I don’t put too much Nets stuff on here mainly because they suck, but also because anything Xs and Os related I do about the Nets usually goes up on my Nets’ blog NetsAreScorching (shameless plug I know). I was hoping to get some sort of post up today, but with my schedule that isn’t going to happen.  So I thought the best thing to do was instead of just not having anything go up, I’d post some of the Nets’ related stuff I have done recently that you may not have seen if you don’t check out my Nets site (you probably should though):

Derrick Favors and How He Fits with the Nets:

Before the news that the Nets are leaning towards Wesley Johnson hit today, it seemed like the Nets were deciding between DeMarcus Cousins and Derrick Favors.  I like Derrick Favors, because he fits better with the Nets:

If you were to think of one word that has been associated with Derrick Favors so far, that word would be “raw.”  That is all you hear from some scouts and draft experts.  While he might be raw when it comes to basketball skills (his shooting ability for example), there are two things that catch your eye when you watch Favors play.

The first is his work ethic on the basketball court.  Georgia Tech’s offense was very helter skelter during this past season, and that is putting it nicely.  There would be series of five to ten straight possessions where Derrick Favors wouldn’t even get a touch.  Despite all of that, every time down the court, Favors would get to his spot on the court and post up, just as hard and strong as the last time (even though he didn’t get the basketball).

The second thing you notice is Favors’ basketball IQ.  Despite being “raw,” Favors seems to know what he is doing with the basketball.  In the four or five games I was able to see, Derrick Favors never looked flustered.  He was comfortable with the basketball and always knew where he wanted to go with it.  He also does the little things.  We already talked about Favors putting his hands up when retreating to his man, but he also runs the floor very well, knows how to properly space out the court, and instinctively chins the basketball when grabbing a rebound, getting those elbows out and preventing defenders from reaching in and stealing it.

What The Nets Defense Will Look Like:  Against The Pick & Roll

Avery Johnson, the new Nets coach, mentioned that he is going to bring the same defensive philosophy he used in Dallas to New Jersey.  I took a look at what that might look like:

The Pick And Roll

From what I watched, it seemed that the Mavs had two ways to defend the screen and roll.  They play it one way when the ball handler is a shooting threat and another way when the ball handler isn’t a threat shooting the basketball.
Non-shooter

So Leandro Barbosa is handling the ball and gets a screen from Shawn Marion.  Here, the Mavs don’t consider Barbosa a shooting threat, so they are going to go under the screen.  It isn’t as simple as that though.  To make it easier to get under the screen and to the other side, preventing the penetration, Dirk needs to do some work here.  Dirk takes a few steps back, creating a lane for Devin Harris to bust through.

This frees up the lane for Devin, and he is able to cut off Barbosa’s penetration to the basket.

So check that stuff out, and look for a new post coming tomorrow.

Not only did the Nets avoid infamy last night, but they might have also provided the rest of the Western Conference with a blueprint on how to stop Tim Duncan.  Duncan really struggled last night, scoring only 13 points on 15 shots in 31 minutes and in my opinion it was because of how the Nets defended him.  With Ginobili and Parker out, the Nets were determined to let the rest of the Spurs roster beat them, and they brought a double team just about every time Tim Duncan touched the basketball.

Step 1:  Bringing The Double

When you double team a post player, there you have three options when sending the double.  You can either go on the catch, on the first dribble, or on the first attack dribble.  The Nets decided to bring the double team right on the catch against the Spurs (their strategy most of the season has been to come on the first attack dribble), refusing to allow Tim Duncan to even dribble without two defenders on him:

After Matt Bonner makes the entry pass, he is going to go to the high post to set a screen for George Hill (or at least I think that is the play design here).  The double team will be coming from Yi, the man defending Bonner.

