2Cleva
04-26-2011, 02:25 PM
Found this funny considering the blame he gets here.
Common thread in Spurs’ struggles: Bonner
Memphis' sound defense has has limited Matt Bonner's ability to create space on offense for the Spurs. (Soobum Im-US PRESSWIRE)
It is not Matt Bonner’s fault that the Grizzlies are one win away from eliminating the top-seeded Spurs, but Bonner’s time on the court throughout the series, and specifically in Game 4, sheds light on two intersecting issues that go a long way toward explaining an upset few predicted:
1) The Spurs lack a second reliable big man to flank Tim Duncan. We knew this from the start, but never was it laid more bare than on Monday night when Gregg Popovich, in a rare glimpse of desperation, benched DeJuan Blair, gave heavy minutes to the previously invisible Tiago Splitter and finally went small with Richard Jefferson at power forward in the fourth quarter.
2) The Grizzlies, through careful defense, have taken away the outside shots that fueled San Antonio’s elite offense all season. Sebastian Pruiti analyzes this issue with handy video here, but I wanted to zero in on Bonner and all the non-obvious ways he represents several of the key trends that together have resulted in the Grizzlies’ 3-1 edge. We’re not talking about the size disadvantage that cripples Bonner on defense when he has been forced to guard Zach Randolph and (much more often Marc Gasol); that’s an obvious thing, there’s nothing Bonner can do about it and its impact is plain to see every time Randolph backs him down or the Grizzlies lob an entry pass over Bonner’s fronting defense.
Let’s look instead at the way the Grizzlies have neutralized Bonner’s offense, particularly the three-point shots he usually gets off of pick-and-pop plays. Two possessions early in the second quarter sum this up perfectly. The Spurs run the same play each time, and it’s designed to get Bonner an open three-point look from the right corner. As George Hill (guarded by Greivis Vasquez at about the 11:30 mark) handles on the right wing, beyond the three-point line, Bonner comes over from the middle of the court, sets a screen for Hill and fades over to the right corner area. Hill dribbles around the screen toward the top of the arc, and Bonner’s man (Darrell Arthur) basically switches onto Hill and chases him to the middle of the court. The problem is Vasquez sticks with Hill and is right behind Arthur, mirroring his pursuit.
Bonner is open, and Hill passes to him. Vasquez realizes he’s in trouble and closes out like a mad man, but Bonner still gets an open look. He misses.
This is a rare slip-up from a Memphis team that has taken away the San Antonio’s beloved corner three by playing the passing lanes smartly and rotating off corner shooters only in emergencies. And it’s a slip-up the Spurs noticed, because they ran this exact play again two minutes later. This time, the Grizzles are ready, and Vasquez simply switches onto Bonner when the screen happens, negating the entire play. The possession ends with a George Hill air ball.
Two important things here:
1) The Grizzlies know Bonner’s offensive game is one-dimensional, and they have no issues switching a guard onto him early in the shot clock. It’s not as if Bonner is going to post up.
2) Arthur’s quickness is crucial, since the Grizzlies — both here and on several possessions down the stretch – show they are not afraid to switch Arthur onto a guard (Hill) if it means shutting off Bonner.
We see this twice on the same trip down the floor with a minute to go at the end of the third quarter. The Spurs, badly in need of a hoop, run a Manu Ginobili/Bonner pick-and-roll at the top of the key. The Grizzlies switch, so that Ginobili’s man (Shane Battier) slides onto Bonner while Arthur takes Ginobili. Arthur does well in an apparent mismatch, forcing Ginobili into a tough floater which draws only air. The Spurs get the ball back after a loose ball foul on the rebound scramble.
The Spurs inbound and run a George Hill/Bonner pick-and-roll. The Grizzlies switch again, so that Arthur takes Hill and Hill’s man (Vasquez) takes Bonner. Hill works a failed give-and-go with Bonner before launching a three from the edge of the giant bear logo to beat the shot clock. Air ball.
Bonner’s night ended the way most of the series has gone for him: with the Grizzlies working him over on defense. In a two-minute span of the fourth quarter, Memphis ran variations the same play four times in a row — a pick-and-pop for Arthur, once again guarded by Bonner. The play led to three scores in four possessions, mostly the result of Bonner’s inability to help on the ball-handler (Mike Conley) and dart back to Arthur in time to contest Arthur’s reliable mid-range jumper. On the first possession, Conley missed an open mid-range shot, but the Grizz scored on an offensive rebound. (Note: Conley had all the open mid-range looks he wanted, since San Antonio’s guards went under screens on almost every Conley pick-and-roll).
