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jthig32 · 05-16-2006, 02:16 PM

Didn't really want to start a thread for this, but I didn't really see an appropriate spot.

I found this a good read from Hollinger, especially the highlighted part:

What's up with San Antonio's defense?

The Gregg Popovich-era Spurs are perhaps the greatest defensive team of all time. San Antonio was No. 1 in the NBA in defensive efficiency for the fifth time in the past six years, and for the ninth year in a row the Spurs were in the top three in field-goal percentage defense.

So it's a little shocking to see them getting carved up on a nightly basis in the playoffs. One may recall that prior to the Dallas series, Sacramento had similar success attacking the Spurs at the offensive end, and the Kings were just the 11th-best offense in the league this year. In six games against the defending champs, the Kings averaged 106.7 points per 100 possessions, or nearly 10 more than San Antonio gave up during the regular season.

Things have gone from bad to worse against the Mavs. San Antonio is giving up a whopping 113.5 points per 100 possessions to Dallas thus far, making it virtually impossible for its offense to keep up. For comparison's sake, Phoenix led the NBA in Offensive Efficiency during the regular season with an average of 109.1. So the Mavs, offensively, have been playing like Phoenix on steroids.
Overall, the Spurs' playoff defensive efficiency mark ranks 12th -- the worst of any remaining team -- and a jaw-dropping 12.2 points worse than the Spurs fared in the regular season.

Breaking things down points to an obvious culprit: the Spurs are fouling like crazy. San Antonio's other defensive numbers -- shooting percentage, turnovers, rebounding and 3-pointers -- are worse than their regular-season averages, but not glaringly so. One might expect that against the superior competition in the postseason.

Then there are the free throws. San Antonio permitted only .298 free-throw attempts per field-goal attempt in the regular season, the fourth-best rate in the regular season. That number has ballooned to .432 since the playoffs started -- the worst of any playoff team. While the postseason in general has been one big free-throw parade, no team has been affected nearly as much as San Antonio.

Of course, some of the credit for this has to go to the Mavs. By swapping out Adrian Griffin for Devin Harris, Avery Johnson has made it virtually impossible for San Antonio to use the lineup it normally employs. Centers Rasho Nesterovic and Nazr Mohammed combined to play nearly 3,000 minutes in the regular season, but have been reduced to bystanders because there's nobody for them to guard.

Robert Horry was the latest victim, consigned to the second unit after Dirk Nowitzki repeatedly burned him at the start of Game 3, leading to the shocking sight of the Spurs breaking a crunch-time huddle and Big Shot Rob staying on the sidelines. (While we're at it, can we officially discard the soft label on Dirk now? Shaggy played 46 minutes on a sprained ankle, scored 28 points while missing only five shots, demanded the ball on the final two possessions of regulation, and calmly hit the game-tying free throws to send the game to overtime. What a wuss.)

With a much smaller Michael Finley now thrust into the role of San Antonio's second "big" man, the lanes to the basket suddenly look a lot more open. And Dallas, probably the best one-on-one team in basketball, has taken advantage. With Griffin out of the lineup, every key Mav except Jason Terry bettered the league average of 0.33 free-throw attempts per field-goal attempt on the season -- most notably Harris, whose average of 0.58 was the best in the league among point guards.

So when the Spurs go back to the drawing board today to figure out how to salvage their season, they'll need to start at the defensive end. And in particular, they'll need to focus on how to end Dallas' free-throw dominance. Yes, some of it has to do with the way the games have been officiated, but mostly it's been because Dallas' penetrators repeatedly beat the Spurs off the dribble, and there's no longer enough size in the middle to deter them once they blow by. For San Antonio to defend its title, one of those two facts must change.

