Latest Bleacher Report To Do List

[Saratoga2]

The report indicates once the dust settles (Rodney Hodd, Jabari Parker and Jeff Capell). Then the real work of finding a new associate coach, captains and floor leaders will begin.

The first potential associate coach mentioned is Jay Williams due to his credibility and accomplishments, but if not him, another ex-Duke player. Since coach K will be occupied in other ways, the indication that a coach will be needed to make sure players stay out of trouble, stay in shape and work on their weaknesses. My suggestion would be to expand the search to not just look at ex Duke players but for the best available candidate. Coach K has indicated he will go another 5 years so there is no need for a head coach.

As far as leadership improvements on the floor it mentioned the weakness of having Hairston, Thornton and Hood as the leaders. Hairston wasn't on the floor that much, Thornton was but was not one of the better overall players and Hood was just in his first year actually playing on the team. Bleacher report indicates Quinn and Rasheed are mercurial and may not be the best selection as floor leaders even though both will play a lot and suggest Amile as the best choice for captain and to show leadership on the floor. For those who imagine different lineups, that would mean Amile being on the floor for 30+ minutes.

They imagine that having Jahlil will cover some of our defensive lapses at guard. They mention in particular Quinn's penchant for gambling on steals. Perhaps that is true unless we build up the fouls on the kid, who will be raw at this level. Nowhere was there a mention of reconsidering the defense. Both Virginia and UCONN played a form of pack line and it worked for them. They let their quick guards cover the 3 point shooters while staying more compact on defense. We go man for man and use our bigs out on the hedge way out from the basket. Will coach K even consider altering what worked in the past to cover our biggest weakness last season?

The early guesses on team placement next year rank us at #5 and UNC at #4. Our rankings are dependent on who leaves. If Jabari and/or Rodney return our ranking would improve. It was an interesting article and I won't give a link since it is available under Duke news

[Kedsy]

Nowhere was there a mention of reconsidering the defense. Both Virginia and UCONN played a form of pack line and it worked for them. They let their quick guards cover the 3 point shooters while staying more compact on defense. We go man for man and use our bigs out on the hedge way out from the basket. Will coach K even consider altering what worked in the past to cover our biggest weakness last season?


They don't mention it because it has pretty much no chance of happening. The pack line is not a panacea. It's not easy to play and has as many potential issues as Coach K's man defense. Also similar to K's defense, the pack line more or less requires you play it all the time, and there's both no way and no reason Coach K would go that route at this point in his career.

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

The report indicates once the dust settles (Rodney Hodd, Jabari Parker and Jeff Capell). Then the real work of finding a new associate coach, captains and floor leaders will begin.

The first potential associate coach mentioned is Jay Williams due to his credibility and accomplishments, but if not him, another ex-Duke player. Since coach K will be occupied in other ways, the indication that a coach will be needed to make sure players stay out of trouble, stay in shape and work on their weaknesses. My suggestion would be to expand the search to not just look at ex Duke players but for the best available candidate. Coach K has indicated he will go another 5 years so there is no need for a head coach.

As far as leadership improvements on the floor it mentioned the weakness of having Hairston, Thornton and Hood as the leaders. Hairston wasn't on the floor that much, Thornton was but was not one of the better overall players and Hood was just in his first year actually playing on the team. Bleacher report indicates Quinn and Rasheed are mercurial and may not be the best selection as floor leaders even though both will play a lot and suggest Amile as the best choice for captain and to show leadership on the floor. For those who imagine different lineups, that would mean Amile being on the floor for 30+ minutes.

They imagine that having Jahlil will cover some of our defensive lapses at guard. They mention in particular Quinn's penchant for gambling on steals. Perhaps that is true unless we build up the fouls on the kid, who will be raw at this level. Nowhere was there a mention of reconsidering the defense. Both Virginia and UCONN played a form of pack line and it worked for them. They let their quick guards cover the 3 point shooters while staying more compact on defense. We go man for man and use our bigs out on the hedge way out from the basket. Will coach K even consider altering what worked in the past to cover our biggest weakness last season?

