ATL East Semis - Boston @ Milwaukee (plans up)

[Sky]

Two legends square off as Kareem and the 2 seed Milwaukee Bucks host Larry Bird and the 3 seed Boston Celtics. Bucks coach Coville calls the rules.

[Critter]

Kareem vs. Bird

[Coville]

Old School Rules.

[Coville]

[rdog]

[img][/img]
_________________

[Sky]

Boston game plan vs. Milwaukee

INTRODUCTION - Scouting Report
Milwaukee has put together a really nice team with good balance between inside and outside between KJ and Moncrief and one of the most dominant big men of all time in Kareem.

KAJ is in my opinion, one of the greatest big men to ever play the game. Most Laker fans remember KAJ as the old man who through guile helped lead the Showtime Lakers. This is not that Kareem. This is the Kareem that was able to accomplish athletic feats not seen in a big man previously.

Kareem is assisted by KJ and Moncrief in the backcourt. KJ is a great penetration point guard and Moncrief can shut down an opposing two guard. While not much of a scorer, Moncrief built a reputation for shutting down the best player from the opponents back court. Cummings and Dandridge are nice complemetary forwards who specialize in mid range jumpers, a nice compliment to Kareem. Milwaukee’s bench has nice talent but is very small. I think that’s something I can take advantage of.

1. MINUTES

10-Man Rotation
1. Tiny Archibald – 32 Minutes
2. Mitch Richmond – 24 Minutes
3. Larry Bird – 34 Minutes
4. Dave Cowens – 24 Minutes
5. Robert Parish - 28 Minutes
6. Mo Cheeks – 20 Minutes
7. Andrew Toney – 16 Minutes
8. Connie Hawkins – 26 Minutes
9. Ben Wallace – 16 Minutes
10. Jerry Lucas – 20 Minutes

As Needed:
11 – Marvin Barnes – Athletic Scoring Punch
12 – T.R. Dunn – Defensive Backcourt Stopper

Inactive: Mike Bibby, Jerome Kersey, Wayman Tisdale


2. SETS
Percentages you expect for sets or units

Offense:
Triangle - 40%
Double Post – 20%
2-Man Game – 15%
Isolation – 10%
Open court transition 15%

Defense:
Man up – Helpside w/ Funnel to MIddle - 50%
Double Kareem w/ the 4 and 3 – 25%
Ball Hawk - 10%
Half court trap w/ tempo change lineup - 15%

3. OFFENSE
Game Plan

1. Establish Triangle Post play in order to take advantage of Bird and Cowens decision making along with the versatility of Parish who can pop out for mid-range jumper or post. This allows Bird to run the offense – like Pippen in Chicago with emphasis on pounding it in to the post . Also allows the frontcourt depth to attack Kareem down low. If you attack Kareem on offense, he’ll get tired and be less effective on the other end.

2. Use the frontcourt depth to pound at Kareem. Use the double post to keep pressure on the interior and allows for Boston’s good outside shooting bigs to pop and relieve pressure on the interior.

3. Play Larry Bird at the 4 at times throughout the game. Milwaukee doesn’t have the frontcourt size to punish us for going small. This allows HOFer Connie Hawkins to get more time and makes our lineup more athletic. Also has the added benefit of keeping our bigs fresh to attack Kareem on the other end. A platoon of fresh Parish, Cowens, Lucas and Wallace should help to slow Kareem. Finally, while not the strongest starter in the ATL, Dandridge is a good defender. One of Milwaukee’s tenets I’m sure will be that Dandridge will “lock down” Bird. While I think that is debatable, moving Bird to the 4 and Hawkins to the 3 helps negate that argument, if even for short bursts throughout the game

4. Use Up-tempo lineup of Tiny, Cheeks, Barnes, Hawkins and Wallace to look to change tempo when needed. Will also look to use this lineup with Bird at the 4 to keep the offense moving. Have to be careful in using this lineup too much in that the Bucks have a bunch of thoroughbreds with their starters. KJ, Moncrief are born to run and we must make sure that an uptempo lineup doesn’t play into their strengths.

5. Really look to exploit KJ in isolation. KJ, a dynamic point scorer, is not as effective on the defensive end. Have Tiny (and to a lesser extent Cheeks), continue to penetrate to tire KJ on the defensive end. Tiny is one of the most unstoppable little men to ever play. With the ability to both score and distribute, let’s keep KJ back on his heels.

