Coaching Criminality: All Things Jason Midd | More Guilty Pleas Than Inbounds Plays

[cow]

They have hit the tanking breakpoint where the worst coach in the NBA becomes the best coach in the NBA.

Don't underestimate Kidd's ability to fuck this up.

[IamDougieFresh]

Don't underestimate Kidd's ability to fuck this up.

The Kings will punk us. Probably going to get booed at home again.

The Bulls game is scary, but at least they will be playing hard.

The Mavs should be eliminated by the Spurs game and they should have their spot locked in as well. I could see the Spurs intentionally screwing us over and trying very hard to lose this one. 

These idiots have to do everything they can to lose out. Frank 48 minutes at PG. Get McShaqtin to double his goaltending violation efforts. Get like 10 techs and a couple flagrants, transition take fouls, get them in the bonus early, etc. Must DNPs: Luka, Kyrie, Wood, Hardaway, Hardy. The Frank, Theo, Bertans, Powell, McGee lineup is going to hit like crack cocaine.

[loki]

The Kings will punk us. Probably going to get booed at home again.

The Bulls game is scary, but at least they will be playing hard.

The Mavs should be eliminated by the Spurs game and they should have their spot locked in as well. I could see the Spurs intentionally screwing us over and trying very hard to lose this one. 

These idiots have to do everything they can to lose out. Frank 48 minutes at PG. Get McShaqtin to double his goaltending violation efforts. Get like 10 techs and a couple flagrants, transition take fouls, get them in the bonus early, etc. Must DNPs: Luka, Kyrie, Wood, Hardaway, Hardy. The Frank, Theo, Bertans, Powell, McGee lineup is going to hit like crack cocaine.

They could have it wrapped up before the Bulls game. As far as I can tell if the Mavs to lose to the Kings on Wednesday and OKC beats Utah on Thursday, it's game over due to tiebreaks. Hopefully we get to see your Death Lineup for two games.

[SwisherPrice]

Wood and McGee lineup was fun...but too little, too late for Kidd. They should have been getting lots of playing time since November. Instead, Kidd gave us the Powell and Kleber Experience

[Dahlsim]

Wood and McGee lineup was fun...but too little, too late for Kidd. They should have been getting lots of playing time since November. Instead, Kidd gave us the Powell and Kleber Experience

This is absolutely spot on.  I see Kidd as a talented but still YOUNG Coach.  He and his staff needed more time because Kidd as a young coach still tended to want to make the player hand he was dealt work within his system/scheme/style of coaching.  It takes even higher level coaches to make their style fit the combination of player talents on the roster. 

Wood and McGee showed plenty of NBA talent still in the tank.  Kidd and company took too long to figure that out.  They literally had a decent chunk (not all) of what they needed (defense, rebounding, inside scoring) sitting on their bench all season.  
With a strong defensive replacement for DFS (which they evidently didn't feel they had in house) this is a playoff team with healthy Luka and Kyrie.  Maybe even still a high playoff team.  

JaVale McGee had a similar issue in Dallas with Coach Carlisle.  He would have some good games in limited minutes given him but just never fit the way Carlisle wanted to play. No matter how well he played in any given game, he could never get consistent role and opportunity in Dallas.  He left Carlisle/Dallas and went on to legitimately contribute to THREE NBA Championships on 2 different NBA teams.  

Coaching and roster that FIT the player = opportunity.

[MrGoat]

https://theathletic.com/4370052/2023/03/...ed-article

There are rumbles that Nick Nurse may leave the Raptors. Just throwing that out there.

[dirkfansince1998]

We have gone full circle. People are asking for McGee and have already forgotten that him being on the floor lead to instant double digit runs for the opponent all season long.

McGee -9.2 on court  -10.7 on/off
Powell +5.9 on court  +8.5 on/off

And I am not saying that Powell should be a starter. Mavs front court is easily the worst in the entire league. No matter who plays it is going to be a weak spot.

[omahen]

We have gone full circle. People are asking for McGee and have already forgotten that him being on the floor lead to instant double digit runs for the opponent all season long.

McGee -9.2 on court  -10.7 on/off
Powell +5.9 on court  +8.5 on/off

And I am not saying that Powell should be a starter. Mavs front court is easily the worst in the entire league. No matter who plays it is going to be a weak spot.

The thing I don't understand is, why Mavs are playing drop coverage in PnR. Drop coverage is a problem in itself and rare teams can survive it. Example are Milwaukee with Lopez, but they have elite PF help defender as well as elite wing defenders. Mavs have none of that. Modern basketball is about having switchable defenders. Powell and Kleber are actually quite good at that. If only they would use them this way...

