Knicks Need To Model Their Offense After Utah’s

While the Anucha Browne Saunders trial dominates the news, training camp is quietly sneaking up on us: Both the Knicks and Nets roll out the basketballs next week. And when Isiah Thomas isn’t rhapsodizing about who can and can’t call other people “b—,” I’m hoping he’s figuring out how to get the ball into his revamped frontcourt.In particular, I’m wondering if he’s put in any calls to Jerry Sloan this summer. Because it seems to me what Utah does on offense is exactly what the Knicks should aim to do with their attack.Now, at first glance you may not think there’s much similarity between the two sides. Certainly their organizations’ styles are radically different: The Knicks are flash-and-dash spotlight hogs, while the Jazz are strictly meat and potatoes. The Knicks tend to make excuses, and the Jazz blame themselves. Also, the Jazz occasionally win.But despite the disparities in approach, the teams they’ve built are remarkably similar. Let’s backtrack a little so I can explain. Last season, three teams displayed the attributes of what I’ll call a “heavy post offense.” These six attributes are:• An average to low rate of 3-point attempts• An average to high field-goal percentage• An extremely high rate of freethrow attempts• An extremely high rate of offensive rebounds• A high rate of turnovers• An average to slow paceWhy are those attributes associated with running a post-heavy offense? Think about it. Teams that cram the ball inside tend to be taking most of their shots at or near the basket. That means a bunch of things.For instance, it means they’ll take fewer 3s, on average, and a lot more 2s. It means they should shoot a higher percentage since they’re taking close-in shots. It means they’ll get a high rate of offensive boards, since their post players tend to be their best players and since they’re close to the basket when they release a shot. It means they’ll get a ton of turnovers because they’re cramming it into crowded spaces in the paint all the time. And it means they’ll play slow, in order to set up their post players on the block.As I mentioned, three teams met those criteria last season: the Jazz, Knicks, and Magic. In each case it’s not hard to see why. The Knicks had Eddy Curry bulldozing people in the paint and David Lee coming on for support. Utah had two All-Star frontcourt players in Carlos Boozer and Mehmet Okur. And the Magic had manchild Dwight Howard dominating in the middle.Because of the Knicks’ off-season moves, they should get even more extreme in this respect. Zach Randolph is arguably even more of a beast down low than Curry, and that means the Knicks will spend most of the game pounding it inside.Here’s why imitating is so tempting: The Jazz do the same thing and are way better at it than the Knicks and Magic. Utah ranked third in the NBA in Offensive Efficiency last season (my measure of a team’s points scored per 100 possessions), as they were better at minimizing the inevitable turnovers than the others and even more dominant on the glass. Contrast that to the Knicks, who ranked 17th, or the Magic, who were 22nd, and it’s easy to see why the Jazz made the Western Conference finals while the other two teams were golfing by early May.Talent obviously plays a role. Boozer may not be as big or powerful as Curry is, but he’s a much better athlete and a far more refined basketball player; Utah also has a fantastic point guard in Deron Williams to get him the rock.But once you add Randolph to the picture, are the Jazz really any better off talent-wise? Zach and Eddy make for an overpowering interior combo, and it’s not like Stephon Marbury and Jamal Crawford are so deficient that the Knicks can’t compete with them. I would argue one of the big differences is in the method of attack. Utah’s style is basically a game of human bumper cars, with one screen after another inevitably leading to a defensive breakdown and Boozer catching the ball five feet from the hoop. The entry pass obviously is much easier in that case, and that’s why Utah’s turnover rate was much lower than either New York’s or Orlando’s (the Magic led the league in turnover per possession; the Knicks were second).New York’s approach last year was to plant Curry down in one spot on the block and try to throw it in to him, either by from the wing or, if he was fronted, rotating the ball around the perimeter until somebody had a clean entry pass. While New York’s style has the advantage of being able to call plays specifically for Curry to get the ball, Utah’s system seems to create more clean looks for its stars over the course of a game.That’s especially true now that Randolph is in town. He and Curry can use their huge frames to screen for each other and then roll toward the rim, where they’re impossible to stop once they get a head of steam. Secondary players can take advantage of this as well — for instance, wouldn’t it be nice to let Quentin Richardson get a couple close-in looks off downlow screens the way the Jazz do for Matt Harpring?Best of all, Utah’s system helps mask one of their big weaknesses — a lack of deep shooters. The Knicks’ plan to isolate Curry and space the floor works really well if the guys around him can burn defenses from deep. If it works, great — that’s how San Antonio kills people. But if not, it only creates more crowds for Curry to deal with.But in a five-man, flowing, motion offense like Utah’s the defenders spend more time preoccupied with their own man’s movement and fighting through the myriad screens. So you’ll see fewer defenders abandoning Jared Jeffries to double Curry before the ball has even been passed.Granted, no scheme is a panacea. Ultimately, the players need to execute, and too often New York’s haven’t. But I can’t help wondering if the Knicks’ overpowering frontcourt couldn’t stand to learn something from a team that utilizes similar talent with far better results. So, as odd a couple as they’d make, let’s keep our fingers crossed that Isiah Thomas has spent his time away from court this summer watching and learning from Jerry Sloan.jhollinger@nysun.com

Knicks Need To Model Their Offense After Utah’s

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