Here's the whole article, covering the other series' for those with Insider:

http://proxy.espn.go.com/nba/playoff...ohn&id=2446683

05-16-2006, 02:16 PM	#1
jthig32 Lazy Moderator Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Lazytown Posts: 18,721	Hollinger Didn't really want to start a thread for this, but I didn't really see an appropriate spot. I found this a good read from Hollinger, especially the highlighted part: What's up with San Antonio's defense? The Gregg Popovich-era Spurs are perhaps the greatest defensive team of all time. San Antonio was No. 1 in the NBA in defensive efficiency for the fifth time in the past six years, and for the ninth year in a row the Spurs were in the top three in field-goal percentage defense. So it's a little shocking to see them getting carved up on a nightly basis in the playoffs. One may recall that prior to the Dallas series, Sacramento had similar success attacking the Spurs at the offensive end, and the Kings were just the 11th-best offense in the league this year. In six games against the defending champs, the Kings averaged 106.7 points per 100 possessions, or nearly 10 more than San Antonio gave up during the regular season. Things have gone from bad to worse against the Mavs. San Antonio is giving up a whopping 113.5 points per 100 possessions to Dallas thus far, making it virtually impossible for its offense to keep up. For comparison's sake, Phoenix led the NBA in Offensive Efficiency during the regular season with an average of 109.1. So the Mavs, offensively, have been playing like Phoenix on steroids. Overall, the Spurs' playoff defensive efficiency mark ranks 12th -- the worst of any remaining team -- and a jaw-dropping 12.2 points worse than the Spurs fared in the regular season. Breaking things down points to an obvious culprit: the Spurs are fouling like crazy. San Antonio's other defensive numbers -- shooting percentage, turnovers, rebounding and 3-pointers -- are worse than their regular-season averages, but not glaringly so. One might expect that against the superior competition in the postseason. Then there are the free throws. San Antonio permitted only .298 free-throw attempts per field-goal attempt in the regular season, the fourth-best rate in the regular season. That number has ballooned to .432 since the playoffs started -- the worst of any playoff team. While the postseason in general has been one big free-throw parade, no team has been affected nearly as much as San Antonio. Of course, some of the credit for this has to go to the Mavs. By swapping out Adrian Griffin for Devin Harris, Avery Johnson has made it virtually impossible for San Antonio to use the lineup it normally employs. Centers Rasho Nesterovic and Nazr Mohammed combined to play nearly 3,000 minutes in the regular season, but have been reduced to bystanders because there's nobody for them to guard. Robert Horry was the latest victim, consigned to the second unit after Dirk Nowitzki repeatedly burned him at the start of Game 3, leading to the shocking sight of the Spurs breaking a crunch-time huddle and Big Shot Rob staying on the sidelines. (While we're at it, can we officially discard the soft label on Dirk now? Shaggy played 46 minutes on a sprained ankle, scored 28 points while missing only five shots, demanded the ball on the final two possessions of regulation, and calmly hit the game-tying free throws to send the game to overtime. What a wuss.) With a much smaller Michael Finley now thrust into the role of San Antonio's second "big" man, the lanes to the basket suddenly look a lot more open. And Dallas, probably the best one-on-one team in basketball, has taken advantage. With Griffin out of the lineup, every key Mav except Jason Terry bettered the league average of 0.33 free-throw attempts per field-goal attempt on the season -- most notably Harris, whose average of 0.58 was the best in the league among point guards. So when the Spurs go back to the drawing board today to figure out how to salvage their season, they'll need to start at the defensive end. And in particular, they'll need to focus on how to end Dallas' free-throw dominance. Yes, some of it has to do with the way the games have been officiated, but mostly it's been because Dallas' penetrators repeatedly beat the Spurs off the dribble, and there's no longer enough size in the middle to deter them once they blow by. For San Antonio to defend its title, one of those two facts must change. Here's the whole article, covering the other series' for those with Insider: http://proxy.espn.go.com/nba/playoff...ohn&id=2446683 __________________ Current Mavs Salary outlook (with my own possibly incorrect math and assumptions) Mavs Net Ratings By Game (Using BRef.com calculations for possessions, so numbers are slightly different than what you'll see on NBA.com and ESPN.com Last edited by jthig32; 05-16-2006 at 02:17 PM.