The Insanity of Willingly Switching Into Mismatches

[brianpoe]

No it's not a automatic basket. That's why you have help defense. What is you're soulation then. Hedging was tried and it didn't work, switching was tried and that's not working so what's you're solution??

The solution is to get better.

We are talking about three 18 year olds in Bam, WG, and Fox.

They definitely need work on high pick defense and straight line drives.

Bam also needs to get back to his man much sooner instead of playing the switch the entire set.

 

[Jakarii]

THANK YOU!!!

You know what's really hard to guard? A pick and roll where you don't switch. No defense is perfect, but the switch defense is a great defense. Cal can't pack in all kinds of defense in a year starting four freshmen. Jay bilas said recently that if the pick and roll is run well, it's impossible to guard. Our defensive efficiency is great, and we'll be much better in March. Relax..

 

[Jakarii]

Takes more than just a season to "get better" at least to the level that you want them to get. It's rare that you can do that and sometimes you just don't have the lateral quickness to do it. Willis has been at UK for four years and he was once 18 and he still has major issues so you can't expect every 18 year to get it in a couple months

The solution is to get better.

We are talking about three 18 year olds in Bam, WG, and Fox.

They definitely need work on high pick defense and straight line drives.

Bam also needs to get back to his man much sooner instead of playing the switch the entire set.

 

[brianpoe]

Takes more than just a season to "get better" at least to the level that you want them to get. It's rare that you can do that and sometimes you just don't have the lateral quickness to do it. Willis has been at UK for four years and he was once 18 and he still has major issues so you can't expect every 18 year to get it in a couple months

The reason WG starts over Willis is exactly what you said.

The others are more athletic.

It seems to me that our star frosh seem to pick it up by seasons end most years.

This was a good teaching game.

 

[Mojocat_rivals48469]

They "made" us switch into idiotic mismatches at will, almost lost us the game yet again late.

Cal will never learn, apparently.

It will more than likely be a prevalent factor yet again when/if we lose in March.

23-5 in the NCAA tournament. Complain some more.

 

[ala_kat2]

Who has more final fours in Cal's time here? Or is your brain too one dimensional to know the answer?

I thought we were talking about the switching defense, not # of final fours. Maybe he wins a couple more of those if he was a better bench coach. All he does is recruit, motivate and teach the dribble drive, whatever that is. He's very inflexible with making adjustments based on the opponent's strength. Just my opinion. Other coaches with the talent Cal has had would have more championships. I'm glad he gets us there to the Final Fours but it's a result of having the best players year in and year out. I'm really tired of watching Freshmen making Freshmen mistakes, but with Cal that's what we get. Great players but immature players. Back to the topic in question, Freshmen have trouble with defense, especially those who never had to play D in high school. And it is obvious that Carl's 'switch everything' D is not working.

 

[CalsKittens]

I thought we were talking about the switching defense, not # of final fours. Maybe he wins a couple more of those if he was a better bench coach. All he does is recruit, motivate and teach the dribble drive, whatever that is. He's very inflexible with making adjustments based on the opponent's strength. Just my opinion. Other coaches with the talent Cal has had would have more championships. I'm glad he gets us there to the Final Fours but it's a result of having the best players year in and year out. I'm really tired of watching Freshmen making Freshmen mistakes, but with Cal that's what we get. Great players but immature players. Back to the topic in question, Freshmen have trouble with defense, especially those who never had to play D in high school. And it is obvious that Carl's 'switch everything' D is not working.

Why is it I never see you post other times besides right after a poor game? Your the few the proud the ash$&ts who for some reason doesn't like the ride we've been on. Good luck with another coach. You'll get your wish some day.

 

[brianpoe]

I thought we were talking about the switching defense, not # of final fours. Maybe he wins a couple more of those if he was a better bench coach. All he does is recruit, motivate and teach the dribble drive, whatever that is. He's very inflexible with making adjustments based on the opponent's strength. Just my opinion. Other coaches with the talent Cal has had would have more championships. I'm glad he gets us there to the Final Fours but it's a result of having the best players year in and year out. I'm really tired of watching Freshmen making Freshmen mistakes, but with Cal that's what we get. Great players but immature players. Back to the topic in question, Freshmen have trouble with defense, especially those who never had to play D in high school. And it is obvious that Carl's 'switch everything' D is not working.

Every year man, you and Rolaid and a couple others say the same thing...

