Passive Pelicans see switching adjustment scorched by Thunder in Game 2

25/04/2024 20:27

The NBA Playoffs is as much of an incubator for coaching creativity and adjustments as it is a platform for star players to assert their dominance. The Oklahoma City Thunder have an NBA MVP candidate in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, but unfortunately, the New Orleans Pelicans are missing Zion Williamson. That has put more pressure on Willie Green to find solutions that work, but the eighth-seeded underdogs got scorched in Game 2.

The Pelicans were not deflated by a lack of free throws in a nail-biting 94-92 Game 1 loss. Give Willie Green credit though. The third-year head coach had his team in position to steal a road win. He also took a fair share of the responsibility for a Game 2 blowout loss by the Pelicans. The Detroit Mercy alum also called out what New Orleans needs to do to have any chance at taking Game 3 at home.

Green was not happy with the passive play by the Pelicans in the most recent defeat, and the switching adjustment was in shambles all night.

“We have to be better starting with the physicality of steering screens,” Green commented. “When they run up in the screens, they are slipping out. They are driving and getting downhill. A bit of it is physicality. A bit of it is communication but across the board tonight they drove us. They got threes and we turned the ball over. Those are all things you cannot do against (the Thunder).”

The difference was in approach to the challenge not in the application of strategy, per Green.

“I thought they turned up the pressure offensively. They got some early threes and that opened the floodgates up for them. I thought it frustrated us a bit not being able to get stops,” Green admitted. “It stopped us from coming down and running our offense. We predicate ourselves on being able to get stops. Sometimes it can be demoralizing when a team is getting to the teeth of your defense and they’re kicking out. They’re getting threes and we are in scramble mode.”

Jonas Valanciunas was quite blunt in his assessment of the team’s performance.

"They came out physical. They were aggressors," Valanciunas admitted. "I don’t know what to say, we didn’t expect them to play that hard. That’s on us. It’s not acceptable. It was a shame today.”

Passive Pelicans puzzled by Thunder in Game 2

Green and Jonas Valanciunas talked about the Pelicans altering how and when the team switched coverages against the Thunder. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was picking on the guards, per Larry Nance Jr., and New Orleans needed a counter.

Instead, the Pelicans looked confused. Brandon Ingram was being called out by Reggie Miller on the broadcast and by Willie Green in the postgame press conference. New Orleans regressed where Oklahoma City improved.

Miller had some cutting commentary during the game.

"And there's the difference, gentleman,” Miller observed. “You see how uber-aggressive Shai's being? Brandon Ingram at the other end. The No. 1 offensive weapon for the Pelicans is in the corner and not even looking to be aggressive."

Valanciunas was caught in no-man’s land early on several occasions and the Thunder were relentless in pursuing the mismatches with Chet Holmgren.

Willie Green said the team talked about switching adjustments but JV just slid outta everything here… https://t.co/7O4CPwICTR

— Dodson, Chris Dodson (@DoingItDodson) April 25, 2024

Green deployed All-Defense candidate Herb Jones at the center position on occasion once Larry Nance Jr. (ankle) went down.

Green detailed why the move with Jones was made while also qualifying why it does not matter who is on the court if the Pelicans are ignoring the fundamentals.

“I was trying to keep us out of rotations defensively,” explained Green. “We wanted to see a smaller group to match up with their ability to play on the perimeter and then play a bit faster offensively…We’ve got to have a will to be more physical, to communicate better. Once they got us scrambling that made it tough on our team. We’ll get home, we’ll regroup, and we’ll clean it up to be better (in Game 3).”

Green only has so much time to get things right. If the Pelicans cannot clamp down on defense in Game 3, they’ll be playing for their playoff lives in Game 4.

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