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How the Pacers adapted to the In-Season Tournament
🕑 Added 2023-11-04 13:38:25 +0000 UTCEven if the court was brighter than the spotlight, Indiana adapted to, and during, what was a game with at least some type of stakes. Highlighting the changes that were made and when, a timeline.
By: Caitlin Cooper I @C2_Cooper
At Media Day, when Tyrese Haliburton was asked what his biggest takeaway was from his experience playing in the FIBA World Cup for Team USA, he spoke briefly about carrying the weight of expectations for the first time in his professional career and then answered bluntly:
"I'm just tired of losing," he said. "I just want to win. I haven't had a winning season since my freshman year of college."
The NBA's In-Season Tournament isn't the playoffs. After all, it's played in early November. Teams have barely had time to jell and set their rotations, let alone do reconnaissance on each other with less than 10 games in the books. Still, these games are of higher stakes than any Haliburton has played in since being drafted, and the Pacers faced-off against the Cavs less than a week ago. Even with Darius Garland, Donovan Mitchell, and Jarrett Allen sitting out the prior match-up, there was at least some familiarity between the two teams headed into the opening night of group play -- which showed.
"Teams adjust in games like this," Rick Carlisle said following his team's 121-116 win over Cleveland, in which the Pacers surged late after surrendering an 18-point first-half lead. "The team (trailing from) behind gets more aggressive in certain ways, and then you've got to adjust."
With momentum shifting back-and-forth and the ball being flung here, there, and everywhere (mostly by the Cavaliers), there was plenty of urgency -- almost to the point of being frantic -- displayed during crunch-time. At one point, Myles Turner mishandled a drop-off pass from Haliburton on a drive that led to a loose ball which Evan Mobley recovered and promptly advanced out of bounds, too far ahead of Darius Garland. Clinging to a one-point advantage, Haliburton then attacked Jarrett Allen on a switch and fell to the ground after missing a lefty reach-out at the rim, leading to what should've been an easy fast-break opportunity for Cleveland. Except, with Haliburton out of sight, he was seemingly also out of mind, as Garland threw an interception directly into the hands of the star guard, just as he was crossing over the (apparently treacherous) logo and back into the aquamarine-colored portion of the new, slippery court.
Featuring three turnovers and no made shots, it was a sequence almost more akin to tennis than basketball, with all of the rapid-fire changes from end-to-end. And yet, despite the way in which both teams were coming up empty, the scoreless rally could arguably be better pinned on hurriedness than sloppiness. Meanwhile, that stretch of to-and-fro between the two teams was also symbolic of a broader exchange, as they also spent the game adjusting, just as Carlisle had mentioned, to each other's adjustments.
In that regard, it may only be November, but for a team that hasn't made the postseason or the play-in tournament in either of the last two seasons since acquiring Haliburton, and for a player who is tired of losing, it was a win requiring plenty of lineup gymnastics and changes in coverage that at least had something, no matter how minimal, on the the line.
Here's a rundown of the tactical shifts during the second half, presented like a live blog.
Pacers 72, Cavs 59 (in the third) -- Once you pop, you apparently can stop
With Turner scoring 22 points in the first half on only eight shot attempts, the Cavs decided to stop watching him shoot. To start the game, when he popped out to three after setting a screen, the closest anyone came to impacting his shot was if a defender lunged toward him on the catch from the weak-side, as Max Strus does here.
Of course, that was Turner's fourth made three of the half, which likely explains why Strus was bold enough to stunt from Buddy Hield mid-way through the shot-clock. At that point, Turner had demonstrated proof of product. After halftime, the reaction from Cleveland was even more pronounced. Rather than rotating on the catch, Strus is stunting at the point of the pop, planting himself in the vicinity of Turner to clog the passing lane until Darius Garland can veer-back.
That was the other adjustment. In the first half, the on-ball defender was pursuing the ball with the big in drop. Once they got more than they bargained for from Turner, Garland was chasing over and then veer-back switching on the pop, with the big switching onto the ball. As a result, Turner either had to shoot over the smaller defender, while at least being contested, or he risked toppling over the line of bodies like bowling pins.
