#Spacing - Steve Clifford Thread

[ARHornet]

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2014/0 ... 108HPldUuc

[ball teacher]

The Bobcats tanked last year. If we didnt have Cliff but we had Al and we actually tried to win, we'd still be productive. If we didnt have Al and we tried to win, we'd still suck. Sorry, but Cliff is overrated imo.

I totally disagree. If there was a 'thumbs down' button, I would click it

It's ok, I'll be the minority on this. But a stubborn coach who only coaches a system and not the talent he has wont get much praise from me. A coach who's had poor rotations all season long wont get much praise from me. Other really good coaches who've lost key players, like Thibs in Chicago, Brooks in OKC and Kidd in Brooklyn found ways to win without key pieces. We lose MKG we looked different. Without Al, we're different. We're in the east where half the teams wanted to lose, and we lost key games late to teams we shouldve beat and Cliff and his rotations were as big a reason why. I just dont see what this guy did that was so great. We have a team with talent and he doesnt have a idea how to make the offense better than it is. I'm sorry, the guy is overrated to me. We're CLEARLY better than Toronto, Chicago, and Washington, but all those teams finished better than we did, why? We didnt have any major injuries! We all have opinions, and I know Cliff is highly praised here, I just dont get it.

[ARHornet]

Cliff is a first year NBA head coach. He's never had to manage rotations or make in-game adjustments to his offense like this before. I'm choosing to be patient and hope he improves in those areas.

He certainly has weak points, but he is likely the best coach this franchise has ever had and one of if not the biggest reason we went from the 2nd worst record to in the playoffs. He's a good coach. Like any coach, he has room to improve but I am optimistic that will happen. Cliff is a smart guy. He's learned a lot from this first year I'm sure.

[mrknowitall215]

The Bobcats tanked last year. If we didnt have Cliff but we had Al and we actually tried to win, we'd still be productive. If we didnt have Al and we tried to win, we'd still suck. Sorry, but Cliff is overrated imo.

I totally disagree. If there was a 'thumbs down' button, I would click it

It's ok, I'll be the minority on this. But a stubborn coach who only coaches a system and not the talent he has wont get much praise from me. A coach who's had poor rotations all season long wont get much praise from me. Other really good coaches who've lost key players, like Thibs in Chicago, Brooks in OKC and Kidd in Brooklyn found ways to win without key pieces. We lose MKG we looked different. Without Al, we're different. We're in the east where half the teams wanted to lose, and we lost key games late to teams we shouldve beat and Cliff and his rotations were as big a reason why. I just dont see what this guy did that was so great. We have a team with talent and he doesnt have a idea how to make the offense better than it is. I'm sorry, the guy is overrated to me. We're CLEARLY better than Toronto, Chicago, and Washington, but all those teams finished better than we did, why? We didnt have any major injuries! We all have opinions, and I know Cliff is highly praised here, I just dont get it.

Indeed Clifford is a coach with his warts, but he's turned this team around from historically one of the worst defenses into a top-10 defense, and we watched the offensive efficiency of the team rise each month of the season as they found chemistry within the system. That's noteworthy of a rookie head coach if you ask me

Clifford's restricted & erroneous rotations has been frustrating, I'll give you that, and his inability to be flexible within the offense that some refer to as 'Al-fense' has been too. However, when I listen to Clifford talk during interviews I get the sense that he understand how limited we are as a team outside of Jefferson & Kemba, so I'll try to give him the benefit of the doubt that he'll open things up and get more creative in Year 2. Clifford has gone on record to state that he wanted to simplify things for this team this year, and expand as it goes along

[JDR720]

Well Thibs is a top 3 coach he is expected to make all the adjustments, OKC lost Westbrook but Durant went insane when he was out and Jackson also played really good and Brooklyn has 2 HOF players ,Joe Johnson and Deron Williams and Toronto traded Rudy Gay and got more depth from the deal and Rudy is way overrated

[JDR720]

and im pretty sure Cliff said he was going to keep the system basic this season and expand on it during the offseason so im guessing that means non concrete rotations and more flexibility

[ball teacher]

you guys are both right and I'm still a little pissed out how we lost last night. He's not perfect but he's definitely not a bad coach

[BeesWax]

