12-17-2021, 03:57 AM
(12-16-2021, 05:13 PM)ballsrchr Wrote: Interesting stuff. I noticed numerous times in the game that the ball passed around the perimeter but NOBODY penetrated or cut to the basket. You gotta pass for a reason or with a plan. This around the world passing doesn't do anything but get you a long perimeter shot...which you can get any time. There are still too many instances of clogging the paint. If KP is going to post up...he needs to do a low post. He is not good at the high post.
I'm expecting the Mavs to call me any day now for my coaching skills...
Agree ballsrchr. Great obesrvation as well. Just passing without penetration, as DFS, Maxi, KP, THJ are doing, doesn't make much of a flow. Defenses easy close this out when its only pure passing to the next guy and nothing else than that. The players need also to move/penetrate/dribble to new positions (and know where and when to do that), and then pass the ball afterwards. The next player receiving the ball needs to do the same in many cases. This creates the flow.
When its done like this, then you get offensive flow, and its impossible for defenses to deal with this when multiple players in the same lineup can do the same.
And to make it even harder, these players need to also be able to shoot, otherwise defenders will not close out on them and that would stall the flow of offense and help the entire defense recover position.
At this moment, its ONLY our first player, the one brings the ball up, that has all these skills (penetrate, pass, shoot, bbIQ). This is either Luka or Brunson being number 1. The second player receiving, almost always, is one without all these skills, and then the ball stalls too often.
You don't see many instances where Luka (1) passes to Brunson (2). Or reverse where Brunson (1) passes to Luka (2) because they are both guards and this makes it difficult for them to directly pass to one another. Typically, the easiest flow is when the guard that brings the ball up (being 1), passes to a big or player in the high post (2, ala Jokic), and if that player has skills (which I believe Sabonis indeed has) to distribute the ball to number 3. And if the 3 could be Brunson, which has those skills as well, he could move it to number 4. This is the reason that I believe a player with skills of Sabonis would transform our offensive flow: from stalling at player 2 as the offense is now, to actually proceed to player 3, and if we keep Brunson even to player 4.
Sabonis has the skills of a PG, able to dribble past most if not all of the other bigs that try cover him, and positioning and passing skills to find the players around and distribute. He is not as amazing as Jokic, but after that, he might be the best other option in the league. And the defenses need to collapse on him, because he has such a great touch scoring inside in addition to his penetration and dribbling. He also has that positioning and bbIQ that are required to be in a place to receive the ball from number 1.