Glenn
07-23-2007, 08:59 AM
Short, but fun.
http://msn.foxsports.com/nba/story/7048992
You mentioned the Pistons' "quick-hitting, cohesive team-offense" under Larry Brown in a recent article about free agent signings. It's funny, because while I also remember it being well-run, Larry Brown's Pistons never scored many points as a team. By contrast, the Pistons score significantly more under Flip, but their offense sometimes seems too out-of-synch. What gives? And which is/was the most effective? — Kevin, Munich
Brown's offense in Detroit featured perpetual ball and player movement, usually keyed by the cuts, curls and pops of Rip Hamilton. While these movements were quick-paced, the offense was also patient. Sometimes, the Pistons' opponents were forced to play defense for 20 seconds — until eventually their concentration waned and the Pistons wound up with good looks (and not only for Hamilton).
At the other end, Detroit's defense was so ferocious that opponents had to resort to running their fourth and sometimes even fifth options on their workaday offenses. Frequently, the Pistons' defense was also able to totally disrupt the opponents' offensive schemes and squeeze offenses against the shot clock.
So it was a question of pace. Looking at Brown's last year in Detroit, and Flip's first year, it's instructive to notice that both the Pistons and their opponents took fewer shots under the former's regime than the latter's. This, of course, is not an ultimate statistic — just more of a flavor, so to speak.
Because more players were involved in Brown's offense, and there was less reliance on one-on-one play, there's no doubt that his offense was far superior to the your-turn-my-turn-his-turn offenses promulgated by Flip.
http://msn.foxsports.com/nba/story/7048992
You mentioned the Pistons' "quick-hitting, cohesive team-offense" under Larry Brown in a recent article about free agent signings. It's funny, because while I also remember it being well-run, Larry Brown's Pistons never scored many points as a team. By contrast, the Pistons score significantly more under Flip, but their offense sometimes seems too out-of-synch. What gives? And which is/was the most effective? — Kevin, Munich
Brown's offense in Detroit featured perpetual ball and player movement, usually keyed by the cuts, curls and pops of Rip Hamilton. While these movements were quick-paced, the offense was also patient. Sometimes, the Pistons' opponents were forced to play defense for 20 seconds — until eventually their concentration waned and the Pistons wound up with good looks (and not only for Hamilton).
At the other end, Detroit's defense was so ferocious that opponents had to resort to running their fourth and sometimes even fifth options on their workaday offenses. Frequently, the Pistons' defense was also able to totally disrupt the opponents' offensive schemes and squeeze offenses against the shot clock.
So it was a question of pace. Looking at Brown's last year in Detroit, and Flip's first year, it's instructive to notice that both the Pistons and their opponents took fewer shots under the former's regime than the latter's. This, of course, is not an ultimate statistic — just more of a flavor, so to speak.
Because more players were involved in Brown's offense, and there was less reliance on one-on-one play, there's no doubt that his offense was far superior to the your-turn-my-turn-his-turn offenses promulgated by Flip.