Things I noticed....

[Playmaker0017]

Okay, now after a nice road win over an unbeaten team, it is time to evaluate how we played.

Let's start:

(1) We went to Reef to open the game. Reef responded quite well getting points, rebounds and assists in the first. The question is ... why did we get away from that in the third? Why did we retreat to "Hawk" basketball?

(2) Our substitution pattern is atrocious. Stotts rotates players in and out at the SAME time every game, regardless of whether or not they are in rhythm. Why is this? He'll sit the hottest guy on the floor, despite the fact that they haven't broken a sweat... if it is 1:00 in the first.... and won't bring them back until 8 in the second. That's a LONG breather.

Oops... out of time... but these are my main points...

Hopefully we realized that when we WENT to Reef, we built a lead. When we went away, our lead dissolved.

Play.

[Diesel]

Coaching leaves a lot to be desired.

Realistically. We can't hope for that kind of win everytime out. We jumped out to a lead and PTL panicked and shot themselves out of the game. It was a case of our 3 pt shooters being on and theirs being off.

My problem is that we can't be a team that rely on JT and Jackson to make their threes. Mainly because Jackson is still somewhat Incosistent. Then when a more defensive team than Seattle steps up, we're in trouble.

I'm glad that Stotts used Reef's advantage. Nobody on that Seattle team can stop Reef... But that's not always the case.

Some frontlines are more physical than that.

Still, we should beat the Clipps...

[Playmaker0017]

Diesel,

I will always be the case. Reef is good enough to command the defense to shift to align with him, which creates opportunities for others.

Reef missed the majority of his shots last night. Easy shots that he created. That won't happen every night.

The threes bailed us out.

But, despite that, the team played more focused when we kept looking down to Reef and Theo. It allowed us to settle.

We just need to give up on the slow developing play where the player gets the ball to Reef and then cuts THROUGH Reef to the basket.

That play allows the double team time to converge and Reef isn't able to make a move before the man has cleared. It defeats the purpose and should be run very infrequently...

Play.

[Diesel]

Watching Reef more closely, I think giving him the ball on the wing (SFism) and let him face up and take his defender is probably good.. BUT Please.. No more Reef threes.

I think the fact that Reef was a Sf and still has a lot of SF in his game takes away from him as a Pf. By that same token, I think that he does the PF offense so well that he can command attention. Unfortunate (as with most Sf) nobody ever taught Reef how to pass. So when we look at Duncan and drool, it's because Duncan can run an offense. He was trained to do that. However, Reef was trained to be a scorer...

[Playmaker0017]

Diesel,

I think Reef could really flourish if given the chance to run the offense. I don't think Reef is leagues behind Duncan in passing.

He is EASILY our best passer outside of Vaughn. He sees the court quite well for someone his size. The problem is that he looks to pass TOO much.

We need to wrestle that idea from him and tell him to pass out when he has to. Which he did in the 1st last night. We just abandoned it.

Reef at the three point line, running the pick and roll and the like is just awful. That has been my point since day one. Reef is a low-post player and should only be taken out to the free throw line, and only to initiate the offense.

Play.

[Diesel]

Somebody get the old Karl Malone/Stockton tapes out.

If we want to run a pick and roll, we need to mimic that.

[Playmaker0017]

Diesel,

I think the problem is two-fold...

(1) Reef doesn't really set a convincing pick

(2) JT can't pass well enough when Reef rolls

We basically run a "pick-and-dribble-around-like-a-fool".

The pick-and-roll worked well ONE game two years ago, and since then we haven't abandoned it.

Play.

[cyman3]

it worked well with LoWright and JT during a few games... anyone remember this?

[swolehawk2]

The problem with our pick and roll is the guard never shoots off of the pick or hardly ever penetrates the lane. The guard JT and JV are guilty of coming off the pick picking up their dribble and looking to pass. When our guards start to burn defenses with jumps shots or penetration thats win the roll guy can be wide open whether it is pick and roll pick and fade or pick and pop.

[Diesel]

I agree with you swole?

However, I think one other mistake in ours is that Reef never moves to the basket, instead, he picks and like a pick and fence, he rolls to the three point line.

I suppose this is to clear the lane for Cutters, but nobody ever moves.

Better would be Reef either Rolling to the basket or JT coming off the pick and nailing the open Jumper. This is something that we can perfect. JT can shoot.... However, he also has to be able to determine when to shoot it and when to give it up to Reef for the easy bucket. That's where I think the other problem comes. Reef gets a good flash but the ball never comes. Pick and Roll ball requires that the PG be a good passer or atleast have a feel for when to pass. Bad Passing puts the PF in a situation where he's trying to do too much.

I don't like Malone, but I respected the way that that team played the Pick and Roll, it became more than just a two man game. There was movement all over the floor. That's what made it work so well!

With most other teams the idea is to give the dribbler an advantage in penetrating into the paint (middle area) which forces a perimeter defender to leave his man in order to deny a layup, thus allowing a possible uncontested three point shot.

So the Pick and Roll would really mean that JT has to penetrate and kick back... The problem is that 9/10 times the kick back is to Reef at the three point line. However, the shooter in my opinion should be either Glover or Jackson. The design of the play is wrong for us. Maybe have Jackson deliver a pick against Smaller gaurds.

[TheDude]

"pick and dribble around like a fool"

man, that's pretty funny... a problem is we don't do anything particularly well. we seem to do a little of htis and that.

You think maybe Stotts is trying different philosophies until he sees one that we can fit in pretty well?

When Reef is aggressive, he is a whole 'nother ballplayer than we he becomes complacent. What he needs is fire and that winning attitude. Of course it's hard to get that when you're losing.

[cyman3]

Malone/Stocktons "PICK AND ROLL" used to give the lakers problems...

teams with a great defensive + rebounding CENTER are hurt by the pick and roll... i think we can beat DETROIT with an effective pick and roll gameplan.