With undersized and non rim protecting centers (and elite wings to fight over screens), drop coverage is just a recipe for failure imho. Just look at made baskets from Murray from the game against Atlanta (or Butler-Zeller demolition of Mavs defense a game before that) in the link below. Half of them are because of drop coverage leaving Murray so wide open, he seems to be surprised a couple of times, how much space he has. McGee is way longer and much better suited for drop coverage, that is why he offers a bit more resistance. Centers like Powell and Kleber should just switch every screen. This is their strength. No idea why Mavs play the way they do. It makes no sense and it is obviously not working.

Video and Shotcharts | Stats | NBA.com

[Razzmatazz_Hopskidillydoo]

The thing I don't understand is, why Mavs are playing drop coverage in PnR. 

Obvious answer: Jason Kidd.

Why he promised McGee a starting gig.
Why it took him too long to get JG more PT.
Why it took him long enough to reduce RB's minutes.
Why Wood isn't getting minutes.
Why SD has the same plays as Luka before SD got traded.
Why the Mavs have very little variety in offense.
Why the Mavs are applying the same in bound plays over and over.
Why time outs aren't called when they need them.

But I guess, this isn't on Jason Kidd, he's just like the rest of us, just watching the game.

[Jym]

Obvious answer: Jason Kidd.

Why he promised McGee a starting gig.
Why it took him too long to get JG more PT.
Why it took him long enough to reduce RB's minutes.
Why Wood isn't getting minutes.
Why SD has the same plays as Luka before SD got traded.
Why the Mavs have very little variety in offense.
Why the Mavs are applying the same in bound plays over and over.
Why time outs aren't called when they need them.

But I guess, this isn't on Jason Kidd, he's just like the rest of us, just watching the game.

I'd prefer Avery Johnson at this point 
never thought I'd utter that phrase

[Razzmatazz_Hopskidillydoo]

I'd prefer Avery Johnson at this point 
never thought I'd utter that phrase

My dislike for Avery came out not because he was outsmarted by Don Nelson, but it's due to him wanting to trade Dirk because he wasn't Duncan-like.
Avery wasn't blaming himself for the Mavs failures, he (in a way) -- indirectly put the blame on Dirk.

Kidd has taken a similar path.

He has this arrogance in him all the while achieving less.

[Dahlsim]

We have gone full circle. People are asking for McGee and have already forgotten that him being on the floor lead to instant double digit runs for the opponent all season long.

McGee -9.2 on court  -10.7 on/off
Powell +5.9 on court  +8.5 on/off

And I am not saying that Powell should be a starter. Mavs front court is easily the worst in the entire league. No matter who plays it is going to be a weak spot.

I get that with McGee.  My point was Kidd and company tried to get McGee to fit into the style and scheme they wanted to play.  Javale himself actually commented on this early in the season and as I recall even before the season.  He was slotted to play a major role but he wasn't at all confident that the way they wanted him to play was something he would be able to adapt to.   Bottom line is he was never the center for the system they wanted to play so the Coach/System/Player fit was not there from day one.  

What we saw in ATL was a motivated McGee + a motivated Wood being used playing to their strengths was a different look that brought the team back and gave them every legit chance to win with Luka/Kyrie.   If Luka was even healthy and shooting on par they win that game.  

I'm not suggesting now that McGee was great for the Mavs this year, of course he wasn't, but the fact is he has been good, very good to the tune of championship level for teams that figured out how to play to his strengths which are significant. 
McGee was effective playing rim protection, rebounding and giving the Mavs a high percentage lob and inside scoring option. With age he may be slowing down some playing mobile defense in space though. 
Wood is a big that can play effective offense like a big wing and IF motivated (still a concern after a signed contract) can play some defense too. 

My larger point is about Coaching that can win with a hand that is dealt them vs. requiring just the right pieces to be acquired in making their desired style work.  Cap space and other realities make the latter road dicey even to just keep a winning roster together such as we saw with Brunson. 
Mav's coach, Kidd or whoever right now has to figure out how to play to a roster with a cast built to support Luka/Kyrie.  
DFS is gone, that has to be filled but what does the championship contender roster look like after that?  
Is it feasible with Luka/Kyrie?

[Dahlsim]

The thing I don't understand is, why Mavs are playing drop coverage in PnR. Drop coverage is a problem in itself and rare teams can survive it. Example are Milwaukee with Lopez, but they have elite PF help defender as well as elite wing defenders. Mavs have none of that. Modern basketball is about having switchable defenders. Powell and Kleber are actually quite good at that. If only they would use them this way...

With undersized and non rim protecting centers (and elite wings to fight over screens), drop coverage is just a recipe for failure imho. Just look at made baskets from Murray from the game against Atlanta (or Butler-Zeller demolition of Mavs defense a game before that) in the link below. Half of them are because of drop coverage leaving Murray so wide open, he seems to be surprised a couple of times, how much space he has. McGee is way longer and much better suited for drop coverage, that is why he offers a bit more resistance. Centers like Powell and Kleber should just switch every screen. This is their strength. No idea why Mavs play the way they do. It makes no sense and it is obviously not working.

