Shades of Nellie in Dallas Mavs' Carlisle

[dirt_dobber]

Shades of Nellie in Dallas Mavericks' Carlisle
By EDDIE SEFKO / The Dallas Morning News

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcont...e.2d46bf4.html

LOS ANGELES – When you hear the term "mad scientist" as it refers to NBA coaches, one name blasts into the brain.

Nellie.

Rick Carlisle is not a Don Nelson disciple. But he's smart enough to know that anybody who wins nearly 1,300 games in the league must know a thing or two. The way Carlisle has handled the Mavericks' roster is proof that he's not afraid to take a chapter from Nelson's unorthodox coaching style.

Carlisle mixes and matches players. And they begin to see that he's not just a coach flying by the seat of his pants, even if it looks that way sometimes.

"He's different like that," Dirk Nowitzki said. "I'm sure it's tough for everybody, but the only thing you can do is stay ready. I think that's what the guys have been doing. Whoever dresses can be out there.

"I think at the beginning it was a little hard on everybody. But now, they just see that that's how it is, and they stay ready."

Carlisle has milked Brandon Bass and J.J. Barea as a pick-and-roll tandem in the fourth quarter of recent games, and the Mavericks have prospered because of it, although it was largely ineffective Friday at Utah.

Carlisle put James Singleton into the rotation after he'd been inactive for six games, and Singleton ripped down 13 rebounds at Washington.

Antoine Wright and Shawne Williams also have played key roles.

It's something the Mavericks' big guns notice and appreciate, but it's not as if Carlisle has some sort of Midas touch. He calculates everything.

"I don't claim to have any kind of touch at all," he said. "I'm just a believer that when guys work and are engaged in what they're trying to do, then there's a greater chance that they're going to perform well when they get a chance.

"Fortunately, our young guys are all good guys. They're workers, and they're all smart. They pretty much know what's expected of them. And so, a lot of it really is on them. We've had some good fortune with guys who have not played much in previous games. But that's more a credit to them than me."

Indeed, it doesn't work if the players don't buy into it. They have to embrace the fact they won't always play. Gerald Green is in that situation now. So is Wright. Earlier, it was Singleton and Williams.

If a player shows up strong in a particular practice, he might get a few minutes the next game. If he plays with passion and efficiency in that game, his role might grow in the following game.

"It's a good sign for our franchise," Carlisle said. "It's important I think to keep everybody involved. It's hard, if you never play, to stay into it as much as you could be. A lot of these guys haven't played, but they've worked hard, and when they've gotten in, they've done well."

"We've got 14 guys who are proven."

There may come a time when Carlisle narrows his rotation to eight or nine players. But for now, the nine or 10 who play on a given night might change from week to week.

"It's definitely different," Devean George said. "But everybody has to adjust, and I think everybody has adjusted. Yeah, it did [take a while]. But everybody now knows what to expect, which is that you don't know what to expect.

"It has its good and bad, but the good thing is it keeps everybody alert. Guys think, 'I haven't played in four games, but this guy, he might start me tomorrow. So I've got to get my workout in, be ready and pay attention to the game, even if my number hasn't been called in a week.' "

And there is another benefit.

"If something goes well, he sticks with it," George said. "If there's an odd combination out there that puts a string of good defensive stops together, he'll stick with it until the well runs dry. That's great, whether you're in it or you're on the bench. If something's rolling, exhaust it."

[layupdrill]

Carlisle is coaching the Mavericks much different than he coached rosters in prior stops around the league

[BGMaverick9]

Originally Posted by layupdrill

Carlisle is coaching the Mavericks much different than he coached rosters in prior stops around the league

I think that is a testament to the talent around him now and his ability to react to what he's got. Coaches actually do that...go figure.

[Bayliss]

The article (IMO) isn't really that surprising. Coaches should be doing what Carlisle is doing with the rotation (outside of the stars). The stars should play their alotted 35-40 minutes every night, and receive their touches, etc. But the other guys should earn their time. If one guy is **sucking** in games, and there is another that is busting his @ss off in practive, then give that guy who was working, the opportunity in the game. By the same token if a guy is slacking off in practice then bench him in the game and make him realize that he has to work.

