Dear Coach Smith:

Donate To GopherHole
B

Block M

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 11, 2009
Messages
1,610
Reaction score
818
Points
113
I would like to share with you a play that my 4th grade boys team has found very effective in recent weeks: its called a ball screen. You see, my team has a couple of kids that can drain a 17 ft jump shot with regularity and I find that a simple ball screen often gives them just enough space to get that shot off, or drive the lane of course. Now, none of my kids is named Blake Hoffarber, but I suspect this play could work for him, despite the fact that he is only shoots 50% from the 3 pt line. Of course, perhaps his left arm would get fatigued taking more than 5 shots. Alternatively, the half court offense where 5 young men stand around for 25 seconds does work. I find its most effective when we play the 2nd grade GIRLS team.

Just kidding of course. Tubby is an excellent coach and I like this team, but his offensive sets are not good. Just do not understand what they are trying to do in the half court.
 

Purdue and MSU both had athletic defenders who were bigger, faster, and stronger shadowing Blake the entire game. When a defense commits to stopping someone like that, especially when the defense is disciplined and well coached, it can have that effect. Even more so when that individual usually has to rely on screens/penetration/teammates to get open.
 

The ball screen. Brilliant.

I'm sure the U of Iowa fans are thrilled with how Lickliter's Ball Screen Blitz offense is working out against Big Ten defensive pressure and athletes.
 

Dear Coach Smith

I think Bobby Knight used a little more sophisticated version of that to spring Steve Alford. It's funny how fundamentals work, even at the D1 level.
 

Facts34 said:
The ball screen. Brilliant.

I'm sure the U of Iowa fans are thrilled with how Lickliter's Ball Screen Blitz offense is working out against Big Ten defensive pressure and athletes.
Click to expand...

What are you getting at here? Are you implying that being successful on offense in the B10, especially against the top 2 defensive teams in the conference, is more difficult than setting ball screens? That Lickliter's "slow white guards setting screens 25 feet from the basket" offense isn't the best way to win?

Block M's a coach for christ's sake. Of a 4th grade basketball team! He knows what it would take to be have the second highest ppg in the conference.

Wait...the Gophers are already that team? Oops.
 


And are you implying that the Gophers run a good half-court offense? Insert chuckle here.

They are BRUTAL in the half court.
 

Block M said:
And are you implying that the Gophers run a good half-court offense? Insert chuckle here.

They are BRUTAL in the half court.
Click to expand...

Are you implying that the defensive athleticism, scheming, and preparation of Michigan State :: your son's 4th grade opponents is apples-to-apples?
 

How does having the second highest points per game in the big ten = Brutal??
 

Block M said:
And are you implying that the Gophers run a good half-court offense? Insert chuckle here.

They are BRUTAL in the half court.
Click to expand...

While half-court offense is not the Gopher's strength, calling it "BRUTAL" is probably a bit much. It is difficult to argue with the results so far (ppg). Add 1 go-to scorer to the front court and this is a much different offense, regardless of system/sets.

I was mainly calling out your solution to the problem. Ball screens...awesome. I'm going to assume your playing career peaked at a similar level as your coaching.
 



dwminn said:
How does having the second highest points per game in the big ten = Brutal??
Click to expand...

Do you watch the games or are you talking stats here? Stats are often misleading. Against Iowa and Penn Sate we generated a whole lot of offense off of steals. I would be willing to bet we are #1 in the Big ten or close to it in points off of turnovers. We've played 5 Big Ten games- 3 of them against VERY cooperative defensive squads. If you watched the OSU game you know what I'm speaking of. If you look at the action on the court almost any game we play where the plays moves to slow down half court ball- we don't look good. Maybe not BRUTAL but not far from it.
Reference points are A&M, Miami, Portland, Purdue and MSU. Butler we pressed and ran on and we turned them over a ton.
 

I'm just confused why they keep trying to run Blake off screen where he is squaring up with his left side on the inside already. Most shooters prefer to step into a shot where their shooting hand/side is the last thing to come around. This helps the rhythym and also give them more space to clear a trailing defender. It is almost like we haven't adjusted these plays to consider we have a left handed shooter. We could just run LW on the one side with Blake on the other. It doesn't always have to be that way, but would be a decent starting point.
 

