Bosh: Death to Small-Ball

[gotoHcarolina52]

The locker-room, for the most part, had cleared out after the Heat was again pummeled on the boards Tuesday night in Indianapolis.

Chris Bosh, one of the few who remained, turned introspective, as he often does, when I approached.

He was calm but clearly peeved.

“If we think we’re going to win a playoff series in the first round, second round, third round, we’re kidding ourselves,” Bosh said. “We are not good enough to be where we want to be. We’re lucky to be first in the East. We’re kidding ourselves if we think this is good enough.”

After Tuesday night’s 55-36 dismantling on the boards, the Heat has achieved this embarrassing distinction: Six times this season, Miami has been outrebounded by at least 15.

And Bosh, who had only five boards in 36 minutes, said it’s time for the Heat to re-think its approach and perhaps go back to the way it played when Miami went 28-13 on the road in the first year of the Big Three era. The Heat is 7-7 on the road this season.

“We don’t play the same way,” he said. In 2010-11, “we were a halfcourt team that pounded you on the glass and executed the offense, and if LeBron and Dwyane had opportunities in the open court after we get a stop, they will push it down your throat.

“We’re not the same team. We don’t play the same style. That style was working for us pretty good. If you look at our weaknesses right now, it’s defense and rebounding.”

Of the change in style affecting the Heat’s rebounding, Bosh said, “I don’t think it’s a coincidence.”

Of course, this team is different, built more around a perimeter approach and spreading the floor. That team played Bosh at power forward; this team plays Bosh at center. That team usually played a natural center alongside Bosh.

Even though Udonis Haslem starts alongside Bosh, Haslem typically has playing half the game or less, and the Heat often goes with only one natural power rotation player.

Does it mean the Heat needs to play two natural bigs together more? “Maybe,” he said. “We played more conventional basketball the first year and last year. This is different.

“We get placed in a system and we try to play to the system to the best of our abilities. Some days, it’s good. Some days, it’s bad. Most days it has been bad for us on the boards. I don’t think it’s about effort. We’re trying our best.

“Even in Toronto, I don’t remember being outrebounded on the boards constantly. Being outrebounded by 20! Soon, I’m going to need two hands to count the times. It’s a constant problem. It’s happening over and over and over. This is unacceptable.”

Miami is last in the league in rebounds, and even if Miami signs Chris Andersen, that isn’t going to solve everything. And it's difficult to get the fastbreak going when you can't rebound. (Miami had one fastbreak point Tuesday).

Read more here: http://miamiherald.typepad.com/sport...#storylink=cpy

[justinnum1]

This was rileys vision. It's hard for me to say it has failed when i continually see piss poor effort on defense and on the boards for stretches of a game.

[Slug3]

This was rileys vision. It's hard for me to say it has failed when i continually see piss poor effort on defense and on the boards for stretches of a game.

It's not the effort. At this point if it was their egos would at least make them try better. People have found our small ball weakness and that's to crash the offensive glass. It's working and we are getting killed. All that's leafy is to lose in the playoffs and still blame the effort.

[justinnum1]

It's not the effort. At this point if it was their egos would at least make them try better. People have found our small ball weakness and that's to crash the offensive glass. It's working and we are getting killed. All that's leafy is to lose in the playoffs and still blame the effort.

That's the spirit!

I'll be that guy saying i told you so in late june

[FreakaNashur]

Chris Bosh @ center is the main problem.


Wade and Bron will still push it down your throats. but Bosh is the problem when he plays with the 2nd unit especially.

[FreakaNashur]

LOL crazy how this dude blaming it on Small ball cause his *** too soft in the paint

[Dré]

"Small ball" isn't what's killing the Heat. Size does not necessarily correlate to good rebounding (see Andrea Bargnani, Chris Bosh, Brook Lopez, et al). There have always been a slew of great rebounders that were undersized (Charles Barkley, Dennis Rodman, Ben Wallace, et al). The 95-96 Bulls ranked 4th in rebounding, despite employing the same "small ball" philosophy. This is because Jordan, Pippen, and (obviously) Rodman were all among the top rebounders at their respective positions.

Kenneth Faried in Denver is highly undersized, yet in last year's playoff series (against the Lakers), he accounted for roughly 20% of all available rebounds, while playing a little over 25 minutes a night (yes, I've said this before, George Karl is a moron). He also did this while playing significant minutes alongside Al Harrington (a notoriously poor rebounder), meaning that more often than not, Faried was forced to have to go up against not only a Bynum or Gasol, but both at the same time. I don't know if you realize how daunting of a task it was for a 6-6 power forward to have to block out two 7-foot centers.