If/Then:
If Triangle Post succeeds, keep pounding it in with Cowens and Parish, with Wallace, Hawkins and Lucas backing up. My biggest advantage on this team, besides Larry Bird, is my strong frontcourt depth. My guess that a quad of Cowen, Parish, Wallace and Lucas can overtake Kareem over the course of a 48 minute game.

If pounding in the frontcourt succeeds, really look to take advantage of KJ in the two man game when he is in the game. Tiny would be a terror in pick and roll situation with Bird, assuming KJ is in and either Dandridge, Cummings, Chambers or LJ is in the game. Tiny’s ability to penetrate and Legend’s ability to stop and pop, drive or distribute makes a pretty potent combo.

If putting Bird at the 4 succeeds, take advantage of Connie Hawkins athleticism and freshness to attack the Bucks on the offensive end. I’m not planning on using Bird as a decoy but if Milwaukee gears to shutdown Larry, Connie presents a whole new set of problems. While I don’t see this as being a huge part of our gameplan, I think it creates a nice change of pace that could be effective.


4. DEFENSE
Game Plan

1. Most important point to make. Pound Kareem, keep him out of spots where he’s comfortable and get in his head. I’m sure everyone remembers how potent a weapon the skyhook was. If you push Kareem out of his 4-7 foot comfort range, his effectiveness goes down exponentially. Kareem is very agile, but not overly strong. Our lineup is loaded with strong players such as Parish, Wallace, Cowen and Lucas who can succeed in not allowing Kareem to get to his comfort areas. This doesn’t mean locking down Kareem, it means his ability to score is taxed, expending more energy and cutting his efficiency on the offensive end.

Also, Kareem’s got a little bit of a temper. Remember Kent Benson. We’ll be just a little more physical than normal to try and bait Kareem. I think Lucas would be prefect in this role. An angry Kareem is not an effective Kareem. We’ll use the toughness of the old school rules to keep Kareem on edge.

2. The Bucks don’t have a great distributor running the team. KJ has good assist numbers but anybody who watched him knows that he was a shoot-first point guard and much of his assists came from dribble penetration and not pure setup basketball. In that sense, he doesn’t fit really well with Kareem. I would play off of KJ and force him to shoot outside while handchecking to keep him out of the lane. This makes him a standard point guard rather than a penetrating point guard, thus limiting his effectiveness. If KJ isn’t running the offense, then the duties fall to Moncrief, not his strongest suit. If we can succeed in effectively keeping KJ out of the lane, this will severely limit their offensive capabilities.

3. We are going to use our depth to keep our defenders fresh. Quality depth is one of our biggest strengths. We’ll keep the defensive pressure on with the idea of being physical.

If/Then:

1. If Kareem continues to get his despite physical play and platooning, we’ll double on him from the 2 or the 3. This will leave us vulnerable to the outside shot from Moncrief and Dandridge but if Kareem is dominating despite our plans, I’d rather have Dandridge beat us than Kareem.

2. If KJ is still able to get in the lane, bring in Cheeks to try and slow him down. If he’s knocking down too many shots from the outside, I’d put in Tiny and Cheeks and shade off of Moncrief to get the ball in his hands. If that doesn’t work, let KJ drive the lane and Ben Wallace or Jerry Lucas can put him on his back. KJ may be less responsive to driving if he knows he’ll pay for it. Our depth allows us to do this.


5. CLOSING
Final five minutes lineup.

1. Tiny
2. Richmond
3. Bird
4. Cowens
5. Parish

Final five minutes emphasize execution. Celtics as currently constructed are one of the most intelligent and disciplined teams in the ATL. 2 MVPs in Bird and Cowen. 4 Top 50 HOFers. Offensively, we’ll make every late game possession count using Triangle Post, two man game and isolation when applicable. If Kareem is tired, pound with the Triangle Post. Really look to the two man game with Tiny and Bird when a basket is essential. Finally, when all else fails, look to Tiny to isolate and hit the big shot or make the big pass.