Video and Shotcharts | Stats | NBA.com

If you can load up with elite switchable defenders and at the same time be a better 2-way team than all the other teams loading up with elite switchable defenders then by all means, do so.  Most modern NBA teams try and load up with 5 of those including the 5 position now. 

If however your elite talent includes a body in the form of a Brook Lopez or a Nikola Jokic that take back from the opponent more than they give up, can you win with that ?

[dirkfansince1998]

I get that with McGee.  My point was Kidd and company tried to get McGee to fit into the style and scheme they wanted to play.  Javale himself actually commented on this early in the season and as I recall even before the season.  He was slotted to play a major role but he wasn't at all confident that the way they wanted him to play was something he would be able to adapt to.   Bottom line is he was never the center for the system they wanted to play so the Coach/System/Player fit was not there from day one.  

What we saw in ATL was a motivated McGee + a motivated Wood being used playing to their strengths was a different look that brought the team back and gave them every legit chance to win with Luka/Kyrie.   If Luka was even healthy and shooting on par they win that game.  

I'm not suggesting now that McGee was great for the Mavs this year, of course he wasn't, but the fact is he has been good, very good to the tune of championship level for teams that figured out how to play to his strengths which are significant. 
McGee was effective playing rim protection, rebounding and giving the Mavs a high percentage lob and inside scoring option. With age he may be slowing down some playing mobile defense in space though. 
Wood is a big that can play effective offense like a big wing and IF motivated (still a concern after a signed contract) can play some defense too. 

My larger point is about Coaching that can win with a hand that is dealt them vs. requiring just the right pieces to be acquired in making their desired style work.  Cap space and other realities make the latter road dicey even to just keep a winning roster together such as we saw with Brunson. 
Mav's coach, Kidd or whoever right now has to figure out how to play to a roster with a cast built to support Luka/Kyrie.  
DFS is gone, that has to be filled but what does the championship contender roster look like after that?  
Is it feasible with Luka/Kyrie?

Agreed. Adding McGee and expecting him to play a Powell-like role on defense never made any sense. McGee stated that the Mavs are asking him to play higher up in the pick and roll. Something he had never done before.

But going back to the playoffs last season we already knew that McGee wasn´t looking like his Lakers or GS self. If I had to guess I would say that he never had the best positioning or feel for the game but a combination of length and athleticism allowed him to make up for it. Without elite athleticism a steep decline isn´t exactly suprising.

Absolutely agree with your overall point. Lack of adjustments and/or attempts to play to the strengths of the roster this season lead to a lot of justified outrage among fans.
Sadly I don´t trust them to upgrade the overall talent or at least bring in better fitting pieces.

Personally I don´t think that Luka/Kyrie is a winning formula given that they only have limited assets to make at least two major changes. Fit wise the most interesting topic isn´t about offense for me. I trust any Luka lead team to have a top 10 offense in a worst case scenario. My primary concern is Luka´s role on defense. Depending on his role the Mavs either need another smaller point of attack defender next to him or another big wing. In addition to the much needed PF/C upgrade.

[omahen]

If however your elite talent includes a body in the form of a Brook Lopez or a Nikola Jokic that take back from the opponent more than they give up, can you win with that ?

Not sure exactly what you are trying to say. Luka is a net positive. And has especially been in the playoffs.

Looking at star players that were not elite defenders, you have a very recent case in Curry. He is far from elite defender, yet GSW built around him correctly, surrounding him with elite defenders.

[Hogmelon]

https://www.si.com/nba/mavericks/news/da...laso-rumor

[IamDougieFresh]

The Kings will punk us. Probably going to get booed at home again.

Even a super genius like me is wrong every once in a while. First L of the season in game 80 isn't to shabby tho.

[cow]

At least we got to see the comedy of Wood trying to post up Fox.

[Dahlsim]

Not sure exactly what you are trying to say. Luka is a net positive. And has especially been in the playoffs.

Looking at star players that were not elite defenders, you have a very recent case in Curry. He is far from elite defender, yet GSW built around him correctly, surrounding him with elite defenders.

Of course, Luka is a net positive, never said or meant to imply otherwise.  Kyrie is also a net positive assuming he's a in a positive frame of mind with your franchise. 
I responded to the point about having 5 strong switchable defenders.   

Your talent just won't always allow you to fill every rotation with the ideal defenders and still be better than every other team in the NBA trying to get those type people on the floor.  
If you have elite offensive talents like Jokic and Brook Lopez who are not maybe as defensively switchable as other players at their position, then your coaches have to play to their strengths when they are on the floor because overall they can still be net positives.  That was the point to the part of my post you quoted.

[ItsGoTime]

Kidd is like the Dillon Brooks of coaching.