Distressing Defensive Trend

[Ampsportsduo]

I know that a lot of focus has been on the lack of offense, but through 5 games a major defensive concern has emerged. Only once have the Cats kept a team's leading scorer below their scoring average. Same for a team's 2nd leading scorer (excluding Stuckey for DET who sat out).

Dallas
Dirk +1.5 over avg.
Terry +4.5

Indiana
Granger +11.6
Hibbert -2.6

Milwaukee
Delfino +8.3
Jennings +5.3

NJ
Lopez -3.2
Harris +1.2

Detroit
Gordon -.2
Prince +.3

Gordon scored 20 and averages 20.2 so I didn't credit the team for holding him below his average. Perhaps most interesting is that the only position they've held players below average was the center with Lopez and Hibbert (who no one's going to argue is an elite scorer). Most disturbing is the variety of guys: 4 small guards, 3 small forwards and a power forward. Not one has had a bad game against our guys. The overachieving SFs has to be cause for concern because that's a position Crash has typically locked down. Unfortunately, as long as the defense is lacking, pretty sure it will be LB's focus over the lagging offense.

[spectre]

I'm sad to see this thread. I knew it was probably warranted and I've obviously seen it on the court...but it kills me that the group we have isn't carrying over our major strength from last season.

http://www.hoopdata.com/teamdefstats...r=2011&type=pg

DEFR:

2009 - 2nd
2010 - 12th

DefEff:

2009 - 3rd
2010 - 8th

OPTS:

2009 - 1st
2010 - 9th

OFG%:

2009 - 6th
2010 - 17th

Still plenty of time to turn it around, but this is worrisome...least to me.

[BRNC]

spectre...it worries me that a team (a rather boring one offensively IMO) that builds itself as a blue-collar-defense oriented team that can't play the one strength they had is simply a very boring, not so good, collection of guys...kinda what I've seen this year from the 'Cats...

[BobCatsFanInTx]

I hope that if the team stumbles into the Lottery we get the first pick. I have a feeling the first pick for next season will be a can't miss prospect. I hope that is the case if so. I don't see our team having enough value to get any real value back in a trade. Do we have depth for a trade/trades to where we won't just weaken our strengths to improve our current weaknesses?

[Chef]

I hope that if the team stumbles into the Lottery we get the first pick. I have a feeling the first pick for next season will be a can't miss prospect. I hope that is the case if so. I don't see our team having enough value to get any real value back in a trade. Do we have depth for a trade/trades to where we won't just weaken our strengths to improve our current weaknesses?

actually there is a lot of speculation that barnes, irvine and the other top prospects may stay and wait until after the lockout. this may be a very very weak draft.

[spectre]

We're not going to be in the lottery, but even if we do end up there it'll be with a late pick.

Per Bonnell:

It's more the turnovers than the defense

An interesting statistic in the Bobcats' pre-game notes:

Over their first three games, the Bobcats allowed their opponent to average 101 points on 48 percent shooting. Over their last three games, Bobcats opponents averaged 90 points on 42 percent shooting.

We gave up 44.8 OFG% & 93.8 OPts for the season last year (pulled from my Hoopdata link) which was good for 6th & 1st in the league respectively...which would indicate that we ARE getting better defensively.

Just gotta limit those darn TOs.

[BRNC]

It's bothersome though when we do limit TOs (16 I think in the last game) and still rack-up an "L"...but I did feel we picked up our intensity which we've got to do to win...

spectre...I agree the defense is getting better but DJ will always be a weak-link there...not knocking his effort since I really believe he works on his "D" but he is limited defensively...

[spectre]

It's bothersome though when we do limit TOs (16 I think in the last game) and still rack-up an "L"...but I did feel we picked up our intensity which we've got to do to win...

spectre...I agree the defense is getting better but DJ will always be a weak-link there...not knocking his effort since I really believe he works on his "D" but he is limited defensively...

I agree he is, but working with LB (and him being LB's primary concern) will help him out a lot. What's screwing him is we don't have any Cs that are decent at playing "last line of defense".

I thought Felton slacked off some last year on his man D, mainly because he became comfortable with TC & Theo being smart enough to know how to guard the pick/rolls. This year DJ doesn't have that luxury.

DJ will always be a little weak laterally I think...but getting a competent C would do wonders.

[BRNC]

spectre...100% agree on the Center position...I've always though Nazzy was a solid back-up...15-18 mpg but not a starter...I posted Bill Ingrams' answer to my question from his chat today and he also feels we need a starting center...

I think our defense will come around and we can score just enough to win but not keeping Theo ( to share minutes with Nazzy) was a mistake given we have no starting center...and I really don't see a trade that gets us one without giving up more than we can afford...

[TheBeagle]

Probably not qualified to comment since I saw zilch of the Detroit game and less than half of the Magic, but it seems to me, since the Nets game, defense has noticeably improved, as the Bonnell blog indicates. I think the defense will continue to improve, but yeah, the TOs are ghastly, as is the overall offensive ineptitude. Once in a blue moon they'll execute a play Larry calls to perfection and get an easy bucket, but most of the time it's Keystone Cops out there.

I will say the defensive trend that distresses me however is the seeming lack of forcing TOs. Only breakaway basket I can think of all year was the play vs. ORL where Vince goes down, Jack picks it up and gives to Boris for the easy lay-in. I'm sure there have been others maybe, but this was an area (steals leading to breakaways) where we'd get 2 or 3+ a game last year, and I can't even think of 2 or 3 times through six games.

Like I said, don't know if any of this is valid since I've been a delinquent the last couple games, but that's what I'm seeing.