lefty
01-12-2011, 12:11 PM
LA Times (http://www.latimes.com/sports/basketball/nba/lakers/la-sp-lakers-20110111,0,2426063.story?track=rss): An embarrassing dip into history nudged the Lakers into action.
The franchise was fuming last month after thorny losses to Miami and Milwaukee, a two-game spell that became the first time since 1959 the Lakers lost consecutive home games by 16 or more points.
It was time for a change, a heightened attitude toward defense, after Milwaukee's Earl Boykins punctured them for 22 points Dec. 21 and the Miami Heat took turns pummeling them on Christmas Day.
The Lakers had won two championships under a defensive scheme installed by former assistant coach Kurt Rambis, but there was a growing need for more accountability among their perimeter defenders.
Coach Phil Jackson was bothered by the Lakers' defense this season, and assistant coach Chuck Person helped restructure and clarify a majority of the changes that were made.
The Lakers' perimeter defenders used to funnel players toward the middle of the key, where their big men would presumably step out and help stop the penetration. Now the Lakers are forcing opposing perimeter players toward the baseline and often keeping their big men closer to the basket.
Person was in charge of the Lakers' game plan Sunday against the New York Knicks, who scored 21 fewer points than they average and shot only 36% in the Lakers' 109-87 victory.
"Lately we've been paying more attention to details," Person said. "We've given some rules to our defense to hold guys more accountable for their defensive responsibility."
The Lakers used to welcome middle penetration. Now they abhor it.
"The basic principle is to make sure we keep the ball out of the middle of the floor," Person said. "We want to make sure we influence the ball down the sideline and then to the baseline. It's not a total departure from what we've done, but we just tweaked it a bit."
Despite solid recent results, Jackson said the defense was still not flawless.
"We're trying to break habits more than anything else," he said. "We've been playing a form of defense that has been pretty good for us the last four years, but I'm trying to make some adjustments and to break those habits takes some time."
The franchise was fuming last month after thorny losses to Miami and Milwaukee, a two-game spell that became the first time since 1959 the Lakers lost consecutive home games by 16 or more points.
It was time for a change, a heightened attitude toward defense, after Milwaukee's Earl Boykins punctured them for 22 points Dec. 21 and the Miami Heat took turns pummeling them on Christmas Day.
The Lakers had won two championships under a defensive scheme installed by former assistant coach Kurt Rambis, but there was a growing need for more accountability among their perimeter defenders.
Coach Phil Jackson was bothered by the Lakers' defense this season, and assistant coach Chuck Person helped restructure and clarify a majority of the changes that were made.
The Lakers' perimeter defenders used to funnel players toward the middle of the key, where their big men would presumably step out and help stop the penetration. Now the Lakers are forcing opposing perimeter players toward the baseline and often keeping their big men closer to the basket.
Person was in charge of the Lakers' game plan Sunday against the New York Knicks, who scored 21 fewer points than they average and shot only 36% in the Lakers' 109-87 victory.
"Lately we've been paying more attention to details," Person said. "We've given some rules to our defense to hold guys more accountable for their defensive responsibility."
The Lakers used to welcome middle penetration. Now they abhor it.
"The basic principle is to make sure we keep the ball out of the middle of the floor," Person said. "We want to make sure we influence the ball down the sideline and then to the baseline. It's not a total departure from what we've done, but we just tweaked it a bit."
Despite solid recent results, Jackson said the defense was still not flawless.
"We're trying to break habits more than anything else," he said. "We've been playing a form of defense that has been pretty good for us the last four years, but I'm trying to make some adjustments and to break those habits takes some time."