Playoff basketball pits the best against the
best, which gets even more heated the deeper we get to June. The star players
and the better teams usually find themselves advancing. This is why it's
essential to keep close tabs on coaching adjustments and strategic shifts that
take place from game to game.
Coaches can earn their money this
time of the season - or hurt their team by doing nothing, or the wrong thing.
The first round series between the Celtics and Bulls was a fascinating chess
match of coaching strategy. Chicago stunned the green by winning the first two
games in Boston by crushing the Celtics on the glass. Boston players were booed
off the court at the end of Game 2.
Boston coach Brad Stevens made a
key adjustment for the next two games, inserting veteran forward Gerald Green,
who didn't contribute a lot during the regular season. The purpose was to go
small and the tactic was the right medicine. The quicker Celtics were able to
spread the floor, which allowed sparkplug guard Isaiah Thomas room to drive to
the hoop and shoot or pass out to anyone open on the perimeter. The Celtics
shot 17-of-37 from long range in Game 3. They still got crushed on the glass
(52-37) but it didn't matter in an easy victory. In Game 4 the Bulls were ready
for the tactic and still won the rebounding battle, but Green scored 18 points
and Thomas 33 in another easy win. Boston won those games by 17 and 9 points --
so much for home court!
During one regular seasons, former
Laker star Kobe Bryant had some of his most explosive game against Phoenix, yet
the result was almost always the same: The Suns won with an avalanche of
points. So, Laker coach Phil Jackson made
several strategic adjustments for the playoff series: Instead of letting Kobe
do all the shooting, he asked Kobe to distribute the basketball more, asking
others to look for their shot. He also recognized that the Suns had a smallish
frontcourt, so L.A. pounded the ball down low often. L.A. shot for a high
percentage and dominated the points in the paint while taking a 3-1 series
lead. The first four games went under the total, too, as the Lakers controlled
the tempo.
However, starting in Game 5, the
Suns changed strategy by releasing players early on defense in an attempt to
push the tempo more. They were able to find more looks on the perimeter, too.
While mounting their comeback against the Lakers, the Suns shot 45% and 47.6%
in the final two games from three-point land, after shooting 33%, 43.5% and 35%
in Games 2, 3 and 4 (all losses). Point, counterpoint, checkmate!
It's important for sports
bettors to watch as many games as possible and carefully read up on the games
the next day. Such things as injuries and strategic adjustments can be
revealing.
In last year's NBA Finals, the Cavaliers
fell behind 3-1 as LeBron James was often focused on playing good team
basketball, getting everyone involved. This is how you generally win in the
NBA, but it wasn't working so well in that series. In a Game 2 loss to the
Warriors, 110-77, James took 17 shots and Kyrie Irving took 14. So they
changed strategy. By the time the Cavs started their remarkable comeback in
Game 5, James took 30 shots, Irving 24, and in Game 7 LeBron took 24 shots,
Irving 23. Yes, basketball is a team sport, but this time of the season
you want your stars to shoot more (provided you have them).
Good coaches know how to make
adjustment, either during the game or from game-to-game, while weaker coaches
have a history of looking lost and doing the same things over and over.
Russell Westbrook had a monster NBA
regular season, but come playoff time his team was getting pushed around by the
Houston Rockets. He got into an exchange with a reporter, who asked another
player is the Thunder had any other go-to guys when Westbrook needed a
breather. It was a legitimate question and in the next game Westbrook was
15-of-34 shooting in a season ending defeat, getting no help (again) from his
teammates.
So it is important that coaches
make adjustments this time of the year and important for bettors to play close
attention. However, if the coach doesn't have enough horses, there's only so
much he can influence the outcome as the NBA is about how many stars you can
bundle together on one team. Just look at the Warriors, who sat Kevin Durant
for parts of their opening series against Portland -- and still swept!
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