That isn't "mad scientist." Mad scientist is just continually putting players in wacky situations where they aren't comfortable. Or it is sacrifing certain parts of the game to ensure you have some mismatch.

[cinemablend]

I hate that Green and Wright aren't getting much of a chance right now, but definitely appreciate what Carlisle is doing here.

I hope he doesn't end up getting blamed for the Mavs state of affairs, this is a guy that needs to stick around, especially if the team starts rebuilding.

It's infinitely preferable to Avery's fear based lineups.

[Bayliss]

If Carlisle was coaching that team in the Finals... Mavs win. Carlisle would have made adjustments to the zone and the way they were defending Dirk. Instead of saying: try harder.

Yeah, I hope Carlisle sticks around for awhile. He's been dealt a pretty bad hand in terms of talent with the Mavs.... but boy he is a great coach.

[chumdawg]

I hope he has the switch-hotels card in his pocket!

[dirno2000]

Originally Posted by Bayliss

If Carlisle was coaching that team in the Finals... Mavs win. Carlisle would have made adjustments to the zone and the way they were defending Dirk. Instead of saying: try harder.

Yeah, I hope Carlisle sticks around for awhile. He's been dealt a pretty bad hand in terms of talent with the Mavs.... but boy he is a great coach.

It's the same team we had post-trade last year with a better back up center situation.

If you look at the main criticisms of Avery (besides the fact that he's an a-hole) I'd say he's been acquitted nicely.

He played too much small ball. Carlisle's playing even smaller.

He had a hard on for vets and wouldn't play the young guys. Now George is starting and Williams, Green and Wright are out of the rotation.

He tried to turn Dirk into Tim Duncan. Dirk isn't shooting any more 3's than he did under Avery and seems to be posting up just as much.

He made Kidd a weak side shooter. Kidd's numbers are almost identical to what they were in Dallas last year.

The fact is, coaches aren't difference makers.

[chumdawg]

You should be careful, D2K, comparing Avery to Carlisle. You might hurt yourself.

[ghazi]

Coaches can change the style of a team but they can't change certain tendencies. We're very similar offensively and defensively to what we were a year ago, but with some slight regression. We're still a good rebounding team, we're still not great at forcing turnovers, we're still not great from behind the arc, and we're still the best team in the league at shooting long 2's.

All of these are reflective of our roster and since there haven't been any significant roster changes our tendencies have remained the same.

That being said, I like the product Carlisle puts out on the floor more so than Avery, even if it is only slightly better, or worse (yet to be determined).

[Dirkadirkastan]

Originally Posted by dirno2000

It's the same team we had post-trade last year with a better back up center situation.

If you look at the main criticisms of Avery (besides the fact that he's an a-hole) I'd say he's been acquitted nicely.

Apparently, my criticisms of Avery are different from yours.

He played too much small ball. Carlisle's playing even smaller.

Avery really didn't play that much small ball. In fact, he didn't really use it at all in '06-07 until the playoffs started. Remember when everyone said Avery didn't use the strategy that won him 67 games? It's not about whether Avery played too much or too little small ball. He was throwing out lineups he had no clue about, when the team was already four games away from elimination.

Carlisle is experimenting with lineups during the regular season. Some work and some don't, and ones that have worked in the past you see on the floor more often.

He had a hard on for vets and wouldn't play the young guys. Now George is starting and Williams, Green and Wright are out of the rotation.

You didn't mention Barea, Bass, and Singleton ARE in the rotation. Really, the only one that doesn't see the floor anymore is Green (which is currently my only knock on Carlisle).

We'll see what Rick does in the playoffs, but if you aren't going to use the young 'uns in the season, don't use them in the playoffs. Last year, Avery randomly inserted Barea into the second quarter of Game 4, and he hadn't played in almost two months.

He tried to turn Dirk into Tim Duncan. Dirk isn't shooting any more 3's than he did under Avery and seems to be posting up just as much.

Dirk is so incredibly efficient, it's almost scary. I don't see how anyone could be upset about his production right now.

