Celtics switching less in practice ahead of preseason games

Boston — Joe Mazura’s goal celtics The interim head coach has kept much of his predecessor’s game plan to keep his players comfortable. This allows for a manageable and enthusiastic transition from the controversies of recent weeks to basketball.

Ime Udoka’s suspension isn’t the only looming challenge early in Boston’s season, as Robert Williams III’s left knee surgery has exposed his already thinning frontcourt. Reserve front his court His option Danilo Galinari tore his anterior cruciate ligament in the summer and Luke his Cornette, who was practicing with the first team this week, sprained his ankle. An influx of injuries, in part, prompted the team to sign Blake Griffin after the first week of practice, with Mazzulla having to simplify a complicated but effective switchover scheme last year. was.

“Based on the last two days, we are in touch,” Mfiondu Kabengele said. CLNS Media/Celtics Blog in a one-on-one interview on Wednesday. “So maybe Biggs was depressed and switched some defensive drills just to practice it. Only if they do.That’s what they’re doing.So far, personally I haven’t made much of a switch, but it’s definitely being done.”

That switching lineup could revolve around Boston’s more versatile bigs, Al Horford and Grant Williams. A man off the bench is ill-suited to carry out Ime Udoka’s more aggressive plans. Cornette, who is 7-2, is probably the only drop big man, and Kabengele, who plays in a two-way trade, may not have enough experience to fully adapt to that system. has a chance. Griffin says he’s 33 and is losing his athleticism by the day, but that’s probably not the case.

Mazura stressed that the group needed to find its own identity on the defensive side, in the absence of Williams III, and said it was a great opportunity for the other members in the room. Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum will play four more than he did last year. While Horford was physically fit to play every day in the offseason, the big man focused on defensive coverage and screen settings.

“A good rebounder and a good screener,” Grant said at Media Day. And I think it comes down to being a great roller and being a great person.”

Celtics teammates were impressed early on by Kavenguele’s energy and physical prowess at 250 pounds, aged 6 to 10, following Summer League where he blocked 2.2 shots per game. He’s the nephew of NBA legend Dikembe Mutombo, and his pick-and-pop prowess shoots 40% from deep in Vegas.His biggest challenge on the defensive side, though his pick-and-roll coverage showed promise, was protecting the rim consistently with shotovers.

Having Cornette as a starter seemed like a way to keep Boston’s double-big starter unit and bench intact, as it would work when Williams III returns. Kabengele could do the same in Cornette’s absence, especially during the preseason, but it would force Mazura to abandon some of Udoka’s most aggressive defensive principles, at least temporarily.

“The biggest thing I noticed is the pacing and fluidity,” said Kabengele. “I’m very excited to go down and pick up the pace and the energy. They have the fluidity and you can see how they move. Maybe it’s because they have a good sense of attack. But that’s the biggest thing I’ve gotten from Grant.” And Luke. They are very poise, especially in pick-and-roll coverage as they go through traffic, so their overall poise on the floor with the ball and off-the-ball is very impressive to me.

analysis

Assuming Mazura is looking to divert some of his defensive plans towards a system better suited to Biggs in his rotation, let them call it “Up to Touch” or “In Touch” as Kabengele calls it. As such, it could be “best of both worlds”. This allows Boston’s defense to keep the pressure on the perimeter while keeping the big guys out of situations forced to make unfavorable switches.

Luckily, Boston’s rotation of big men has experience operating in this kind of fielding range, and it’s worked well throughout the playoffs last season, especially golden state warriors in the NBA Finals.

When a defense is playing “up to touch” it means that the screen defender (usually the defensive big) is playing at or just below the level of the screen. By performing this type of coverage, the defense offers numerous options for attacking attacks.

Because the bigs are so high on the floor, they can pop out to the ball handler and quickly trap, hedge, switch or show…for the defending guard, putting the big plays high on the screen. That means they can be more aggressive in attacking ball handlers, trying to force dribbles away from the action or towards the sidelines. defender.

In the clip above, you can see how “up to touch” defense forces the offense to work hard for scoring chances. It opens with Al Horford contacting Otto Porter Jr. and Smart defending Stephen Curry. Horford worked to cancel the screens as much as possible while staying just below Porter Jr’s level, allowing Smart to keep Curry off the center of the court and the superstar guard taking the rocks out of his hands. It led to a robbery — Smart subsequently denied the handoff Curry was looking for in a “get” action with Draymond Green.

On the weak side, Porter Jr. streamed into Klay Thompson’s beer screen, but Horford remained in a shallow drop (under the screener but still around the elbow) and Robert Williams pinched on the elbow on the strong side. Did.

With Jayson Tatum as the weaker Roman, the size, length and athleticism to turn if ball handlers encroach on the paint make scoring opportunities very difficult to find.

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However, to successfully execute a “modern” defensive scheme, you need a big with a high IQ who makes decisions like when to drop, cut angles, hedge and switch. to play.

“Al is very cool and calm and very welcoming, especially with him. I guess you could say that a well-established guy might have an ego. He went to the Finals, he was an All-Star, he did all these kinds of things, but the level of humility and composure around him was amazing…”I would ask him about coverage and footwork. In terms of leg placement when you’re in the gap, ask him: Should I put my front leg up or lower my front leg to expose my chest? I said it’s about opening up and looking at the ball and the men and angling a little bit on each side, so tips and tricks like that definitely help me as a big one.”

Another aspect of playing “up to touch” is being able to play in the passing lane and take advantage of the angles the offense gives. Watching the clip above, you can see Horford trusting Robert Williams to deal with Jonathan Cuminga’s roll to the rim. Sure, Horford will eventually kick the ball, but tilting his body to switch to space leaves much less open floor for the Warriors to attack on their strong side.

Luckily, Kabengele also has experience with this kind of coverage, as he showed when he played in the summer league against the Celtics in Las Vegas.

However, it should be noted that Kabengele consistently chose to drop after the screen happened. Hopefully, being around Horford and Williams will allow us to see Kabengele begin to diversify his coverage from this scheme throughout the season.

Finally, playing “touch to touch” doesn’t mean shifting away from a switch-based defense. On the screener he has 5 direct touches and he can switch from 1 to 4 he has. But with some of the Celtics’ more prominent five-man currently on injury reports, it’s a dynamic, especially if the inexperienced center is trying to limit how often he’s put in some defensive positions. It makes perfect sense to mix coverage. The best ball handler the world has to offer.