Coach SPO thread.

[IggieCC]

I think I would rather have Aline Rodrigues than Spo, but I don't know if she can coach a basketball team. She can probably get a tremendous effort out of the players though.

Anyone else think that Scott Brooks got a raw deal? GM sends Harden off to Houston for Kevin Martin and Jeremy Lamb and picks, but OKC isn't in the playoffs because of Brooks? GMAFB

I think the difference between Spo and Brooks is the rings gom. When you have prime KD and Westbrook, you are expected to win every year. In that regard, Brooks underperformed. I don't necessarily agree with it, but at least that's the rationale I think.

I'm sure Spo would have been long gone had he been ringless for the past 7 seasons (esp. since 2011).

[goodboy]

I think I would rather have Aline Rodrigues than Spo, but I don't know if she can coach a basketball team. She can probably get a tremendous effort out of the players though.

Anyone else think that Scott Brooks got a raw deal? GM sends Harden off to Houston for Kevin Martin and Jeremy Lamb and picks, but OKC isn't in the playoffs because of Brooks? GMAFB

I think the difference between Spo and Brooks is the rings gom. When you have prime KD and Westbrook, you are expected to win every year. In that regard, Brooks underperformed. I don't necessarily agree with it, but at least that's the rationale I think.

I'm sure Spo would have been long gone had he been ringless for the past 7 seasons (esp. since 2011).

Spo/Brooks/Vogel are all biological brothers, serious.

[gom]

São Paulo 2 x 0 Corinthians

WE DID IT!

[IggieCC]

São Paulo 2 x 0 Corinthians

WE DID IT!

woohoo! congrats gom

Spoiler:

[Big Dee Chi-Born]

why keep repeating the same thing over and over?

So now that Spo that doesn't have LeBron to save him, you don't want discuss his shortcomings that we've been trying to highlight for years huh??? Funny...

You're a long time poster. Please layout these shortcomings in coaching terms, because I have yet to see anyone say anything other than "He has to go".

I've heard nothing but praise for him in the media, and from opposing teams commentators. The only negative talk I've heard about him is here. I don't get it.

If I lay them all out there for you will you truly receive it?

[3ballbomber]

[quote]"Pace, speed and quickness."

The lessons previously had been learned as an active participant in the playoffs, including the need to get LeBron James more comfortable in the post after the loss in the 2011 NBA Finals to the Dallas Mavericks, the quest to find a better way to combat the ball movement of the San Antonio Spurs in last season's NBA Finals.

This year, the lessons come merely as spectators for the Miami Heat, with some of the lesson plan set even before the start of this postseason.

But for as much as coach Erik Spoelstra spoke on the eve of the playoffs of getting his team to play at a faster pace next season, moments like the Golden State Warriors' fourth-quarter rally in Game 3 against the New Orleans Pelicans, the capacity of James Harden to get it and go for the Houston Rockets against the Dallas Mavericks, the ability of the Washington Wizards to push the tempo against the Toronto Raptors when needed merely serve as ongoing reinforcement.

For the Heat, it would be a dramatic departure from what has been offered in recent seasons, but also something now possible with the rebounding unearthed in center Hassan Whiteside and the motor acquired at the trading deadline in Goran Dragic.


To say slow and steady has been the Heat's way in recent seasons, even in the best of times, would be an understatement.

This season, only the Utah Jazz played at a slower pace than the 93.3 possessions the Heat averaged per game, more than seven fewer per game than the league-leading Warriors. Even during James' Big Three tenure with the team, the Heat ranked 27th in pace in 2013-14, 23rd in 2012-13, tried for 14th in 2011-12 and 21st in 2010-11, nonetheless going on to win titles in '12 and '13.

But this season, when the pace of games peaked, the Heat often were caught in the wake.

That has Spoelstra preaching a new big three, "Pace, speed and quickness."


"I agree with him wholeheartedly, because I started my career as a fastbreak coach," Heat President Pat Riley said.

Of course rare is the NBA coach who doesn't preach pace. But for the Heat, it is especially significant to get the message out early, with Dragic having the right to test the free-agent market this summer.

When it comes to the team's approach, it was almost as if Dragic's was gritting his teeth at season's end, appreciative of the inability to establish a running game when injuries robbed the team of an ability to field a cohesive lineup.

But he wants something faster than he experienced during his two-month Heat preview.
Spoelstra on his young players

Miami Heat Head Coach Erik Spoelstra talks about his young players getting quality minutes

"Of course I want to play a little bit faster than we did," he said. "But you need to practice like that from the beginning of the season. You cannot start playing overnight like that.

"We'll see how it's going to go."

With several older players under contract, it might take some convincing.

"You look at teams like Golden State, best team in the NBA, they played fast, but they're also one of the best defensive teams in the league," guard Dwyane Wade tempered. "You have to get stops to play fast. This season, we weren't a good defensive team. It's hard to play fast taking the ball out of the net too often. I welcome it. As long as we get stops, let's go."

