What should be done to improve our defense?

Now that the deadline has passed, this question can be asked without the answer "get player X". Earlier in the year, I actually think that our D was better (still not good) then it is now. But we just seem to be getting killed on the D end.

These are just some of my thought relating to D

I don't think it's just the perimeter players, I think that the bigs are also not doing a good job now, like the bad D virus is spreading. Even Joel, who was our one surefire defender has been slipping lately.

Now, not all things are bad on the defensive end. There are some decent young defenders who will likely become good down the road, like Bayless and Batum, but at the moment, Our D just really sucks.

And I think this might be Nate's and Roy's fault since they are the ones that are supposed to set the tone. Roy hardly ever gets real agressive on the D end if it's not the final 3 minutes of a game. We all know that he has the ability to be a good defender (just ask Joe Johnson) but he does not display it consistently.

Honestly, I think this is an effort issue and not a talent or ability issue. The only one who seems to consistently give the effort on the D end is Bayless, although he does not have the ability yet to be as good on D as he is trying.

I think the Blazers are a good enough team with enough raw talent that they will make the Playoffs and perhaps a decent seed, without having to improve much on their D, but if the Blazers are going make it to the second round or better, it will hinge on the teams ability to play better D.

 

It's not about playoff success this year, or maybe even next year. We're baking a cake here. Be patient.

-Pop

 

Our team defense is shit, but there's little we can do about that this far into the season. Nate can't just implement different ways to stop the pick and roll now (hell, he's probably still thinking that we're not switching on every pick).

One way to drastically improve individual defense is to cut Sergio's or Blake's minutes and play Bayless extensively. Or cut Travis' minutes to play Batum extensively. That might be the best solution now and in the long term. Get those guys ready to contribute in the playoffs.

 

Roy can't be that aggressive on D, he's the only one on the O that can score reliably if he's super ass tired from always going after it on D 110% b/c our other guys fail, then we're fucked.

 

I prefer to keep batum in longer..
and rotate Trav only at the 4.
Keep Aldridge off playing center for sure.

 

You know the constant sarcasm does get a little old. I know it pads the post count, but I'd rather not read the same dribble over and over again.

On point: the players are who they are. Nate seemed to fire them up defensively earlier in the season, but they have slipped. I would like to see him reward solid defensive play with more minutes. Also, keep trying to take pressure/minutes off of Brandon so he can play defense as well. He seems to have slipped in this along with everyone else.

Personally, I would like to see Bayless get more burn because of his defense. Batum too, but he needs to be a bit more aggressive in scoring so you can justify keeping him on the court longer.

Maybe bribing them by saying if they play better D, they get to run more?

 

Play Bayless more.

 

Play Bayless and Batum for 35 minutes a game. They have the athletic ability to be elite defenders, they just need experience. As long as they keep working hard and listening to the coaches and making progress, they should be allowed to play extensive minutes. This is the best thing for the team in the big picture.

 

Build a time machine, jump 3 years into the future, and hope Oden/Batum/Bayless have lived up to their potential.

As for the rest of this season - we're boned.

 

Question: Bayless is clearly an aggressive man defender. Do any of the more astute members of the forum have any comments on how he and Batum do in terms of team defense?

 

What part of what I said was untrue? We're taking a long-term approach with this team, so I'm not sure it makes sense to impatiently evaluate our improving youth.

-Pop

 

While I am more of an "ass-toot" than astute, I will offer an observation. Even when a rookie tries hard and has good instincts, there is a steep learning curve. Some big men seem to pick up help defense faster than man-to-man....but that appears (to me) to be the exception. My impression, based mostly on years of observation, is that rookies tend to learn man defense first. Team defense takes longer.

 

These guys are taking their cue from Roy. When they see Roy not fight through a pick, they won't either. Problem is Roy can't be that aggressive if he plans on playing for 37 minutes a night for a full season.

I honestly don't think there's a solution.

People have been trying to teach Outlaw to defend for 5 years and it hasn't worked.

Sergio's made almost no progress in three years.

Blake is who he is, too slow and too weak to do it--hell, he separated a shoulder fighting through a pick. If he could defend better, I really think he would. He just isn't that talented, and he's making the most of what he's got. There's a reason he wasn't a lottery pick, despite a pretty good college career.

