Detroit – The playoff series is often like chess matches, with both coaches trying to fight or adapt to what the other is doing.
A decision by the coach of the Pistons JB BickerStaff has quickly exposed a weakness of the Knicks so far.
BickerStaff has chosen to have the durable guard of the Jalen Josh Hart center in defense instead of the cities of Karl-Anthony.
In turn, Hes, Tobias Harris, a listing wing in 6 feet 8, Guard Towns.
That has allowed camping in painting and protecting the edge or acting as a floating aid defender, to double Jalen Brunson and cities when they have the ball.
“When they do that, it’s different,” Brunson said. “It doesn’t matter who is in whom. We have to attack what we see is an advantage for us.
“We have the maximum confidence in this team. The situations that people wear are not matter. We are going to sit there, we will have their backs and we will move on. We go to Gonnannan together.”
Take routinely leaving Hart, the 3 -point shooter of the Knicks among the headlines (fired 33 percent from the deep of the regular season), even in the entire perimeter, and has not yet made him pay for it or respect his external shot.
It is real 2 for 3 of the deep of the series, which is tied 1-1 in Detroit, but does not have enough leg so that the pistons change their strategy.
In the four confrontations of the regular season between the two teams, the Pistons had largely guard cities, and the skill of 3 points of the cities meant that the last to leave and defend it in the perimeter, that a result opened space in the lane and is not his.
The cities were 7 of 16 from a range of 3 points in those four clashes, an average of four attempts per game. But faster Harris has been better to limit the 3 points of Towns, and Towns has only five tasks in the two games alone.
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The cities, which has 4 inches and 22 pounds in Harris, on the contrary, they should be able to intimidate Harris in painting.
He has succeeded when he enters the shots of 10 of 12 when he is less than eight feet from the basket, due to NBA.com follow -up statistics, which suggests that he needs more touches in the post.
But his shooting ability is what really makes it more valuable and a nightmare of confrontation, and so far it is not a leg used as such.
“I let the defense tell me [what to do]”Towns said.” Obviously, I’m always trying to get involved as much as possible. Whether I am in publication, I feel that I have worked tremendously in my game to have an external internal game, I think I tried it for the world and year. Just being aggressive, reaching places, I can do what I do best. ”
Coach Tom Thibodeau could counteract by giving McBride, who fired 36.9 percent from the range of 3 points in the regular season, more minutes with the headlines instead of Hart.
The Pistons could probably not go out with their own in McBride due to their shooting capacity.
And the four non -ceded headlines of the Knicks had only 160 possessions with McBride in the regular season, when cleaning the glass, but surpassed the opponents of 43.7 points per 100 possessions.
To the pistons. Getty images
But that also the Knicks in the Department of rebounds, where they have fought.
The Pistons have caught 15 rebounds more than the Knicks in the two games.
So, it is a difficult decision.
Pistons’s strategy is not unique either. Multiple teams had a duration of the Wings Guard Cities the regular season with its centers in Hart, to stop the shooting of the cities while exposing Harts, with mixed results.
“We have done it all year, so it is nothing new,” said Thibodeau. “Game 1 [we scored] 123 points. So we have to take each game, each game is different. What do you learn from the game? And then move it forward. ”
