Warriors strategy fails, thankfully; plus beating out the 8-Ball

Was very nice of Dwane to give the lads a day off yesterday, made a Grunt’s day a wee bit easier. But it also took away the chance to fill up this space with entirely HOTH-related stuff so …

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I am entirely conflicted over what I saw transpire out in Oakland last night in the part of the Magic-Warriors game I saw.

In case you missed it, and I feel asleep but I imagine the game went until about 3 a.m. Eastern time, the Warriors intentionally fouled and intentionally fouled and intentionally fouled Orlando’s Dwight Howard so much that Howard set an all-time NBA record with 39 free throw attempts.

He made 21, and the Magic won and Mark Jackson’s strategy failed. I think that’s a good thing.

Now, with Kwame Brown hurt and Andris Biedrins only lasting 21 minutes before fouling out, I guess I can understand why Jackson did it but it still rankles me a little bit.

I’m of the school of thought that you play the game the way the game’s supposed to be played, man against man, team against and you try to win on the merits of your personnel, not be cheapening up the game and making it a de facto one-man-free-throw contest. I’d rather Jackson had tried to devise some legitimate defence – various double- or triple-teams, maybe a zone, different looks on different possessions – than turn it into a wrestling match.

Might not have worked but would have been a bigger challenge to his players, and his own strategic abilities, than just hacking Howard incessantly.

Jackson’s explanation:

"I can understand people thinking, 'Why?' but don't get caught up in the free throws. Think about when we didn't foul him. It was dunks, hooks, at the rim. He's a great player. And he's a bad free throw shooter. Giving ourselves the best chance possible, we tried to mess up their rhythm, take their 3-point shooters out of it, which we did. They made plays."

They didn’t make plays, though, that’s the thing. Howard made free throws and that’s how the game was lost.

I most certainly hope this doesn’t become the norm around the league – can’t imagine that it will since it hasn’t yet – because that would take all the fun out of watching the Magic play.

And denying fans the fun of watching Turk is a bad thing, right?

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Mail? Please. Here.

Still unsure how the weekend’s going to unfold here – game tonight, early trip tomorrow (and this icy rain/snow sure wont’ disrupt a flight to O’Hare, will it?) and another game tomorrow – but there will be mail and you have to do your part.

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Eight Ball, Schmeight Ball

On this, the best professional football weekend of the year (I think we can make that claim after three of four games last week were dogs), we don’t need no stinking inanimate object to tell us who wins, right?

We’ve got it right here:

Saturday

New Orleans at San Francisco

Drew Brees against Alex Smith?

Not sure I see a contest here; and, yes, I know people have been underestimating the Niners all year because Smith gets no respect and the defence is great but not really memorable, is it?

Glad they’re playing in the afternoon, though, it’ll make the inevitable power outages at decrepit Candlestick or whatever they call it now less of an issue.

Saints; and I imagine they cover.

Denver at New England

If I remember correctly, the courtside monitors at the United Center are hooked up to cable so in the IGBT drags a bit, well, sorry.

Now, we all know The Power Of Tebow, right? And you may be struck down for suggesting that his time has run out but these are Tom Brady and Pats and even New England’s relatively atrocious defence isn’t weak enough for the Broncos to out-score New England. Right? Seriously. He can’t pull another miracle out, can he?

Pats, but don’t be surprised if Denver covers, it is Tebow, after all.

Sunday

Houston at Baltimore

Glad the flight to Atlanta from Chicago is mid-day, gives me a perfect excuse to give this one a pass.

Maybe you should, too.

Ravens, in a rout.

New York at Green Bay

Think we’ve all learned not to underestimate the ability of Eli Manning to do something magical in the fourth quarter.

Trouble is, the Packers are so good, Lambeau’s so intimidating and, well, Aaron Rodgers is Eli Manning Squared that by the fourth quarter, this one might be over.

Packers; don’t concern yourself with the line, take the over.

You’re welcome.

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Oh yeah, I don’t have a night off in Chicago (boo!) and know a handful of places in Boston for Tuesday but can someone help a guy out with some downtown suggestions in Atlanta?

