Nellie to Nash: Pass on the Assists

[ReDIRKulous]

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcont...ede.22e34.html




The role of point guard Steve Nash is tougher to grasp now that he's surrounded by more offensive weapons.



Nellie to Nash: Pass on assists
Point guard adjusting to taking on bigger share of offense


09:01 PM CST on Tuesday, November 4, 2003

By EDDIE SEFKO / The Dallas Morning News

WASHINGTON – Steve Nash is having more problems adjusting to his new teammates than any other Maverick, and his point guard mentality is to blame.

Based on the first four games, Coach Don Nelson said Nash could lead the NBA in assists this season if that were the design of his offense. But in trying to build cohesion as fast as possible, Nash has tried to do too much too quickly to get Antoine Walker, Antawn Jamison and Tony Delk involved in the offense.

"If I wanted him to be John Stockton and get 15 assists a night, he could do that," Nelson said. "But right now, he's trying to pass too much. He's getting in too deep [into the paint], and that bogs us down a little. The bottom line is I need him to get us 16 or 17 points for us to be as good as we can be."

This is not news to Nash, who in spite of putting up solid numbers so far has not been the player Nelson wants.

"It's hard for me right now," Nash said. "But I'll get it.

"I'm just trying too hard to make everybody else feel comfortable as fast as possible. I want these new guys to fit in as fast as they can. That's my job. We'll get through this. It's just going to take a little time."

With seven new players among the 12 on the Mavericks' active roster, everybody is adjusting to a completely new look on the court. For Nash, who usually handles the ball more than anybody, that means finding out where and when everybody else likes to get the basketball.

With four pure scorers surrounding him, Nash agreed that leading the league in assists is a legitimate possibility.

"It's not out of the question," he said. "But usually those guys play a ton of minutes, and I don't think I'll do that. Plus, we have a little different style."

Nash's assist numbers so far have been terrific. He's averaged 13.5 points and nine assists per game. Nash was among the top five in the league in assists going into Tuesday's games. His teammates say he could finish higher in the assist department than ever before. Last season Nash averaged 17.3 points and 7.7 assists.

"He can definitely lead the league if he keeps attacking the lane and attracting two or three defenders every time," said Travis Best, one of Nash's backups. "Somebody has to help on defense when he does that, and he could easily have 10 or 11 assists every night. That said, he needs to look to score, too."

That's the part of the equation that Nelson concerns himself with.

An excellent example of Nash's problem came against Miami on Monday. He found a crease in the defense and maneuvered into the paint. He got clogged up by bigger defenders and, with nowhere to go, he faded away and put up a shot that was a 6-footer when he started the move and a 16-footer by the time he finished sliding on his backside.

"It's hard to do much when you get in there among the trees," Nelson said. "Like I said, he'll figure things out. He's a smart player and it'll happen. He's just not there yet."

The best news is that while Nash is feeling his way, it isn't costing the Mavericks any games, at least not yet. They start a three-game road trip Wednesday against the Washington Wizards at the MCI Center, which should be a stern test for Nash. The Wizards signed free-agent point guard Gilbert Arenas from Golden State in the off-season.

But it's not the point guards that concern Nash and Nelson. It's the swarm of big men that Nash is meeting in the paint.

Briefly ...


Rookie Josh Howard (ankle) is questionable for Wednesday's game at Washington but could play later on the three-game road trip, coach Don Nelson said. ... Even though the Mavericks have won three straight, the team is still far from where the coaching staff wants it defensively. "We're just plugging the dam one little finger at a time to try to keep from leaking too much," Nelson said.

[ReDIRKulous]

I have noticed that you cannot save(web archive) Dallas Morning News Web articles without a subscription... does anyone know a way around this?

[Nash13]

I don't like Nelson's arguement that much. I could see if Nash is open all the time when he looks to pass, but he's in traffic full of 7footers when he himself is 6'3. Add in the fact that there are three, sometimes four other players on the court with him that are capable of putting up huge numbers.

[MavsFanFinley]

Who's supposed to sacrafice more shots?

Dirk is down 2 spg (18 to 16). Finley is down 8 (17 to 9). Walker is down 6 (20 to 14). Jamison is down 7 (18 to 11) and Nash is down 4 (13 to 9).

[dude1394]

You may not like what nellis is saying but he's right and he certainly knows what he wants offensively. His point guards have always scored a lot and need to to open things up.

[MavsFanFinley]

I don't mind Nash shooting more. I'm just asking how much more and at the expense of who?

If the starting lineup is: Dirk/Walker/Finley/Delk/Nash. Who is supposed to shoot less out of that group?

How about the closing lineup: Dirk/Walker/Jamison/Finley/Nash?

