A fake double team! Did you guys notice when a defender tries to double Yao everytime he gets the ball, the guy would always go back to his man. AT first I thought it was a personal tactic but all the cavs players were doing the same thing. Great job coach!
I always say we match up the Cavs best. Their bigs either can't shoot or slow footed. Most of the night they put Ben on Yao. Without flopping and aid from the ref, all he did was pretending to guard Yao. I think fronting and sandwiching Yao are the best strategy. But if we start hitting outside shots, that will make teams think twice before cheating on defending Yao. Also Yao was hitting those turn around J baseline last night, which made his move much more assertive than when he doubts himself. Also give our offense some credits, because it wasn't just Yao down low every time, it was rather a mix of offensive moves, which made it hard for Cav to get into the flow defending Yao.
The way to deal with Yao is front and double him hard after he puts the ball on the floor. His concentration drops while he's dribbling, and he's more likely to throw up a bad shot or turn it over.
They try to stay close to Yao waiting for him to put the ball in the floor and then double. Yao was smart and hold the ball a little, then the defender have to get back to his man or he will be call for a 3 second violation on the lane, then Yao attack. Cavs where afraid to double Yao quick because there are no more Rafer on the team, every starter have to be respected now. Good move Morey.
Good point. Also, Ron is a always a better outside shooter than Tmac. This makes the whole starting five shoot with much high percentage. I have been really enjoy watching them play lately.
Yes, doubling and crowding Yao when he's dribbling is the best way to force him into a turnover or bad shot. Yao's height makes it easy to steal the ball from him when he dribbles and it also forces him to bend down and concentrate on dribbling which significantly reduces his awareness of where opponents and teammates are. Against the Cavs, Yao was very patient and selective on when he would start the dribble. He would wait, hold the ball for a bit to see where everyone is on the court before making any moves. Since his turnaround jumper was working pretty well, many times he just shot it without dribbling at all.