That's why, after getting off to such a hot start, he was held to just five points in the second half with only one three-point attempt. He still made a major impact at the defensive end, particularly with his huge, game-saving block against Evan Mobley, but the impact that Garland absorbed from him on that possession marked the last that he was able to play out of the pick-and-pop once the Cavs started switching.
Pacers 81, Cavs 77 (3:55 in the third) - Ready to Roll
Just as the offense was drying up for the Pacers, the Cavs started to close the gap by returning to the same well. On two possessions in a row, a shooter ran over the top of consecutive screens set at the elbows, with the second screener than receiving a brush screen from the first to spray out in the opposite direction as window dressing for empty corner pick-and-roll. With only one defender available to tag on the back-side, and the Pacers generally preferring to stay home on shooters anyway, Evan Mobley got loose twice at the rim for relatively easy scores.
In the first instance, Brown was late veering into Mobley's legs when he couldn't get back in front once the ball crossed the free throw line. On the second go around, Brown managed to keep Mitchell at bay for awhile longer, but with a few counter moves and some patience the Cavs guard still managed to toss up another lob, although Mobley ultimately finished with a hook shot. As such, with the same play achieving nearly the same outcome in a span of less than 25 seconds, the Pacers clearly needed to find a different way to stop taking on water.
Cavs 85, Pacers 84 (in the third) - Take five
And so, they did. A few minutes later, when the Cavs had taken the lead and called a timeout with 1:35 to play in the frame, the Pacers made a change. With Isaac Okoro subbing in for Max Strus, Aaron Nesmith came out of the huddle assigned to Jarrett Allen as the five, so the Pacers could switch out on ball screens. This was the result -- a catch-and-drive from Georges Niang, attempting to finish at the rim; rather than a catch-and-dunk for Mobley or Allen, hovering at or above the rim.
Tellingly, the Pacers kept up with that same tactic even once most of the starters were back on the floor, alternating between Brown and Nesmith as the make-shift five. After surrendering 155 points in what was the second-worst loss in franchise history on Wednesday night, look at how all five defenders stay on a string, rotating on the flight of the ball in response to Turner's help at the rim.
Likewise, the only stretch when the defense was salvageable against the Celtics was when Nesmith was assigned to Kristaps Porzingis. The only problem was, with Derrick White, Jrue Holiday, Jayson Tatum, and Jaylen Brown in the starting lineup, the only time that match-up was feasible was during the minutes when Al Horford was on the floor. Otherwise, there was no one for Turner to guard. The same was the case against Cleveland's starters, but the calculus changed against hybrid lineups that included Okoro. In fact, from the point in which the Pacers started cross-matching with Nesmith after that timeout to when Okoro eventually subbed out of the game, shifting Turner back onto the opposing big, the Pacers outscored the Cavs, 24-20, with Mobley and Allen combining for zero field-goal attempts.
Whether defending one of the top-options or guarding at the five and switching out, Nesmith and Brown continue to provide the Pacers with more scheme versatility at the four than what's currently possible with Obi Toppin, whether switching 1-4 or playing him in drop.
As was highlighted after the prior win over Cleveland, the Pacers have yet to finish a game with Mathurin or Toppin in the closing lineup. Instead, Nesmith, Haliburton, Brown and Turner have been constants, with either Nembhard or Hield rounding out the group.
Pacers 100, Cavs 97 (in the fourth) -- It's "Show"time!
When Haliburton channeled his inner Reggie Miller during the prior match-up, draining three threes in less than a minute while getting in the ear of a trash-talking fan, there was a tiny detail that went unnoticed: Andrew Nembhard's screening technique. Changing the angle at the last second, his late-pivot on the approach, confuses the coverage and makes the favorable switch from Okoro to Strus more difficult while moving away.