On the second, Conley dished back to Arthur for a jumper, and Bonner was so late getting back that Gary Neal had to cheat off of Tony Allen in the left corner to run out at Arthur. Arthur saw this and hit Allen on a back-door cut for an easy lay-in. The same action repeated itself on the next possession, only Allen missed an chippy over Neal, and Arthur finished the blood bath by hitting a wide-open pick-and-pop jumper on the Grizzlies’ next trip.
Again, this is not to pick on Bonner. It’s a lot to ask of him to guard a quick athlete like Arthur, and it’s obviously asking too much to have him guard Gasol; there’s a reason the Grizzlies have scored a whopping 118.3 points per 100 possessions with Bonner on the floor and just 102 points per 100 possessions when Bonner sits. The fact that Bonner has been on the floor guarding Gasol and Arthur for long stretches is less about Bonner’s limitations than it is about the limitations of San Antonio’s big man rotation. Bonner is on the floor for his offense, to create space for others, and Memphis has been able to take that dimension of his game away with sound defense.
There are a lot of reasons San Antonio is on the brink. Tim Duncan isn’t capable of dominating games anymore and has looked like the second-best center on the floor for much of this series; Tony Parker was inconsistent until last night; the implosion of Richard Jefferson (again) has led Popovich to use more three-guard lineups, which in turn has given Sam Young and Shane Battier easy post-up chances; the Grizzlies have forced a chronically careful team to turn the ball over more often than all but two playoff teams; Memphis has abused San Antonio’s power forwards and taken away the Spurs’ best three-point looks.
The latter two trends are perhaps the most important, and Bonner is the place where they intersect. The Spurs probably don’t have an answer on hand, barring a bounce-back game from Blair or a better-than-solid effort from Splitter. That lack of an answer is why San Antonio is likely going home very soon.
http://nba-point-forward.si.com/2011/04/26/common-thread-in-spurs-struggles-bonner/
Common thread in Spurs’ struggles: Bonner
Memphis' sound defense has has limited Matt Bonner's ability to create space on offense for the Spurs. (Soobum Im-US PRESSWIRE)
It is not Matt Bonner’s fault that the Grizzlies are one win away from eliminating the top-seeded Spurs, but Bonner’s time on the court throughout the series, and specifically in Game 4, sheds light on two intersecting issues that go a long way toward explaining an upset few predicted:
1) The Spurs lack a second reliable big man to flank Tim Duncan. We knew this from the start, but never was it laid more bare than on Monday night when Gregg Popovich, in a rare glimpse of desperation, benched DeJuan Blair, gave heavy minutes to the previously invisible Tiago Splitter and finally went small with Richard Jefferson at power forward in the fourth quarter.
2) The Grizzlies, through careful defense, have taken away the outside shots that fueled San Antonio’s elite offense all season. Sebastian Pruiti analyzes this issue with handy video here, but I wanted to zero in on Bonner and all the non-obvious ways he represents several of the key trends that together have resulted in the Grizzlies’ 3-1 edge. We’re not talking about the size disadvantage that cripples Bonner on defense when he has been forced to guard Zach Randolph and (much more often Marc Gasol); that’s an obvious thing, there’s nothing Bonner can do about it and its impact is plain to see every time Randolph backs him down or the Grizzlies lob an entry pass over Bonner’s fronting defense.
Let’s look instead at the way the Grizzlies have neutralized Bonner’s offense, particularly the three-point shots he usually gets off of pick-and-pop plays. Two possessions early in the second quarter sum this up perfectly. The Spurs run the same play each time, and it’s designed to get Bonner an open three-point look from the right corner. As George Hill (guarded by Greivis Vasquez at about the 11:30 mark) handles on the right wing, beyond the three-point line, Bonner comes over from the middle of the court, sets a screen for Hill and fades over to the right corner area. Hill dribbles around the screen toward the top of the arc, and Bonner’s man (Darrell Arthur) basically switches onto Hill and chases him to the middle of the court. The problem is Vasquez sticks with Hill and is right behind Arthur, mirroring his pursuit.