Block M said:
I would like to share with you a play that my 4th grade boys team has found very effective in recent weeks: its called a ball screen. You see, my team has a couple of kids that can drain a 17 ft jump shot with regularity and I find that a simple ball screen often gives them just enough space to get that shot off, or drive the lane of course. Now, none of my kids is named Blake Hoffarber, but I suspect this play could work for him, despite the fact that he is only shoots 50% from the 3 pt line. Of course, perhaps his left arm would get fatigued taking more than 5 shots. Alternatively, the half court offense where 5 young men stand around for 25 seconds does work. I find its most effective when we play the 2nd grade GIRLS team.

Just kidding of course. Tubby is an excellent coach and I like this team, but his offensive sets are not good. Just do not understand what they are trying to do in the half court.
Click to expand...
I'm sure that Tubby has given your suggestions all the value that they are due.
 

Rick Mons said:
I'm sure that Tubby has given your suggestions all the value that they are due.
Click to expand...

Oh, you really got him there. Why didn't you just say - "get lost dummy your ideas are worthless"?
 



I think what Block M is articulating in a very funny way is what appears to be a team less sure of itself in it's half-court offense than in other aspects of the game.

While watching Purdue, Wisconsin, MSU, Northwestern you see what these teams offensive identity is, even if the play fails, you see what they were intending to do. Often I'm not sure what the Gophers are trying to do in the half-court or how they're reacting to a teams initial defensive adjustment..

This might be coaching or players not following coaching during game pressure.

On Defense, it is such a pleasure to watch this team.
 

bga1 said:
Oh, you really got him there. Why didn't you just say - "get lost dummy your ideas are worthless"?
Click to expand...

Maybe he's being polite? Giving coaching tips to any coach at this level does require certain qualities. When the coach is someone with the experience of Tubby, brains isn't one of the qualities. I think discussing critically why Blake can't get open; the inability to recruit or develop other scorers; the inadequacies of our big men; the defensive abilities of certain teams and how we can't counter them, etc. are all valid. I'm sorry, but you're asking for ridicule when you present the topic in the tone Block M used even if he tried to lighten it at the end. Free to state his opinion but people are free to take shots then.
 

What I like most about........

Block M's comments........is the part where he says he can't tell what they are trying to do...cause I can't either.

The only purpose achieved in the "stand around'' offense, is proper spacing, which only works when you have a good one on one guy, or you want to enter the ball into the post. We don't do either of these things well or regularly.

I will say the effort was outstanding vs. MSU, but the word will go forth to others viewing this tape...."If you get the Gophers in a half court game, you have a god chance to beat them."
 

Who draws up the Gophers half court sets?

NU provides a great contrast in the half court set. They run their sets with great energy and constant motion, a pleasure to watch, really. I am curious as to who actually runs the Gopher offensive schemes, Tubby or an assistant.
 

beowulftom said:
I think what Block M is articulating in a very funny way is what appears to be a team less sure of itself in it's half-court offense than in other aspects of the game.

While watching Purdue, Wisconsin, MSU, Northwestern you see what these teams offensive identity is, even if the play fails, you see what they were intending to do. Often I'm not sure what the Gophers are trying to do in the half-court or how they're reacting to a teams initial defensive adjustment..

This might be coaching or players not following coaching during game pressure.

On Defense, it is such a pleasure to watch this team.
Click to expand...

+ a million
 

bga1 said:
Oh, you really got him there. Why didn't you just say - "get lost dummy your ideas are worthless"?
Click to expand...
Because if that's what I had wanted to say, I would have said it that way.

I wrote it exactly the way I intended and without calling names or making insults. I've found Coach Smith to be a very respectful person but also one who feels strongly that he knows what he's doing. I'm sure he'd listen to a self-described 4th grade coach's ideas. I'm also pretty confident that he'll then decide exactly how much importance to attach to those same observations. (I sure hope the "2nd grade GIRLS" coach does the same so that team can give those well-coached 4th graders a real run for their money.)
 

Amazing

Tubby's Gophers are in top 2 or 3 of almost every offensive category among 11 Big Ten teams.

And yet, the advice continues to roll in.
 

I really don't know and I'm too lazy to look it up.

