Danny Ainge, for one, has admitted that he occasionally took offensive possessions off to save himself for defense. Of course, as good as the Celtics were at offensive rebounding, he could pick his spots, and his role was pretty much outside shooting anyway. But there were times when he could buy himself eighty or ninety seconds of real time when Parish and Mc Hale were attacking the offensive glass and Danny could get his legs back under him.
Your AAU coach is smart. I did similar things when I used to coach 6th and 7th grade kids. I do a lot of half court shell and 3 on 3 small sided scrimmage games for high school kids. I spend a lot of time on basketball IQ stuff. Trying to teach offensive rebounding principles, team defense principles, how to create and use spacing. Small sided games are good for these things. Details. I spend a lot of time preaching details.
Logic and sense doesn't apply to this group. Did you see anyone other than Garza, play like they only got 20 mins per game, so they needed to make the most of them on both ends of the floor? Everyone but Garza played like they were dog tired every game. Very poor effort.
If you can't get a break on the bench, you better take plays off on the offensive end. Just from a team chemistry standpoint, what's better? Taking a few plays off on offense and allowing your teammates opportunities to score? Or taking plays off on defense and not helping out when your teammate gets beat off the dribble? One will get you a finger point and a thank you. The other will get finger pointing and blame.
Nothing drove Bobby Knight crazier, and that's saying something, then a defensive player not reacting to a help situation in time or being too lazy to do so. He considered not helping the ultimate in selfish play. Steve Alford wrote of how winded he was after doing a help defense drill early in his freshman year. Little did he know that Knight would run that drill almost every day for the remainder of Alford's college career.
That's awesome.
It's also experienced depth, which should help. But what about the effort issue? It's real. As I've mentioned before, Bobby Hansen pointed it out on the air. Bobby had average talent and parlayed it into an NCAA final four appearance and a nine year NBA career culminating with a championship ring where he wasn't just one of Jordan's passengers. All because he gave effort and hustled his ass off.
It should. It absolutely should.
I don't think their lack of effort was due to their being physically tired though. I agree it looked that way a lot but good lord how could that have been the case as young and in shape as they should be? I think it's was partially their effort and partially just what their ability has them capable of....
Bobby tells it like it is too... Last yr had to be rough for him because like you said for a guy like him lack of effort at all is just not comprehensible. And it just plain shouldn't be. The last thing a coach should be worrying about is effort. But it's gotta be at the top of Frans list with most of this group...
That's a short swing. No follow through at all. He didn't learn that from Fred McGriff. Looks similar to Freddie Freeman with the Braves and how he swings
