NBA Chat With Anthony Macri 10/23/12

1. Peter

   Hey Coach! I heard the Lakers hired Eddie Jordan to help install the princeton offense. From what I know about this offense is that it requires bigs who can step out and make shots and also have exceptional passing abilities. Pau Gasol certainly has that ability; not sure about DH12 though. Moreover, this offense is structured around constant ball movement and finding cutters slashing to the basket. The Lakers have 2 ballstoppers in Kobe and Nash. Not sure how they can run this offense fluidly with those 2 guys hanging onto the ball. Lastly, DH12 is a far more effective player in the blocks, hence he’ll clog up the lane preventing the cutters from attacking the basket, thereby eliminating the back-door cut option. The Rockets tried it with Yao and McGrady when Adelman was coaching them and it didn’t work out. They finally had to throw Yao back into the low block and play basic postup, pick-and-roll, simple bball. Your thoughts?

   • Anthony Macri

     Happy Tuesday everybody. The season is upon us! Just a week left and then we can stop predictions and prognostications and just get to analysis of game play, strategy, and performance. I am really excited for this season. I first arrived in Southeast Asia during the playoffs last year, and watching the game without being distracted by too much media analysis helped me see it a lot more clearly. I’m hopeful the same happens this year! Let’s get to your questions…

     I think sometimes we get locked into what we think an offense like the Princeton system actually does. Usually, it works via a weakside post player who receives the ball in the post either via hi-lo looks from his partner big, or after ball reversal (allowing him to seal his defender during reversal). You can stress any piece of the Princeton system you like depending on your personnel. While Princeton itself rarely had big bruising big guys, you can adapt it for a guy like Dwight Howard without issue. In fact, you can add in ball screens and other simple actions into the normal flow. I don’t think it will be that hard, because in the end, systems like the Triangle or Princeton Offense are just “playing basketball” with a few spacing principles built in.

2. AJ in Hawaii but from Cali

   can the lakers get rid of blake and or duhon for future draft considerations maybe? or cash? i’d do it for a crisp 100 dollar bill.

   secondly, which of these 3 are the most likely replacements and are they good enough to even be worth the trouble? Johnny Flynn, patty mills, or Rodrigue Beaubois? thanks for the love

   • Anthony Macri

     Hawaii sounds like a great idea. I will meet my wife and kids there for a vacation at some point soon…

     If the bill isn’t crisp, would you not take it? Seriously, I don’t think that will be the defining move of the Lakers season. I’m fine with any of the guys you mentioned as my backup (Blake, Duhon, Flynn, Mills, Beaubois) – I just don’t think it really matters as that guy will just be a temporary steward. I’m more concerned about who they have to defend guys like Durant.

3. Aristotle

   Hey Coach
   In terms of basketball books what would be the holy grail to go out and buy to learn about everything related to terminology, slang, offensive and defensive schemes, and anything else needed to learn the more technical side of the game?

   • Anthony Macri

     Are you trying to coach or something else? My first coaching book was “Coaching Basketball Successfully” by Morgan Wootten. Great fundamental introduction to the profession, but it isn’t as heavy on the technical jargon. If you are looking for something more basketball dense, another good intro (though a bit dated) is Dean Smith’s “Multiple Offense and Defense.” If you really want to go big or go home, there are a series of Offense and Defense manuals edited by Jerry Krause which are EXCELLENT. They are very dense but you will learn a lot. All articles and breakdowns from NBA coaches but collected and collated for the reader. Good luck!

4. Laurent DAlmeida

   Do you think Chris Douglas-Robert will make the Lakers?

   • Anthony Macri

     Uncertain but I think he could be a fit if he accepts a particular role.

5. LA in LA

   I saw the NBA GM survey and 4 things surprised me that I want your thoughts on [their opinion in quotes]:
   1) “Melo being voted 3rd most likely MVP candidate.” If Melo places a close 3rd, 2nd or wins it, Knicks will have had a heck of a year. He’s never placed above 6th.

   2) “Kobe’s been voted the top ten SG since 2002.” I Thought McGrady or Wade have topped him once lol.

   3) “80% of GMs would pick Lebron to start a franchise with.” I’m surprised KD didn’t get more votes due the age gap significantly eclipsing the talent gap.

   4)”KD voted king of clutch (46.7% of votes), breaking Bryant’s 10 year run (got 40% of votes)”.
   This isn’t a surprise,but I was shocked to see Durant shot 47-for-120 (39.2 percent) in clutch time*, while Bryant shot 44-for-122 (36.1 percent). Either Durant’s clutch gene is overrated or Abbott and those others guys are wrong about Kobe being bad in clutch.

   • Anthony Macri

     1) I agree with you. That is a bunch of people who don’t look big picture. Plenty of candidates outside of LeBron and Durant, but Melo is not in my Top 5.

     2) I assume you mean top SG ten times since 2002. Tend to agree that he has been. Maybe one year Wade passed him. Rest has been all Kobe.