UMass and bringing Memphis back are enough proof. Cal has won without all 5 stars.

Just like we have reminded you guys the previous years.

 

[Jakarii]

Wenyen is athletic in some aspects. I told people before the season that he is slow from side to side which hurts with defense. scouts said the same thing and some understood that that would be a issue, others of course thought he could play sf and was underranked and etc etc etc.

Bam is the one player that should be able to do better, which he does as far as drives, but not so much guarding jumpers since he gives way too much space

The reason WG starts over Willis is exactly what you said.

The others are more athletic.

It seems to me that our star frosh seem to pick it up by seasons end most years.

This was a good teaching game.

 

[brianpoe]

Wenyen is athletic in some aspects. I told people before the season that he is slow from side to side which hurts with defense. scouts said the same thing and some understood that that would be a issue, others of course thought he could play sf and was underranked and etc etc etc.

Bam is the one player that should be able to do better, which he does as far as drives, but not so much guarding jumpers since he gives way too much space

I dont disagree about WG.

I think Bam believes he can make up for the space or is worried he will be driven on..or both.

 

[stoneycat_20]

Bam is terrible on defense.

The pick and roll he hasn't a clue...And yes the switching involved Ban all night..Drew coached a good game..Cal let it happen..Mulder was under the basket several times on a 7'fter

 

[brianpoe]

Mulder was under the basket several times on a 7'fter

Except for the times Hawkins was...

 

[BigBlueDiehard_rivals]

FWIW, Cal just called himself a bonehead on his post game show with Leach for changing the pick and roll defense back to switching everything for this game.

 

[jameric01]

besides never playing a zone and this are two things coach does I don't get

He has said on multiple occasions that it is partially because they don't play zone in the NBA, so he plays a system that helps set them up at the next level. The thing about Cal is he can recruit at the top level, and what comes at the top level is generally a combination of size and athleticism, which is why our teams have been consistently some of the top defensive teams in the collegiate level. The real problem is, there are times where switching to it on teams that are pure post big men coupled with slasher guards, would absolutely destroy them. UCONN is a great example both years. You just have to look at all their losses, Louisville absolutely destroyed them and so did several other teams with zone prior. That being said it is a hard thing to drop on a select few teams, when he has taught defense an other way the whole season. So he sticks to what got them there instead of trying something that would probably work better in select situations, because his team isn't used to it and he is unsure how they would respond to a change that late to the game plan.that late in the season.

 

[Mojocat_rivals48469]

Other coaches with the talent Cal has had would have more championships.

Idiotic ungrateful horse manure. The number of coaches in the whole country that could get 5 five star players to play together, to sacrifice shots, to not care who is the main guy, to play top level defense....you can count on one hand. Rick Pitino is a HOFer, he can't handle a single 5 star, you think he wouldn't make a mess of 5 or 6 of them. Cal gets them to play as a team.....and they're all 18 years old!

 

[CalsKittens]

He has said on multiple occasions that it is partially because they don't play zone in the NBA, so he plays a system that helps set them up at the next level. The thing about Cal is he can recruit at the top level, and what comes at the top level is generally a combination of size and athleticism, which is why our teams have been consistently some of the top defensive teams in the collegiate level. The real problem is, there are times where switching to it on teams that are pure post big men coupled with slasher guards, would absolutely destroy them. UCONN is a great example both years. You just have to look at all their losses, Louisville absolutely destroyed them and so did several other teams with zone prior. That being said it is a hard thing to drop on a select few teams, when he has taught defense an other way the whole season. So he sticks to what got them there instead of trying something that would probably work better in select situations, because his team isn't used to it and he is unsure how they would respond to a change that late to the game plan.that late in the season.

Well he is Hall of Fame it's time for him to figure out the answer. This needs fixed if he really wants to chase Wooden. Don't get me wrong I Love he is our coach.

 

[51stFan]

The sky is not falling. Basketball is all about match ups. Vandy has five guys that can stretch the floor and that makes the defense have to close out more aggressive and can lead to dribble drives. Add that with officials that blew the whistle on every contested shot and you get a tight game.

 

[Supreme Lord Z]

The only thing worse than our defense are the plebes that show up to defend this nonsense. We have way too much athleticism and size to be this bad at D. This team should be a lock down defense that erases teams in crunch time.

