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Score more points than those Spurs guys.
It seems to me that there are few options for adjustments. Their best bet is to go back to the double on Duncan and hope for another round of poor shooting from the outside shooters, and extensive stints of zone defense. Possibly bring Peja off the bench in favor of Wright to mix things up.
I feel encouraged as a Spurs fan, because I can't see what other adjustments or tricks Scott could try that the Spurs can't counter if they are playing well and with focus.
Or looked at another way, what are your fears about tonight's game? What don't you want to see happen?
Score more points than those Spurs guys.
I can see then waiting for TD to dribble the ball and then double team him. That seems to be the most effective way to attack him..
I expect Scott to try: switching into zone defenses more freqently than in previous games, focusing more on trying to steal the ball, and driving into the lane to try to get Spurs into foul trouble and get some of our starters in foul trouble. Oh, and some more of the alley oop passes to Chandler to get the fans screaming.
Paul is going to flop all over, and if the refs go for it and continue to ignore his offensive fouling ( shoving that left arm out against the defender), then we could really be in trouble.
Whether or not any of this is successfull will be, IMO, a function of how well Duncan plays tonight, and whether or not he shoots or passes quickly enough when he gets the ball . If he starts to do that " "get the ball, hold it, put it on the floor or down around his waist" thing, he's ging to get stripped, they are going to get fast breaks, and we can be in trouble. If he plays as quickly as he did in game 4, we will be fine on both ends, I think.
Also talk Kareem into coming back to take Melvin Ely's minutes. If that fails then arm Ely with some sort of taser device and/or a metal folding chair. Whatever you do Scott don't send him out there unarmed or you will get charged with criminal indifference after Ely is battered by a constant array of post up and face up moves from the Big Fundamental.
I wouldn't be shocked to the see the Hornets use Mo Pete to defend Parker, Peja to defend Manu and Paul to defend Bowen. That type of adjustment is pretty much what every coach does once they realize their point guard can't keep Parker out of the lane.
Regarding Duncan, I'm guessing the Hornets will try to vary their looks against him. If you do anything too much, Duncan is too smart. If I'm Scott, I probably go back to the original gameplan and try to make the shooters win the game.
Another thing Scott may try is putting Bonzi into the starting lineup and then attacking the Manu on Bonzi matchup. If I'm Scott though I probably just let Paul run the pick-and-roll every play. The Spurs still can't really guard it. Everything else, such as West isos or Peja off screens, the Spurs have the personnel to slow down.
I think scott needs to tell them to push the ball up
it makes the spurs get back quickly and spend alot of energy and might wear them down in the 4 so they start missing shots
spurs transastion d is ususally great though
I think we'll see more zone D, especially if the Spurs get an ealry lead. I also think Scott will play Wright or Wells more to put pressure on Manu.
Regarding Duncan, I think Scott will let Chandler go 1-on-1 for the first quarter. If Tim produces, he'll go for the double-team option.
No matter who's guarding Parker, they're going to clog the lane and go under screens. TP better bring his jumper with him, because they're going to dare him to shoot.
Pretty sure he will double Tim quickly with whoever is guarding KT to force him to make that midrange jumper. Scott will be betting he won't make it in N.O.
both hornet wins, average possession was 83 i think. spurs wins, its 89. spurs have the advantage when the game is sped up.
Yeah, that is always successful, putting a swingman on a PG(not to mention the fastest one in the NBA). TP would blow by him so fast, Mo would be left behind, wondering what just happened.
Bad idea there, timvp
New Orleans does not need to do anything different other than hit their shots, it is rather simple really.
Yes, because no team has ever put a swingman on Parker.
Are you kidding? Diaw was a lot more effective in cutting off Parker's drive to the basket than Nash or Barbosa ever were.
The logic of putting length on TP implies that they'll give him a lot of room to ensure he doesn't blow by them and lay it in. It also means that TP will have enough room to shoot from mid-range. Let's hope he brings his shot tonight
I keep hearing talk (Barkley last night, for instance) that Scott will attack the Bowen/Peja matchup by posting Peja up and letting him work from there against Bowen. I think that the Spurs would generally welcome that, if only because it would take the ball out of Paul's hands and quash his penetration, which is (at this point) the way that the Hornets have really been creating offense.
