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If Scottie were coach...how would he handle a player who took themselves out of a playoff game because the play wasn't called for him?
Question.
Forgive me if it's been posted already!
http://www.nba.com/finals2007/news/pippen_070605.html
Scottie Pippen: If I Were Coach ...
Pippen
If one player best captured the excellence of the versatile, athletic mid-sized player who helped change the face of the NBA in the 20th Century's last decade, that player would be Scottie Pippen. Teaming with Michael Jordan to help the Chicago Bulls win six NBA championships in the '90s, Pippen out of Central Arkansas, was the best defensive player and top passer during those years. Named one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History, Pippen will be offering his insights on a weekly basis throughout the playoffs as if he were a head coach trying to navigate the dangerous postseason waters.
Cavs-Spurs: What To Look For
I expect Cleveland to continue to try to space the floor and allow LeBron James to attack. He has great athleticism, but I do think in this series he has to be a lot more cautious. The backline defense of the Spurs is a lot stronger, a lot smarter, and more talented than Detroit’s. Speaking of their bigs, they have guys that are going to step in front of LeBron and take charges. When you look at the Detroit Pistons, they probably only had one guy — Antonio McDyess — who would step up and take the charge. Webber wasn’t likely to take one and neither was Rasheed Wallace. So I think San Antonio’s defense will play a huge factor against the Cleveland Cavaliers offense because it won’t allow LeBron to get to the basket. He has to find that mid-range game in this series because San Antonio doesn’t leave the three-point shooters.
If I Were Coaching Cleveland…
Daniel Gibson did a great job stepping up in the last series, but now he is not a new soldier to the camp anymore. Everyone knows who he is and what he is capable of. So I don’t think he’s going to be able ease into The Finals and have a great series like he did in the Eastern Conference Finals. San Antonio has definitely honed in on this kid. They are a team that really relies on Duncan and their big guys to step up and play that sort of two-on-three-at-the-basket kind of defense and they stay home on their three pointers. The Cavs don’t know where Larry Hughes is from an injury standpoint, so this is a great series for Zydrunas Ilgauskas to give them something inside. Not to take anything away from Duncan because he is a great defender, but he is not a great defender on the basketball and I think that is one area where they can take advantage of San Antonio by trying to utilize their inside approach and get some scoring. The Spurs won’t give up a lot from a perimeter standpoint.
What Can Larry Hughes Provide?
Larry Hughes can be an X-factor for Cleveland, but I think right now he is a guy that Cleveland is really hanging on to by the nails at this stage of the season. They’ve played over 120-plus basketball games by now and injuries start to creep in. There is no time for healing. I don’t think he is going to be that big of a help judging from the way he was limping throughout the Detroit series. He is capable of doing it, but will his health allow him to do it? San Antonio is a very hands-on, pressure type of defense. They’re going to be up on him, they’re going to pressure him in the backcourt and they’re going to try to take the Cavs out of their offense and force them to use a lot of shot clock.
The Cavs’ Biggest Challenge – Stopping Tony Parker
Cleveland is a very good defensive team, but if there is anything that is going to be their Achilles heel in this series, it will be penetration off the pick and roll as far as Tony Parker just breaking guys down. That is a problem they are going to have to face. Give them credit, they are good in a lot of areas, but the fact that they don’t have a very strong point guard right now and Hughes ailing, that could hurt them. Parker will be penetrating throughout the game. I think they can stabilize Manu Ginobili with LeBron or utilize their bigs to be able to come over and help, but Parker really hurts teams a lot in their early offense for the fact that he breaks the offense down. Duncan has such soft hands and he’s able to drop the ball off and get easy baskets throughout the game.
The Mike Brown/Danny Ferry Familiarity Factor With The Spurs
You can basically throw that out. No matter how much you try to keep secrets, at this stage every team knows every teams' plays. They know everything about them. They know everything about each individual as a player. This series really relies on the players and how well they can go out and execute under pressure because the pressure has been turned all the way up to the max now. You are going to get a chance to see how a young Cleveland team can handle things from a media standpoint and everything that the NBA Finals brings. For San Antonio it’s really just another day, glad to be back again, but they understand that they have to block everything out and play basketball.
Stopping LeBron
The match-up of LeBron and Bruce Bowen is definitely going to be one to watch. It is going to work like a glove and a hand. The Spurs are a team that has faced Kobe Bryant three out of the last five years, so they understand how to play against superstar players out on the basketball court. Bowen understands where his help is. He understands how to make guys drive out of control. LeBron James is not going to be new territory for them. Bowen is going to try to frustrate LeBron in any way that he can. But LeBron has grown so much to the fact that he can still make plays with the basketball in his hands without being an offensive threat. He just has to be patient. Bowen is going to do a phenomenal job on him in not allowing him to get good looks at the basket. He is going to force him into drive mode because that is where his help is. They’re not going to rely on any other help for his running and double-teaming. They are going to allow Bowen to use his size to try to alter LeBron’s shot in any way in addition to having help from the seven-footers or whoever else they have at the four position.
How Much Does The Spurs’ Experience Count?