I totally disagree. If there was a 'thumbs down' button, I would click it

It's ok, I'll be the minority on this. But a stubborn coach who only coaches a system and not the talent he has wont get much praise from me. A coach who's had poor rotations all season long wont get much praise from me. Other really good coaches who've lost key players, like Thibs in Chicago, Brooks in OKC and Kidd in Brooklyn found ways to win without key pieces. We lose MKG we looked different. Without Al, we're different. We're in the east where half the teams wanted to lose, and we lost key games late to teams we shouldve beat and Cliff and his rotations were as big a reason why. I just dont see what this guy did that was so great. We have a team with talent and he doesnt have a idea how to make the offense better than it is. I'm sorry, the guy is overrated to me. We're CLEARLY better than Toronto, Chicago, and Washington, but all those teams finished better than we did, why? We didnt have any major injuries! We all have opinions, and I know Cliff is highly praised here, I just dont get it.

Indeed Clifford is a coach with his warts, but he's turned this team around from historically one of the worst defenses into a top-10 defense, and we watched the offensive efficiency of the team rise each month of the season as they found chemistry within the system. That's noteworthy of a rookie head coach if you ask me

Clifford's restricted & erroneous rotations has been frustrating, I'll give you that, and his inability to be flexible within the offense that some refer to as 'Al-fense' has been too. However, when I listen to Clifford talk during interviews I get the sense that he understand how limited we are as a team outside of Jefferson & Kemba, so I'll try to give him the benefit of the doubt that he'll open things up and get more creative in Year 2. Clifford has gone on record to state that he wanted to simplify things for this team this year, and expand as it goes along

I think his biggest issue is he thinks we are limited outside of Al and Kemba and we are not. We are only limited outside of them if we always play Alfense not matter who is in. The most limited player we have is Al because he is so much slower and less athletic than the rest of our offense. Our second unit should run and turn up the pressure but he refuses to break from that. I like him but he has a lot of learning to do this off season. He needs to study offense a ton because ether is very weak in that area,

[mrknowitall215]

I actually think Clifford tried to run some of the offense through MKG and Henderson by committing to running the high pick-and-roll for Kemba in which he knew would lead to the Heat defense blitzing him. It worked to default to some degree in Game 2 when MKG had a breakout game and Henderson had a decent 1st half attacking the rim, but in Game 3 the Heat did a good job of making multiple efforts as a team to strip and/or contest MKG at the rim

I think Clifford need to make a concerted effort to make the team commit to a more uptempo style of basketball next season, where pushing the ball at every chance off rebounds become essential, and when defenses take away their transition they can switch into a offense that'll feed Jefferson in the post

[JDR720]

the team should fast break more even if Al is in, if the opportunity to score is there we take it, even if it means Al doesn't even get past half court

[ARHornet]

Just playing at a faster tempo would help our offensive production. Even pushing the pace after made baskets can be effective. Often even if you don't have a numbers advantage or a fast break opportunity, by going quickly you can catch a defender out of position and get a high percentage look. Even if you don't get an immediate good look, you will still have time to go into a set to get Al the ball on the low block. That is the other benefit of using tempo. You get into the half court set earlier which provides more time to get a shot off.

[catch20two]

the team should fast break more even if Al is in, if the opportunity to score is there we take it, even if it means Al doesn't even get past half court

I agree and Jefferson is actually pretty good in transition as a trailer with his midrange jumper. I've seen it a lot this season during the few times we got out in transition.

[JDR720]

Besides Al almost everyone on the team is ideal for fast breaks

[GoBobs]

I was ready to get rid of Dunlap halfway through the first year. Cliff has been a lot better then that, but not convinced he is a great coach.

I think he plays Biz, Zeller, and MKG not enough minutes while playing Neil, CDR, Toliver, Ridenour to many. When I see Neil, CDR, Ridenour, McBob and Zeller all out there at the same time.....wtf is this guy doing.

MKG needs to be leading the team in minutes. Biz needs to be playing 20 min a game. Zeller needs to be playing 20 min a game. Jefferson needs to play more in the 30 min range then the 40 min range, so that we can extend his career and other guys get a chance to develop.

The defense has been a lot better, but that shouldn't be hard to do after Dunlap. The offense is nothing special. I don't think we shoot enough threes or do anything to get ourselves easy baskets outside of jefferson in the post. He hasn't had a ton of time though so I'm interested to see how the team looks next year.