Read more…

Against the Memphis Grizzlies, the New Jersey Nets erased a 21 point 1st half lead and actually had the game pretty close towards the end of the third quarter.  The Nets ended up losing the game in part because of two mistakes I see NBA teams make a lot.  The first is not using the foul to give, or using it way too early.  The the is going for the steal in a situation where you need to foul.  Now these might seem like small mistakes that just happen, but if you make them in critical situations, then they can cost you the game.  Let’s use the Nets’ game as an example:

Now, the video starts when Devin Harris takes the foul to give with 6.9 seconds left in the third quarter.  This is after he hit a jumper to cut the Grizzlies lead down to two points (After they were down 16 to start the half).  The Grizzlies re-enter the ball, and end up scoring as time runs out.  Yes, the foul is early, but the biggest problem here is where the foul takes place, right around half court.  Mike Conley isn’t a threat out there, so if Devin Harris was to allow him to dribble it down to the three point line or deeper in, it could have taken another 2 to 3 seconds off the clock.  The mistake ended up giving the Grizzlies a two point lead and taking away all the momentum from New Jersey.  Memphis also scored the first basket of the fourth quarter, so you had a 2 point game quickly jump back up to a 6 point game because of the foul.

Read more…

Every morning (or late-afternoon), I am going to breakdown the some key possessions from the previous night’s games.  Good possessions/bad possessions you can find them all here.

After getting blown out in two straight games, the Nets found themselves in a close battle against the New Orleans Hornets Friday night.  The Nets made a big-time comeback to take a 1 point lead with about 11 seconds left.  The Hornets had the ball, let’s see what happened from there:

After getting the ball inbounds (which they failed at doing their last possession), the Hornets quickly go into a pick and roll.  David West comes up and sets the screen, and Chris Paul uses it.

Late in games, teams usually switch every screen.  The Hornets know this, so the purpose of the screen was to get the switch.  Chris Paul takes a dribble or two to isolate the mismatch.

He then attacks.  He quickly gets Jarvis Hayes on his hip, and he has a lane to the basket.  You would like it if Devin Harris was closer to the middle of the lane, but that is the beauty of how the Hornets set this up.  They put Peja (a knockdown shooter that you need to stay with) on the side Chris Paul was going to drive to.  This means that Devin can’t help.

Paul finishes the lay-up, and gets fouled, clinching the win for the Hornets.

Every morning, I am going to be taking a look at the some of the more interesting games that took place the night before.  The name isn’t original at all, but the content is:

Milwaukee Bucks 98 – New Jersey Nets 76

If I have to watch the Nets every time they play (and I do), you are going to have to read about them.  I have been pretty positive through the Nets’ first 34 games (they are 3-31), but I think it was safe to say that last night’s game was the most embarrassing performance of them all.

I don’t know if it was because they were coming off a solid performance against the Cavs, or if it was because they started so well (8-0 run to start the game), but it was just real tough to watch.  Nobody on the Nets had a good a real good game except for Yi, who put up 22 points (but only 2 rebounds).

After the 8-0 run, Scott Skiles pulled both Andrew Bogut and Luc Mbah a Moute.  The strategy worked, as the Bucks’ bench outscored the Nets’ bench 34-7 in the first half, and Bogut played like a man possessed in the second half, finishing with 22 points on 9-12 shooting.

Turning Point – Skiles’ benching.  After pulling Bogut and Mbah a Moute, the Bucks’ closed the first quarter on a 22-8 run and it sparked a big performance from Andrew Bogut.

Phoenix Suns 113 – Sacramento Kings 109

This game was just an awesome one to watch.  There were at least 3 separate different runs, where you thought one team was out of it, they clawed back.

Casspi didn’t play that well in the first half, but he turned it on in the second, hitting some 3s and attacking the basket aggressively.  In the end though, the Suns’ experience was too much for the young Kings.  A young Kings team that saw its two rookies (Casspi and Evans) put up 51 of their 109 points.

Turning Point: Nash’s Dagger.  It was one of the few times that the Suns held the ball, but up 2 Nash dribbled out the clock and then calmly drilled a jumper, putting the Suns’ up four and effectively ending the game.

I am experiementing with different types of morning recap posts, so be patient with me.  Stay tuned for some possession breakdowns later today…