They were prob thinking, maybe we should make room at the starting center spots for some guys named ayton and embiid. As good as Holmes has been for us, no one for saw how important he was to us. Not even the kings cuz he was slated to be a backup here. Sometimes it just takes the right situation and the stars to line up and he took advantage of it. But you’re right about how we all wished he was what wcs would have been to the kings.
DEFENSE AND GRIT
- Thread starter Tetsujin
- Start date
Bjelica has been our best help defender, I have been closely watching his defensive help rotations whenever someone goes to double and he is always there. He is so incredibly smart and aware, I hope Marvin and Harry have been watching this behemoth of a man with about half their athleticism patrol the paint.
It is also very apparant when Richaun goes to hedge a high PnR or screen Bjelica is always there in the back coming from the corner/baseline.
It is also very apparant when Richaun goes to hedge a high PnR or screen Bjelica is always there in the back coming from the corner/baseline.
This has been a stunning reversal after the team looked completely lost for the first 5 games. It's not just that the defense has ramped up, though that has been a big part of it. I'm seeing ball movement again and sets that don't break down in the first 5 seconds of the shot clock. Hopefully those first 5 games were an aberration and the team is settling in now to the style of play they'll win with going forward.
I do have 2 concerns though, and they're both related. Last year we were top 5 in pace and it seemed like the blitz mentality was ideally suited to maximizing the potential of our biggest potential stars: Fox and Bagley. This team is currently second to last in pace and they've played their best basketball with Fox and Bagley on the sideline. We've seen this before with many teams. On paper, getting Fox and Bagley back only makes them deeper and more talented but in reality it takes rotation minutes away from defensive role-players and forces the team to reorganize its offense to allow our star players an appropriate amount of touches. It could be a bumpy ride mid-season rebuilding chemistry on the fly. If this is our new identity, if we're going to win by limiting opposing scoring chances like we're Utah or Denver, there's going to be a lot of pressure on Fox and Bagley to adjust their game style when they get healthy.
To be clear, I don't see this as a play style problem... however you divide up the totals, all it takes to win is to score more points than your opponent. Making "Pace" the keystone to success has always been problematic. Lurking in the shadows of this success though is the question of how such a dramatic change is going to play out going forward. We have completely re-invented the wheel this year both offensively and defensively from a team that won 39 games last year. It's hard to say at this point which direction this is going to go.
I do have 2 concerns though, and they're both related. Last year we were top 5 in pace and it seemed like the blitz mentality was ideally suited to maximizing the potential of our biggest potential stars: Fox and Bagley. This team is currently second to last in pace and they've played their best basketball with Fox and Bagley on the sideline. We've seen this before with many teams. On paper, getting Fox and Bagley back only makes them deeper and more talented but in reality it takes rotation minutes away from defensive role-players and forces the team to reorganize its offense to allow our star players an appropriate amount of touches. It could be a bumpy ride mid-season rebuilding chemistry on the fly. If this is our new identity, if we're going to win by limiting opposing scoring chances like we're Utah or Denver, there's going to be a lot of pressure on Fox and Bagley to adjust their game style when they get healthy.
To be clear, I don't see this as a play style problem... however you divide up the totals, all it takes to win is to score more points than your opponent. Making "Pace" the keystone to success has always been problematic. Lurking in the shadows of this success though is the question of how such a dramatic change is going to play out going forward. We have completely re-invented the wheel this year both offensively and defensively from a team that won 39 games last year. It's hard to say at this point which direction this is going to go.
Right, pace isn't magic by itself, as we learned last year once other teams caught on. You still have to come out ahead incrementally with each exchange of possessions (or create more possessions.)
It's like the old joke about business models: "Sure, we lose money on every transaction, but we make it up in VOLUME."
It's like the old joke about business models: "Sure, we lose money on every transaction, but we make it up in VOLUME."
I'm also a little worried that we will lose this new found defensive style when Bagley comes back. I would prefer that he is eased back into the lineup and only given the starting spot if his defense is up to par and he's outplaying Beli and Holmes. His dad being Lavar Jr. kinda worries me, but I also see Luke as a no nonsense type of guy. He's gonna do whats best for the team, as he already showed benching dedmon quickly and subbing out Buddy when he put up a stinker.