On Defense, we should be the freshest team for the final five minutes. Kareem has been dragging players up and down the floor all night and our defensive strategy is built for taking advantage of that freshness. Take the ball out of KJ’s hands and make Moncrief the playmaker. Double on Kareem at critical times, forcing the ball to Cummings or Dandridge. Keep the defensive pressure on by being flawless on offense.

6. IN CASE OF EMERGENCY
If everything falls apart, I’m going to look to Tiny to isolate and take KJ one-on-one. Tiny was as close to unstoppable in 1973 as any little man in NBA history. By isolating Tiny on their point, it puts pressure on them and allows Tiny to drive and either dish or create his own shot. With Mitch or Toney at the two and Legend at the 3 with rebounders like Lucas, Cowens, and Ben in the front court, this could be a nice outlet to get us out of trouble.

If that doesn’t work, I put the ball in Larry’s hands and let him operate. I’d put him on the low block and either let him school Dandridge down low or wait for the double to find the open man. This could be a good option for Richmond to get some open looks. When in doubt, trust Larry.

7. CRYSTAL BALL
I think that Milwaukee will make Kareem the focal point of the offense. If he doesn’t make Kareem the focal point, then their most dominant weapon has been neutralized. They’ll post Kareem with KJ penetrating with Moncrief taking a complementary role and Dandrige and Cummings hitting mid range jumpers to complement Kareem. If their gameplan differs materially from that, then the Bucks aren’t using their most effective weapons.

Milwaukee may try to use his bench in a way to offset my depth but I just don’t buy that it. I’ve got too much depth and this will play right into our hands. 1-10, I’ve got better depth.

8. WHY WE WIN

We win because this team has superior talent and depth and a gameplan that fits their talent. I think the Celtics have arguably the best depth of HOF talent in the frontcourt with no real weaknesses in the backcourt. While Kareem is one of if not the best big man to play the game, my platoon of HOF and DPOY big men will wear him down over 48 minutes. A 72-73 Kareem is a scary proposition. Unfortunately for the Bucks, I think the Celtics match up better than anyone to the Bucks.

I think the Celtics have a great gameplan, superior talent 1-10 and I’ve got Larry Bird. So I got that going for me.

[Sky]

Milwaukee game plan vs. Boston

Introduction:
Boston has a talented squad built around offense. Not much else to say, they have plenty of firepower, but Bird and Cowens are both defensive liabilities. Having no true defensive stoppers on their squad will cause them problems, as I see them having trouble stopping anyone on the court. Outside of Parish, he has no real size; Lucas, Cowens, Wallace are all small, especially when going up against Kareem.

My team will exploit his defensive liabilities, Kareem will get his, but this game will be won by attacking with the supporting cast exploiting Bird and Cowens. We will see Kevin Johnson take a bigger role in this game and Moncrief invest his energy into shutting down his opponent. We will pound the ball inside, wearing down Parish, which will open up opportunities for the rest of my squad who will be running a variety of plays to wear down their defenders.

Minutes:
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – 47 mpg
Center – 47 mpg
Sidney Moncrief – 38 mpg
Shooting Guard – 38 mpg
Kevin Johnson – 39 mpg
Point Guard – 39 mpg
Bobby Dandridge – 36 mpg
Small Forward – 30 mpg
Terry Cummings – 37 mpg
Power Forward – 37 mpg
Tom Chambers – 18 mpg
Small Forward – 12 mpg
Michael Redd – 10 mpg
Shooting Guard – 10 mpg
Larry Johnson – 12 mpg
Power Forward – 11 mpg
Center – 1 mpg
Mookie Blaylock – 9 mpg
Point Guard – 9 mpg

Sets:

Offense:
70% Half Court Set
20% Open Court Transition
10% Pick and Roll

Defense:
70% Man
30% Full Court Pressure

Offensive Gameplan:
1. Run Early, Wear out the other team. With Kareem sucking in rebounds he kicks it down the floor to a breaking Moncrief, Johnson, and Dandridge wearing down Bird and co.

2. Once we’ve established our running game, switch to our clear precise half court game ran through Kareem. This team will have the same problem of stopping Kareem in half court as did UNC.

3. Exploit the pick and roll. When Chambers enters the game start running a weak side pick and roll between him and Kevin. Bird gets tired switching back and fourth and Chambers gets rolling.

