With great respect to the K bros,

Kurt on Forum Blue and Gold did really nice job explaining the zone defense PJ is using now.

During the Bulls and 1st Laker term hand checking really was a big part of the man to man defense that PJ used. Without it, it is really was hard to stop penetration from the penetrators like Pierce. With the zone defense and trapping, Radman's personal defense doesn't look to bad anymore (though it is still bad, most of us would agree that he isn't the ideal person you want against most SF). In the post it's a little different as you can put ONE hand/elbow on the person as long as he has his back facing the basket (as in a post up). But that does not solve the fact that personal man to man defense is much weaker today than it was back in the 80's/90's on the perimeter because of the absence of Hand Checking.

With us using the main principles of 1-2-2 trapping defense, much of the weaknesses of us in the finals will most likely be fixed (by all means not all and there will be some problems created due to the zone defense). I'm willing to bet most of us remember Ray Allen, who isn't as good on penetration as he is a shooter, simply beat Sasha off the dribble and NO ONE rotated over to get in his path or at the very least contest the shot. With the zone it will be much harder for him to do that again.

Weakness of 1-2-2 trap zone defense (or any zone defense for that matter)? Simple. Perimeter shooting. The zone is specifically designed to deny penetration and force perimeter shots. In fact, if broken down properly, it can result to wide open 3 point shooting and most of us not to mention coaches do not want an uncontested 3 point shot. But that's the point isn't it?

As much as 3 point shooting hurt, NO ONE can always stay on a hot shooting streak, in fact they may go on cold shooting streaks. That's what happened in the Clipper game (both ones). At first Baron and everyone got into a hot start in their shooting. In fact, it seemed by the 2nd quarter that Baron could shoot almost anywhere from beyond the 3 point land. The 2nd half though Baron cooled down and he was missing shots and so were other Clippers and that helped get that 22-0 spurt in the 4th Quarter.

Understand that the zone makes you want to shoot long distance shots or if you have to penetrate that there will be 2 or more defenders waiting for you. You can say "oh there MUST be someone open". True but that's the other thing that the zone does: close the lane to passing inside for higher FG% shots. That's what the Celtics did in the Finals. Sure they were more physical and such but when Kobe kept penetrating he tried to pass through the lane to Gasol and Odom but they were sealed off by the weak side defenders plus they would sometimes get rejected by KG if they did get the ball. Most likely the only passing lane that will be open is to players who are on the perimeter. Unlike man to man coverage, the zone guy will be much closer to contest even though the outside shooter may be open and it will force a shot outside.

Will we always deny penetration? Don't bet on it, there are simply too much guys talented enough not to let this zone "shut them down". AI had some (but not always) success during the Denver game and guards like D-Will, CP3, and TP will be challenges to force them into the traps instead of being on isolation plays.

Plus we cannot simply do what they did in the 80's and 90's and our bigs can stand in the paint simply waiting to contest the shot. Defensive 3 seconds takes prevents that and personally I find it really amazing that Drew still manages to alters shots in the paints in spite of defensive 3 seconds.

But there you have it. 1-2-2 trapping zone defense really improved the Lakers defense. It really makes the point of "Trevor Ariza MUST start because he is defense and don't need his offense" or "Vlad Rad SHOULDN"T start because he is weak at defense" pretty moot because while personal defense still is important and necessary, the nature of 1-2-2 trapping zone defense or any kind of zone helps out a defender a ton. Does it stop penetration completely? Nope and there will be some guys who can beat it (Kobe has done so before). Is it weak to outside shooting? Of course but no shooter can remain in a hot streak all the time and unlike man coverage, the zones will make some of those more contested than if it was under man to man coverage. I think though that many of us would settle for other teams to mainly shoot from the perimeter and not to score much inside for higher FG%.

-blitz

ABOUT THE LAKERS DEFENSE…

Does the Lakers pressing and trapping perimeter defense backed by a strong side zone remind you of Ben Howland’s UCLA defense? It would be extremely interesting to hear what former Bruin players Jordan Farmar and Trevor Ariza have to say about the similarities and differences between the two defenses – and the two coaches.

What I like about the defense is that it is an active and aggressive rather than a passive defense, which I think really is a great fit for the talents and personalities of the Lakers players. It takes maximum advantage of the team’s size, length, speed, and athleticism as well as the gambling nature of the team’s players. And the beauty of it is that it fits perfectly with the enhanced transition game that Phil introduced last year at Tex’s urging. It is a defense that truly jump starts the Lakers offense with steals and turnovers.

Best of all, the new defense incorporates aspects of the Spurs long time outstanding defensive strategy designed to prevent 3-point shooting and layups with a combination of pressing perimeter defense combined with size and length of Drew to protect the rim. Unlike the Celtics seal-the-lane, sagging and collapsing defense that tries to turn other teams into jump shooting teams, the Lakers defense is based on protecting the 3-point line and the rim, forcing other teams to shoot more mid-range shots.

The defense has also greatly benefited from its systematic approach, meaning the players now have an overall defensive strategy and system that eliminates much of the decision making on how to guard opposing players in specific situations. We no longer see players tentatively trying to decide whether to play their man straight up or to shaded left or right. Instead, everybody knows exactly what to do, which is why our rotations now work.

The commitment by Kobe to be the team’s Doberman defensive stopper ala the Olympics combined with the addition of Andrew Bynum and Trevor Ariza and the realization by the Lakers coaches and players that they need to play defense to win the championship has resulting in a complete transformation of the team’s defensive attitude and ability. This team has taken a page out of the Celtics game plan from last year and improved on it.

Listening to every Laker coach and player talk defense is a remarkable turnaround from last year. Without a doubt, Phil and his coaching staff have done a terrific job figuring out the best way to utilize the Lakers deep and talented roster to totally transform its defense, If the Lakers play this way all year long, they will dominate the league and earn Phil his first COY, Mitch his first EOY, and Kobe his first DPOY.

Of course, this is all just my personal opinion based on my own ideas and observations.

Tom

Uncle B / Uncle A -
Am I to assume that Flea is no longer blogging for the Lakers? I am heart broken if that is the case. Have you seen him around Staples? Is there any word on a possible return to blogging for him? I know y'all got the scoop....please serve me a cone.
Thanks,
J_Luv

I love Brad Turner. Aside from the K Bros, he's a true journalist, one that I'm thankful he works in the Times.

http://tinyurl.com/6x66ls

Just reporting, no slant. Love it.

Laker Tom,

College Teams play zone defense. It's the trademark of the NCAA game. College still has an edge since they do not have the defense 3 seconds rule so it's actually more tougher for penetration because a big guy can hang in there and just contest any shot.

BK,

yeah teams will attack it in many ways. What I can say though it is better than the man to man defense that we used to employ. The absence of hand checking makes it hard to defend unlike the time of Kobe and Shaq.

-blitz