The early guesses on team placement next year rank us at #5 and UNC at #4. Our rankings are dependent on who leaves. If Jabari and/or Rodney return our ranking would improve. It was an interesting article and I won't give a link since it is available under Duke news

Those hedges make me nuts. Seeing MP3 out beyond the 3 point line for a millisecond, then rushing back under the basket seems like a ridiculous strategy. I'm sure there's rationale for it out there somewhere, but lord, it is beyond me. I know we've all been inundated with pieces about MP3 assets, but all of them involve being no more than 8 feet from the basket at any moment.

[kAzE]

Those hedges make me nuts. Seeing MP3 out beyond the 3 point line for a millisecond, then rushing back under the basket seems like a ridiculous strategy. I'm sure there's rationale for it out there somewhere, but lord, it is beyond me. I know we've all been inundated with pieces about MP3 assets, but all of them involve being no more than 8 feet from the basket at any moment.

Marshall is actually one the better hedgers we've had in a long time. He's very mobile, which allows him to get out, disrupt the screen play, and recover pretty quickly before the screener can get open. He's also the only guy on the team last year that successfully "blitzed" a screen, meaning he actually beat the screener to the ball handler, and forcing a turnover with a double team. I'm more worried about Okafor, who isn't as quick, than Plumlee when it comes to hedging screens.

[CDu]

Marshall is actually one the better hedgers we've had in a long time. He's very mobile, which allows him to get out, disrupt the screen play, and recover pretty quickly before the screener can get open. He's also the only guy on the team last year that successfully "blitzed" a screen, meaning he actually beat the screener to the ball handler, and forcing a turnover with a double team. I'm more worried about Okafor, who isn't as quick, than Plumlee when it comes to hedging screens.

I agree with you on that. Okafor's ability to hedge and recover are of substantive concern to me.

I think the bigger change (and it is more of a tweak than a change) would be to dial back the ball pressure on the perimeter. This would do a few things:
1. It would lessen the need for our bigs to hedge 25 feet from the basket (those ball screens would be happening at the 3pt line rather than 5 feet beyond the 3pt line);
2. It would greatly reduce our defensive spacing issues (screens happening closer to the basket mean defenders are closer in proximity to one another); and
3. It takes some pressure off of our perimeter defenders, as they don't have to work quite as hard to continually stay in front of their man.

Now, the downside is that we might be a bit more susceptible to the 3pt shot. But that's only a maybe. In 2010, we dialed back on the perimeter pressure but still held opponents to a low percentage. It's more a matter of closing out on shooters and allowing the NBA threes to go a bit less contested.

[tommy]

They don't mention it because it has pretty much no chance of happening. The pack line is not a panacea. It's not easy to play and has as many potential issues as Coach K's man defense. Also similar to K's defense, the pack line more or less requires you play it all the time, and there's both no way and no reason Coach K would go that route at this point in his career.

This is what I don't get, Kedsy. I don't care so much about the pack line, but with regard to Coach K's man-to-man, what is it about that defense that you see that is so uniquely difficult that it requires the team to play it all the time? Yes, there is switching involved, but these kids have been playing basketball close to every day of their lives for many years already, so I don't think executing a switch is so foreign to them. Hedging is involved, obviously, and that may be a new skill for many in college ball to master, OK. But it's not so, so amazingly difficult, is it? Perimeter guys extending ball pressure isn't so difficult intellectually, is it? Inside and wing guys being in position to deny passes is something they've been taught for years at every clinic and basketball camp they've ever been to. So I guess I just don't understand what, from an intellectual or comprehension standpoint, is so much more difficult about Coach K's defense than lots of other defenses. Any thoughts?