If/Than:
1. If they stop our running game, we than switch to our half court. Our half court game isn’t dependent on our running game working.
2. If our half court offense works, we continue to run it. If it doesn’t, switch back to running. Highly doubt they can stop either one with their lack of D.
3. If the pick and roll does not work, scrap it. It isn’t a huge apart of the offense and we result back to our dangerous half court offense

Diagrams / Pictures:
Here is the picture of my half court offense.
http://img181.imageshack.us/img181/5081/offensesp7.gif

The only difference is, when Kevin Johnson and Chambers is in the game, they will be running a pick and roll on the opposite side, Cummings up top for the mid range jumper, Kareem on the opposite low block for the dump off slam.

Defensive Gameplan:
1. Moncrief will be guarding Tiny. We feel having him guard Tiny up and down the court will not only slow down their offense, but cause a lot of turnovers by forcing the ball into Richmonds hands, who has turnover problems himself with a horrible turnover assist ratio (3.1:3).

2. Full Court Pressure, We feel we have a much quicker, faster, and more athletic team. Applying full court pressure should create a lot of turnovers. Pressure D from Moncreif should force Tiny into giving up the ball to Bird, who than has to deal with Dandridge hounding him.

3. Kareem mans up Parish. Parish may have a solid mid range. Kareem can handle him. Of course, Kareem shades inside, protecting the basket.
4. Dandridge covers Larry Bird the entire time he is in.

If/Than:
1. If Richmond burns Kevin Johnson, we switch Moncrief back on to him. Moncrief will guard whoever is making the biggest offensive impact. Quick adjustments on the fly. We feel though, the offensive touches will be going through Tiny and Larry.

2. If they are able to break the full court press, we fall back into our man D. Kareem Shading the paint, Moncrief guarding their best offensive player, Dandridge covering Bird.

3. Kareem will man up Parish in the paint, but if he goes to a pick and pop with Larry he only respects it if he is hitting. If not I would rather him protect the basket. Giving up a long mid range shot is not a big deal for my squad, giving up easy high percentage lay ups is.

4. Dandridge should be able to cover Larry farely solid, if not we will send Larry a hard double with Cummings.

Closing
Final Five Minutes will be my starters. I have a complete and solid starting 5. We will execute our game plan, putting the game on Kareem’s shoulders. Figure this, in the final five minutes; Kareem will be working the inside on a tired Parish, or an undersized Ben Wallace or Jerry Lucas. We exploit that to no end in that time, opening up shots for the rest of my team. On the other side of the ball we have 2 elite defenders to throw at Larry in the final 5. Moncrief and Dandridge will be hounding him in those minutes, Larry is dangerous in crunch time, but I think those two guys will give him enough problems to throw off his game.

In Case of Emergency
The biggest problem I see having is of course, Kareem getting into foul trouble. I think we should be fine, but if he doesn’t we go small and we run. We stick Larry Johnson at the 5, and push the ball. Tiring out Parish we force him to bring in his undersized big men, who should match up perfectly. But still, Kareem gets in foul trouble, we run them off the court.

Crystal Ball
Hard to say, I don’t think he does anything very surprising. Double Kareem of course, but look what happened to UNC. He will put the ball into Larry’s hands in the half court set and expect him to run things. Dandridge will give him problems and Moncrief is locking his point guard down.

Why We Win
We win because Kareem dominates. We also run the ball, forcing them to get up and down the court faster, expending more energy into that. Kareem doesn’t get tired though; in that time he is just rebounding and tossing it down to Kevin Johnson and Moncrief, two speed demons who will run anybody off the court. We win because Dandridge gives Bird problems and we lock down his only other playmaker, we win because his lack of size. We win because you cannot stop Kareem and he can play the entire game. If you try to stop him, you get burned by one of my other players.

In the end, it’s a hopeless effort for Boston, they try to run the triangle, but pressure defense breaks it up. They try to d up with us, but they don’t have the personnel. In the end it’s a tough match up for Boston. Not much what they can do other than play their game and watch as we not only stop it, but expand ours to get an easy win.

[Sky]

ATL East Semis

Boston @ Milwaukee

1

Bucks Plan: strong points
Commitment to Kareem in the half court
Nice spacing and positioning on basic half court set
Nice plan to use Chambers / KJ in P&R
Full court pressure with deep athletic backcourt is smart

Bucks Plan: weak points
Understand playing Kareem 47 minutes but he fades at the end
Assuming Bird & Cowens are liabilities on D
Celts have no stoppers on D? – Cheeks / Wallace
Running game as #1 option depends entirely on Kareem’s rebounding
Kareem as dominant as against UNC? - What about Parish?
Decision to use Moncrief on a quicker Tiny also leaves KJ on Richmond?
Assumption that a 47 minute Kareem is fresher at the end than 28 minute Parish

Celtics Plan: strong points
Commitment to attack Kareem and wear him down
Focus on frontcourt depth to expose Bucks shallow bench
Bird at 4 spot works with no dominant Buck PF defender
Attacking KJ with Tiny ISO & Bird-Tiny P&R
Pushing Kareem out of his sweet spot
Decision to play KJ for drive and give him the J
Decision to double Kareem and let Dandridge beat him

Celtics Plan: weak points
Only 34 minutes for Bird

It is hard to vote against a prime Kareem in any playoff situation. In this case the issue for the Bucks is that their lack of ANY backup for Kareem forces him to play the entire game against a far deeper and fresher Celtics frontcourt. Kareem also suffers from not having either of his two championship playmakers in Big O or magic with him to get him the ball where he likes it. The Celts have an excellent gameplan and take advantage of their strengths and the Bucks weaknesses. If Kareem had even one solid frontcourt partner I might have gone the other way though. Celts pull away at end against a fading Kareem. Celtics by 8

Boston 1-0

2

Kareem. A name that no opposing coach wants to hear. Unfortunatley for Boston, there's no real defensive answer for him, and IF he does get taken out of the game Milwaukee's tremendous cast can come through. Kareem dominating along with one of the best wing defenders on Bird isn't what Boston wants - because in the end it will result in a loss. Milwaukee wins.

Tied 1-1

3

Very interesting game again...

Boston

positive

of course the triangle....absolutely taylormade for this roster. also good variation on their offensive sets trying to impliment more tactics to not be too predictable. also the focus to stop Kareem on D is commendable. the high rotation helps defensively because there are fresh players.

negative

the big rotation hurts offensively.....Bird, Cowens should not play a combined 60 but at least 80 minutes. I don´t understand why people use such wild rotations for defensive purposes and forget that the offense gets disrupted.

Milwaukee

can´t do much wrong with the game plan...this team is build in order to play the way they do and the GM has done a good job to establish their style of play...30% full court press sounds too much especially when you have all starters play heavy minutes.

game

well it will be a close game for sure...these are 2 of the top teams in this conference and have great quality...but I have to give Milwaukee the edge at the end of the day simply because I feel Kareem was absolutely impossible to stop early in his career and Milwaukee provides better defense than Boston.

close win tho...4 point win for the Bucks.

Milwaukee 2-1

4

I think Milwaukee made a mistake in establishing the running game early. From memory Kareem doesnt like to run and making your biggest weapon into the second focus of your offense is not good. Establishing the running game then going halfcourt with Kareem? WOW. Rule of engagement attack with your best strike. Kareem first then let all else fall into place. Boston's offense of using the triangle using Bird as playmaker at the wing like Pippen. Eliminates Tiny's as part of the offense. Boston just took out a scoring leader out of his arsenal, BUT Bird can make this offense work.

Confused about Milwaukee's offensive sets Halfcourt set will be 70% but he said he will start by trying to establish the running game. Bottom line they go 70% halfcourt they got Kareem. Kareem vs the Celtics would be great. Parrish with help can slow him down but bottom line you really can't stop Kareem.
Defensively, I'm not sold on Moncrief playing D on Tiny. Simply Tiny is way too quick for Moncrief. On the other side of the coin. Kareem can get the hook over EVERY Boston Player with ease. Key to stopping him will be the help defense and I just didnt see a good double team plan from Boston. Not sold on Dandridge slowing Bird down

Celtics wins on a Bird Three pointer 98-95

Tied 2-2

5

Precedence has already been set for a dominant big to when over a dominant perimeter player with Milwaukee already and Boston receives the same fate. The Bucks were ready for what Boston came up with from the start, from the triangle, to Dandridge on Bird, and putting Moncrief on Tiny was a good move. Boston has talent inside but not enough size to punish Kareem on the other end.

