Our high rate of points allowed in the paint is by design. This is the new defensive philosophy Stotts was talking about during training camp. Our major off season acquisitions were all made to give Stotts the personnel he desired to implement his system at both ends of the court.
Clearly Stotts places a premium on the 3-point shot as an offensive weapon. That's precisely why Olshey signed Dorrel Wright and Mo Williams, two very prolific 3-point shooters to fill major roles off our bench. It is also why C.J. McCollum, a very prolific 3-point shooter in college, was chosen with the 10th pick in the draft.
So, if he places such a high premium on 3-point shooting at one end of the court, it is only natural he wants to take away that same advantage at the other end. Stotts' defense is not designed to limit points in the paint, it is designed to limit opponents making 3-pointers.
This is where the Lopez acquisition comes in. Yes, other teams are killing us inside, because we don't double team inside or play aggressive help defense. Why, because when you do, you leave someone open at the 3-point line, and a wide open, uncontested 3-pointer is the most effective offensive weapon in all of basketball. So, in the Stotts defense, Robin Lopez is left on an island, to defend his man one-on-one and to defend the paint against guards and wings penetrating - which happens a lot because our perimeter defenders overplay the 3, which means they are more likely to get beaten off the dribble. And while this makes Lopez look like he's losing the battle with his counterpart, the team, by shutting down the 3-point line, is winning the war - to to the tune of an 8-2 record.
And, if you think Lopez is getting abused by opposing centers, imagine how bad it would be if J.J. Hickson was alone on that same island. And that's why Hickson had to go and they brought in Lopez. Let's face it, a talented offensive player, close to the basket has a decided advantage, even over an above average defender, and would absolutely kill an inferior defender like Hickson. That's why most teams elect to double team when an opponent receives the ball with deep post position.
So, with Lopez, the team no longer doubles in the post or plays aggressive help defense. All other defenders stay home on their man and extent the perimeter defense all the way to beyond the 3-point line.
And it's working. The Blazers are 1st in the league in opponent's 3FG% at 29%. That's amazing 3-point defense (lowest Opp 3FG% in the nba.com database that goes back to 2007-08). The Blazers are doing a fantastic job of taking the most effective offensive weapon away from their opponents. All the while using that same weapon very effectively at the other end, where the Blazers are 4th in the league in 3FG% at 42% - that's a 13% advantage in 3FG% the Blazers have over their opponents. The Blazers are averaging over twice as many made 3-pointers per game (10.0) as their opponents (4.9). On offense, the Blazers are 4th in both 3FG% and 3FGM per game. On defense, they are 1st in both opponent 3FG% and 3FGM allowed per game.
This combination of great 3-point shooting on offense, the best 3-point defense in the league and great team rebounding is exactly why the Blazers are 8-2. THAT'S the new defensive philosophy Stotts was talking about. He now he has the personnel to implement it, and we are seeing the results.
And if anyone thinks shutting down your opponent from 3-point point range is a gimmick, or some kind of fool's gold, here are the won-loss records of the teams that led the league in Opp 3FG% over the past six regular seasons (as far back as the database at nba.com goes):
2007-08, BOS, 66-16
2008-09, CLE. 66-16
2009-10, LAL, 57-25
2010-11, CHI, 62-25
2011-12, BOS, 39-27 (lockout shortened season)
2012-13, IND, 49-32
That's an average winning percentage of .712, which equates to a 58-24 record over an 82-game schedule. I'm not predicting the Blazers will win 58 games, there are a lot of other factors involved, I'm just pointing out that in today's NBA, league leading 3-point defense has a very strong correlation to a good won-loss record.
Duh. Of course I plagiarized it!
Stay out of our forum!
Sounds like Lopez has an especially long season in front of him.
It's an excellent strategy and we're built to pull it off.
Good strategy and thinking from a White coach, tbh..
i feel like the "no helping off your man" strategy will bite you in the ass against a team that can space the floor out and run an effective high pick and roll
Portland doesn't have the talent or pieces to effectively play good defense, tbh, they need a gimmick, so I understand the strategy to attempt something innovative/different..
Is this the most you've posted in 2-3 years? Pretty excited for this start, huh? It won't last.
Those teams were good at overall defense, not just one aspect.
NBA rank for defensive rating:
2007-08 BOS 1
2008-09 CLE 3
2009-10 LAL 4
2010-11 CHI T1
2011-12 BOS 1
2012-13 IND 1
2013-14 POR T18
it's good to have the Blazers relevant for a month or two before the inevitable annual nosedive. I enjoy having tlong around tbh.
Sweet, sweet Mel. You know you can't mess with T$ in the NBA forum.
can't win a championship giving up points in the paint
There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote
