IST: 2nd Round - (3) Chicago Bulls vs (2) Cleveland Cavs (Cavs lead 3-2)

[knoxville7]

Snell just needs to keep Kyrie away from the basket if he's guarding him. Use his length to contest the jumpers. If he's all up in his face, Kyrie is getting to the hole every time. To me, it's just to allow Rose to save his energy for the offensive end...if Snell is indeed guarding Kyrie.

But really, I'm thinking about when JR Smith comes back and if they run something like Kyrie, Shumpert, Smith, Lebron, and Thompson to close. Snell can switch onto pretty much anyone if he absolutely had to while Hinrich doesn't quite have as much ability. I also trust Snell as a shooter more than Hinrich. It just gives you more to work with on both ends imo.

keeping kyrie away from the basket and forcing him to become a jump shooter is exactly what kirk was doing defensively. kyrie scored zero points in the fourth quarter if I recall correctly and that was a combo of rose and hinrich guarding him that quarter :shrug: say what you will about thibs as a coach, but I will never question the defensive assignments he rolls with

 

[Scoot26]

Not saying Dunleavy can't handle playing 40 minutes. Just saying that having Snell on the floor for more minutes may also be beneficial even if it means Dunleavy plays a few less minutes. Give Snell all of Hinrich's minutes and a few of Dunleavy's minutes and you get a lot more defensive versatility while keeping a shooter on the floor. Dunleavy still gets 30+ minutes. Thibs still gets a defensive player on the floor. It's a win win imo.

I'll add this as well. If Cleveland runs a small ball lineup again, you can still roll with Butler, Dunleavy, and Snell to match up and not lose a thing.

At this point though I stick with the bigs as long as the Bulls are destroying that small ball lineup. Once they're not, I think you match up more with Cleveland.

If the bigs continue to kill Cleveland, they'll go big and match us, which still works to our advantage.

 

[Scoot26]

keeping kyrie away from the basket and forcing him to become a jump shooter is exactly what kirk was doing defensively. kyrie scored zero points in the fourth quarter if I recall correctly and that was a combo of rose and hinrich guarding him that quarter :shrug: say what you will about thibs as a coach, but I will never question the defensive assignments he rolls with

Kryie scored 7 points in the 4th. He didn't score in the last 5 minutes. He only took one shot when Kirk was guarding him and thats when Rose injured himself and they had a 5 on 4 advantage and Kryie lost Kirk in a screen and took a off balance three pointer.

 

[knoxville7]

At this point though I stick with the bigs as long as the Bulls are destroying that small ball lineup. Once they're not, I think you match up more with Cleveland.

If the bigs continue to kill Cleveland, they'll go big and match us, which still works to our advantage.

I thought Cleveland played much better when they had mosgov and Thompson out there together. when they went small ball lineup the bulls murdered them

 

[knoxville7]

Kryie scored 7 points in the 4th. He didn't score in the last 5 minutes. He only took one shot when Kirk was guarding him and thats when Rose injured himself and they had a 5 on 4 advantage and Kryie lost Kirk in a screen and took a off balance three pointer.

I just checked on basketball reference and it was the last 9 minutes of the game that kyrie went scoreless

 

[clonetrooper264]

keeping kyrie away from the basket and forcing him to become a jump shooter is exactly what kirk was doing defensively. kyrie scored zero points in the fourth quarter if I recall correctly and that was a combo of rose and hinrich guarding him that quarter :shrug: say what you will about thibs as a coach, but I will never question the defensive assignments he rolls with

Perhaps my memory is selective, but I remember Kyrie getting by Hinrich consistently and getting to the rim. I'd give more credit to Rose in the 4th than Hinrich except for that last minute...but that's because Rose left the game. I don't have any stats to prove it, but I'd think Kyrie was burning Hinrich just as much as Rose. He did drop like 33 points or something either way so I'd say neither were doing a great job. But again, it's not just about the defensive matchups...Snell is more of an offensive threat to score as well.

 

[Scoot26]

I thought Cleveland played much better when they had mosgov and Thompson out there together. when they went small ball lineup the bulls murdered them

They did and the stats show it.

Cavs last night...LeBron at 4: -21 in 29 min.*LeBron at 2 or 3: +15 in 16 min.No LeBron: -1 in 3 min.* Includes minutes w/ Marion

Those LeBron-at-4 lineups gave up 71 points in 29 minutes (118 per 48, 130 per 100 possessions).

If Cleveland is going to stick with it, the Bulls can continue to murder them. I don't think Shawn Marion or James Jones at SF is going to change anything over Mike Miller.

 

[clonetrooper264]

At this point though I stick with the bigs as long as the Bulls are destroying that small ball lineup. Once they're not, I think you match up more with Cleveland.

If the bigs continue to kill Cleveland, they'll go big and match us, which still works to our advantage.

I'm rolling with the assumption that Cleveland will find a way to get that small ball lineup to work for at least a game. I'm just exploring the possibility of matching up to that.

 

[Scoot26]

I'm rolling with the assumption that Cleveland will find a way to get that small ball lineup to work for at least a game. I'm just exploring the possibility of matching up to that.

Well I agree Snell should be a part of the equation. The thing for Cleveland is making open threes which will shift Chicago's matchups. If there three's are still off though that lineup fails. The other part of it is Cleveland hasn't played much together with that lineup they through out there last night. If anything I think they spent entirely too much time thinking about it during their 8 days off. I thought as long as our bigs reacted properly small ball was never going to work. NBA history has constantly shown that throughout history it doesn't really work against teams with bigs like the Bulls. I thought for sure they should matchup to the Bulls and go big. The Bulls certainly don't get off to their big start if Cleveland starts with LeBron at SF and has him playing D on Dunleavy.

The Heat got away with small ball in 2012 because they had a better overall team and David West and Roy Hibbert can't defend at all outside the paint.

 

[Scoot26]

K.C. Johnson‏@KCJHoop

Rose said his shoulder isn't sore.

 

[Scoot26]

Cleveland is practicing stopping the Pick and Pop.

https://twitter.com/twithersAP/status/595635192024440832

 

[clonetrooper264]

Cleveland is practicing stopping the Pick and Pop.

https://twitter.com/twithersAP/status/595635192024440832

It's time to drain some 3s

 

[Scoot26]

It's time to drain some 3s

:snoop:

 

[zack54attack]

 

[Scoot26]

He's gonna burn himself. Remember when he cut his hand cutting an apple his MVP season?

 

[knoxville7]

He's gonna burn himself. Remember when he cut his hand cutting an apple his MVP season?

gotta pay people to cut your apples for you when youre a star brah

 

[zack54attack]

cleveland is practicing stopping the pick and pop.

https://twitter.com/twithersap/status/595635192024440832

lol

 

[Diddy1122]

Cleveland is practicing stopping the Pick and Pop.

https://twitter.com/twithersAP/status/595635192024440832

It's Jim "Ball" Boylan teaching them. I don't think we have much to worry about.

 

[4SidedDie]

Game 4 is an automatic loss, any tip off before 6pm we forget how to play basketball.


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[Scoot26]

Game 4 is an automatic loss, any tip off before 6pm we forget how to play basketball.


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Its also on ABC, which the Bulls are 0-5 on this season.