 

[UK till Death]

FWIW, Cal just called himself a bonehead on his post game show with Leach for changing the pick and roll defense back to switching everything for this game.

@Jakarii pretty sure Cal played the game, Clarion U, IIRC.

 

[51stFan]

The only thing worse than our defense are the plebes that show up to defend this nonsense. We have way too much athleticism and size to be this bad at D. This team should be a lock down defense that erases teams in crunch time.

I don't know if we are that bad at D, or just refuse to change based on nightly matchups. Some of the angles we take are really bad. How do you basically end up running beside your guy at the top of the key in a half court set? Why not cut deeper in the paint to get back in front?

Part of the problem is Cal liked to pressure the ball so much that it gets his kids in some bad matchups. I cringe thinking back at Andrew and Aaron Harrison trying to stay in front of the UConn guards 28 feet from the basket.

 

[KyCatFan1]

I've been against the switching defense most of the time Cal has been here. It only works when you have a big that is quick enough to not get beaten off the dribble. We also cause our guards to get fouls trying to guard someone that is 6"+ taller than them. One of Fox's first 2 fouls were him trying to guard a big man under the basket.

Also we are bad about getting driven on and having 2 guys try to stop it leaving an open rebounder for an easy basket. My last defensive gripe is when our guards on the wings try to play off their man to help in the paint and fail to get back on their man before they get a wide open 3. Briscoe struggles with that every game. At least once a game he is lunging out at a guy shooting a three that he ends up making. Luckily he is doing other things to make up for his mistakes.

If we can get these guys playing as hard on defense as they do on offense, this team can be special. I think Cal will have to permanently scrap the switching defense to win it all though.

 

[KyFaninNC]

Dominique Hawkins guarding Luke Kornet four feet from the basket. What could go wrong?

Yep and Bam guarding the guard at the three point line, makes perfect sense to me.

 

[Boozer93]

I love Cal, but switching and never playing zone frustrates me too.

 

[irishcat1965]

I thought we were talking about the switching defense, not # of final fours. Maybe he wins a couple more of those if he was a better bench coach. All he does is recruit, motivate and teach the dribble drive, whatever that is. He's very inflexible with making adjustments based on the opponent's strength. Just my opinion. Other coaches with the talent Cal has had would have more championships. I'm glad he gets us there to the Final Fours but it's a result of having the best players year in and year out. I'm really tired of watching Freshmen making Freshmen mistakes, but with Cal that's what we get. Great players but immature players. Back to the topic in question, Freshmen have trouble with defense, especially those who never had to play D in high school. And it is obvious that Carl's 'switch everything' D is not working.

Literally every bit of that post is total horse chit. Except Cal getting UK to final fours.

 

[ScrewDuke1]

Every coach has flaws and clearly this has been Cals biggest one. Still would take nobody over him though.

 

[4UK]

I thought we were talking about the switching defense, not # of final fours. Maybe he wins a couple more of those if he was a better bench coach. All he does is recruit, motivate and teach the dribble drive, whatever that is. He's very inflexible with making adjustments based on the opponent's strength. Just my opinion. Other coaches with the talent Cal has had would have more championships. I'm glad he gets us there to the Final Fours but it's a result of having the best players year in and year out. I'm really tired of watching Freshmen making Freshmen mistakes, but with Cal that's what we get. Great players but immature players. Back to the topic in question, Freshmen have trouble with defense, especially those who never had to play D in high school. And it is obvious that Carl's 'switch everything' D is not working.

Actually, you couldn't be more wrong if you tried. Coach K - you know, the guy generally considered the best or second best college coach of all-time - is learning this year just how hard it is to meld young talent into a successful team.

You could take any coach in the country, give them the teams that Cal has had, and I guarantee none would have as good a record as Cal - and most wouldn't even be remotely close. No team in the country has been more consistently fun to watch the UK in Cal's years. No team has been in the national spotlight more than Cal's teams. No team has more consistently been a national title contender.

But you just keep babbling about switching defenses, or whatever the hell you're complaining about. It changes by the day. Most of us prefer to enjoy the great run we're on with the best coach any of us will probably see at UK in our lives.

 

[anon_013cn8yrfncx2]

Could call it lazy coaching or go with the more positive not enough time to get basically all new players to figure out how to execute it. The real issue imo is that I'm 73, have lost 10 steps, and I still think I could get by Fox.

