When you're down 0-2, it will always make sense to go with your strength as a team- and sometimes that means zigging while your opponent is zagging. That was the storyline heading into Charlotte’s two-game home stand, with Nic Batum ruled out for the series after an injury in the previous game. Without Batum, the Hornets are barren of wing depth and it looked like the series was over. The Miami Heat have the deepest collection of wings in the league, and the Hornets were now scrapping along with one of the weakest.
What the Hornets did have, however, was an assortment of big-men, and a head coach that has established a sound defensive system and an ultra conservative offensive style. Steve Clifford opted to go big against a team that thrives going small- and it worked.
- Clifford went with a Marvin Williams-Frank Kaminsky-Al Jefferson frontline for both games 3 and 4. Without Batum, Charlotte’s starting lineup lacked any punch besides Kemba Walker. Getting Jefferson back with the starters gave them an offensive hub to lean on, and he did well in moving Whiteside off the block and getting some buckets to steady an uneven offense. But for the most part Jefferson was a net negative in the two games. Unfortunately, he’s not in proper shape to play more than 20 minutes in high intensity playoff games, and he isn’t bringing anything to the table on defense. Given how bereft of playmaking the starting lineup is, there is value in slowing down the tempo by just dumping it down to a reliable post threat- at least for spot minutes.
- The real interesting matchup was Kaminsky vs Luol Deng. From a speed perspective there was no way Kaminsky was going to keep up with Deng, nor any of Miami’s wings for that matter. Deng got a ton of open looks on pick-and-pop 3’s on both nights, but overall the team just wasn’t able to make enough to punish the Buzz for going super sized against their small attack. It is a make or miss league, and that basically explains how Miami lost these two in Charlotte.
- Hassan Whiteside is a nightly mismatch for any team, and Charlotte doesn’t particularly have any one big-man that can match up with him. By sagging off of the Heat shooters and loading up the strong side on Whiteside pick-and-rolls, the Hornets were able take away any easy lobs or offensive boards- a catalyst for an efficient Heat offense. When Whiteside isn’t getting those easy looks in the paint, he turns into a pretty ineffective offensive player because he is a pretty horrid passer- 29 assists in 73 games this season and only 1 in the series thus far.
In Miami’s two wins to open the series Whiteside averaged 19 ppg on 17-for-19 shooting, and the Heat shot a 53% clip on three-pointers. They looked like a different team on the road, but that is completely normal. There was no way that they could sustain their hot shooting into Charlotte, and it is more likely that they start to hit those open looks at home, without the presence of an away playoff crowd. Amar'e Stoudemire minutes can swing an entire game in the wrong direction, so if Whiteside finds himself in foul trouble again than Miami should just pray to not lose those minutes too bad. If you can win a stretch of minutes with Whiteside out and Stoudemire in, that could be huge for Miami. That definitely wasn’t the case in Charlotte.
- Aside from his struggles closing out against the 3, Kaminsky did show some good poise sliding his feet in short switches and ice situations. He really tilted the game in Charlottes favor in game 3 when he exposed the Heat’s smaller defenders in that 3rd quarter stretch. Clifford was getting him open looks through cross screens on the low block and he was making the smaller types of Wade and Winslow pay the price. That is what you need out of your 4 if you want to beat a smaller lineup by playing big.
Going to the post to beat a mismatch isn’t conducive to a successful offense on every team, but for a team like Charlotte with a slim margin for error, you need to win the little battles. By slowing down the tempo and limiting the possessions in the game, the Hornets only turned the ball over 12 total times in their two wins at home. They won these two games with sound coaching and execution.
- Charlotte’s offense really struggled to score despite their victorious results in both games. Kemba Walker and Jeremy Lin are the only two perimeter players who can create a shot. Marvin Williams has been ice cold all series, and Jefferson can only work his magic for minimal minutes at a high level. They did well in getting Whiteside in foul trouble in both games, but expect the whistle to be a little less frequent on him when the series returns back to south beach.
- It is hard to imagine Charlotte pulling off the same defensive performance in Miami, where the dynamics of being the road team can discombobulate your game plan. Jefferson may have passed the eye test on offense on some possessions, but they got lit up defensively with him on the floor and overall were much better with Cody Zeller manning the paint. Zeller is much more mobile than Jefferson, and his ability to get out and run in transition gave their offense some easy looks. He caused turnovers by mucking up passing lanes and walling off the paint, but he doesn’t bring anything on the offensive end. If Frank the tank can hit some 3s in Miami to give the offense some breathing room than that will surely help make it interesting. But you can’t rely that much on a rookie, especially one that can’t handle the rigors of playing as the lone 5- not that the Hornets are concerned with playing small right now, though.
The Hornets aren’t going to be winning any games with their offense. If they can manage to take another one from Miami, it’ll be because of their defense.