How The Threat Of Kevin Durant Opened Things Up For Others
While Kevin Durant had a tremendous game in the finals of the FIBA World Championships scoring 28 points on 10 for 17 shooting (58.8%), the rest of Team USA really seemed to struggle, chipping in just 53 points while going 20 for 51 from the field. While the rest of Team USA had problems creating for themselves and knocking down tough shots, they were able to take advantage of some really good looks, and it was all due to the attention that the Turkish team showed Kevin Durant.
Whether it was man to man, zone defense, or in transition Turkey really used most of their effort on the defensive end to try and stop Durant. Eventually, this strategy allowed the rest of Team USA to get some open looks, and they were able to finish.
Against Man To Man Defense
Turkey really struggled when playing their man to man defense against the United States during the finals. The problem was that when playing man to man defense, you have a full team effort. Players need to sink off their man, help, stop penetration, and then recover. However, Turkey was really reluctant to help off of Durant, and this lead to a number of open/easy looks.
In the above clip, you see Team USA run a simple pick and roll at the top of the key with Kevin Durant out on the wing. Ersan Ilyasova is the defender covering Durant. He should be the help man Derrick Rose attacks the basket, but he is hesitant to get too far away from Durant, and he meekly reaches at the basketball as Rose blows by him.
This is where Ilyasova is positioned and he should be positioned a little bit more in the middle of the lane. Normally in help defense the goal is to cut off penetration, force the pass to the outside, and then recover. However, with Durant on the outside, Turkey really was afraid of wandering too far off of Durant.