For Spoelstra, the extended summer offers extra time in the laboratory. More time like the summers he spent with Chip Kelly working on the pace-and-space approach that unlocked so many of the possibilities with the Big Three during some of the four consecutive trips to the NBA Finals that ended with this playoff absence.

This time, it will have to be about more than pace and space, with even Riley acknowledging that the Heat can't run past the possibilities of Whiteside, that the center, if need be, should demand the ball in the post just as Alonzo Mourning previously had.

All the while, the whirlwind of the Warriors continues to dazzle, the speed Mike Conley, Derrick Rose and John Wall has added to the postseason sizzle, and the place for pace in the NBA, even in the postseason, has become undeniable.

"There's no question," Spoelstra said, "I want to play faster next year, and to be able to play with pace."[/quote]

[smartcane]

Watching the warriors dismantle Memphis cause to realize how Spo has help revolutionize NBA basketball. Before what the heat did over the big three era no one thought using a stretch four was an effective way to win a championship. They always thought it left you vulnerable on defense. Spo showed how the pace and space offense could work with a blitzing defense. Now everyone has a shooter at the PF and teams like Memphis looks out dated now.

[Slot Machine]

Watching the warriors dismantle Memphis cause to realize how Spo has help revolutionize NBA basketball. Before what the heat did over the big three era no one thought using a stretch four was an effective way to win a championship. They always thought it left you vulnerable on defense. Spo showed how the pace and space offense could work with a blitzing defense. Now everyone has a shooter at the PF and teams like Memphis looks out dated now.

A stretch 4 is not a new idea at all. We won playing with a stretch 4 because our team had the most talent to ever play a stretch 4 full time.

[dancing2thabeet]

Watching the warriors dismantle Memphis cause to realize how Spo has help revolutionize NBA basketball. Before what the heat did over the big three era no one thought using a stretch four was an effective way to win a championship. They always thought it left you vulnerable on defense. Spo showed how the pace and space offense could work with a blitzing defense. Now everyone has a shooter at the PF and teams like Memphis looks out dated now.

A stretch 4 is not a new idea at all. We won playing with a stretch 4 because our team had the most talent to ever play a stretch 4 full time.

Also, a stretch 5.

[smartcane]

Watching the warriors dismantle Memphis cause to realize how Spo has help revolutionize NBA basketball. Before what the heat did over the big three era no one thought using a stretch four was an effective way to win a championship. They always thought it left you vulnerable on defense. Spo showed how the pace and space offense could work with a blitzing defense. Now everyone has a shooter at the PF and teams like Memphis looks out dated now.

A stretch 4 is not a new idea at all. We won playing with a stretch 4 because our team had the most talent to ever play a stretch 4 full time.

I know he didn't create the concept of a stretch 4 but he create the concept of an inverted offense. He showed how you can win be playing from outside in rather than the other way around. He showed the value of having 3-4 shooters on the floor at all times makes the game easier for your guards. I am not saying he started the process but the success he had with the heat accelerated it. Even the Spurs changed from the inside out concept they dominated with when Duncan was in his prime to an outside in concept they used to beat us for the championship.

[PaulieWal]

Watching the warriors dismantle Memphis cause to realize how Spo has help revolutionize NBA basketball. Before what the heat did over the big three era no one thought using a stretch four was an effective way to win a championship. They always thought it left you vulnerable on defense. Spo showed how the pace and space offense could work with a blitzing defense. Now everyone has a shooter at the PF and teams like Memphis looks out dated now.

A stretch 4 is not a new idea at all. We won playing with a stretch 4 because our team had the most talent to ever play a stretch 4 full time.

I know he didn't create the concept of a stretch 4 but he create the concept of an inverted offense. He showed how you can win be playing from outside in rather than the other way around. He showed the value of having 3-4 shooters on the floor at all times makes the game easier for your guards. I am not saying he started the process but the success he had with the heat accelerated it. Even the Spurs changed from the inside out concept they dominated with when Duncan was in his prime to an outside in concept they used to beat us for the championship.

The Suns already did the outside-in concept with the Nash and had great success doing it. Should have won it all in 07 but the NBA screwed them over. The Spurs were doing the outside-in concept after losing to Memphis in 2011 not because the Heat were doing it in 2012. I give Spo a lot of credit for changing the offense after Dallas 2011 but he didn't revolutionize the game. That's frankly a little silly. I mean you had Dirk as the stretch 4 for the Mavs killing it. They made the Finals in 06 and he won an MVP in 07. The 2011 Mavs were also an outside-in team with Dirk going in the high post in crunch time. Lots and lots of teams have done the "inverted offense" before Spo did it. Be serious here....

[Rock Hardy]

Small ball never won a championship in the modern era until Spo did it with the Heat. Someone correct me if I'm wrong. It's not a revolution, but it's the most successful approach to small ball yet. And I don't think it was the typical approach either. He didn't go small to crank up the pace and bury teams with speed. He went small for spacing primarily, and he convinced LeBron to play differently from every other point in his career, in order to make the system work. Spo will always have skeptics. It doesn't matter. He's a good coach and he's our coach. It's one less issue to worry about.

