Toronto’s two main coaches appear to be using the same motivational playbook lately. Last year, Dwane Casey arranged for a 1,300 pound boulder to be placed in the Raptors dressing room, in order to reinforce the team’s “Pound the Rock” motto. During off-season renovations, Randy Carlyle decided to install a slab of limestone, which weighs over five thousand pounds, to demonstrate that the organization is “Rock Solid.” Although Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment often tolerates the status quo, they were not apparently not satisfied with the Thornhill quarry that provided last year’s stone, purchasing the from a location in Wiarton …
Raptors Bench Scoring
I am critical of the Toronto Raptors when they perform poorly on offense or defense so to be consistent I will highlight an example of good execution. Last night, the second unit created a number of high percentage scoring changes, enabling Toronto’s bench to outscore their Cleveland counterparts by a 59-21 margin. Rather than attempting a static ballscreen for two players as others watched, every Raptors player was involved in the play. They took advantage of cavalier Cavaliers defense but had good options that would have succeeded against a disciplined team. John Lucas made a three-point shot but he could …
Bad Help Defense
Sometimes, you have to avoid the easy play early in the possession (bad switches) so you aren’t under the gun later (mismatches). Sometimes, you have to anticipate what will happen next so you can prioritize what to guard. Sometimes, you have to closeout better than Courtney Kirkland. BTW: Joe Johnson hit one of his four threes on this play.
High Pick and Roll Breakdown
It’s easy to say that the San Antonio Spurs and Toronto Raptors are vastly different teams (and they are if one evaluates outcomes). On the offensive end, the Spurs boast a rating of 104.9 and an effective field goal percentage of 53.2 while the Raptors lament their 97.3 efficiency and 46.9 eFG%. The massive difference between the squad comes from a lot of little things. Yes, San Antonio is more talented and experienced but even if both teams had similar skill levels, the Spurs would still come out ahead. While Toronto treated their fans to a five-game road trip featuring …
Bad Habits on Defense
The Toronto Raptors have some bad habits which have really hurt their performance this year. A lack of ball pressure is allowing penetration into the paint (drive and pass) and demanding help. These shots close to the basket and open looks become high performance scoring chances for the opportunity. On the ball, players could improve their quickness (footwork and hands). Away from the ball, team members could be in better position, be more aware of the opponents around them and rotate in anticipation, not reaction. Screen and roll defense is very passive. A ballscreen can be an opportunity for the …
Before and After Mike Brown
6 Changes the Los Angeles Lakers have made since the start of the season: After Mike Brown was fired after five games and a 1-4 start, the Lakers have gone 4-1. Early reviews of Mike D’Antoni in practice have been positive but his offensive philosophy has not really changed how Los Angeles has performed. Offensive Efficiency and Effective Field Goal Percentage are about the same (still better than the league average) but defensive effort is much improved. The team is allowing less penetration into the paint and has committed fewer fouls. Turnover rate, perhaps because of new players, lack of …
Bad Defense, Again
As usual, the Air Canada Centre became a scene of disappointment as the Raptors wasted a double-digit fourth quarter lead and lost to the Jazz in triple overtime. Concerns remained the same: allowing an offensive rebound at a critical time (Utah’s game-tying possession in regulation), post-timeout execution (several times late in the game) and allowing dribble penetration too easily (forcing an unnecessary rotation and providing Paul Millsap with open looks • Millsap doesn’t always shoot corner threes, but when he does, he makes over half of them). At the end of the fourth quarter, Toronto appeared disorganized after Utah missed …
Weak Side Duck-In
In the 2002 Euroleague Championship Game, Dejan Bodiroga backs down his defender in the post and pivots to the middle. A quick ball fake gets the help defender in the air so Bodiroga dishes to Lazaros Papadopoulos for the dunk. Often, players crowd the post player with the ball, bringing an extra defender into the paint. Papadopoulos keeps his distance and waits until the defender shifts before ducking in to receive the ball.
Youth Basketball Comparison
It seems that clips of North American basketball players when they were young shows some sort of fast break that uses athleticism and ends in a dunk (Chris Webber from the Fab Five Documentary) but International players tend to make decisions and set up their teammates (Rudy Fernández from Raising an Olympian). Obviously, Webber experienced a higher scoring and more lucrative career than Fernández but from countries other than the U.S., we should be trying to produce players who had careers like Fernández because it is a more likely outcome than a first overall N.B.A. pick so shouldn’t our process …
Game 5 Preview
Hopefully, OKC makes some adjustments in terms of sharing the ball more and playing with more tenacity on the glass and at the defensive end. All four of the games have been close so far and although no team has come back from a 3-1 deficit in the N.B.A. Finals, the Thunder can send the series back home by turning a few small disadvantages in the box score into advantages.
Good Shooters
Don’t give a great shooter time and space to get a good shot off and don’t help off a great shooter and let them take an open shot. It seems as if the Lakers had not read the scouting report – as not only did Metta World Peace give Kevin Durant enough room to do whatever he wanted but left other viable options like James Harden and Russell Westbrook open – but were unaware of the time and the score. World Peace could have lowered Durant’s shooting percentage by making him dribble and rush a shot, or, even better, made …
What Metta Saw
Given the time (five seconds running down), space (defender six feet away, not looking) and difficulty of the pass (open passing lane), hitting Steve Blake was Metta World Peace’s best option. Unfortunately, Blake didn’t hit the shot like Steve Kerr or John Paxson did. The lob to Andrew Bynum or skip to Bryant (who had turned his back to the inbounder) would have required challenging passes.
Pick & Roll Defense
Despite the trouble that the Grizzlies had with this play, it is not that difficult to defend. The Spurs gave up 47% in the paint and 44% mid-range to the Clippers during the year.
Climbing the Mountaintop
In life, it’s very difficult to get to the mountaintop, because one day leads to another day and leads to another day. There are small wins and losses in the process. You win an election or lose an election. You can close a deal or not close a deal. But in sports, what you can do as a team, a with your fans feeling part of it, is show what’s possible for human beings to achieve if they work together, if they care about each other. Winning the title gave resolution to people who didn’t have much resolution in lives, …
Did Derrick Rose Suffer an Overuse Injury?
Was Derrick Rose’s injury caused by overuse and a lack of recovery time or because he was adjusting to avoid aggravating existing lower body injuries?
After Timeouts
When they lose, the Toronto Raptors do very poorly after timeouts. They do not score enough and they do not get enough possessions in the paint. On Friday, they scored on 5/13 post-timeout shots and only got into the paint five times. The Raptors lost to the Cavs 80-84.