Knicks At The Break - 2007
Structured Offense vs. Run & Gun
by Guichard Cadet
Isiah Thomas is a better coach than he thinks. During Summer League play, the talk was of his running the “Quick” – basically a hybrid offense to push tempo and hide the team’s lack of shooting deft.
A 6 win, 11 losses start to the season quickly shifted that focus. Initially the losing seemed to be a function of a tough schedule filled with back-to-backs and playing 13 games against teams that made the playoffs the previous season.
It also highlighted a dilemma. The Knicks did not have the offensive firepower to fully go up-tempo, nor the offensive efficiency & defensive mindset to play a slow down game. The third game of the season proved this. In this loss against Indiana, the Pacers shot at will on the perimeter, and shut down the Knicks offense.
Even though the team established a pattern of early first quarter double-digit deficits, the strength of schedule continued to be the excuse, until the Knicks got blown out by the Minnesota Timberwolves, and lost back-to-back to the Chicago Bulls.
Thomas realized he essentially had two teams on his hands – one excelled in a half-court structured offense; the other in an up-tempo run & gun frenzy.
S.O. Players - Marbury, Curry, Frye and Richardson. Though Richardson found some success with the Phoenix Suns, he excels shooting setshot 3-pointers in halfcourt sets and not the break.
R & G Players – Crawford, Francis, Robinson and Balkman. The Knicks fate lies in Crawford’s ability to function in the structured offense. His defense needs improvement, his points come mostly on isolation plays, and his assists primarily to Curry, with little inkling to utilize Frye and Richardson’s offensive talent.
David Lee - Though more suited for an up-tempo game, he has shown the ability to function playing either style while lacking a consistent jump shot. He makes up for it with great shot selection, rebounding and increased accuracy at the free-throw line.
Jared Jeffries – This was a questionable signing because the team already had Lee and Balkman on the roster. Running a structured offense accentuates his offensive woes.
Though Thomas kept the shell of the Quick offense, he abandoned the principles, choosing to focus on establishing Curry as a dominant low-post threat.
This move has paid off to a certain degree because the Knicks have gone 17-19, for an overall record of 23 wins, 30 losses. Curry has improved offensively, but the team continues to struggle defensively against teams that push tempo while having the ability to shoot from the 3-point range.
Thomas needs to take one more step into his basketball roots, and forego some offense by letting defensive-minded players (Jeffries and Balkman) make their offensive mishaps because they hide Curry and Frye’s defensive limitations, much like Chuck Daly did with John Salley and Dennis Rodman.
With the owner’s mandate to show “significant improvement”, Thomas has equated validating the Curry trade as the crux of his argument that last season was due to Larry Brown’s coaching shenanigans and not his General Manger / Talent Acquisition strategy.
Now that the team has matched the previous season’s win total (23), Thomas should now expand his coaching repertoire, perhaps even borrowing a page from Hubie Brown’s coaching philosophy, in which he uses two distinct units, each having different directives.
Shortening the rotation makes no sense because the team has few “two-way” players, and there is too much money tied up in contracts for non-starters (Francis, Jeffries, Rose and James).
by Guichard Cadet
Isiah Thomas is a better coach than he thinks. During Summer League play, the talk was of his running the “Quick” – basically a hybrid offense to push tempo and hide the team’s lack of shooting deft.
A 6 win, 11 losses start to the season quickly shifted that focus. Initially the losing seemed to be a function of a tough schedule filled with back-to-backs and playing 13 games against teams that made the playoffs the previous season.
It also highlighted a dilemma. The Knicks did not have the offensive firepower to fully go up-tempo, nor the offensive efficiency & defensive mindset to play a slow down game. The third game of the season proved this. In this loss against Indiana, the Pacers shot at will on the perimeter, and shut down the Knicks offense.
Even though the team established a pattern of early first quarter double-digit deficits, the strength of schedule continued to be the excuse, until the Knicks got blown out by the Minnesota Timberwolves, and lost back-to-back to the Chicago Bulls.
Thomas realized he essentially had two teams on his hands – one excelled in a half-court structured offense; the other in an up-tempo run & gun frenzy.
S.O. Players - Marbury, Curry, Frye and Richardson. Though Richardson found some success with the Phoenix Suns, he excels shooting setshot 3-pointers in halfcourt sets and not the break.
R & G Players – Crawford, Francis, Robinson and Balkman. The Knicks fate lies in Crawford’s ability to function in the structured offense. His defense needs improvement, his points come mostly on isolation plays, and his assists primarily to Curry, with little inkling to utilize Frye and Richardson’s offensive talent.
David Lee - Though more suited for an up-tempo game, he has shown the ability to function playing either style while lacking a consistent jump shot. He makes up for it with great shot selection, rebounding and increased accuracy at the free-throw line.
Jared Jeffries – This was a questionable signing because the team already had Lee and Balkman on the roster. Running a structured offense accentuates his offensive woes.
Though Thomas kept the shell of the Quick offense, he abandoned the principles, choosing to focus on establishing Curry as a dominant low-post threat.
This move has paid off to a certain degree because the Knicks have gone 17-19, for an overall record of 23 wins, 30 losses. Curry has improved offensively, but the team continues to struggle defensively against teams that push tempo while having the ability to shoot from the 3-point range.
Thomas needs to take one more step into his basketball roots, and forego some offense by letting defensive-minded players (Jeffries and Balkman) make their offensive mishaps because they hide Curry and Frye’s defensive limitations, much like Chuck Daly did with John Salley and Dennis Rodman.
With the owner’s mandate to show “significant improvement”, Thomas has equated validating the Curry trade as the crux of his argument that last season was due to Larry Brown’s coaching shenanigans and not his General Manger / Talent Acquisition strategy.
Now that the team has matched the previous season’s win total (23), Thomas should now expand his coaching repertoire, perhaps even borrowing a page from Hubie Brown’s coaching philosophy, in which he uses two distinct units, each having different directives.
Shortening the rotation makes no sense because the team has few “two-way” players, and there is too much money tied up in contracts for non-starters (Francis, Jeffries, Rose and James).
posted by Guichard Cadet @ 9:26 AM
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