Game-planning against Raptors: what should Frank Vogel do?
By Brian Boake
What have the Pacers learned after two games with the Raptors?
The Toronto Raptors have tied their first-round playoff series with the Indiana Pacers. If I were sitting in coach Frank Vogel’s chair right this minute, what would I be thinking about? What would I tell my team prior to Game 3?
My Pacers have only been outscored by a point in two games, but it feels worse than that. We needed wonderful games from Paul George, and dreadful ones from the Raptors’ Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan, to have managed a split.
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Our biggest problem is a lack of interior defense. Raptors centre Jonas Valanciunas has dominated the first two games; he has scored a bunch of points and owned the glass. My starting big men are Lavoy Allen and Ian Mahinmi, and their shortcomings are readily apparent. Neither can create his own shot, and they frequently foul JV when he does. Mahinmi has 7 fouls and 8 rebounds in 2 games, and he hasn’t made a basket.
I’d like to make better use of Myles Turner, but he’s hard to keep on the floor. He’s committed 9 fouls in just over 42 minutes of play. Our rookie leads with 7 blocked shots, and he’s a respectable shooter. Perhaps we can draw JV away from the glass by calling Turner’s number on catch and shoot plays from the elbow. I wish I could trust Myles to create off the dribble.
My second-biggest problem is our top-heavy offense. I’ve got 91 points from Paul George and Monte Ellis, and 96 from everyone else. Those two have made 10 3-balls. The rest of my team? Five. Dwane Casey knows how to create effective NBA defense, so unless C.J. Miles or George Hill find their stroke, we’re going to struggle. The Raptors coach may be content with tiring out our scorers through constant harassment, and hoping no one else can beat us.
I haven’t asked my scorers to play extra minutes, but that’s the next step. Let’s hope George can stay out of foul trouble.
We have been able to score off turnovers, therefore, more ball pressure is necessary. I’m going to go small, and see if Rodney Stuckey can disrupt the Raptors on the perimeter. Valanciunas can’t score easy baskets if he can’t get the ball. If he does, we’ll hack him. I know he’s effective from the free-throw line, but I get a strong sense that he and his mates are wrapped too tightly. Let’s see what happens to his nerves when he misses a pair.
In particular, Lowry and DeRozan look like they are shooting in fear, rather than confidently. We need to continue to bother them. Banging DeRozan when he drives is working because the referees have swallowed their whistles, a playoff phenomenon which always helps the weaker team (in this case, us).
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So there it is, my overmatched but hard-working Pacers:
- don’t leave Valanciunas alone
- stay out of foul trouble, except when you are hacking their centres…we’ve got enough big men, none of whom is irreplaceable
- pressure the ball, and take some chances in the passing lanes. I’d rather be aggressive than not. We need to convert turnovers into easy baskets, because the half-court set isn’t providing enough.