The first 3 quarters were atrocious. It's like they forgot how to play defense and rebound. I don't know what is going on in basketball these days but the fundamentals of boxing out and putting a body on someone is a lost art. All too often you see players just standing their waiting for the ball to come to them instead of finding a body then look for the ball. Do coaches not see this or just don't care?
The defensive game plan and adjustments were not good. Can't count the number of times GS had easy drives for layups to the basket.
Yeah, I hear ya on boxing out/crashing the boards. In high school, waaaay back, I would have to run suicides if I got beat out to the rim. Let’s just say I learned really fast to hit the boards.
I also feel like we’re a little sluggish on finding an answer in a few of these losses. Some of it is lack of chemistry with our bench, but some of it feels like we keep trying to force what worked last time—-to which the opposing team has properly scouted and ends in tough shots and turnovers.
The bottom line is... They did not have a plan offensively to go against their old fashioned zone. Nobody was moving without the basketball. Also, are transitions from defense to offense was passive. Its easy to play a zone if the offense never moves and passes are slow.
I think to the Valkyries' credit, they play a very aggressive zone defense. Las Vegas has also played zone against Seattle in both of their games, and while it definitely worked in the Aces' win against Seattle, it didn't feel as disruptive as what Golden State did. Alysha Clark even talked about their aggressive zone. Some zones, probably more at the non-pro level, can be a bit slower and not hyper-aggressive, and this zone felt aggressive. Swarming. I still feel that a lot of Seattle's problems against the Valkyries were their complete lack of defense until the 4th quarter. As Coach Quinn talked about, their offense didn't get going because they couldn't get stops, couldn't get out in transition, etc.
The first 3 quarters were atrocious. It's like they forgot how to play defense and rebound. I don't know what is going on in basketball these days but the fundamentals of boxing out and putting a body on someone is a lost art. All too often you see players just standing their waiting for the ball to come to them instead of finding a body then look for the ball. Do coaches not see this or just don't care?
The defensive game plan and adjustments were not good. Can't count the number of times GS had easy drives for layups to the basket.
Yeah, I hear ya on boxing out/crashing the boards. In high school, waaaay back, I would have to run suicides if I got beat out to the rim. Let’s just say I learned really fast to hit the boards.
I also feel like we’re a little sluggish on finding an answer in a few of these losses. Some of it is lack of chemistry with our bench, but some of it feels like we keep trying to force what worked last time—-to which the opposing team has properly scouted and ends in tough shots and turnovers.
The bottom line is... They did not have a plan offensively to go against their old fashioned zone. Nobody was moving without the basketball. Also, are transitions from defense to offense was passive. Its easy to play a zone if the offense never moves and passes are slow.
I think to the Valkyries' credit, they play a very aggressive zone defense. Las Vegas has also played zone against Seattle in both of their games, and while it definitely worked in the Aces' win against Seattle, it didn't feel as disruptive as what Golden State did. Alysha Clark even talked about their aggressive zone. Some zones, probably more at the non-pro level, can be a bit slower and not hyper-aggressive, and this zone felt aggressive. Swarming. I still feel that a lot of Seattle's problems against the Valkyries were their complete lack of defense until the 4th quarter. As Coach Quinn talked about, their offense didn't get going because they couldn't get stops, couldn't get out in transition, etc.
With Li gone and a stop open I would be shocked is Mackenzie Holmes wasn't brought back with this teams serious rebounding and physicality needs.