06-12-2022, 10:23 PM
(06-11-2022, 08:07 PM)Kammrath Wrote: I wish there was a tracking for blow-bys to check our instincts against. I think DFS gets blown-by just as often as RB. And honestly I don't know many NBA defenders that don't.
I strongly suspect that you are wrong about the number of blow-bys--not because you are wrong in your general assessment of DFS and RB (which I agree with) but because in the Mavs scheme Reggie was generally the point-of-attack defender while DFS was on whoever was the biggest threat who was *not* the primary ball-handler. As such, yes, Reggie got blown by more than anyone else on the team--just like a elite shot blockers are also the guys who get dunked on most often. But Reggie's job wasn't 'never get blown by'--as others have noted, in the modern NBA that's not actually a feasible. His job was 'when the primary ball-handle makes his move funnel him away from his preferred option'. And Reggie was really good at that--the proof being that a) the coaches trusted him as their primary tool for doing that--to the tune of 40+ mpg when it mattered, b) the team's overall improvement on defense in which Reggie was the designated starting point.