Atlanta

[Pereira, Jorge M]

Kim,

 

First, I said "miniscule" because TA is not in Doc's plans and by
harping on TA I'm really taking up the list's time for a miniscule issue
and I was apologizing for that.  It was not directed at anyone.  2nd,
some people (you've voiced it) think TA is not ready and others (me
included) think he's not used enough and correctly, nothing else.  Doc
pulling him at that time was atrocious; there is no sarcasm on that,
just a way to get my point across.  

 

But really, the TA issue goes a lot deeper.  It is really not about TA.
It is about the central problem this team has since we acquired Ray
Allen.  It is about the problem we must face if we are to go farther in
our drive to 17 against deeper teams.  If you remember when we got Ray
Allen, before KG, most people said.  Why did we get him?  We already
have PP.  We got KG, things went very well during the season and though
the conflict creeped in a few times it was never a big issue.  We kept
winning.  The 3rd and 4th games vs Atlanta exacerbated the problem.  On
the defensive side it was obvious Allen couldn't handle Johnson (the 2
guard usually has quite a defensive load).  On offense Ray took the
upper hand and our offense suffered because of the type of shots he
takes.  Yes he scored a lot but PP and his more consistent inside game
went by the wayside.  On the 4th game the problems reached an alarming
level as no one seemed to know where the shot should come from, the
confusion leading to long dry spells, not to speak of the defense.  

 

Given all this, Doc was able to fix the problem.  He obviously made sure
our offense came from PP , Rondo and KG first and foremost, with
constant drives and short shots.  Later on, when the middle clogged up,
he relied on the outside shot and Ray Allen was magnificent.  It worked
to perfection.  On defense they double-teamed Joe Johnson, never gave
him a moment's peace, were lucky he got in foul trouble early and the
game was won.  

 

Atlanta has one, lone, single player that can make his own shot.  JJ.
All the others are not confident shooters, though they can score on the
break and dunks.  Are we going to double team Kobe or the superstar of
other deep teams to help Ray Allen and not get burned by their other all
stars?  Is this stategy going to work beyond Atlanta, and maybe beyond
the one-armed Cleveland? 

 

That's the crux of the matter.  I believe we are a better team with TA
(and this is the context where we need Tony) taking Ray Allen's place
early in the game so we can establish our inside game and our defensive
presence, and then bring on Ray Allen and repeat as the situation call
for.  I also believe TA will respond given a "real" game situation (you
don't have to agree). This doesn't mean Ray isn't a better player; it
simply means PP's offensive style needs to be established and not
degenerate into a kind of free-lance style where the 3-pt shot has the
same value as our bread and butter plays. 

 

Am I right?  Who knows?  Certaintly Doc knows his team better than I do
and he was able to accomplish the same without using Tony.  So this is a
miniscule point, for now at least.

 

jorge