The problem here isn't LeBron (as he's actually quite good for an SF at grabbing rebounds) or Wade (also a pretty decent rebounder for a 6-4 guard), but Bosh (only 10.7 rebs/48; that's worse than a nearly 37 yr/o Garnett who's giving you about 11.5 per 48). You read me right! Bosh is averaging fewer rebounds per minute, than a washed up has-been, who's long seen his best days behind him.

And don't even make me compare him to Duncan, who's still got some juice left in him (15.4 rebs/48). This, and Bosh will make more money than both Duncan and Garnett combined. Talk about epic fail!

[Slug3]

I would like to see Bosh moved back to PG and have a C start. But he still is not going to get boards. He gets pushed around by everyone.

[SteBO]

I would like to see Bosh moved back to PG and have a C start. But he still is not going to get boards. He gets pushed around by everyone.

Well at that point, his rebounding wouldn't matter much when you have a Chris Anderson who you know is going to give the effort on the glass both on offense and defense. I'm cool with the small ball and all, but I don't see how starting Bosh at C is the only way to go about it. If anything, this has WAY more to do with spacing the floor philosophy Spo wants to go with.

That being said, I don't take much issue with Bosh at C either. I just wanted to see it exclusively for the playoffs to create mismatches for opposing teams on the perimeter. It really threw teams off then.

[justinnum1]

i think we need to be starting battier at PF. that way bosh is forced to rebound the ball, he cant just let UD grab the boards and it lets UD get boards for the 2nd unit.

[SteBO]

i think we need to be starting battier at PF. that way bosh is forced to rebound the ball, he cant just let UD grab the boards and it lets UD get boards for the 2nd unit.

People had a problem with that before as well, but it was difficult for bigger teams to deal with that cross matchup. I wouldn't mind Spo exploring that option again if need be, though I would like to see how Bosh does back in his natural position again. Who knows, it might jump start him....

[Jemikz9Clutch]

for two years, i was saying that small ball wont work in the regular season. and while small ball worked for us last year, i can say that it may not work for us this season. sadly, we've been unfortunate for three years already on getting a decent center. man, this is the only team i can remember that is #1 in east but bottom in rebounding and defense. these issues were already seen in the preseason and we are steal dealing with it.

[Dré]

i think we need to be starting battier at PF. that way bosh is FORCED to rebound the ball, he cant just let UD grab the boards and it lets UD get boards for the 2nd unit.

Come on bro, you can't really believe that? It's not the system that's the problem. It's the player. A system does not make a player better (contrary to what people believe). A player will always be who he is, regardless of what scheme is employed. Bosh will not become a better rebounder because the scheme forces him to. Or else, it would have happened with Andrea Bargnani, Brook Lopez, and other notoriously poor rebounders.

People had a problem with that before as well, but it was difficult for bigger teams to deal with that cross matchup. I wouldn't mind Spo exploring that option again if need be, though I would like to see how Bosh does back in his natural position again. Who knows, it might jump start him....

Again, nothing will jump start him... By his own admission, the only reason he's even attempting to do a better job on the glass, is because he wants everyone to get off his back. And not because it's his f-ing job!

Yet, despite, he's the only below-average rebounder (for his position) playing significant minutes, he has the unmitigated gall to finger-point, instead of assessing blame where it belongs (on himself).

[SteBO]

for two years, i was saying that small ball wont work in the regular season. and while small ball worked for us last year, i can say that it may not work for us this season. sadly, we've been unfortunate for three years already on getting a decent center. man, this is the only team i can remember that is #1 in east but bottom in rebounding and defense. these issues were already seen in the preseason and we are steal dealing with it.

Well we are playing unconventionally, so we're going to see unconventional results like we have all year long. Unfortunately that hasn't worked out too well lately.

[Dré]

for two years, i was saying that small ball wont work in the regular season. and while small ball worked for us last year, i can say that it may not work for us this season. sadly, we've been unfortunate for three years already on getting a decent center. man, this is the only team i can remember that is #1 in east but bottom in rebounding and defense. these issues were already seen in the preseason and we are steal dealing with it.

I'm telling you bro, the Heat could have won two chips, and have been well on their way to a third straight, had they surrounded James and Wade with better complimentary front court players.

You'd be surprised at how much great value you could have gotten, and for cheap too.