The Marquis has a nice sports bar with good food and lots of TVs but I’ll listen to other suggestions since Sam hasn’t called to invite me over for dinner yet.

Thanks.

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You’ll notice there was no news about Andrea yesterday, as we expected, and he’s the ubiquitous “day to day.” We may find out this morning about his availability for tonight and perhaps the trip but I wouldn’t count on him playing.

So what do they do?

Well, seeing it’s Indy and Roy Hibbert and David West up front, maybe they go with Magloire and Amir Johnson instead of Davis and Johnson to get more bulk.

But I do think what we’re going to see for as long as Bargnani’s on the shelf is much more of Kleiza and James Johnson joining the front court rotation as power forwards.

Sure, they’ll be undersized but I think both of them have the savvy to get the job done well enough; what a prolonged Bargnani absence truly does is put a whole lot of pressure and responsibility on Ed Davis and it’ll be interesting to see how he reacts.

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Right after I close this umbrella I’m sitting under at my desk, I’m going outside to grab the neighbour’s black cat as it walks in front of me, step on all the sidewalk cracks as I go under the big ladder and get to my car.

Take that, Friday the 13th!

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Hey, you see this?

We’re baaaaaaack.

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Comments

[sb]

Nothing But 'Net!!!!! Wooohoooo!

[JHP]

Good Morning. Guess all the fouls on Howard are kind of a mark of respect. Worked against Shaq but I guess he's not Shaq. Since you're the man who' s the most beatup team at the moment ? I see MN has a few and would they be in contention?

Blogger's note: Today? Chicago might be on the list; haven't looked too closely

[Mike "Nothing But Backboard" D.]

In many of the games I've watched, the refs haven't needed the opposing coach's help to send superstar players to the FT line.

Great to see the return of Nothing But Net. Smith......for threeeeeeeeee!!!

[LeeZ]

Great piece in Grantland the other day, about your Toronto Raptors: http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/7450625/rafe-bartholomew-suffers-fate-worse-death-#8212-watching-wizards-raptors

[Sam]

Happy Friday the 13th Doug: Around October or November, you mentioned that Raps are looking for PG. Is Jamal Tinsley an option?

Blogger's note: They were, found one; guy named Anthony Carter

[sportschick]

You had a busy day writing yesterday! I agree, this season is going to be the season of the walking (limping?) wounded by the end. The guys who are *not* going to the allstar game are the lucky ones, as they get a few days off without any part of the circus.

As it happens, I was in Atlanta a couple of months ago, and was looking for a good place downtown, but due to events I attended, ended up eating midtown. Went to Ecco, and would recommend it if you find your way midtown. In their 'taste & share' category all of us loved the fried goat cheese!

http://www.ecco-atlanta.com/
40 7th Street NE Atlanta, GA 30306, United States
(404) 347-9555

[Tom]

Nice to see, "Nothing but Net". Missed it. Thanks Doug

[CC]

I have to disagree on you about hack-a-Howard Doug... if you can't shoot/you don't have the talent then you should not be in the game.. That's why i don't like Hockey. There are players who don't have the talent and skill but are still employed and use as fighters....

[Tim]

Put me down as another fan who's glad to see Nothing But Net return. It's great to see quality NBA coverage from a Canadian perspective.

[joeu]

"Nothing But Net is a weekly column running every Friday looking at some of the issues in the NBA."

That brought a smile. Nice touch.

[Peter]

Hey Doug, thanks for the blog and the Nothing but Net piece, looking forward to what's going to be in there over the course of the season.

I agree with you on the fouling of Howard. I think it's a bad tactic, and even if it wins you the game, is not in keeeping with the true meaning of sportsmanship.

Fortunately, Howard hit a few free throws, so it didn't really work. I also think Mark Jackson's response shows his immaturity as a coach slightly. Is this really the best way you could think of to keep Howard from dunking the basketball.

I would love it if the league started calling these kinds of fouls as flagrant 1's. I know they never will, but you could argue a lot of the fouls on Howard were unnecessary, which is the criteria for a flagrant 1. I know they probably will never call it that way, but if it becomes a problem for the league...

Thanks again Doug, keep up the great work!