Bonner is open, and Hill passes to him. Vasquez realizes he’s in trouble and closes out like a mad man, but Bonner still gets an open look. He misses.
This is a rare slip-up from a Memphis team that has taken away the San Antonio’s beloved corner three by playing the passing lanes smartly and rotating off corner shooters only in emergencies. And it’s a slip-up the Spurs noticed, because they ran this exact play again two minutes later. This time, the Grizzles are ready, and Vasquez simply switches onto Bonner when the screen happens, negating the entire play. The possession ends with a George Hill air ball.
Two important things here:
1) The Grizzlies know Bonner’s offensive game is one-dimensional, and they have no issues switching a guard onto him early in the shot clock. It’s not as if Bonner is going to post up.
2) Arthur’s quickness is crucial, since the Grizzlies — both here and on several possessions down the stretch – show they are not afraid to switch Arthur onto a guard (Hill) if it means shutting off Bonner.
We see this twice on the same trip down the floor with a minute to go at the end of the third quarter. The Spurs, badly in need of a hoop, run a Manu Ginobili/Bonner pick-and-roll at the top of the key. The Grizzlies switch, so that Ginobili’s man (Shane Battier) slides onto Bonner while Arthur takes Ginobili. Arthur does well in an apparent mismatch, forcing Ginobili into a tough floater which draws only air. The Spurs get the ball back after a loose ball foul on the rebound scramble.
The Spurs inbound and run a George Hill/Bonner pick-and-roll. The Grizzlies switch again, so that Arthur takes Hill and Hill’s man (Vasquez) takes Bonner. Hill works a failed give-and-go with Bonner before launching a three from the edge of the giant bear logo to beat the shot clock. Air ball.
Bonner’s night ended the way most of the series has gone for him: with the Grizzlies working him over on defense. In a two-minute span of the fourth quarter, Memphis ran variations the same play four times in a row — a pick-and-pop for Arthur, once again guarded by Bonner. The play led to three scores in four possessions, mostly the result of Bonner’s inability to help on the ball-handler (Mike Conley) and dart back to Arthur in time to contest Arthur’s reliable mid-range jumper. On the first possession, Conley missed an open mid-range shot, but the Grizz scored on an offensive rebound. (Note: Conley had all the open mid-range looks he wanted, since San Antonio’s guards went under screens on almost every Conley pick-and-roll).
On the second, Conley dished back to Arthur for a jumper, and Bonner was so late getting back that Gary Neal had to cheat off of Tony Allen in the left corner to run out at Arthur. Arthur saw this and hit Allen on a back-door cut for an easy lay-in. The same action repeated itself on the next possession, only Allen missed an chippy over Neal, and Arthur finished the blood bath by hitting a wide-open pick-and-pop jumper on the Grizzlies’ next trip.
Again, this is not to pick on Bonner. It’s a lot to ask of him to guard a quick athlete like Arthur, and it’s obviously asking too much to have him guard Gasol; there’s a reason the Grizzlies have scored a whopping 118.3 points per 100 possessions with Bonner on the floor and just 102 points per 100 possessions when Bonner sits. The fact that Bonner has been on the floor guarding Gasol and Arthur for long stretches is less about Bonner’s limitations than it is about the limitations of San Antonio’s big man rotation. Bonner is on the floor for his offense, to create space for others, and Memphis has been able to take that dimension of his game away with sound defense.
There are a lot of reasons San Antonio is on the brink. Tim Duncan isn’t capable of dominating games anymore and has looked like the second-best center on the floor for much of this series; Tony Parker was inconsistent until last night; the implosion of Richard Jefferson (again) has led Popovich to use more three-guard lineups, which in turn has given Sam Young and Shane Battier easy post-up chances; the Grizzlies have forced a chronically careful team to turn the ball over more often than all but two playoff teams; Memphis has abused San Antonio’s power forwards and taken away the Spurs’ best three-point looks.
The latter two trends are perhaps the most important, and Bonner is the place where they intersect. The Spurs probably don’t have an answer on hand, barring a bounce-back game from Blair or a better-than-solid effort from Splitter. That lack of an answer is why San Antonio is likely going home very soon.
http://nba-point-forward.si.com/2011/04/26/common-thread-in-spurs-struggles-bonner/