He made Kidd a weak side shooter. Kidd's numbers are almost identical to what they were in Dallas last year.

Yeah, I think Dirk said something about a weak side shooter, but the real killer was that the mediocre point guard Avery was screaming at the Hall of Fame point guard every time down the floor. Now, the boys have the freedom to push the ball when they have the chance.

The fact is, coaches aren't difference makers.

When Carlisle doesn't make such a colossal failure of the team in the playoffs, you might have to change your mind.

[ty]

Originally Posted by dirno2000

The fact is, coaches aren't difference makers.

So bring back Avery?

[alby]

Why have the winners of the past 20 odd championships been teams with the same coaches?

[dirno2000]

Avery really didn't play that much small ball. In fact, he didn't really use it at all in '06-07 until the playoffs started. Remember when everyone said Avery didn't use the strategy that won him 67 games? It's not about whether Avery played too much or too little small ball. He was throwing out lineups he had no clue about, when the team was already four games away from elimination.

True, that didn't become an issue until last year when he often used Bass instead of Diop with Dirk. We're seeing that with about the same frequency but the wing positions have gotten smaller due to Barea's emergence.

You didn't mention Barea, Bass, and Singleton ARE in the rotation. Really, the only one that doesn't see the floor anymore is Green (which is currently my only knock on Carlisle).

We'll see what Rick does in the playoffs, but if you aren't going to use the young 'uns in the season, don't use them in the playoffs. Last year, Avery randomly inserted Barea into the second quarter of Game 4, and he hadn't played in almost two months.

I'll give you Barea but Bass was already in the rotation and Singleton wasn't here.

I don't think it's unusual, when things are going as poorly as they were for us at the time, for a coach to throw something against the wall and see if it sticks. That's the beauty of the seven game series. I wouldn't say that cost us the series, or even the game, anymore than I would say that going small at the beginning of the GS series did.

Dirk is so incredibly efficient, it's almost scary. I don't see how anyone could be upset about his production right now.

I'm not complaining but people still talk about how Avery tried to turn him into Tim Duncan. I think his strength is the mid-range game and, from what I can tell, Carlisle hasn't tried to change that.

Yeah, I think Dirk said something about a weak side shooter, but the real killer was that the mediocre point guard Avery was screaming at the Hall of Fame point guard every time down the floor. Now, the boys have the freedom to push the ball when they have the chance.

We can argue about to what extent but I think they've always had that freedom. Most coaches will take the easy two if it's there. And Carlisle, a mediocre forward, still screams out plays to his HOF point guard. The most glaring example was late in the 3rd quarter of the Lakers game when Farmar stole the ball from Kidd as he was turning around to get the play from the bench at the other end of the floor.

[dirno2000]

Originally Posted by alby

Why have the winners of the past 20 odd championships been teams with the same coaches?

They've had pretty good players too right? Barkey said is best Thrusday night as Ernie was congratulating Phil Jackson for being the fastest coach to 1,000 wins. It was something to the effect of "He's coached Jordan, Pippen, Shaq and Kobe. Let him trade places with Kevin McHale and see how many games he wins then".

[dirno2000]

Originally Posted by ty

So bring back Avery?

No, it was time for Avery to go.

[alby]

it goes both ways my friend.

[dirt_dobber]

Originally Posted by chumdawg

I hope he has the switch-hotels card in his pocket!

under rated line

great stuff!

[dalmations202]

Originally Posted by Dirno2000

The fact is, coaches aren't difference makers.

Please explain the New York Knicks then. Or the Miami Dolphins. Or the New Orleans Hornets or Saints.

Coaching makes a ton of difference.

Find the guy that the players will respect, who has a system that works, who is disciplined without being all about the coaches ego, and can still teach in the process as well as motivate -- is not easy.

Coaches adjusting their style to the team, while GM's adjust the talents (skillsets) of the players to fit the coaches systems is another balancing act.

Then once the GMs have the correct talent/skills on the floor, and the coach has put that talent in position to win --- the players have to have enough IQ to utilize the talent they have and execute the game plan.

There is still off nights, luck, and questionable officiating that you can't account for -- but winning starts with the above in its simplest form.