[Lorie]

Hi Doug!
What a nice surprise on this Friday the 13th! (And you know, the scariest part about image was the date; please don't make me relive the year that was 2007!!!) Nothing But 'Net! Thank you for being so responsive to our need (demands? threats?) for even more NBA stuff. And I didn't see the Magic-Golden State game because I was watching - on TV!!! - my London Lightning play to another glorious victory over Moncton. So while I know you're a little tied up with blogging, IGBT-ing, Nothing But 'Net-ing and other Raptor stuff, but if you'd like to watch some entertaining basketball - and a team with a 17-4 record (in their inaugural season yet!) - you must make the trek to the John Labatt Centre. Maybe for playoffs? :) So, it's to work and I'm grabbing my shoes off the table while stirring my coffee with a knife while donning the opal earrings. Triskaidekaphobia? Ha!It best stay clear of me today!
Cheers! But with my fingers crossed. :)

[Cal Q. Less]

I disagree with you Doug. You strategize the game within the confines of the rulebook, to do whatever it takes to win the game. If that means exploiting a player's FT ability and minimizing his offensive talents, than so be it. I applaud Jackson for having the balls to engage in such a strategy. It may be boring, but it is not "illegitimate" in anyway.

And in my opinion, the strategy worked extremely well. To lose by 8 to the Orlando Magic speaks volumes on how this strategy can be improved and utilized further and perhaps more efficiently.

[Matt M]

Unfortunately some smartass statistician will look at that 21 of 39 and say something along the lines of "Howard makes 59% of his shots . Fouling Howard repeatedly means that you reduce that shooting % to 46% (his FT% for the season). This means that for every 20 shots where Howard is fouled you would expect Howard to score 18 points instead of 24". In a game where every advantage counts those six points will lead many coaches to say "blatantly fouling Howard when he is in close is the right thing to do". Howard only hit 53% of his free throws yesterday which still means he scored less points than you would expect if the Warriors did not foul him. From that perspective the strategy worked wonderfully. Reading Jackson's comments it seems like he expected Howard to score 75% of the time from in close, which means from his perspective fouling Howard was their only chance to win and the fouling strategy worked. I'm sure there are many coaches who would agree with him which means that if you don't want teams blatantly fouling him all the time then Howard needs to get his FT% above 60%.

[Peter]

Ouch. Howard scored 45 points, and pulled down 23 rebounds, and we don't even talk about his performance.

[Dave]

I liked your article on "Where are the 2006 NBA first-round picks now?". At the time there was a debate on whether LaMarcus Aldridge was better than Andrea? I think that is still a debate. Teams were afraid of Brandon's knees which led to his drop in the draft and time has proved the fear was justified. While he might have given the Raptors some short term success, I doubt if Bosh would have stayed when he could play with two stars in Miami.

With 20/20 hindsight, I think Andrea was a good choice as they could have made in a weak draft.

[Moshigh]

Im torn on the Hack a Howard...This is a dog eat dog world, if a coach has to use every legal strategy to try and win, then so be it. On the other hand is pretty bad for the fans and takes the air out of the game.

Dwignt just has to keep hitting the free throws so teams are incouraged to do so.

Raptors are in dying need of a SF..Butler,Klezia, Johnson cant get it done.. Dont mind if J Johnson stays because of his defense. But Klezia and Butler just add fuel to this fire called Raptors. Klezia may have a decent game here or there, but NO way should he be a starter.

Well it looks like the ones who want Raptors to loose a ton of games will get there way. This team has very poor offensive talent. So bad not sure how much free pizza they will be giving away this year.

Lets Go San Fran and G-Men...

[Eric-in-NS]

Good to see Nothing but Net.
Didn't see a place for comments there, but hopefully it fits here.
Interested in your evaluation of NBL so far.
Local (Halifax) columnist gave the overall league a good passing grade:
http://thechronicleherald.ca/sports/51479-nbl-gets-mid-season-passing-mark

Blogger's note: Haven't seen much NBL lately; let me get through the hell of January with this team I cover and we'll do more.

[m]

" to loose a ton of games will get there way."
What does this mean? Language matters!

[m]

As much as the article dissed the Wizards, it barely mentioned the Raps at all. I don't know if that is good or bad.