     3) I am not too surprised that it’s 80% LBJ. I’d pick him over Durant too. I like KD but LeBron is ridiculously unique. He does everything including defend. KD can score and does that well but there are a lot of guys who can get buckets.

     4) Neither KD or Bryant are at the top for me in terms of scoring when you need a basket under 2 minutes – I’d rather have Dirk than either of them. But I do tend to think that stat overall is pretty overrated in terms of overall effectiveness.

6. LA in LA

   Hey Coach Macri, did you get to see Dwight’s debut last night? He looked great for his first game back.
   Also enjoyed Kobe’s play. It seemed he was getting a lot of easy shots and was playing in the offense. I actually thought he might have passed up too many shots lol.

   • Anthony Macri

     I did not get a chance to see it but I will try to watch some clips soon. Can’t wait for the real thing to start!

7. Devonte

   The Knicks have plenty vets on the roster and are one legit star or potential star away from being a finals contender. I read on a website that tyreke Evans would be a perfect fit at PG for the knicks he has showing that he’s close to being a all star in this league but might need veteran help, a winning atmosphere and a bigger market so he can display his talents. The kings have already decided they are not willing to pay him big bucks and will be shopping him during the regular season. Smart or not smart to acquire tyreke Evans from the kings? Trade proposal: iman shumpert, Raymond Felton for tyreke Evans

   • Anthony Macri

     I don’t think the Kings take that trade, but I also think you are a little too bullish on how much Evans helps them. That’s another ball-stopping poor shot selecting slasher who can’t get out of Melo and Amare’s way. I am also not a fan of your description of how the Knicks would be able to help him – how is it a winning atmosphere there? Yes, sure, a bigger market, but for what? Get me shooters to line up around the perimeter. The bottom line is the Knicks should have held out and not traded the world to get Melo to begin with. Where else was he going to go? Imagine this team with all the shooters they gave up and Melo and Amare – that’s what should have been. Got too impatient, and I think it’s going to burn them.

8. Arnold Ticoalu

   Who’s you pick as the surprising team from the Western Division and Eastern Division.

   • Anthony Macri

     I think Toronto has a chance to be pretty good this year. I like their roster and everything I’ve heard on the coaching side of things has me thinking they could continue to ascend, if all are healthy and committed. In the West, I want to see what Denver can put together this year. I really like the athleticism they can put on the floor together, and I think if teams are unprepared they will be a very difficult matchup for the more deliberate offenses (LA, looking at you).

9. Aristotle

   Hey Coach,

   Being from Down Under I don’t know how your school semesters work, but what do you think of the McDonald’s All-American Game being played during the All-Star Weekend? Gives these kids an idea of what it can be like to play in the NBA and strive to become All-Stars of the future.

   • Anthony Macri

     All Star Weekend is too early – Basketball season for HS students runs roughly November through end of March. All Star Weekend is typically February, making it a bit out of pace with the All America Game.

10. ABC

    What is the future of Damian Lillard? Will he be the steal of the draft?

    • Anthony Macri

      I have a tough time assigning steal status to most lottery picks, but Lillard looks like he could be absolutely fantastic. I don’t want to judge too quickly, let’s see what he looks like a few weeks in, but right now, I think he looks like the smartest pick in terms of value and even excitement level.

11. Bryan

    Why do you think so many people are negative about the Mavs? They have a great frontcourt in dirk and kaman one of the most underated players in the last decade in shawn Marion a young and explosive backcourt in mayo and collison and on top of that a deep bench and Rick Carlisle

    • Anthony Macri

      Mismatched parts – I do like Rick Carlisle but I am just not really sure they can compete at the top of the West with that lineup. I don’t know that Kaman is a great fit with Dirk, and I think that OJ Mayo takes horrible shots along with being largely a non-threat consistently from deep. I do like Collison, but is a championship point guard? Marion is fine but he’s always been fine – and he’s a bit older now. So I just don’t see the cohesive championship quality to the team right now. Time will tell, I suppose.

12. Tim

    AMare apparently worked out all season and was in the best shape of his life. ONE game in, he’s already out for a month. Are the knicks better without him? In the sense that it opens up the floor for melo who clearly likes to operate alone. Surrounding him with shooters (novak, JR, Kidd etc)THat seems to be our best gameplan

    • Anthony Macri

      I’m not sure I’d be as generous calling JR Smith or Jason Kidd a “shooter” but I do agree with your basic assumption that having Melo instead of Amare may be a long term better solution than having them together. Would rather get value for Amare in terms of other assets, but I am not sure who will take on his contract right now. I don’t think, by the way, that Melo likes operating “alone” so much as his prime operational areas and attack lanes are currently occupied by Amare, and that throws off his sense of spacing and makes it much easier to jam the lane. In other words, the second line of defenders has a much easier time guarding Melo when Amare is on the floor.

      Limited number of questions today – I got to them all – but my guess is it’s the calm before the storm. I’ll be back to chat next week, and we can actually get to the business at hand… the new NBA season! See you then.