A big difference is Bogdan waking up from his early funk, and getting back to his play from his first season to lead the team for his teammates instead of himself. He's had his fingerprint on several of the 5 wins. Entirely necessary for the team to improve. I initially thought he was the best player on the team his 1st season, and so his regression was tough to watch last season. But its nice to see he's currently located his former effort and patience to a good degree.
I haven't bothered to look into it myself, but I read a tweet that indicated that these types of long distance preseason trips have historically resulted in teams getting off to slow starts.
I recall the 2000 KINGS playing two regular season games in Japan against Minnesota to start off the season and they were clearly sluggish in both games.
I recall the 2000 KINGS playing two regular season games in Japan against Minnesota to start off the season and they were clearly sluggish in both games.
I think that in the "Post - Golden State Warriors Apocalypse" NBA, I think that Defense will again become the barometer of winning championships.
They say "Defense wins Championships" and that was not necessarily the case when the sharp shooting GSW had their run.
Now that the Warriors of old are decimated, I think defense will come to the forefront during the playoffs again. When players start getting a little more tight and referees start letting the teams battle a little more, defense will become more important.
If the Kings can sustain this defensive prowess, I think they can definitely become a playoff contending team this year.
They say "Defense wins Championships" and that was not necessarily the case when the sharp shooting GSW had their run.
Now that the Warriors of old are decimated, I think defense will come to the forefront during the playoffs again. When players start getting a little more tight and referees start letting the teams battle a little more, defense will become more important.
If the Kings can sustain this defensive prowess, I think they can definitely become a playoff contending team this year.
This is an inaccurate statement. The Warriors were actually a top defensive team during their championship runs.
This article lays out the evidence that the Warriors success was based on their defense. Your last two sentences are likely true, though.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/patric...s-team-must-be-built-on-defense/#1d6324f02bfa
This article lays out the evidence that the Warriors success was based on their defense. Your last two sentences are likely true, though.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/patric...s-team-must-be-built-on-defense/#1d6324f02bfa
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Here is the thing about those championship Warrior teams.
While most teams got tight in big time situations and those 3 pointers that were going in during the regular season, would miss come crunch time of the playoffs, the Warriors kept making them.
I'm sure that the Warriors had good defense, but I think their offense is what really carried them in those championships. Their opponents made the mistake of trying to go tit-for-tat with them on offense and most teams failed. Instead of trying to grit and grind the Warriors to beat them, they tried to beat the Warriors at their own offensive game, but all fell short.
Teams were trying to match those Warriors team, offense for offense, which I thought was a huge mistake. Instead of grinding out games, teams were lulled into trying to trade basket for basket with the Warriors. While the GSW defense may have been good, it was the GSW offense that made those teams special.
Once you take away that juggernaut offensive team, who seemed impervious to the "tightening of the sphincter" in big time situations and the long ball, teams will swing back to the normal grit and grind of Playoff basketball. I think that is where playoff basketball will ultimately swing back to, once teams figure out they don't have a Warriors offense juggernaut shooting team to deal with in the playoffs anymore.
While most teams got tight in big time situations and those 3 pointers that were going in during the regular season, would miss come crunch time of the playoffs, the Warriors kept making them.
I'm sure that the Warriors had good defense, but I think their offense is what really carried them in those championships. Their opponents made the mistake of trying to go tit-for-tat with them on offense and most teams failed. Instead of trying to grit and grind the Warriors to beat them, they tried to beat the Warriors at their own offensive game, but all fell short.
Teams were trying to match those Warriors team, offense for offense, which I thought was a huge mistake. Instead of grinding out games, teams were lulled into trying to trade basket for basket with the Warriors. While the GSW defense may have been good, it was the GSW offense that made those teams special.
Once you take away that juggernaut offensive team, who seemed impervious to the "tightening of the sphincter" in big time situations and the long ball, teams will swing back to the normal grit and grind of Playoff basketball. I think that is where playoff basketball will ultimately swing back to, once teams figure out they don't have a Warriors offense juggernaut shooting team to deal with in the playoffs anymore.
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