His sideline demenor is good. I like what I hear him saying in the huddle when he is miked up. A young team needs someone to encourage them. It seems like the players like him for the most part.

[Eoghan]

Somebody needs to pass Tex Winter's 7 principles for a sound offense along to Clifford. Um, yeah.... that would be great:

1. Penetration of the defense.
You must penetrate the defense, and the best way to do this is the fast break , because basketball is a full court game from baseline to baseline.

2. Spacing.
I am literally a fanatic of spacing. The floor must be spaced so it is difficult for the defense to help as well as to trap. The players must be distant from each other a certain number of feet and distance varies. In the high school level, I would recommend from 12 to 15 feet, at the college level ,15-18 feet and at the pro level, 15 to 20 feet. With the proper spacing, if the defense tries to trap, there will always be a player open.

3. Ball and Player Movement.
The players must move the ball and themselves on the court, but with a purpose, because there is only one ball and the players will play almost 80% of the time without the possession of the ball.

4. Options for the Ball Handler.
He must be able to pass the ball to all other four teammates, so the players be constantly moving.

5. Offensive Rebound and Defensive Balance.
On all the possible shots, the offense must provide strong offensive rebounding, as well as create a defensive floor balance to avoid the opponent's fast break.

6. To fill any spot.
The offense must offer to any player the chance to fill any spot on the court, independently by his role. All the positions should be interchangeable.

7. Utilize individual talents.
Take advantage of your best players, but always with the respect of all other teammates on the court. Michael Jordan taught me this.

[Elden Payton]

Yeah I'd have to go with Tex and BD on this one.

Clifford's offensive principle

1. Dump the ball to Al.

[Elden Payton]

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2014/04/25/4865962/steve-clifford-charlotte-bobcats.html#.U108HPldUuc

Cheers ARHornet!

Not a bad article.

[mrknowitall215]

Steve Clifford: Michael Jordan Is Determined To Improve Our Roster

Bobcats head coach, Steve Clifford, joined the Mac Attack to recap the season and to look ahead to next season, including potential roster moves, wearing suits and transitioning to the Hornets.

On looking to acquire another piece to help take the next step: This was part of the plan that was put in place, a couple years ago and some of the moves that were made over that time were to have assets and cap space for this summer and last summer and it’s now coming to fruition. Our owner is determined to improve our roster and we’re in a spot where hopefully that can happen.

On shooting guard: The range shooting part, if you’re watching the teams that are going to go far in this playoffs, your shooting is your spacing in this league. The better defensive teams defend to where guys can shoot from. I believe [Gerald Henderson] can be a three-point shooter. It’s never been part of his game, but he’s still at a stage of his career where he’s young enough to add things to his game. He brings things to our team, he’s very smart, we execute when he’s on the floor but the range shooting piece is something I think he’s capable of and it will be important for him to work on over the summer.

On Michael Kidd-Gilchrist’s confidence: I think it’s a consistency issue, in terms of purpose. He has a way to play, right now today, where he’s an exceptional defender, both individually and as a team defender and he has a way to play offense. Even though he doesn’t shoot the ball well, he’s played so much basketball that he has very good feel for the game. He can play off the dribble, he’s an excellent cutter and offensive rebounder. I think some of it is youth, which he has to get by, where he has a consistency of intensity and approach like he did in game two. The bottom line, though, is when he’s not playing, we’re not as good.

On what his team gained by facing the Heat: We got a ton out of it, which I think will play out going forward. We got a lot of it in terms of learning the amount of detail and discipline that goes into playing a playoff series and game. We got a chance to see, up close, how great players become more and more detailed from game one through game four. In film sessions, we were able to show them the adjustments they were making , both individually with their games with the way we defended them and within their team structure. You have to live through that.

http://charlotte.cbslocal.com/2014/05/0 ... Os.twitter

[mrknowitall215]

I wonder if Clifford know that the organization has been harping on Henderson to improve his 3-point shooting during the offseason for the last 3 years, and he's only improved marginally. I don't think Henderson will ever be the type of shooting guard that make over 2.0 3PM per game like Charlotte need him to, nevertheless 1.0 3PM on average to above average efficiency. It's just not his game

[Elden Payton]

I'm glad that Clifford stated that we are a much better team when MKG is on the court.

So much for how obvious it is that Clifford 'is not high' on him as some have suggested.