Moreover, why would Duke's defense require that it be the only defense the team plays, when so many other teams are able to teach and implement multiple defenses, that then give their coaches at least a couple of more options depending on opponent and game situation? Coach K is a tremendous teacher, we know that. I don't understand why he and his staff couldn't (or won't) take even some time to teach a second or third defense -- even if it isn't given as much time as the primary defense -- as so many other coaches seem to be able to do.

I guess my doubting of the uniqueness of the intellectual challenge of understanding K's defense is why I attribute much of our defensive failings in the last couple of years to our lack of focus and intensity at that end of the floor. Our guys are plenty smart enough, they're plenty athletic enough (for the most part) and so that leaves me with issues of focus, effort, and intensity.

[rsvman]

I think Duke's current defensive approach is fundamentally flawed in the era of the new "rules emphases."

Let me explain. I think the system works when it truly disrupts the flow of the opposing team's defense, leading to disorganized offensive sets or steals with easy fast-break layups. When it breaks down, it works when players driving the lane out of control can be stopped by drawing a charge call (makes the possession into a turnover). In the past, when touch fouls on the perimeter were seldom called, and a majority of the out of control drives were called as charges, the defense was very effective.

If the current approach to calling perimeter fouls (i.e., calling lots of meaningless touch fouls outside) and block/charge calls (i.e., the vast majority of the block/charge calls being called as blocks) continues, the Duke defense as it is currently run will continue to be a liability.

It is on the coaching staff to adapt to the way the referees are currently calling the game.



(By the way, if you are going to use the hedge, I think the way Marshall does it is pretty much the best way it can possibly be done. Hedging without really disrupting the flow of the offensive player is a waste of time and nothing but a liability. The weak hedge is at least partially responsible for our loss to Mercer. The pick and roll can be executed very easily when a hedge is attempted but not really committed to.)

[johnb]

Those hedges make me nuts. Seeing MP3 out beyond the 3 point line for a millisecond, then rushing back under the basket seems like a ridiculous strategy. I'm sure there's rationale for it out there somewhere, but lord, it is beyond me. I know we've all been inundated with pieces about MP3 assets, but all of them involve being no more than 8 feet from the basket at any moment.

Just to follow up on this... it seems like we rely on this tactic more than any other team that I watch. I don't know how disruptive it is to have a 7 footer charge to the top of the key to slow down a 6 foot PG, but I almost always just feel relieved that our post guy makes it safely back to the paint without hurting himself or getting a foul. At the same time, the other team's point guard doesn't seem to be able to find his presumably open center, so maybe it's a wash, but I'm wondering if other people see it as a particularly successful move.

[Troublemaker]

Just to follow up on this... it seems like we rely on this tactic more than any other team that I watch. I don't know how disruptive it is to have a 7 footer charge to the top of the key to slow down a 6 foot PG, but I almost always just feel relieved that our post guy makes it safely back to the paint without hurting himself or getting a foul. At the same time, the other team's point guard doesn't seem to be able to find his presumably open center, so maybe it's a wash, but I'm wondering if other people see it as a particularly successful move.

Hedging is standard for a man-2-man defense against ball screens. You can turn on any basketball game -- college, NBA, international -- and if you see a ball screen being set against m2m, you will see the big man on defense hedge-and-recover most of the time; sometimes you might see the big man switch onto the guard instead. Duke's hedges sometimes occur very far from the basket and maybe that's why it sticks out in your mind that we do it more than other teams, but everyone that plays m2m hedges.

[MCFinARL]

Jefferson as a captain is an interesting idea. He's a solid guy, and it seems likely he will be on the court a lot of minutes next year IF Jabari leaves and Myles Turner goes elsewhere.

But I don't think I would be so quick to dismiss Quinn Cook as a captain. It could be the best possible thing for him in terms of helping him stay focused and keep his cool. It's obviously hard to get a read on these things from a great distance, but it has often seemed to me that Quinn has never really had the full confidence of the coaches, even when getting long minutes that would suggest otherwise. Perhaps his sometimes inconsistent play makes this understandable, but this can be a vicious circle. Not making Quinn a captain, when he is the only senior on the squad, would send a potentially damaging message. On the other hand, saying to Quinn, "you're our guy; you may need to adapt your playing role to complement Tyus but we need your leadership in the locker room and on the court, and we know you can bring it" could have a transformative effect.

