I really really hope Hollins tries to run the Conley-Gasol PnR all game. The less involved Randolph is, the better it is for the Spurs imo. And it won't work as well if Timmy is guarding Randolph, since Splitter is good at guarding the PnR.
If Darrel Arthur doesn't guard Bonner well, there will be less of him. Daye might be seeing more minutes this series. Allen might be seeing fewer minutes if he isn't out there guarding Parker; he made some bad gambles last game.
-I'd start Pondexter over Prince to give Z-Bo more room.
-Prince on the bench also gives them more small-ball options. You can take Bonner out of the game with a guy like Prince at the 4.
-More high/low with Gasol/Z-Bo
-Allen on Parker early and prob little to no help off the 3pt shooters.
I want the Spurs to attack the basket early this game because it's almost a given the Grizz are staying home on Green/Kawhi/Bonner. Parker and especially Manu have to attack the rim hard in Game 2.
I was shocked to see Memphis go small. That was the clearest sign of how well the Spurs were playing defense.
That's Tony Allen though, one on one very solid, but he drifts and makes horrible decisions.
Austin Daye? Please do that.
Yeah so was I, I said to my wife, I've NEVER see Memphis sans injuries, play small and just totally go away from how they normally play.
Going small did force Bonner out of the game to start the 4th quarter. It also didn't work as Diaw plus 4 smalls was better than ZBo plus 4 smalls. Memphis going small is an admission that they can't succeed with what has worked for the last three seasons.
Zbo regular season versus the Spurs
4 games
35.8 minutes
14.3 Points
10.0 rebounds
.362 FG%
He is a remarkable player because he is listed at 6'9" but is definitely shorter. Now with Diaw they have 3 players to gusrd him instead of one in 11 (Tim)
I'd love if they went small with Prince at the four.
I'm the wrong person to ask, because I don't think they can. Even before the Spurs were playing well I couldn't figure out how it would take them more than five games to close out the Thunder. The Spurs can be counted on to come out flat and piss away a winnable game. If they're serious about getting to the finals, this thing will be over quickly.
Maybe sag down on Parker on the screens, both the guy guarding him and the one guarding the screener. If Parker is popping those long threes, at least he's not carving the defense and/or kicking out to better shooters.
Start Pondexter over Prince, get a deep-ball threat out there to open things up more for Randolph.
Grizzlies need their jump shots to connect if they want to open up space. The Spurs are packing the paint and daring the Grizzlies to beat them on the perimeter. The truth is, this strategy is working better than in 2011 when the Grizzlies still had Mayo and Battier. Those two were hitting dagger 3's whenever Zbo or Gasol was swarmed in the inside. Starting Pondexter might be a good idea. But guys like Tony Allen and Prince don't just become 3 point shooters overnight. A long jumpshot, even if it's somewhat open, is still better than Zbo or Gasol overpowering in the post.
On the defensive end, they just need to play better. They have the individual defenders to play one on one defense. Although, the Spurs look pretty good after the Warriors series. The Warriors played out of their minds on defense, every one of their players were long and athletic. It was good practice for the Spurs. If the Grizzlies aren't tight on defense like the Warriors, the Spurs will be glad for every extra inch of air they get.
If Bonner is going to be able to adequately defend Z-Bo (huge IF of course), then they've got no choice but to go small because Z-Bo can't guard those PnPops. If he's not punishing us offensively then he's a huge liability on the court especially on defense.
Z-Bo's regression from 2011 and the quality bigs we have now is the main reason i liked the Spurs going into this series. I didn't take into account the possibility Matty would outscore Z-Bo 12-2 in Game 1 tho.
Prince is not for this series because he's not the spot up shooter that Battier/Mayo was. He needs post ups and fast breaks to score effectively and he doesn't have anybody to defend in the starting lineup. You put him as a small ball 4 and I think he's more effective. True, it goes away from their style of play but Hollins would be best served to recognize that the Spurs can handle their style.
