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Kings signaling for defensive lane change
By Sam Amick -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PDT Thursday, May 4, 2006
It was a simple math equation with a not so simple solution.
When assistant coach T.R. Dunn did his duty of watching the film of the Kings' 109-98 Game 5 loss to San Antonio in their practice facility Wednesday, he sat - presumably - with pen in hand, tallying the number of times the Spurs found their way down Easy Street for layups. The final count was 20, with five in the final 3:18 of the game and only one way to lower the number in Friday's Game 6 at Arco Arena to extend the series to a seventh game.
Play the sort of defense that got them here.
"I don't care if you get beat off the dribble or whatever," Kings coach Rick Adelman said. "But when they get to that rim, somebody should be there to challenge them, either on a charge, or an attempted blocked shot, or put them on the line. Something.
"And that was the whole game. That was the passiveness I saw in the whole game from the start. I really don't understand it. ... We've got to have it in the sixth game."
Because the must-win is finally here, no longer a cliché but as much a fact as the notion that teams that defend softly will go down hard in the postseason. As always, Adelman saw no reason to break down individuals, citing help on defense and overall improvement as the responsibility of all. But on the team that allowed 100-plus points just three times in the last 21 regular-season games, the faults were many.
Artest wasn't able to lock down Manu Ginobili as he had in the previous two games. Kings shooting guard Bonzi Wells was sensational again on offense, but he couldn't keep Spurs guard Bruce Bowen from finally contributing. Mike Bibby struggled stopping Tony Parker, and none of the Kings' big men could slow Tim Duncan.
Each failure was tied to the next, Adelman said, with lanes consistently being left open by the second line of defense.
"You're not going to have this team give you anything," Adelman said. "You have to take it. And you can't do it playing the way we played (Tuesday), defensively. We've got to be better. We've got to have the same attitude we had here at home. For whatever reason, we didn't have it (in Game 5)."
With a short look at the game tape and a long gaze within, Artest said the Kings will be ready.
"We got beat by San Antonio, and we lost to ourselves," Artest said. "I think guys had a chance to look themselves in the mirror, and ask themselves if they really want to win. And I think everybody's answer is, Yes."
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By Sam Amick -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PDT Thursday, May 4, 2006
It was a simple math equation with a not so simple solution.
When assistant coach T.R. Dunn did his duty of watching the film of the Kings' 109-98 Game 5 loss to San Antonio in their practice facility Wednesday, he sat - presumably - with pen in hand, tallying the number of times the Spurs found their way down Easy Street for layups. The final count was 20, with five in the final 3:18 of the game and only one way to lower the number in Friday's Game 6 at Arco Arena to extend the series to a seventh game.
Play the sort of defense that got them here.
"I don't care if you get beat off the dribble or whatever," Kings coach Rick Adelman said. "But when they get to that rim, somebody should be there to challenge them, either on a charge, or an attempted blocked shot, or put them on the line. Something.
"And that was the whole game. That was the passiveness I saw in the whole game from the start. I really don't understand it. ... We've got to have it in the sixth game."
Because the must-win is finally here, no longer a cliché but as much a fact as the notion that teams that defend softly will go down hard in the postseason. As always, Adelman saw no reason to break down individuals, citing help on defense and overall improvement as the responsibility of all. But on the team that allowed 100-plus points just three times in the last 21 regular-season games, the faults were many.
Artest wasn't able to lock down Manu Ginobili as he had in the previous two games. Kings shooting guard Bonzi Wells was sensational again on offense, but he couldn't keep Spurs guard Bruce Bowen from finally contributing. Mike Bibby struggled stopping Tony Parker, and none of the Kings' big men could slow Tim Duncan.
Each failure was tied to the next, Adelman said, with lanes consistently being left open by the second line of defense.
"You're not going to have this team give you anything," Adelman said. "You have to take it. And you can't do it playing the way we played (Tuesday), defensively. We've got to be better. We've got to have the same attitude we had here at home. For whatever reason, we didn't have it (in Game 5)."
With a short look at the game tape and a long gaze within, Artest said the Kings will be ready.
"We got beat by San Antonio, and we lost to ourselves," Artest said. "I think guys had a chance to look themselves in the mirror, and ask themselves if they really want to win. And I think everybody's answer is, Yes."
Link
