NBA Chat With Anthony Macri 11/13/2012

Coach Anthony Macri writes the weekly Coach’s Notebook column for HOOPSWORLD and is the CEO of the ASEAN Basketball League, the first regional professional sports league in Southeast Asia. Coach Macri gets started at his new time of 10am EST every Tuesday.

  1. Deven

    Hi Coach Macri. We all know that Steve Nash loves D’Antoni’s system and knows how to run it, but how will it work for Kobe, Dwight Pau and other players who may or may not be familiar with the system?

    • Anthony Macri

      Happy Tuesday everybody! It seems a team has changed its coach recently and it’s created quite a bit of hub-bub on the interwebz. I’m sure we’ll talk about that and much more… let’s get to your questions!

      Right off the bat… Dwight and Pau will be fine in the sense that they will sprint the floor to spots in the mid post / low post and have plenty of space to work with. They will also be very effective in pick and roll situations because of how spread the floor is. Kobe will be ok because he is great at closeout basketball. The real question is whether they have enough capable shooters for the spread system to be as effective as it can be.

  2. Deven

    Has Coach Popovich’s system with the Spurs always been the same? As a matter of fact, what kind of system does he run?

    • Anthony Macri

      The Spurs have mutated and adjusted to their personnel as much as any coach / player combo that I can remember. They used to use a lot of sideline ball screen heavy stuff that featured midpost action, now they do a lot more spread action with high screens and pitches out for threes. I’m sure that as their players get older they will adjust even more.

  3. LA in LA

    Hey Coach I have 2 questions about Mike D’Antoni to the Lakers. Many pundits are saying his 7 seconds or less offense won’t work with the Lakers roster but is it a lock they he’ll even run that? If D’Antoni’s an offensive guru I expect him to recognize he has some great post up players on this roster while lacking shooters and adjust appropriately.

    2)How will D’Antoni implement Gasol? He’s never had two 7fters who operate best in post except for a brief unsuccessful stint with the Knicks.

    • Anthony Macri

      I think there will be a decided change in looking to find numerical advantage break situations. In other words, it may not be seven seconds or less, but it also won’t be walk it up and grind it out like it was under Mike Brown (and let’s be honest, Phil was not a fastbreak guy either). I think one thing we’ll see from this team is absolute dominance on the backboard, which will allow them to push the ball effectively. I expect to see a fair amount of penetrate and pitch with circle-behinds, but the emphasis on dribble attack instead of three point shooting. Closing out is the most difficult thing to do in all of defensive basketball – and teams will have to do it a lot against the Lakers.

  4. LA in LA

    Also, if McMillian comes as a Defensive coordinator, how good is he? I didn’t see much of Trailblazers but someone showed a stat that none of his teams ranked high defensively.
    DRtg last 5 years: 14th, 15th, 13th, 17th, 26th. This was with playing the slowest or 2nd slowest league pace.
    So are these numbers misleading or is McMillian’s defensive skills overrated?

    • Anthony Macri

      I wouldn’t worry too much – there are two factors that matter the most right now. First, most (not all, but most) of the players have a defensive mindset coming in. They won’t forgo that end of the floor just because D’Antoni is an offensive guy. Secondly, whoever the defensive coach is, his job is not so much about scheming because the season is already upon us. Instead, the real focus is on engendering buy-in amongst the players. If McMillan can do that, he will be successful – and so would whoever else he brought aboard.

  5. paprika

    Hi coach wassup? Have u had some pinoy food lately? Anyways i woke up and had a great idea. Why not trade amare for boozer. Boozer dont need tobscore in nyc, in chicago just rest amare ,make him heal100% and with rose and amare pushing each other in theraphy sessions i bet both of them come out strong. The best thing aboutbthe trade they can amnesty amare if he turns bad and they can play taj gibs while waiting for amare be 100%…. With me?

    • Anthony Macri

      I’m not against it… would need to look at salary issues, but it sounds on the face of it to be an option. What say you, readers? Respond in the comments!

  6. king sisig

    With mike D as the laker coach… Who can the the laker’s jeremey lin, meeks,darrius morris, earl clark, dj odom or ebanks?

    • Anthony Macri

      Earl Clark fits the kind of player that can be successful in a D’Antoni system, but there is no guarantee he will be successful. I don’t believe any of them will achieve Lin-like success, however.

  7. Wil

    Hi Coach, a question about Terry Stott’s rotations in Portland. I understand the season just started, has a young team, and he needs to see whom he can trust, but half the team is getting 4-6 minutes per night which I don’t think is conducive. Find your 3-5 bench guys, play them meaningful minutes, and use other opportunities (garbage time, practice or development league) to give the other a run. Right now, I feel it is impacting the team, sacrificing clear roles, and really isn’t helping much in terms of player development or evaluation. Thoughts on running so many players on so few minutes?

    • Anthony Macri

      I am probably a coach that would err on the side of playing guys too evenly, so it’s hard for me to justify it from the other side. However, I think like most coaches he is playing guys he feels give him the best chance to be successful. Whether it is short term or long term I hesitate to say. I’ll try to watch them in the next few days and offer a more comprehensive evaluation later this season.

  8. Peter

    Hey Coach! What a joke, had the Lakers hired Rick Adelman last summer, they are probably 6-1 or 7-0 right now. I don’t know why Brown was hired in the first place. Is it because he is cheap compared to other coaches? The 2nd mistake they made was let Mike Brown bring on Eddie Jordan to install the princeton offense. Trying to force squares into circles, not gonna work! Now they hired D’Antoni who is a better coach than Brown, but i still don’t think he is good enough for them. How come nobody talked bout Jerry Sloan!?!?

