ducks
06-12-2005, 07:02 PM
Prince needs help in defending Ginobili, reputation
June 11, 2005
By Chris Bernucca
SportsTicker Pro Basketball Editor
SAN ANTONIO (Ticker) - Tayshaun Prince, his coach and his Detroit Pistons teammates would like everyone to know that he hasn't forgotten how to play defense over the last two weeks.
In just his third season, Prince already has shoehorned his way onto the All-Defensive Second Team, an honor usually reserved for veterans living on a resume compiled years ago.
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However, as one of the few NBA players who actually qualifies as a "stopper," Prince has seen that there can be repercussions that come with that reputation.
In the Eastern Conference finals, Prince was lit up by Miami Heat star guard Dwyane Wade for 40 and 36 points in consecutive games. That's not exactly "stopping" someone.
Prince's problems continued Thursday in Game One of the NBA Finals when he was torched by San Antonio Spurs guard Manu Ginobili for 26 points - 15 in the fourth quarter - of an 84-69 loss.
"This series and last series, I've been bothering these guys, but they hit acrobatic shots - what Wade did and what Manu did yesterday," Prince said at Friday's practice.
At 6-9 and just 215 pounds, Prince is a wisp of a wing player. He has abnormally long arms that allow him to play even bigger than his size without giving away much quickness.
Quiet and unassuming, Prince also seems to save his best defensive efforts for the postseason. As a rookie in 2003, it was his wingspan that blocked Tracy McGrady's path to the conference semifinals and helped Detroit erase a 3-1 series deficit against Orlando.
Last year, Prince provided the defensive highlight of the postseason with his impossible game-saving block from behind of a breakaway layup by Indiana's Reggie Miller in the conference finals. He went on to harass Los Angeles Lakers superstar Kobe Bryant into an awful shooting performance in the Finals.
So it bothers Prince that Wade and Ginobili have made him look like a freeway at 3 a.m.
"You always take it personally, especially when you lose the game," he said.
It's not all Prince's fault. Recently, he has been a victim of bad matchups with good players. He also isn't getting as much help from his friends.
And while Prince is a good defensive player, he is not a "stopper" - at least when it comes to defending All-Stars like Wade and Ginobili, who aren't stopped by anybody.
"I don't like the term," Spurs assistant coach P.J. Carlesimo said. "You don't stop those guys. You make them work real hard. If you do a good job, you get their percentage way down. If you do an exceptional job, they scored less that night. It's really hard to quantify what he does."
"Guys that are stars in the league, you're not gonna shut them down," said Pistons reserve guard Lindsey Hunter, also a terrific defender. "You're never gonna do that."
In handling the 6-9 McGrady and 6-7 Bryant in past postseasons, Prince was matching up with players approximately the same size as him. But Wade is 6-4 and Ginobili 6-6 with much lighter bodies and much quicker initial explosion.
That has had Prince wondering, "Why don't you go pick on somebody your own size?"
"With a 6-9 guy, when you have to guard guys that are so athletic and capable of putting the ball on the floor, that's a pretty difficult position to be in," Pistons coach Larry Brown said.
Wade and Ginobili also can create their own shot from anywhere on the floor and have dozens of plays called for them every game.
"I think it's harder for the perimeter guys," Carlesimo said. "They're the hardest matchup. You never get somebody that doesn't averaging 20-something points per game and that they're not running a whole bunch of plays for."
"You don't stop guys who get up at least 15 shots a game," said Spurs swingman Bruce Bowen, who may be the best perimeter defender in the NBA. "You can stop a guy like me, because all you've gotta do is stay on me. If I'm not open, I'm not gonna get the shot. For guys who take a high volume of shots, it's hard to stop them."
In the first half of Game One, Prince did an excellent job on Ginobili, helping limit him to four points on 1-of-6 shooting. But it clearly was a team effort.
In the first half, Prince played just 12 minutes due to foul trouble. Hunter and Richard Hamilton also took turns on Ginobili, who was met by a big man every time he tried to attack the basket.
"If the team defense is really good, that empowers these guys to do what they do," Carlesimo said.
The second half was a different story. The Pistons were forced to double-team Tim Duncan, which opened the floor a bit. They also did a bad job of communicating with each other on defensive responsibilities.
"When you got a team like this that moves the ball so well on the offensive end and gets the ball to Tim and creates the defense to sag, it's tough to get back out to them guys and really keep them from getting where they want to go," Prince said. "That's why you need all five guys to help each other out."
"When (Ginobili) made his run, it seemed like we switched a lot and ended up with big guys on him," Brown said. "A lot of times we didn't need to switch."
Ginobili made 9-of-10 shots in the second half, often getting into the teeth of the defense for running hooks, finger rolls and dunks.
In the fourth quarter, he appeared to singlehandedly break down one of the most disciplined defenses in the NBA - and embarrass Prince in the process.
"When Manu gets in the paint, it's pretty much automatic," Prince admitted.
But before taking away Prince's sword and shield, it should be noted that he is not the first player to fall victim to Ginobili, who Brown said, "just willed himself to be great. If Prince is going to do a better job defending Ginobili, so must his teammates."
"No one guy is gonna stop one guy in the league," Hunter said. "Without a collective effort, it's still tough to stop a guy. How many great 1-on-1 defenders did Michael Jordan score baskets on? It takes a collective effort."
And perhaps better than anyone, Bowen knows Prince will not back down or give up, because that's not what "stoppers" do.
"It's a situation that Tayshaun is going to go through, but he knows that Dumars (Pistons vice president Joe Dumars) and coach Brown really appreciate what he does," Bowen said.
