If we play a bunch of young guys, someone splain again to me why we can't fast break

We don't have a Jason Kidd.

Seriously, though, I think this is the question everyone has been wondering. All the talent is designed for a running, attacking game. Yet, the team appears to prefer to let the defense get set and then play. No one knows why!

 

In theory, Steve is capable of running the fast break. I think what he needs is some coaching on it to hone his skills. Another problem, I think, is that he needs to learn to trust his teammates.

 

fast breaks start with steals, blocks, and rebounds (3 things that we have been lacking in) and not inbounding the ball quickley after our opponent scores again.

 

fast breaks start with steals, blocks, and rebounds (3 things that we have been lacking in) and not inbounding the ball quickley after our opponent scores again.

Teams miss their shots against us half the time... We still don't run. There has to simply be a commitment to it. The way to run is just take off and then here and there, you'll get your break and get behind the defense. Our guys won't run unless the opportunity is apparent, at which point it's too late.

 

You're right about the need for the commitment, Major, but there's a little more to it in terms of fast breaks off rebounds.

A fast break off a steal is easiest, because the opposing team's momentum is still toward the basket. Even on a blocked shot, it's a very quick turn-around the other direction. After an unblocked shot, though, the defense has time to prepare to get back on defense. Even if they haven't actually started back yet, they are making that mental transition. To do a fast break off a rebound, you usually have to have a very quick outlet pass to somebody who is already in transition near midcourt. That requires a rebounder who is tall enough to see past the traffic, has good enough court sense to recognize the situation instantaneously, and is a good enough passer to find and hit his moving target VERY VERY QUICKLY. The Rockets don't have such a center.

It's not a coincidence that the Rockets' best fast breaking team had Sampson getting most of the defensive boards (Hakeem was focused on offensive boards then). Or that Showtime took place with Kareem at center. Parish and McHale were both pretty good outlet passers as well. But with the Celtics especially, it was that they were a VERY well-disciplined, group of team players who worked hard at doing the little things right and practiced the fundamentals over and over and over again. And worked hard at it practice after practice, night after night, game after game. As much as I love the athleticism of the key components of this team, they don't strike me as being willing to work hard at doing the little things that make the difference between winning and losing by 2-4 points. If they were, we'd be a much better defensive team than we are. It's frustrating to watch this team play good defense for a game or two, then go ten games playing matador.

 

Steve is the Rocks' leading rebounder. As long as that is the case, the Rocks will not be much of a fast break team.

 

Good point! Francis needs to be RECEIVING outlet passes, not making them. And fast breaks off rebounds cannot start by dribbling from basket to basket!!

 

Good point! Francis needs to be RECEIVING outlet passes, not making them. And fast breaks off rebounds cannot start by dribbling from basket to basket!!

On the first point -- Jason Kidd is one of the best rebounders on the Nets and they still fast break like crazy. They break off of rebounds, they break off of steals, and they break off of blocks. The reason is that whoever doesn't get the rebound takes off. It's not like Francis is the only person that can dribble on the team, especially when both Moochie and Mobley are out there. If Francis is getting the rebound, the other guys should be running, but they don't. I agree on your second point that one major problem is that we prefer to dribble from the rebound instead of passing -- that might be our biggest problem right there.

Running really isn't just about the instant transition offense, but the secondary break. If you have a bunch of guys running down the court, you open up lanes and spots all over the floor. Before the defenses gets set, you can find guys for wide-open jumpshots or layups, even if it wasn't part of the initial break. That is what makes the running game successful -- not just the quick and easy initial breaks. When everyone is running in circles, the defense hasn't had a chance to set and get the right defenders on the right players. That's when you can exploit mismatches and get open looks.

The Rockets are at the opposite extreme. They actually go up the court and then *stop* and dribble in place or stand and survey for a while. That lets the defense set up properly and get the right people in the right spots, which is exactly the opposite of what we want. You'll notice this on pick and rolls too. We'll set a pick, go around it, then stop and survey. The original defender then has time to go around and switches back to the right players so that the pick had no effect. I've never understood *why* we do this, but I keep seeing it over and over and over.

 

BEEN ASKING THAT QUESTION ALL LAST SEASON!

Why we didn't take advantage of one of our few advantages, young legs, is a mystery to me. I think it has something to do with coaching and strategy

D R

 

I agree with Major all the way. From all the games Rudy watched from the sidelines, from all the breakdown of game tapes, from all the practices, didn't he and the coaching staff notice this? Why didn't they take any corrective FORCEFUL action?