[CDu]

Jefferson as a captain is an interesting idea. He's a solid guy, and it seems likely he will be on the court a lot of minutes next year IF Jabari leaves and Myles Turner goes elsewhere.

But I don't think I would be so quick to dismiss Quinn Cook as a captain. It could be the best possible thing for him in terms of helping him stay focused and keep his cool. It's obviously hard to get a read on these things from a great distance, but it has often seemed to me that Quinn has never really had the full confidence of the coaches, even when getting long minutes that would suggest otherwise. Perhaps his sometimes inconsistent play makes this understandable, but this can be a vicious circle. Not making Quinn a captain, when he is the only senior on the squad, would send a potentially damaging message. On the other hand, saying to Quinn, "you're our guy; you may need to adapt your playing role to complement Tyus but we need your leadership in the locker room and on the court, and we know you can bring it" could have a transformative effect.

Yeah, I would find it fairly odd if our only recruited senior was not named a team captain. Especially when none of the other upperclassmen are clearly better options.

[gumbomoop]

.... it has often seemed to me that Quinn has never really had the full confidence of the coaches, even when getting long minutes that would suggest otherwise. Perhaps his sometimes inconsistent play makes this understandable, but this can be a vicious circle. Not making Quinn a captain, when he is the only senior on the squad, would send a potentially damaging message. On the other hand, saying to Quinn, "you're our guy; you may need to adapt your playing role to complement Tyus but we need your leadership in the locker room and on the court, and we know you can bring it" could have a transformative effect.

Having posted previously on Quinn's "compelling" story-line next season, I second MCFinARL's point here. I mostly approve Krzyzewski's tough love approach -- "It's not personal, it's the truth" -- and so am particularly interested in whether our only senior can become something he has not heretofore been, an emotionally steadying force.

Many times I heard it said by commentators that Thornton's voice dominated. Did it occur to Quinn that he didn't command that kind of respect? How did he feel about being not quite "the PG at Duke" that he had expected to be? How did he feel on hearing from K "the truth" that he's a shooting guard?

Like MCFinARL, I hope to see a transformed Quinn Cook. His appointment as captain might indicate the staff sees a new Quinn in October, and/or it might help to transform him into a new voice. The team can't afford a fragile Quinn Cook. Wojciechowski's euphemistic description was that "Quinn is a big personality." Less euphemistically, the team very much needs Quinn to be a consistently dependable, steadying force.

Preferably, and maybe necessarily, as captain.

[Troublemaker]

I would be very surprised if Quinn isn't named a captain. That doesn't mean he has to be a starter (see Hairston) or be THE on-court leader in the predominant lineup, but he should be A leader on the team. The lone senior who shows leadership and a good attitude will very likely become a captain. My gut says Amile will become a captain as well. (Also, I don't think a freshman will become a captain, but it's possible someone like Tyus will be a leader without the captain designation.)

Also, re: the ball screen defense discussion from above, one thing I wanted to add is that Coach K's USA assistant Tom Thibodeau is considered a great defensive coach against ball screens (and isolations, and just offense in general).

The Bulls have been one of the teams in the NBA that have popularized defending ball screens by
(a) having the big man hedge low (i.e. sag)
(b) having the guard go over the screen and end up behind the driving ball-handler

Zach Lowe wrote an article on how Thibs does it here: http://grantland.com/features/the-chicago-bulls-coach-tom-thibodeau-quest-perfection/

I don't think Lowe mentions it in the article but this method of ball screen defense is usually referred to as "ice." Coach K and Thibs will have interesting discussions on ball screen defense this summer, and it's possible Coach K incorporates more "ice" into Duke's defense when he returns from Spain.