June 11, 2005
By Chris Bernucca
SportsTicker Pro Basketball Editor
SAN ANTONIO (Ticker) - Tayshaun Prince, his coach and his Detroit Pistons teammates would like everyone to know that he hasn't forgotten how to play defense over the last two weeks.
In just his third season, Prince already has shoehorned his way onto the All-Defensive Second Team, an honor usually reserved for veterans living on a resume compiled years ago.
ADVERTISEMENT
However, as one of the few NBA players who actually qualifies as a "stopper," Prince has seen that there can be repercussions that come with that reputation.
In the Eastern Conference finals, Prince was lit up by Miami Heat star guard Dwyane Wade for 40 and 36 points in consecutive games. That's not exactly "stopping" someone.
Prince's problems continued Thursday in Game One of the NBA Finals when he was torched by San Antonio Spurs guard Manu Ginobili for 26 points - 15 in the fourth quarter - of an 84-69 loss.
"This series and last series, I've been bothering these guys, but they hit acrobatic shots - what Wade did and what Manu did yesterday," Prince said at Friday's practice.
At 6-9 and just 215 pounds, Prince is a wisp of a wing player. He has abnormally long arms that allow him to play even bigger than his size without giving away much quickness.
Quiet and unassuming, Prince also seems to save his best defensive efforts for the postseason. As a rookie in 2003, it was his wingspan that blocked Tracy McGrady's path to the conference semifinals and helped Detroit erase a 3-1 series deficit against Orlando.
Last year, Prince provided the defensive highlight of the postseason with his impossible game-saving block from behind of a breakaway layup by Indiana's Reggie Miller in the conference finals. He went on to harass Los Angeles Lakers superstar Kobe Bryant into an awful shooting performance in the Finals.
So it bothers Prince that Wade and Ginobili have made him look like a freeway at 3 a.m.
"You always take it personally, especially when you lose the game," he said.
It's not all Prince's fault. Recently, he has been a victim of bad matchups with good players. He also isn't getting as much help from his friends.
And while Prince is a good defensive player, he is not a "stopper" - at least when it comes to defending All-Stars like Wade and Ginobili, who aren't stopped by anybody.
"I don't like the term," Spurs assistant coach P.J. Carlesimo said. "You don't stop those guys. You make them work real hard. If you do a good job, you get their percentage way down. If you do an exceptional job, they scored less that night. It's really hard to quantify what he does."
"Guys that are stars in the league, you're not gonna shut them down," said Pistons reserve guard Lindsey Hunter, also a terrific defender. "You're never gonna do that."
In handling the 6-9 McGrady and 6-7 Bryant in past postseasons, Prince was matching up with players approximately the same size as him. But Wade is 6-4 and Ginobili 6-6 with much lighter bodies and much quicker initial explosion.
That has had Prince wondering, "Why don't you go pick on somebody your own size?"
"With a 6-9 guy, when you have to guard guys that are so athletic and capable of putting the ball on the floor, that's a pretty difficult position to be in," Pistons coach Larry Brown said.
Wade and Ginobili also can create their own shot from anywhere on the floor and have dozens of plays called for them every game.
"I think it's harder for the perimeter guys," Carlesimo said. "They're the hardest matchup. You never get somebody that doesn't averaging 20-something points per game and that they're not running a whole bunch of plays for."
"You don't stop guys who get up at least 15 shots a game," said Spurs swingman Bruce Bowen, who may be the best perimeter defender in the NBA. "You can stop a guy like me, because all you've gotta do is stay on me. If I'm not open, I'm not gonna get the shot. For guys who take a high volume of shots, it's hard to stop them."
In the first half of Game One, Prince did an excellent job on Ginobili, helping limit him to four points on 1-of-6 shooting. But it clearly was a team effort.
In the first half, Prince played just 12 minutes due to foul trouble. Hunter and Richard Hamilton also took turns on Ginobili, who was met by a big man every time he tried to attack the basket.
"If the team defense is really good, that empowers these guys to do what they do," Carlesimo said.
The second half was a different story. The Pistons were forced to double-team Tim Duncan, which opened the floor a bit. They also did a bad job of communicating with each other on defensive responsibilities.
"When you got a team like this that moves the ball so well on the offensive end and gets the ball to Tim and creates the defense to sag, it's tough to get back out to them guys and really keep them from getting where they want to go," Prince said. "That's why you need all five guys to help each other out."
"When (Ginobili) made his run, it seemed like we switched a lot and ended up with big guys on him," Brown said. "A lot of times we didn't need to switch."
Ginobili made 9-of-10 shots in the second half, often getting into the teeth of the defense for running hooks, finger rolls and dunks.
In the fourth quarter, he appeared to singlehandedly break down one of the most disciplined defenses in the NBA - and embarrass Prince in the process.
"When Manu gets in the paint, it's pretty much automatic," Prince admitted.
But before taking away Prince's sword and shield, it should be noted that he is not the first player to fall victim to Ginobili, who Brown said, "just willed himself to be great. If Prince is going to do a better job defending Ginobili, so must his teammates."
"No one guy is gonna stop one guy in the league," Hunter said. "Without a collective effort, it's still tough to stop a guy. How many great 1-on-1 defenders did Michael Jordan score baskets on? It takes a collective effort."
And perhaps better than anyone, Bowen knows Prince will not back down or give up, because that's not what "stoppers" do.
"It's a situation that Tayshaun is going to go through, but he knows that Dumars (Pistons vice president Joe Dumars) and coach Brown really appreciate what he does," Bowen said.