Can't dispute much here, but the Grizz lose if they go small. The Spurs have employed various smallball lineups all year. They know how to play small. Memphis will be learning on the fly and trying to outplay a team that is proficient at that style of play. I believe that their chances of beating the Spurs decrease if they choose to go small for extended periods of time.If Bonner is going to be able to adequately defend Z-Bo (huge IF of course), then they've got no choice but to go small because Z-Bo can't guard those PnPops. If he's not punishing us offensively then he's a huge liability on the court especially on defense.
Z-Bo's regression from 2011 and the quality bigs we have now is the main reason i liked the Spurs going into this series. I didn't take into account the possibility Matty would outscore Z-Bo 12-2 in Game 1 tho
Prince is not for this series because he's not the spot up shooter that Battier/Mayo was. He needs post ups and fast breaks to score effectively and he doesn't have anybody to defend in the starting lineup. You put him as a small ball 4 and I think he's more effective. True, it goes away from their style of play but Hollins would be best served to recognize that the Spurs can handle their style.
They will stay with the shooters, TD/Splitter/Diaw have to keep them guessing
Yeah, they love to do that. Again, though and this may be more hope than anything, that the spurs will due to last year and two years ago, both motivating factors, IMO combing together to form a perfect storm.
Tony Allen will probably sweep the leg, again.
I agree with this but the problem with the gasols is that they're a little soft on set plays. BOTH of them are face up jump shooters, not too difficult for tiago to just stand there and jump with him when he shoots. Even when marc backs you down on the baseline its for the purpose of a fadeaway jumper! But he didnt try any of those in game 1 that I can remember. The only time marc is a real bruiser is if someone else takes the shot and he crashes the boards for easy put backs, other than that its a jump shot.
So for him to give tiago a beating, like backing him down, it would take marc out of his game. Thats more zbo's game which is why we swarm him but you're right, they need a different kind of game from marc but that would be going away from what they've been doing all season, or the last couple of seasons even.
Everyone talks about Z-Bo bouncing back for huge games, he may, but, in the regular season he only shot 36%... So even when they weren't playing as good of defense as they are now, they held him to that...
Hopefully whatever adjustments they do won't take until game 3. We need as much leeway cause once Grizz make adjustments, it'll be a whole new series
or I should say a "shot" because he doesnt really jump....
If he gets dumb enough and does something dumb enough get suspended and just kill them even worse.
I like this guy's idea
http://boards.grizzliesonline.com/in...dpost&p=579477
Tony Allen on Parker is a no-brainer. Danny'd better be ready to shoot if he wants to stay in the game. The Grizz are going to be working on getting steals and strips, so the Spurs need to take good care of the ball and knock down their free throws. Those dumbass, lazy turnovers the Spurs are prone to when they lose focus could be a big deal, because that and rebounding is how Memphis makes up the difference in points.
If the Grizzlies stay at home on the shooters, Duncan and Splitter could feast. I don't know if it's because they came out flat, but Memphis had five ing guys in the paint and weren't stopping layups. Fat DPOY will earn his money in game 2.
Changing the lineup would be a panic move, and even Pop wouldn't do it after only one loss, no matter how large the margin.
What makes you take pause, and all their suggestions are solid, the Spurs would have an answer.
I dont know what Memphis` players capable of, I only saw them couple times. They cant play pick and roll, which Warriors killed Spurs. They cant shoot threes. Z-Bo on iso didnt work. Only thing that comes to mind, is to force more turnovers run some counter attacks, try play more aggressive, shove Parker couple times, stay with 3 point shooters at all costs. Leave Duncan and Gino be, play them go 1on1. Some help D on Parker`s pick and rolls. They will put Pondexter in s5, in place of Prince. Hollins wont sacrifice Allen, even if he is a liability in this series.
I really think Memphis is overrated and they are Spurs` best possible matchup. No up tempo game, no 3pt threat, no pick and roll. I can`t see them winning, unless they play some unreal FG% and be really physical.
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