[MarkD83]

Just to follow up on this... it seems like we rely on this tactic more than any other team that I watch. I don't know how disruptive it is to have a 7 footer charge to the top of the key to slow down a 6 foot PG, but I almost always just feel relieved that our post guy makes it safely back to the paint without hurting himself or getting a foul. At the same time, the other team's point guard doesn't seem to be able to find his presumably open center, so maybe it's a wash, but I'm wondering if other people see it as a particularly successful move.

My problem is when Dukes big men hedge most of the time it looks like they are setting a pick on their teammate or are just going through the motions. My thought is the point of the hedge is make the guard change directions or at the very least push him out to the half court line.

[rsvman]

My problem is when Dukes big men hedge most of the time it looks like they are setting a pick on their teammate or are just going through the motions. My thought is the point of the hedge is make the guard change directions or at the very least push him out to the half court line.

I wouldn't say most of the time, but some of the time it looks like this.

As I have mentioned before, the way Marshall plays the hedge it seems very effective. The opposing point guard is sometimes forced almost into the backcourt. He has no chance of hitting his center with the pass because he can't see anything and is forced into a hectic situation in which the principal concern becomes protecting the ball.

Jefferson sometimes throws out that "going through the motions" hedge, and it can be very detrimental. In the Mercer game one of those half-hearted hedges was a turning point, in my opinion. There was about 2 minutes (give or take) remaining. The Mercer point guard (a talented senior, by the way) came off the screen only to be "met" by Jefferson's weak hedge. The hedge didn't slow him down at all; in fact, he turned the corner exactly where he had been planning to go. Meanwhile, Jefferson's man was already rolling to the basket. No weakside help had rotated. The point guard threw a perfect pass to the center, and he made an uncontested lay-up.

The scary part is that I saw the play unfolding in my mind before it even happened. I saw the halfway hedge and then all the dominoes fell one by one in my mind before they happened on my television screen.

I agree with you entirely that a team has to make a choice: hedge hard, or don't hedge at all. Virginia does a "fake hedge," wherein the big guy comes out there and "shows" like he's going to hedge, but then does not. He and the guard together form kind of a barrier against penetration; it almost turns into a mini-trap zone for a brief second. It seems quite effective to me. I wish Coach K would consider this approach for next year, at least from time to time, to keep the offenses honest.

[GGLC]

This is what I don't get, Kedsy. I don't care so much about the pack line, but with regard to Coach K's man-to-man, what is it about that defense that you see that is so uniquely difficult that it requires the team to play it all the time? Yes, there is switching involved, but these kids have been playing basketball close to every day of their lives for many years already, so I don't think executing a switch is so foreign to them. Hedging is involved, obviously, and that may be a new skill for many in college ball to master, OK. But it's not so, so amazingly difficult, is it? Perimeter guys extending ball pressure isn't so difficult intellectually, is it? Inside and wing guys being in position to deny passes is something they've been taught for years at every clinic and basketball camp they've ever been to. So I guess I just don't understand what, from an intellectual or comprehension standpoint, is so much more difficult about Coach K's defense than lots of other defenses. Any thoughts?

Moreover, why would Duke's defense require that it be the only defense the team plays, when so many other teams are able to teach and implement multiple defenses, that then give their coaches at least a couple of more options depending on opponent and game situation? Coach K is a tremendous teacher, we know that. I don't understand why he and his staff couldn't (or won't) take even some time to teach a second or third defense -- even if it isn't given as much time as the primary defense -- as so many other coaches seem to be able to do.

I guess my doubting of the uniqueness of the intellectual challenge of understanding K's defense is why I attribute much of our defensive failings in the last couple of years to our lack of focus and intensity at that end of the floor. Our guys are plenty smart enough, they're plenty athletic enough (for the most part) and so that leaves me with issues of focus, effort, and intensity.

I'd be interested in responses to this post; I've struggled with the same questions myself.