I think you have to gain fame somehow in a measurable, obvious way. Be one of the leaders in rebounds, blocks, steals, etc. Gain a reputation as a very good defensive player, while also being a very good offensive player. Gain a reputation as a very good defensive specialist on a championship-caliber team. And, finally, if you already have made one of the All-Defense teams in the past, there's a good likelihood you'll stay there for at least a few years.
Uhh... Ben Wallace, Theo Ratliff, and others never scored enough points, so I don't see the argument here. Maybe you can elaborate, I really don't get the gist of what you are trying to say. No sarcasm intended nor trying to be an a-hole, just really interested in what you mean because I don't agree with you.
I have no doubt that Byron Scott thinks Hayes a great defender. I just don't think that was the sole reason for doing his hack-a-Hayes. If Hayes was a high percentage FT shooter, they wouldn't have gone to the strategy.
you also have to appreciate the man's dedication. He needed to improve on finishing around the basket, and he has done just that.
If Hayes was a great FT shooter, they'd have no reason to go to that strategy. But I agree with you. The first concern was probably to force the Rockets into some 0-point possessions. I do think getting Hayes off the floor would be a side benefit for them (they needed to score points, and Hayes makes it tough for other teams to score points). They may or may not have recognized it -- I like to think they did.
His FG% has gone down every year since he's been in the league, so I don't know if that's really the case.
Hayes doesn't dominate any statistical category in a typical box score. Maybe he'll have occasional double digit rebounds, but he doesn't do that or block shots nearly as frequently as the Wallaces or Ratliffs or Cambys. Even fame garnered from offense helps, as we see with Kobe and Paul getting awards like that.
There are multiple reasons that they tried it... but the fact that there were two plays just before the first intentional foul where Chuck helped and recovered to keep them from scoring may have given him the idea. I honestly think we can all guess that it was CP3 who decided to see if it would work. He basically told Scott on the fly. You know who else tried the tactic to get Chuck out of the game... Stan Van Gundy... to get him off of Rashard Lewis last season. There is no reason to do that if your guy can post up Chuck and get an easy score off of him. When a guy is defensively bugging one of your players, or in this case two of them and you take yourself into the penalty intentionally to get him off the court and change the flow of the game... well that's a pretty nice compliment to the player in question.
Chuck's sudden defensive greatness has surprised even me. I used to think of him as an energy defensive player. He'll take charges here and there and fight for rebounds. Then you had games against Dallas where Dirk suddenly goes cold when Hayes gets put on him, Aldridge went cold in the 4th when we put in Hayes. Amare was a group effort. West was just non-existant. Duncan was solid but not dominating.
I think his ABILITY to finish has gotten better. He doesn't only attempt the safe shot/layup now. His fg% may have went down but he is more useful on the offensive end then when he first came in the league. Just going by fg% he shot better than Yao last season...but we all know he is no where near the scorer that Yao is.
I never thought about the possibility, but I think they might be onto something. Think about it, Byron Scott HAS to know that we would take Hayes out as soon as he tried it the first time because he's such a bad FT shooter. Which means the defense gets worse on West and perhaps the boost in offense will help them come back. I can't think of any other reason why they would've committed 3 fouls in a row just so they can get Hayes on the line once if it wasn't to get him out of the game for defensive reasons.
When you down by double digits with a 3-4 minutes remaining, it's almost better to be in the penalty so you can strategically shorten the other team's possessions as necessary.
I remember Jonathan Feigen saying before his second season with us that people he spoke to (scouts) considered him one of the best defenders at his position. Morey called him a top-10 post defender last season. The way he's played so far this year, that might actually be selling him short. He's been great.
Stan Van Gundy did it for the same reasons I stated they do it to Shaq. We had a lead in Orlando, they forced Hayes to make FTs, he missed, and cut into the lead. They have to foul a couple of times to get in the penalty right? Which means they still have Hayes on defense in subsequent possessions after his misses. All they have to do is score on their possession by going away from his match-up. The strategy says more about their respect for his FT making.
Sudden? He's been doing this for years. I loved it in one of those early games when Ron and Chuck were playing defense in crunch time and they just kept switching with each other. Talk about a nightmare for opposing teams. Add Battier and Mutombo, and we're even more of a defensive juggernaut.
I cant agree. They have scouted him...all teams do extensive scouting and video review of their opponents. The thing is...he may be *just* 6'5-6"(4??) but his strength allows him to knock his opponent off-balance while they are going into their shot...this does contribute to a lower shooting percentage than one would normally have. He also is pretty good at getting off the floor when contesting shots, he may not get high enough to block it but he can get high enough to severely bother the shot. The effect he has on the players he guards is plainly evident. One or two "stud" PF/Cs go cold when Chuck gets on them....you can write that off to a coincidence. A large majority of them going cold when Chuck gets on them is not....something going in there....and that something is the Chuckwagon. Just like folks thought Barkley was too short to do what he did down low, Chuck is showing you dont have to be a almost 7 foot monster to be feared down low.
If he did have a knee scope he would be back in 2 weeks like every other NBA player that does not have a vagina. DD
