|
NBA Playoffs: The dogs are barking!
By: Big Al McMordie
Al McMordie
is the most honored technical handicapper
in the country. In 2004, Al won the
most prestigious handicapping contest
in Las Vegas - The Stardust Invitational.
In the last 14 years, Big Al has garnered
31 NUMBER ONE awards.
- It's not your imagination: The dogs
are barking in the second round of
the NBA Playoffs. And loudly. After
the favorites had a slight edge in
the first round of 23-18-2 against
the spread, the underdogs have been
on a tear in round two, covering 9
of the first 12 games. Throw in the
fact that the favorites lost 6 of
those games straight up, and it's
been the round of the dogs.
In the first
three games of the Spurs/Mavericks
series, the dog covered all three.
Two of the three games were decided
by a bucket, each coming down to the
final possession.
Defense and adjustments
have been the biggest factors. After
the Suns played their usual run-and-gun
style in Game 1, beating the Clippers
130-123, the Clippers changed strategy
for Game 2, slowing the pace down
and pounding the ball into the low
post. The result was a huge edge in
rebounding, 57-26, and holding the
Suns to just 97 points. The reasons
were clear: At that point, the Suns
were 0-4 in the playoffs when scoring
under 100.
But the Suns
adapted nicely in Game 3, surprising
the Clippers by playing a slower,
defensive game. Their main strategy
was to attack the defensive boards
on every drive or missed shot by the
Clippers. The plan was obvious: No
lay-ups! That's what had killed them
in Game 2 and the results were stark
in Game 3 as the rebounds were almost
even. Oh, and the Suns won despite
scoring only 94 points.
After getting
mauled in the first two games (but
covering in Game 2 for our Game of
the Year Winner), the Cavaliers found
some defensive solutions in Game 3.
They keyed off improved aggressiveness
and defense, bringing in Flip Murray
to replace Larry Hughes. The Pistons
only shot 39.4 percent from the floor,
the best defensive performance from
the Cavaliers during the entire playoffs.
"This game was about defense
and effort for 48 minutes," Cleveland
HC Mike Brown said. "The first
half they had 14 fast-break points,
second half they had zero. We have
to continue that effort and that focus
on that end of the floor if we're
going to continue to win."
Knowing your
team needs to improve its defense
to win in the postseason is one thing.
Figuring out ways to make it happen
via matchups and adjustments is the
more difficult part. This is where
astute coaching comes in, and where
quality coaches earn their paychecks.
"We finally
decided we needed to execute on offense
and get some stops," LeBron James
pointed out about his team's turnaround
in Game 3. "I saw some creases
in the fourth quarter and I was able
to attack them and give ourselves
the opportunity to win the game."
Note to LeBron: Don't tell the opposition
what weaknesses you found!
One other point
about that series is the bench play.
Detroit coach Flip Saunders vowed
to use his bench more after Game 2,
but it didn't really transpire. Antonio
McDyess played 22 minutes (six points,
eight rebounds), but Lindsey Hunter,
Tony Delk and Maurice Evans combined
played less than 19. Hunter had a
couple of turnovers and three fouls
and the Cavs bench outscored the Pistons'
28-9. What a coach wants and is able
to do are sometimes two very different
things.
Finally, the
last word goes to Rasheed Wallace
who said, "Monday's the last
game here in this building for this
season." He said the same thing
after the Pistons lost Game 3 in Milwaukee
in the first round. We shall see if
Rasheed is a prophet, or a big mouth
who foolishly gave an explosive quote
to fire up the opposition. Regardless
of talk, the team that plays better
defense and makes some adjustments
usually comes out ahead, and that
includes those barking dogs!
Good luck, as
always...Al McMordie.
Big Al McMordie is a documented member
of The Professional Handicappers League.
Read more of his articles and get
his premium plays here.
| 