You look at that Cleveland Cavalier team and they have little experience. You talk about Eric Snow, a specialty guy for them who’s the only guy that really gives them this type of experience. It’s very easy and very helpful for him to try and relate to his teammates, but it’s not going to help them much. Ultimately, you have to go through it, your body has to go through it, and you have to adjust to it. That is something where San Antonio is going to be able to get off to a great start against them. Not only that, but they have the home court advantage. By the time this Cleveland team really settles in, they may be behind a game or quarter. Playing against one of the better teams in the league, it’s very difficult to have that comeback in you in the first game. This series reminds me a lot of me being a Chicago Bull when we faced the Lakers in 1991. We were a very young team that had a lot of experience in fighting the Eastern Conference battles but never had the opportunity on the big stage. I feel like that Game 1 really caught us on our heels, but we were ready for the next four games.
The Spurs and Their Motivation To Make History
Tim Duncan has been a phenomenal player, but it’s just been a tremendous ride watching Coach Popovich, a guy who was sort of pulled out of the front office and pulled into that coaching slot, and how this guy has turned out to be such a phenomenal coach. Not knowing a lot about him before he became the head coach of the San Antonio Spurs, he has really done a tremendous job for that franchise over the last ten years. You never know what else is to come because you look at a guy like Tim Duncan, who still has a lot of great basketball left in him, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, this franchise has a great future still left with some very young players. It’s not like you’re thinking this team is not going to be together for the next five years. San Antonio is an organization that has longevity in its superstars, starting with a guy like David Robinson who played his whole career there.
Prediction
I want to give Cleveland a lot of credit and not take anything away from them, but I do think the Spurs will prevail — probably in six.
If Scottie were coach...how would he handle a player who took themselves out of a playoff game because the play wasn't called for him?
Question.
I wish they'd asked!
Methinks he's not a very big Tim Duncan fan.
"so this is a great series for Zydrunas Ilgauskas to give them something inside. Not to take anything away from Duncan because he is a great defender, but he is not a great defender on the basketball"
Can someone please translate this into English?
Is Pippen actually saying Tim can't defend Zydrunas Ilgauskas?!?
Agreed.
And yet, he still picks Spurs in 6.
I think NBA.com should make sure they buy league pass for their analysts. Pip hasn't watched a lot of Spurs games.
lol.
I guess someone really has praise the ground Duncan walks on to know basketball, huh?
If Scottie was coach of the Cavs, they would lose.
If Scottie was coach of the Spurs, they would lose.
Edit: wait, could Lebron or Duncan have gotten their teams to the playoffs, much less the Finals despite Scottie being their coach?
Well, yes.
Any basketball fan knows Tim Duncan is the best complete player in the NBA today.
But even if you discount that, to say that Zydrunas Ilgauskas will beat Tim Duncan one-on-one....
come on. Not even Cavs Homers say that !
Perhaps Scottie thinks this is going to be a football game or something.
That statement is just plain stupid.
How can you be a great defender, but not a great defender on the ball? And the only "something on the inside that I really see Z giving is 6 fouls trying to stop Duncan.
Fixed.
Still, that doesn't mean he has to blow him, does it?
Wonder if any Cavs fan would bet the house on that matchup?
It means he has to say Tim Duncan > Zydrunas Ilgauskas, or he loses all credibility.
Or do you disagree?
he's kind of right, but also kind of exaggerating. not long ago, duncan wasn't a great on-the-ball defender. he's always been a great help defender though. but he's improved a lot, especially this year. so i don't think it's accurate anymore to say what pippen's saying.
You mean when he had two sprained ankles, or when he had plantar fasciitis? Is it a coincidence that he's improved now that he can walk without a limp, let alone jump?
Do they mean the supporting guy lucky enough to be on MJs team who couldn't do anything without him? Do you then sayIf one player best captured the excellence of the versatile, athletic mid-sized player who helped change the face of the NBA in the 20th Century's last decade, that player would be Scottie Pippen.
???If one player best captured the excellence of the short, slow, johnny-one note player who changed the face of the NBA in the 20th Century's last decade, that player would be Steve Kerr.
Look, if Pippen said Tim couldn't guard LeBron James that's one thing...
but he's talking about Zydrunas Ilgauskas!
Is Z the new Shaq or something?!?
are we talking strictly when the cavs have the ball?
Is there any case where you'd bet the house on Z? How about a height contest?
Duncan is widely considered the best low post defender in the league!!
Way to go Scottie!!
Translation: Tim is not very good at man to man post defense.
I actually agree with Pippen on this. Tim is a great shot blocker, he is great at guarding the basket he is a great player at blocking out and rebounding but if you put him on the block against a good low post scorer he is not a great defender. Great low post defenders would be Robinson, Hakeem, Ben Wallace, those guys are/were great post defenders.
Still, Big Z is not a great low post scorer and Duncan's post defense is more than enough to handle him.
C'mon, he's only been all-NBA defensive team ten years running, so obviously he's just a good help defender.Duncan is widely considered the best low post defender in the league!!
Way to go Scottie!!
yeah the guy just can't recognise Duncan's greatness! We all now ur a hall of famer, pip..But don't be a playa hater!Agreed.
And yet, he still picks Spurs in 6.
Hmmm... some screamers in there! Detroit doesn't have a talented frontcourt? Rasheed and Webber may be head-cases but they are two of the most talented players in the league!
Timmie's not a good post defender? Then who the is!? I haven't seen anyone post him up this playoffs, for sure.
Turn LeBron into a driver? Wouldn't you rather him jack up fade-away threes!?
I don't think Pip is going to be a coach (well maybe in Boston)
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