I can see the MoPete on Parker effort, but I don't know that MoPete has the lateral quickness to deal with that. If they do go that route and put Paul on Bowen, I suspect that Bowen will get many good looks from his comfort spots because of Paul's tendency to overplay penetration and look for steals.
Scott has a real dilemma with using Chandler in more head-up matchups with Timmy. I think that if he plays Timmy straight up, he concedes the lane a bit more to the Spurs penetrators. Plus, if Chandler gets into foul trouble, the game will be a very difficult one for the Hornets to win. If he brings the same doubles, he runs the risk that Timmy will devour them. I'd expect a tweak in their double-teaming game -- late doubles on the bounce or doubles from unexpected angles.
I wonder, too, about the Hornets' at ude. They seem to believe that all will be fine because they're at home and I think that's probably a good at ude for them to have. I do wonder, though, if that at ude makes them susceptible to a letdown if the Spurs play well early and continue to make things difficult for the Hornets' defense.
I keep hearing talk (Barkley last night, for instance) that Scott will attack the Bowen/Peja matchup by posting Peja up and letting him work from there against Bowen. I think that the Spurs would generally welcome that, if only because it would take the ball out of Paul's hands and quash his penetration, which is (at this point) the way that the Hornets have really been creating offense.
They ran that play twice in game 4.
One time resulted in a turnover, the second time resulted in Peja getting blocked HORRIBLY at the rim by Duncan that resulted in an easy basket on the other end.
That would be an epic failure (see Suns series with Diaw in the low post).
If I were Byron Scott, I would try to get Fab and KT in early foul trouble by attacking them with West. Also, I don't think Chandler will have zero dunks tonight.
Since I agree with many points already in here, I won't be repe ive. I will add that I think the best adjustment will not be made by Scott. I think that the home crowd will keep the Hornets focused and attacking all night. This is setting up to be a potential epic win for the Spurs. I think that if the Spurs win tonight, they win the championship. They will have shown tremendous resilience and determination in the face of tough pressure and long odds (coming back back from down 2). Go Spurs!
One things for sure, if they continue to allow Tony to own their paint, they'll be facing elimination in game 6.
No way there bud. Ask any player if it has ever been successful putting a foward on a quick PG and they will tell you no, maybe for a few plays just to mix things up, but for the most part, a quick PG will blow by the foward without any proble, and then you have one less big in the paint to either block or change the PG's shot. You have chris Paul in there instead, and he is pretty much helpless at that point.
How good was it putting Bruce on Paul, BTW???? Huh????
Idiots
And to add to this. Wright will be the risk which can be taken if Peja still will be in a slump. So the Hornets can put more intensity and faster fast breaks.
Ely is not the answer I guess. We still do not know how good Hilton Armstrong is on D against Tim (well probably not good), but he can provide some offensive punch if the spurs will be having problems with transition D.
Scott an also concentrate only on a shooter named Finley. Bowen is not hitting with big %, so the spurs will be as good as their weakest player.
Oh yes, they have had great success with that too.
The teams that have made Parker play bad are the teams with the physical quick PGs, ie. Billups, D Williams, Kidd a few years ago, etc.
Oh yes, they have had great success with that too.
The teams that have made Parker play bad are the teams with the physical quick PGs, ie. Billups, D Williams, Kidd a few years ago, etc.
D Williams? Parker dominated against the Jazz last year ... and D Williams got so abused in the first two games that Sloan switched Fisher onto him. And Parker owned Kidd. The Nets didn't have success against him until *gasp* they put a bigger player on him. Oh and Parker rarely has too much trouble against Billups, especially offensively.
About 95% of the series since Parker has been in the NBA, the opposing coach has at least tried putting a swingman on him.
The Hornets don't really need to change anything, they just need to show up a little tonight. For some ridiculous reason, they did not want to play game four. You could tell from the very start of the game the whole team was walking and jogging around. It was disgusting.
They need to force the issue, play the pick and roll, and dish out to Mo Pete if Peja is covered, and David West needs to take his jump shots. The guy was an assasin all season from anywhere inside the 3 point line, and only wants to post up in this series.
More hustle and effort is what they need on the defensive end. Keep doubling Duncan, at least take him out as much as possible. Make the Spurs hit 3 pointers to win. The rotations should be fine as long as the Hornets are on the same page.
Honestly, I expect a very close game tonight, finally. Fingers crossed here.
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