Spurs focus on limiting what the jump-shooting SuperSonics do best
Web Posted: 05/12/2005 12:00 AM CDT
http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/b...265f1a2a7.html
Johnny Ludden
Express-News Staff Writer
SEATTLE — The season was all of 2 1/2 games old, and Gregg Popovich already had seen enough. Ray Allen rose up over Devin Brown, flicked his right wrist and sent the ball arcing into the air.
As Allen's shot formed a 25-foot parabola to the basket, Popovich leaped out of his sideline seat. The 3-pointer barely had settled into the net when Brown caught the full four-lettered blast of his coach's fury.
"You know he can shoot!" Popovich screamed, punctuating his admonition with a few choice expletives. "Make him a driver!"
More than six months later, the Spurs seem to have taken Popovich's orders to heart. By aggressively limiting Seattle's 3-point attempts — a shot that accounted for more than 25 percent of the SuperSonics' scoring during the regular season — they have thrown a tarp over the team's let-it-fly offense.
Thanks in no small part to their defense, the Spurs lead the Western Conference semifinals series 2-0. Game 3 is tonight at KeyArena.
"It's no secret why they are one of the top teams in the league," Sonics guard Antonio Daniels said.
Must like they did to Denver in the first round, the Spurs have taken away some of what Seattle does best. During the regular season, the Sonics averaged 8.1 3-point baskets in 22.2 attempts per game, both of which were second only to Phoenix. Through the first two games of the series, the Sonics are a combined 6 for 25 behind the arc.
Seattle, which is at its best when pushing the ball, has had only a few opportunities to get out and run. As a result, the Spurs have held the Sonics to an average of 86 points in the two games, more than 20 fewer than they averaged against Sacramento in the first round.
Allen, Seattle's All-Star guard, scored 25 points in Game 2 while Bruce Bowen spent much of the evening on the bench in foul trouble. Afterward, Allen said the Sonics need to start playing "wild and crazy" — pushing the pace more aggressively even if it results in turnovers.
With Denver, Seattle, Phoenix and Dallas — all teams who play up-tempo — filling half of the Western Conference's playoff bracket, the Spurs knew they would have to improve their transition defense to have any chance of advancing. Before their series against the Nuggets, they employed some of the same drills they used to prepare for New Jersey's full-court offense in the 2003 NBA Finals.
As the Spurs' starters and reserves scrimmaged, Popovich intermittently blew his whistle to signal a change in possession. He quickly flipped the ball to the other team, which immediately could start running without an inbounds pass. The drill forced the defenders to drop back quickly — and often.
Against the Nuggets, Popovich was frequently heard screaming, "Get back! Get back!" The Spurs evidently listened well enough: They held Denver to an average of 90.2 points, more than 20 below what it averaged its previous 20 games.
The Spurs, who have outscored Seattle 32-12 in fast-break points, also prepared for the Sonics by having Linton Johnson III and Mike Wilks impersonate Allen during practice. To stay with Johnson and Wilks, Bowen had to chase them through multiple screens.
The Spurs would like to see their top perimeter defender stay on the floor longer than he did Tuesday. Bowen picked up five fouls — all drawn by Allen — in only 17 minutes.
Regardless of whether the referees listened to Allen's weeklong complaints about Bowen's physicality, the Spurs' forward clearly couldn't check Allen as closely as he did in Game 1.
"I don't think I did too much that was overaggressive," Bowen said. "I will just have to slide my feet harder and move my hands quicker the next time."
Popovich singled out Brent Barry for praise after he and Manu Ginobili took turns guarding Allen when Barry was on the bench. Glenn Robinson is even making an effort to defend, leaping into the left corner to throw back a 3-pointer by Rashard Lewis.
By forcing Seattle into its half-court offense, the Spurs have been able to close on the Sonics' shooters and force them to put the ball on the floor.
The loss of forward Vladimir Radmanovic has further hurt Seattle's ability to space the floor. Radmanovic, who is out for the series after spraining his right ankle in Game 1, was the team's second-most accurate 3-point shooter during the regular season.
Only Lewis was better, and he's made one less 3-pointer in the series than Spurs center Nazr Mohammed.
"Even when they mess up on defense," Seattle forward Reggie Evans said, "they start picking each other up to make sure they are in the right spot."
Sonics coach Nate McMillan had some success Tuesday using a small lineup that surrounded 6-foot-9 forward Nick Collison with four shooters, though Tim Duncan was able to take advantage on the other end of the floor.
McMillan thinks his team needs to do a better job of reversing the ball — or at least get it into the middle of the lane — to move or collapse the Spurs' defense. He also wants the Sonics' big men to set better screens to free their shooters. Lewis has been unable to post up his smaller defenders because of the double-teams the Spurs send on the baseline.
"Same old San Antonio," Evans said. "They are playing defense, and everything else takes care of itself."
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Must(Much)? like they did to Denver in the first round, the Spurs have taken away some of what Seattle does best.I usually don't see so many mistakes.Popovich singled out Brent Barry for praise after he and Manu Ginobili took turns guarding Allen when Barry(Bowen?) was on the bench.
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