The Lakers Jumping Out Too Far - Pick And Roll Issues (zach Lowe Piece)

'Ed Davis is the only speedy dude among the Lakers’ four rotation big men, but Byron Scott has these guys venturing out near the 3-point arc in a failed effort to contain pick-and-rolls. Good luck, Bob Sacre!







Carlos Boozer, Sacre, and Jordan Hill just aren’t capable of this; the Lakers’ league-worst defense would probably be better off if Scott adopted a more conservative style. Hill’s rim protection has been halfhearted, and the team’s starting lineup is getting absolutely torched.'

It seems as though Byron and the coaching staff are adjusting too this problem, though even it's a very slow adjustment.

 

'Yeah- to give you an idea of how the Lakers PnR defense has evolved this year, take a look at these clips.



Notice where Hill is standing on the 1st PnR, outside the FT line. He doesn't do terribly here, but unfortunately Kobe overcommits to stopping the long 2 from Duncan. Usually, he's even further up and the other team can go right by and into the paint. Then later in the same video, look where Duncan, as good a big man defender there is but playing the same scheme, standing inside the FT line to contain penetration.

So after they kept giving up penetration game after game, they misdiagnose the problem by changing to this:



Jumping way out to slow down the ball handler and then try to recover. The problem is that the roll man is free to go to the basket, forcing a rotation, and the bigs are too slow to recover anywhere.

Then finally in the last game, they get the right idea and sag Hill and Booz back under the FT line:


You only see Davis, as the most mobile big man, jumping out. Hill and Boozer now stay in the paint, so that the wings can stay at home on the shooters instead of helping in the paint and forcing impossible rotations.

So hopefully the defense improves from here. Just wish it didn't take them so many games to make an adjustment they should have made in preseason. My guess is they just didn't trust the analytics that said they should give up the long 2 in the PnR.'

I didn't write this or find the video...this is from another member from another forum; I asked is permission to use these...I liked them personally.

 

The players are adjusting too me...there's been better rotations, somethings have been adjusted; I honestly think we'll continue to see defense improvement. Also, reviewing the games, though, it's made even more clear to me that less Boozer the better...