 

[bnewt]

Can't switch with Willis out there. He gets lost and is slow to help when the guards are in a mismatch

knew there would have to be a jab at Willis..........Is he the only one getting beat off the dribble???????? Not by a long stretch. Tell me how Monk & Fox keep getting beat off the dribble as quick as they are? They get beat by much less athletic players every game. Oh & don't forget the super defender Hawkins that can't guard a tree stump. For whatever reason, this team can't or won't play defense. The pick & roll is the oldest play in the book yet UK has NEVER been able to defend it consistently

 

[catdance]

This is one of our best stretches in our program's history. How did we do it?[eyeroll]

 

[Supreme Lord Z]

Cal is the greatest thing to ever happen to my enjoyment of sport. I don't know what I will do when he retires because there is no way on earth anyone else is ever going to even come close to the level of talent he has brought in since he has been here. This has been so incredible of a stretch that I finally have put the ghost of Rick Pitino behind me, forever.

All that said, this year our defense sucks. It must improve or it will be the reason why we exit the tournament way too early for a team with 3 lottery picks on it. Fox and Monk running alongside their man while they drive straight to the basket is NOT what I want my memory of this team to be.

 

[mebeblue2]

against ul we never switched
snider had a career day

our guards are great in almost every way
but so far they have not shown the toughness to fight through screens

 

[turkeywildturkey]

Maybe if it costs us another game in the tournament Cal will learn

Yeah. You need to give Cal some coaching advice. What year did you get inducted into the HOF? Some of you people are complete idiots. So, besides you, who do you think we should have coaching this team?

 

[Supreme Lord Z]

Yeah. You need to give Cal some coaching advice. What year did you get inducted into the HOF? Some of you people are complete idiots. So, besides you, who do you think we should have coaching this team?

I'd like for Cal to bring Orlando Antigua back, for starters.

 

[revcort]

I agree that switching into mismatches is very unwise. There must be a better way, but we kept switching all night, and Vanderbilt kept taking advantage. Calipari did acknowledge it in the radio interview he did afterward. It was LaChance and Kornet in the pick and roll all night, and the Cats kept switching. In my opinion, when a team takes advantage of you like that again and again, you gotta hedge that screen and fight through. That's the best way.

 

[nickhorvathsuxazz]

It worked with Willie out there. Doesn't for anyone else.

It's not the guard beating Bam for the score I'm concerned with; it's our guards trying to keep their bigs from scoring on them in the post. It was a huge factor in getting our guards in foul trouble last night.

 

[Mojocat_rivals48469]

Jim Boeheim today in Sports Illustrated:

“I think everybody, including me, underestimated how long it would take to get all these new guys playing well together,” he said. “We’re getting better, but we’ve got a long way to go.”

He ought to try it with all 5 star players.

 

[bcox13]

knew there would have to be a jab at Willis..........Is he the only one getting beat off the dribble???????? Not by a long stretch. Tell me how Monk & Fox keep getting beat off the dribble as quick as they are? They get beat by much less athletic players every game. Oh & don't forget the super defender Hawkins that can't guard a tree stump. For whatever reason, this team can't or won't play defense. The pick & roll is the oldest play in the book yet UK has NEVER been able to defend it consistently

it wasn't a jab, it was true. It's ok to say it

Yes, the whole team is not great on defense, but Monk and Fox are scoring 20 something a game in SEC play. Willis is getting plenty of minutes but not really doing anything.

I would prefer to watch Gabriel struggle and log minutes than I would watch Willis. The potential is greater. Willis is a senior and we know what we've got. He will have a couple more good games and he will be a no-show more often than not.

Anyhow, Cal teams usually play good team defense. This team is behind others, hopefully over the next couple months they improve.

 

[Burltree245]

Fox was constantly trailing his man down the lane last night. Sometimes you've just got to man up and play hard nose and not wait for someone to help.

 

[JayCatz44]

The other night when Cal was mic'ed up, I heard him yell don't switch at least twice.

 

[Eddie Gran can coach]

Team defense concepts are lacking, too often opponents isolate with a guard/big at top of key with other 3 guys spread. It's asking an awful lot for those 2 defenders to cover the pick and roll or pick and pop with space and middle of court open.

UK could solve this with a zone or a sagging man to man (one weak side defender that can help off a poor offensive player), but Cal ain't gonna play nothing but man to man, teaching other defensive techniques require time in a system, that doesnt exist here for the elite.