With 33 seconds left to play in the third quarter of the In-Season Tournament game, Nembhard got to experience the hunt from the other side of the action, targeting Georges Niang out of 1-4 flat with Nesmith as the screener.
Both teams bookmarked that for later. When Haliburton was back on the floor, he also wanted a go at his old pal, Niang. The Cavs, however, were less interested in feeding him to the wolves. As such, they had him show to avoid the mismatch, before recovering to Nesmith with high hands. That's when Nesmith joined the pack, jabbing hard to his right on the catch to set up Niang and knock down the shot. Again, he's playing himself not only into playing time -- but also closing time.
(So long as he doesn't foul jump shooters with a five-point lead and less than 10 seconds to play).
Pacers 108, Cavs 105 - Okay, Okoro
To summarize, by the end of the game, Cleveland was showing on guard-to-guard screens with unfavorable match-ups, veer-back switching against the pick-and-pop, and switching out on *almost* everything else. Meanwhile, the Pacers had been cross-matching Nesmith and Brown onto whichever center was on the floor for Cleveland, with Smith or Turner operating as weak-side roamers while assigned to Okoro. By comparison, the Cavs had more reason to keep Okoro on the floor than what was the case for Boston with Horford. Unlike Horford, Okoro was Haliburton's primary assignment, and this game wasn't a historically bad blowout. That said, if he was going to be the means for propping up the match-up change for the Pacers at the other end, he at least needed to be actually guarding Haliburton. And sometimes, strangely, he wasn't.
After Haliburton got downhill against Donovan Mitchell on that possession and found nylon, the Cavs called a timeout and subbed out Okoro, with Garland reentering to close things out with the regular starters, as well as some minutes from LeVert.
Pacers 117, Cavs 114 -- Sealing the deal
All of this culminated in what became Tyrese Haliburton's jump-shot to beat the shot-clock and Turner's block on Evan Mobley in the final minute. With Okoro out of the game, the Cavs were switching Allen out on ball-screens. Meanwhile, when the Cavs needed a bucket and swapped offense for defense, going small with LeVert in place of Allen, Turner had no choice but to defend Mobley at solo-five. At one end of the floor, Haliburton was patient. restoring his connection with Hield, as he waited for the sharpshooter to ghost the switch, creating just enough confusion for him to step-back to his right in contrast to when he previously knifed away from the help to his left.
In that way, the match-ups and coverages weren't all that changed throughout the game. In receiving screen help as opposed to going head-on against the switch, so too did the in-game approach from Haliburton. At the other end, Turner pounced, relying on his length to meet Mobley at the rim, after the slender big man turned the ball downhill out of the fake hand-off. As was the case for Haliburton. There was change too for Turner, adapting from roaming along the baseline from Okoro to defending within the action during crunch-time.
In a game of adjustments, the game itself was an adjustment for the Cavs. Cleveland's starters had yet to play together this season, which again marks another notable difference from actual playoff basketball. Still, even if the court was arguably brighter than the lights of the moment, the Pacers provided several flashbulbs, arguably distinguishing themselves most by how much they didn't resemble the version of themselves that was on display in the prior, embarrassing loss.
For a player who is tired of losing, it was a win that counts the same as any other -- and, maybe, just maybe, a little bit more.
Comments
Ross Fenimore
Spookiest of ghosts!
Caitlin Cooper
Glad you enjoyed it!
Caitlin Cooper
Buddy-Haliburton: spooky!
Ross Fenimore
Really enjoyed this one! Nesmith might just be undeniable in the starting 5 - we’re finding out. But I’m enjoying how much of this went full circle to show how much growth the team has made defensively- more intentional switching from better pieces - from last year while still maintaining aspects that made them great - Buddy ghost screens. You are the best, thank you!
Lifenthusiast
Counters to counters are fun. Tournaments are fun. Winning is fun! I like the segmented breakdown. My prediction was an article more about the individual play of specific players. My tried and true strategy of checking your tweets during the game as a way to guess the topic of your next article failed me.
Matthew Hogg
Great write up!