    • Anthony Macri

      Jerry Sloan is a great coach when you grow up with him and he can mold you from a young, immature player into a capable and mature one. But I’m not sure he’s the guy to pair with headstrong and established guys. D’Antoni is a good fit in this way. Adelman would have been fantastic. I was not a fan of the Mike Brown hire and I could not justify it then, and I certainly cannot justify it now.

  9. The Philippine Eagle

    Hi Coach!

    Pau Gasol will not be a perfect fit for D’Antoni’s system, isn’t it? Do you see him being traded, now more than ever, to someone athletic like Josh Smith?

    Also, do you think the Clippers got what it takes to run the triangle offense (assuming Coach Vinny gets fired midway and will be replaced by Coach Phil)?

    • Anthony Macri

      I like both your scenarios, though I tend to like the ball in Chris Paul’s hands more than what it would be in the Triangle. I think if you can get max value for Pau and get a forward that could be paired with Dwight for the long term, it’s a good fit. Josh Smith might shoot too many threes in the D’Antoni system, but it’s a good daydream.

  10. Alan

    Do think pau would consider coming off the bench for Los Angeles? I’ve heard the idea thrown out there with hill at the 4 pau at center and let Dwight start w maybe Jamison at the 4 w the starters

    Seems it might make good combos for heading both units in terms of the bigs

    • Anthony Macri

      I don’t think who starts is nearly as important as who finishes. And the biggest problem with doing things this way is that it means that two of your four best players rarely see the court together. I think they need to be integrated with one another. I would look to find spots for Dwight on the weakside so he isn’t in the way of initial actions, and use Pau around the high post. I think they can work together but it will take a bit of engineering.

  11. Jim in Cyber Space

    Dream about a true NBA Slam Dunk Contest. No one sitting on the sidelines…the Best 5. BG, LBJ, RW, Paul G, pick the fifth spot. Who wins? Make it six put Gerald Green in the mix.

    • Anthony Macri

      That is a fairly decent lineup of dunkers. Who do readers want to see with that group? I think you’ve hit the main group I’d want to see. I think that guy RW would be fairly impressive.

  12. Tim

    I know its still early in the season but your thoughts on who might get the MIP award this year?

    • Anthony Macri

      Way too early for this. I’m sure after two games people thought James Harden had turned into MJ – things haven’t been quite as impressive since. Need another three weeks before I’m ready to make this assessment.

  13. Chris

    Hi Coach.
    Do you know Japeth Aguilar? Do you think he can make it no NBA D League?

    • Anthony Macri

      I do not know him personally, have heard about him a bit. Just to make a point – the D-League is not so far above the level of decent European (or Asian) competition that players can’t make it there. The thing is, most of them can make more in the international leagues than they can in the D-League, where the salaries are low and the cost of living is high.

  14. Johnny

    No ‘Sophmore Slump’ for Kyrie Irving… Anything besides defense you see him needing to work more on? Do you see any ‘SuperStar’ potential in Tristan? The constant gathering just to dunk the ball is such an eye sore.

    • Anthony Macri

      Irving has been impressive. I just want to see him continuing to manage games. I think he can grow in his comprehensive understanding of tempo, but that will happen naturally with maturity. His game is well-rounded but everyone, him included, can find things to work on. I see very good, perhaps even star potential in Tristan, but it will take a bit of work for him to get there. Need to improve a few core things, employing his athleticism effectively is the key.

  15. Ben

    Is Lowry’s injury more than just a sprain?

    • Anthony Macri

      Dammit, Ben, I”m an analyst and a sports management consultant, not a doctor.

  16. Roby From Queens

    Hey what do you think about the Knicks, guess you werent expecting that. I think Amare should come from the bench so it wouldnt spoil Carmelo’s game, what about trading stat. Any pridiction for my knicks.

    • Anthony Macri

      I have been wrong about the Knicks so far, but the season is still young. Give it time, and we’ll see how they turn up in a few weeks. I do agree with keeping Stat out of Melo’s way. Of course, a lot of my thoughts on the Knicks had more to do with the fact that those two guys were incompatible than they did with anything else. No predictions. Not sure about any trades either.

  17. anthony

    hi anthony is there a reason dejuan blair dont get any playing time on the spurs

    • Anthony Macri

      I have learned over time to not doubt Gregg Popovich too much. I like DeJuan, I helped with his predraft. But I think he is much more effective in a lower weight bracket, when he can move with a lot more agility. Whether that is a reason for his situation or not I am not certain.

  18. Preston Wilks

    Will someone please talk to Michael Beasley and his coaching staff to get him to stop taking 20+ foot jumpers?!?!?

    I cringe every time he hoists it up from deep, and even though I don’t have the statistics would venture to say he’s in “Josh Smith” territory for %’s. Why don’t they set him up on offense with more pick and rolls to the hoop & post up plays 15ft & in?

    • Anthony Macri

      People have been talking to Michael Beasley about this for years. When he dominated lesser athletes, it was all good, but now things aren’t quite as easy, and he’s not as successful either. I like actions that get him on the move toward the front of the rim a lot more – but he may purposely avoid those actions.

      Alright folks, that does it for me… hope you are well and staying engaged in this boring, ho-hum, no news NBA. I mean, gosh, it’s like, can drama happen anytime soon? See you next week folks…