Bucks win comfortably.

Milwaukee 3-2


6

Bird with minutes at 4 and in a 2-man game with Tiny is a smart wrinkle. Milwaukee makes this more effective by throwing away Moncrief’s defense in putting him on Archibald. Tiny is far too quick for that, Moncrief has no chance of staying with him. Archibald is one of the fastest players in league history and had a lethal crossover. So Tiny will be putting up huge numbers until Milwaukee adjusts.

Tiny’s big scoring run is offset by Kareem going off on the smaller Boston bench bigs. Lucas, Cowens and Wallace can piss Kareem off, they can deny his sweetspot now and then, but they are too short to defend the skyhook. As a result, being further out doesn’t have a big effect on KAJ, he still hits it consistently. What bothers Kareem is aggressive D with length (Thurmond, Wilt) - which Parish provides, but only in limited minutes.

Milwaukee’s plans to run are stopped by Boston’s big margin on the glass, and the Bucks plans for full court pressure don’t take Tiny’s speed or handles into account. Boston’s plans to make Kareem work on defense via frontcourt depth in the triangle doesn’t work because Ben can’t score and KAJ doesn’t have to work that hard to defend the tri against smaller players.

Pick and roll/pop with Chambers and KJ should work for the Bucks, attacking KJ on an island with Archibald and moving Hawkins to 3 will have some success for the Celts.

So neither team’s defensive plans work. Tiny and Kareem have big scoring runs, Bird gets his, the Bucks supporting cast plays off Kareem to get theirs, the game is tight going into crunch time, slight lead for Milwaukee.

The Bucks turn to Kareem to close and take them home. The Boston strategy of multiple guys at Kareem hasn’t worked all game long, but now it pays dividends in an unexpected way. The bench bigs didn’t stop Kareem, but they did allow Parish to rest while Kareem played. Entering crunch time, Parish has only played 23 minutes to Kareem’s 42, nearly half. As a result, Parish gives Kareem trouble man up, a well rested tough aggressive defender forcing KAJ further from the hoop and with the length to challenge the skyhook. Kareem falters in crunch time. Milwuakee finally puts Moncrief on Bird, but after chasing Tiny around for too long and going hard in full court pressure Moncrief’s legs are fading. Bird hits the money shots late while Kareem doesn’t. Celtics win a nailbiter.

Tied 3-3

7

Boston
Strengths
Well balanced lineup with a lot of depth.
Good move to put Bird at four at times.

Weaknesses
Asking Bird to play the initiator in the triangle. While an excellent passer, Larry is not a ballhandler.
Spread the minutes so much that some starters won't be able to reliably get their game going.

Milwaukee
Strengths
Skyhook from the captain. Nuff said.

Weaknesses
47 minutes on Kareem? That's too much particularly with the level of depth the frontcourt of the opposing team has.
Other starters loggin heavy minutes.

Summary
Milwaukee establishes a big lead as KAJ is unstoppable all around the court. Couple this with Boston's spreading the minutes too much and Bird playing the initiator and the Celtics offense sputters on and off with Bird and Tiny the only reliable scorers on court. Towards the end of the game, the Celtics grab the lead as the Bucks starters sputter due to exhaustion. Celtics win by eight.

Boston wins the game 4-3 and advances to the eastern conference finals.

[Coville]

Congratz Boston, you did a great job.

I wish I could have put more time into everything and I know people recognized the lack there of and I am sorry for that. Things have been coming down on me like a ton of bricks lately, but than again...no excuses right? heh.

Thanks all for voting and good luck in the next round Rdog.

[KB24@CL]

surprising to say at least....Boston survived...congrats to both
_________________


"It is not how big you are, it is how big you play"
"Basketball doesn't build character. It reveals it"
"Be strong in body, clean in mind, lofty in ideals"

[rdog]

Coville,

You had a great team and a great gameplan and I feel very lucky to get by you. Thanks for the great competition and the well wishes.
_________________

[TIME]

Wow, tough hard fought game. Congrats rdog!

I feel for you Coville, after investing so much in the game to not have time to fully prepare sucks. Good season for you though.
_________________
"All men having power ought to be distrusted to a certain degree."
James Madison, at the Constitutional Convention, 1787