BigO wrote:StickeeFingaz wrote:BigO wrote:There is one and only one reason the Bucks won this game. In the fourth quarter, they held the Wizards to 24 points rather than the 30 plus points before. And what changed? The Bucks went from the drop down defense the first three quarters and started switching. So at the end, rather than Westbrook having a wide open shot after Jrue is screened off, Middleton switched right away on him.
Once again, it took Bud most of the game, until he was desperate, and he finally switched.
This is inaccurate. They switched throughout the game and even threw in a couple of zone defenses.
They did not switch throughout the game. As stated in another thread, I wrote Eric Nehm of the Athleti who implied they were switching against the wizards the entire game. They were not. He wrote me and admitted they were playing the drop defense the entire first half. In fact, the fourth quarter was where they went to switching and it is the quarter they held the Wizards to 24 points. Facts matter.
Yes, facts matter, and they switched 1-4 the whole game. Very few teams switch with their center, and were not switching with Lopez.
Westbrook is simply one of the worst shooting guards in the game. No team sends their center high on the pick and roll versus him, he's looking to drive.
The Bucks won the game because Middleton blocked Westbrook at the rim, and Westbrook finally missed some 3s, which he normally does with regularity. Did a Giannis at center lineup help in the last few possessions? Maybe, but that's personal, not schematics.