Batum is a good defender in spurts, but like any 19 year old rookie he's inconsistent.

After Batum, Bayless is the best of this lot. But he has a lot of turnovers, and he doesn't really run the offense much.

*shrug* I don't really know what to do but tell Webster (when he gets back) and Bayless that if they want minutes, they are there for the taking if you just defend better than the guys getting burn now.

 

It appears Bayless and Batum are both a little lost when it comes to help rotations from situation to situation. Greg actually struggles with this the most. I think the cause for this is one of two things.

1) Poor basketball IQ
2) Lack of experience

Depending on who you talk to, you're going to get different opinions. I think all 3 of them have the IQ to play great team defense, but it might take a little bit for those reactions to become second nature.

LMA has very active hands when he's playing perimeter defense, but he doesn't hold his position well when posts slash through the middle.

The biggest problem to me is that our PG's either cannot or have yet to figure out how to get through screens. The posts could also do a better job of jumping out and hedging that screen, allowing the guards to go underneath the screen and recovery. At times it seems like we hesitate on if we should be going over or under the screen, and then we get caught smack in the middle of it.

Just my two cents

 

This is just my thoughts on team D, and by no means am I an astute member of anything.

Bayless I think is pretty bad on team D but he has the ability to be good down the road. He is very good as fighting through picks when need be, but in switching, or in finding some other players man, he often seems confused. This is however, just a normal rookie issue and something that any high IQ player (which I believe JB to be) will figure out soon enough.

Batum I see as a decent man on defender, but I actually think his forte in the future will be team D. His long arms allow him to disrupt passing lanes and he often goes up to block shots from behind of players not assigned to him. I really see him as a good all around defender in the future, able to man up or play solid team D. His issue in the future will be with defending post up players. I don't think he has the strength or weight to stand up to bruisers that well.

 

It is the job of the coaching staff to figure out which is which for whom and make recommendations to KP accordingly. Lack of experience means spending more time with the coaching staff, learning from mistakes, etc. In that case patience IS the answer, if the effort is there. Lack of basketball IQ is a lot harder to fix. For those players, either they become offensive specialists - think Steve Kerr, for instance, the one you bring in when you need a big shot - or they get dealt.

There is no magic wand we can wave to make the team stellar defenders.

I do think adding a Buck Williams type blue collar guy would help overall - Joel does that, but he's not quick and needs some help.

 

At this point, we are what we are. There's no magic scheme that will turn us into San Antonio like crandc said. Hopefully the guys just continue learn from past mistakes, remember past experiences where they screwed up and make the right adjustments and do the best they can.

 

Time, patience and continued work by the coaching staff and players. No magic bullet there.

 

There is nothing they can do this year to resolve the issue.

On that note, I don't think team d depends a great deal on individual defensive ability. The Celtics are a good defensive team, but only three of their players this year are noted defenders (KG, Rondo and Perkins). The other guys are either below average to poor. It has to do with people knowing where to go under what circumstances. This can either be done as a whole or by having one guy who knows what needs to be done and makes people do it.

Our team does not have the defensive captain, so they all need to have some idea of where to be. Communication on the floor is not very good this year and players seem confused often with what to do. A great deal has been made about our switching on picks. Hasoos recently watched a Laker game and paid close attention to what they did on defense. According to him, they switch on nearly everything. The difference is when the switch occurs, the entire defense adjusts. In Portlands case, when the switch occurs only the two players directly involved do anything. The rest stay at home. That may very well be the problem.

The solution seems to be exactly the stuff Nate talks about. Communication and court awareness. Maybe if we had a player who was more of a defensive quarterback it would improve.

 

The players have to understand that they will not advance in the playoffs without it. The playoffs will feel like that first Celtics game and perhaps they have not internalized that yet. Playing good defense is a tremendous amount of work and at this point in the season they may be trying to coast a bit.

Players watch what their peers (on our team and other teams) do and most of them don't play serious defense. So why should they? Offense pays big returns in contracts. Defense not so much.

So we need hungry players who want a championship and are willing to go through the pain to get it. How many of our guys fit into that category?

Our team is young and except for Brandon and Joel, I don't think they understand this yet. I can almost guarantee they have heard it from this coaching staff.