[ReDIRKulous]

I think it should just depend who is hot. If Walker isn't hot then Nash should shoot more. But also... all the new guys should take a back seat at the moment, really. I think that is why Nellie has put a priority on Fin rather than Jamison at the moment. We need to win now... and when the new guys start getting it then their roles on offense should increase.

[grndmstr_c]

I'd love to see Nash shoot more. He's the best long range shooter on the team. If history can be a guide AW and Fin figure to be our least efficient scorers, so I'd say that the shots should come from them (probably AW since Fin is already so far down, and since AW figures to pick up some assists off of Nash's scoring). Don't forget, though, that Delk has been getting a fair number of shots, too, and Nash will probably end up grabbing a couple off Tony's totals once things get stabilized.

[Mavs Rule]

Sounds like to me that Nellie is trying to get Steve to be the second option. Remember that thread about who should be the second option, I voted for Nash. Steve is too good of a shooter to always be penetrating. His role has changed from last year a little.

But its a fine line, Steve also has to penetrate SOME to keep his defenders playing off him a little. Nellie wants the two Twans to do more of the penetrating, and if there is heavy traffic, kick it out to Nash for an open three.

With Steve not having to work as hard on Offense, he can step up his defensive intensity. Also, he likely won't be worn out for the playoffs using this strategy, along with the increased depth of the rotation.

[Chiwas]

More assists and more points is not a possibility for Nash with that many master shooters out there.

It is obvious that our PG should focus in assists with the new face of the team.

Unfortunately the coach wants from everybody shooting, rebounding, passing to the open man, to make all the FT's, not fouling, and DEFENDING.

Something isn't right. Where are the specialities that make a team succeed?

[DirkNash1341]

Long range, spot up shooting is a specialt that makes teams succeed. And guess who our best long range, spot up shooter is? Steve Nash. He needs to be able to do both. When other players are hot set up the offense, penetrate, and get them the ball; when he is hot, however, he can be one of our best options, therefore it is time for him to look for his shot more. Having a point-forward like Walker allows him to do this.

[Simon2]

This I don't agree with again with Nellie. Why? Again, Nellie offense is outside based. The offense should start from the inside in. Nellie should try to get Jamison, Walker and Dirk shots at the block inside of worrying about Nash getting his shot. I think Nash becomes a better player if he distributes the ball while sniping from the outside to keep the defense honest.

[Rod1975]

I think we will all agree that this is Dirk's team.

That said, without Steve Nash this team goes nowhere.

As Coach O is fond of saying "Steve Nash is the straw that stirs the drink"

Steve has to be able to play his game for the Mavs to be successful. He is a very good scorer and should be no further down than the 3rd scoring option in the half court. Ideally his scoring should not suffer as a result of the addition of the new personnel in order to maintain his level play.
Obviously the stats will tell you something about what he means to this team, however what the stats won't tell you is how important he is to the livelihood of the Mavs offensive strategy. Lets not forget that Nash is uncannily good at taking care of the ball and getting where he wants to on the court. Setting up a teammate for a good scoring opportunity does'nt always translate to an assist. Sometimes the play he makes is 2 passes away.

To quote Denzel Washington's character in "Training Day": "The shit's chess, not checkers"

Nash is a chess player, whereas about 90% of the league's PGs are checkers players.

[Epitome22]

No, Ideally Nash's scoring shouldn't drop with the addition of the new players, but the ideal and reality rarely coincide. Nash is a solid scorer but he is hardly the scoring machine some would make him out to be. Nash had a career year in 2001-2002 and proved he could carry a considerable part of the load when he needed to but the circus shots didn't fall with as much regularity last season, his outside shooting wasn't superhuman and even with the improved strength and conditioning, he wore down once again last season, to the point where in a crucial playoff game he was so slow he couldn't beat Steve Kerr off the dribble. When Nash has too, he can carry the load and he is one of the few Mavs who has shown a willingness to do it. But he shouldn't have to do it that often. With Nash's condition and the type of talent the Mavs possess, he needs to be doing exactly what he's been doing. Run the offense like a well oiled machine in a way that make certain players who've never played with a true PG before think he's the second coming of Isiah Thomas, sting em with the outside shot when they aren't honest, penetrate and tack it to the rack as your changeup or breaking ball. A Nash that averages 15-16 points and 9-11 assists per game, will make this team run smoother than a Nash that averages 18-19 points with 7-8 assists per game.

[Simon2]

Another thing I hate to see Nash doing a lot if going to the basket and getting hammered by the Big guys. He won't last long if they gets brutalized that often.

[mavsfan4life]

Nash needs to shoot the ball more, last night he gave up SO many layups, but instead he kicked it back out and that person almost always miseed their shot.