[dolphinatik]

I dont recall the piston being that big in terms of size and they did it with a stretch 4/5 in Rasheed. Ben Wallace is 6'9 and they led with mostly an attack of Billups, Rip Hamilton, Lindsey Hunter and Prince doing a lot of facilitating. They did not rely on scoring from the center spot. Just sayin

[smartcane]

The concept of "Pace and Space " which is all the rage now in the NBA was created by Spo after visiting with the Oregon Ducks. The spurs improved on it with greater ball movement and the Golden state has now taken it to the next level.

http://espn.go.com/nba/truehoop/miamihe ... miami-heat

I can am frustrated with him at times too but give credit where it is due!! He has changed the way basketball is played.

[smartcane]

I dont recall the piston being that big in terms of size and they did it with a stretch 4/5 in Rasheed. Ben Wallace is 6'9 and they led with mostly an attack of Billups, Rip Hamilton, Lindsey Hunter and Prince doing a lot of facilitating. They did not rely on scoring from the center spot. Just sayin

They did not use a the Pace and Space concept. That was created by Spo. Hamilton is a terrible three point shooter and while Wallace could shoot threes, Brown didn't care for that. Detroit played traditional hard nose defensive basketball. They where the complete opposite of what Spo created.

[dolphinatik]

Bosh was on The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz yesterday. Basically said first game they had no idea what the offense was, no idea what plays were. Players just felt each other out playing together in the process. Spo created nothing.

[smartcane]

Bosh was on The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz yesterday. Basically said first game they had no idea what the offense was, no idea what plays were. Players just felt each other out playing together in the process. Spo created nothing.

I listened to the same interview and that is not what he said. He was talking about at the beginning of training camp for the first time when he thought it was just going to be easy and then he realized we still have to learn all the plays. Also if you read the above post with the link you will see what spo created.

[heat4life]

I wouldn't call Spo the creator of anything nor would I say he changed how basketball is played. It's the same thing with people calling the triangle Phil Jackson's innovation and the greatest thing since sliced bread because Jordan won with it and Shaq won with it. It's just wrong. Look at the Knicks.

Basketball has been played and coached for several decades before Spo and Phil ever came around and all these concepts are nothing new or innovative, they just have evolved as players became stronger, bigger and more athletic. There are only so many plays or styles you can run in basketball. Coaches know them all, well at least the good ones. Coaches have core standards and that is OK but stubbornly marrying a system, especially at the NBA level, is career suicide.

You know why these coaches deserve credit? For placing a system around their core standards that fits their personnel the best. At the end of the day, what matters is what your stars and role players can do. Coach Spo believes in Pace and Space on offense and his biggest career move was convincing the Big 3 that ISO play was not going to do it regardless of the talent (losing to Dallas helped) and his "pace and space" concept would give the team the best shot at winning. It worked but not because Spo was a genius mind but because he had players like LeBron, Wade, Bosh, Allen and Battier running it.

[PaulieWal]

I wouldn't call Spo the creator of anything nor would I say he changed how basketball is played. It's the same thing with people calling the triangle Phil Jackson's innovation and the greatest thing since sliced bread because Jordan won with it and Shaq won with it. It's just wrong. Look at the Knicks.

Basketball has been played and coached for several decades before Spo and Phil ever came around and all these concepts are nothing new or innovative, they just have evolved as players became stronger, bigger and more athletic. There are only so many plays or styles you can run in basketball. Coaches knows them all, well at least the good ones. Coaches have core standards and that is OK but stubbornly marrying a system, especially at the NBA level, is career suicide.

You know why these coaches deserve credit? For placing a system around their core standards that fits their personnel the best. At the end of the day, what matters is what your stars and role players can do. Coach Spo believes in Pace and Space on offense and his biggest career move was convincing the Big 3 that ISO play was not going to do it regardless of the talent (losing to Dallas helped) and his "pace and space" concept would give the team the best shot at winning. It worked but not because Spo was a genius mind but because he had players like LeBron, Wade, Bosh, Allen and Battier running it.

Agree 100% and that's what I was saying. Spo deserves credit for implementing small ball but not for "revolutionizing the game" or because we were the first team to win with small ball in the history of the NBA. That's just foolish.

As you said small ball worked because we had the talent for it and mostly because we had peak LeBron. The triangle works great when you have MJ, Shaq, Kobe, Pippen, and Gasol etc. making reads from the post. Doesn't mean he revolutionized the game. I said this in my post as well, small ball and outside-in offenses have been around for a long time and they never had enough talent to win it all. Suns did small ball AND outside-in offense with Nash to get him 2 MVPs, Dallas did the whole stretch 4 thing and spread the floor with shooters thing in late 2000s and beat us in 2011 that way. Give credit to Spo but pump the brakes on him being some sort of genius or deserving extra credit because we were the first team to win playing small with peak LeBron and late prime Wade .