paint less but also pushing off less. The Spurs still need him to get to the basket, but more than 52% of his shots have come from beyond the 3-point line.

That's only a good thing if he is shooting at least 35% from three on high volume, but he's been getting to the rim less. That has less to do with the NBA's crackdown on offensive players using their off-arm.

Instead, he's focusing more on expanding his game, so there is going to be an adjustment.

Castle will have to balance 3-point shooting with attacking the paint

The Spurs need Castle to both take and make more threes while also remaining one of the best slashers in the NBA. Thus far, he has leaned more towards taking threes. That's a potential double-edged sword for both Castle and the Spurs.

San Antonio has struggled shooting from outside, and Castle has been useful as a 3-point threat. Despite that, San Antonio must offset their three-point misses by getting easy shots at the basket.

Thus, Castle will have to balance the need to expand his game by taking more threes with attacking the paint. Fortunately, at least the NBA's new officiating guidelines aren't having a negative impact on his game.

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