Wizards' Princeton Offense: anti pick-setting?

[keynote]

One of the things I've noticed about the Wizards' offense is how poor the team is at setting screens. AJ, Wood, Blatche, etc. all set finesse picks, and the guards rarely take the time to properly run their man square into the pick. More often than not, the F or C is already on their way to the next spot in the offensive rotation before a true pick is even set. The only big who consistently sets a decent pick is Songaila--and even that's not a guarantee.

I look at teams like Utah, where even guards (from Hornacek to Ronny Brewer) are taught to set stiff, sticky picks on opposing bigs. And, of course, cutters on other teams are far better at running their defender directly into the awaiting pick in order to get free. Even uptempo teams like PHX set more effective picks than the Wizards (I saw Skinner set a few solid screens tonight).

Obviously, poor screening fundamentals haven't hurt the Wizards too much over the years, since the Wizards' offense has traditionally been potent and efficient during EJ's tenure. I tend to think that any offense would run better if better screens were set, but I could be wrong.

So, am I missing something? Does the philosophy of the Princeton Offense actually discourage stiff, effective screens? Or, are the Wizards squandering an opportunity to take a potent offensive philosophy and make it even *more* successful by failing to teach screening fundamentals?

[closg00]

I was thinking the same thing during last nights game, it seems as though we rarely come-off screens. I see our guys trying to set them up often, but its just not happening. This clearly is a coaching deficiency as were the worst screening NBA team at the moment.

[daSwami]

DSong sets a nice pick.

[hands11]

I was thinking the same thing during last nights game, it seems as though we rarely come-off screens. I see our guys trying to set them up often, but its just not happening. This clearly is a coaching deficiency as were the worst screening NBA team at the moment.

It is a problem and has been since we have been running this offense.

I actually think we could benefit from running more set plays instead of the weave. Specially with young players. Keep it simple and execute.

[clubbing_caveman]

-= original quote snipped =-

It is a problem and has been since we have been running this offense.
I actually think we could benefit from running more set plays instead of the weave. Specially with young players. Keep it simple and execute.

I think we could benefit from a simpler offense, and we can rely on out-executing the opponent. I dont think the offense we have is well suited for the current talent we are putting on the court.