Where do we rank in the various offensive categories within the Big Ten using only Big 10 games? That's the best way to see how we're stacking up, when you throw out everyone's nonconference stats.

I'd be most interested in points per game and point differential.
 


SelectionSunday said:
I really don't know and I'm too lazy to look it up.

Where do we rank in the various offensive categories within the Big Ten using only Big 10 games? That's the best way to see how we're stacking up, when you throw out everyone's nonconference stats.

I'd be most interested in points per game and point differential.
Click to expand...


Big Ten games only:

Scoring Offense:

1 - Purdue 69.5
2 - MN 69.4

Scoring Margin

1 - Michigan State +13.2
2 - Wisconsin +9.8
3 - Illinois +7.5
4 - Michigan +6.0
5 - Purdue +4.8
6 - Minnesota +0.4


****Results are from a small sample (3-4 games for most teams) with varying degrees of matchups. For example, MN has played OSU/MSU/PU (tough). Illinois has played IA/IU/PSU/NW (not too tough). One big game either way (MN allowing 79 to PU) can skew the stats in a big way with this small of a sample size.
 

fan of Ray Williams said:
http://www.bigten.org/sports/m-baskbl/stats/2009-2010/confonly.html Not sure if this helps you or not.
Click to expand...

Great info. So I have to say hmmmm here. Would those who say we are the number two offense also say we are the number 8 defense? That's what the stats say! The reality is we have a great defense- maybe the best in the conference and surely top 3 or 4. And that's a credit to what Tubby does. By the same token our offense is lousy when the defense isn't creating it.
 

In regard to halfcourt offense, this shouldn't be that big of a surprise. It is what it is. Tubby's teams traditionally haven't been all that strong in the halfcourt. It doesn't mean he can't coach, doesn't mean he's a bum. I love him as much as the next guy. But, over the years, he has chosen to emphasize other parts of his team to formulate strengths in other areas. His teams defend hard (especially in halfcourt), force turnovers, pressure the ball, rebound well, etc.

There was a lot of unjust criticism of Tubby in Kentucky, but there was some legit criticism over the years about his team's halfcourt offense. At one time, it was nicknamed the "mule plow" offense because it bogged down so much. Same thing often is happening with his halfcourt offense at Minnesota. There simply is no denying that. I'm an ardent Tubby supporter and can concede that his halfcourt offensive strategies are not that great.

Unfortunately, I think we have to take the good with the bad in that regard. This is a "blind spot" for him, IMHO. His halfcourt offense is just not that good and I think they emphasize other things more to make up for it.
 

tjgopher said:
In regard to halfcourt offense, this shouldn't be that big of a surprise. It is what it is. Tubby's teams traditionally haven't been all that strong in the halfcourt. It doesn't mean he can't coach, doesn't mean he's a bum. I love him as much as the next guy. But, over the years, he has chosen to emphasize other parts of his team to formulate strengths in other areas. His teams defend hard (especially in halfcourt), force turnovers, pressure the ball, rebound well, etc.

There was a lot of unjust criticism of Tubby in Kentucky, but there was some legit criticism over the years about his team's halfcourt offense. At one time, it was nicknamed the "mule plow" offense because it bogged down so much. Same thing often is happening with his halfcourt offense at Minnesota. There simply is no denying that. I'm an ardent Tubby supporter and can concede that his halfcourt offensive strategies are not that great.

Unfortunately, I think we have to take the good with the bad in that regard. This is a "blind spot" for him, IMHO. His halfcourt offense is just not that good and I think they emphasize other things more to make up for it.
Click to expand...

Totally agree- good post. I think in Tubby's dreamworld he has a dominant big guy to dump it into on every possession and go from there. The current roster is good but not conducive to that strategy.
 


Well said tjgopher. We'll leave it at that.
 

Friend Of Tubby said:
Tubby's Gophers are in top 2 or 3 of almost every offensive category among 11 Big Ten teams.

And yet, the advice continues to roll in.
Click to expand...

Except when we play top teams. All I want is the coaches to adjust the motion offense when it isn't working. That isn't a rip on Smith-it is a want. If you were happy with the motion offense against Purdue or Mich. State you are really easy to please.
 

You must log in or register to reply here.



Top Bottom