NBA and Euroleague sign deal for 'NBA Europe Live'

[AlwaysWhat,NeverWhy]

zone defense is easiest defense to learn as far as junior grades go....

Not in the pros or near pros... at those levels nearly every team has at least two or three perimeter shooters than can nury you if you do not play the zone correctly, and just clog the lane to defens against drives or entry passes...

[The X]

I know....that's why I said in junior grades

but I think combinations of zone and man-to-man and switching it up works....

[mhood7]

I would have to say that this argument has turned into something very childlike. Without sounding too American, I would just like to say that the NBA is without a doubt the greatest basketball association in the world. Euroleague has some good teams, but look at what was supposed to be the best European team ever, CSKA, they broke an NBA team's record for consecutive victories. They cruised through the Euroleague regular season and playoffs only to lose twice in their home city to average teams. For the past two years it has been Maccabi and CSKA and that is it. And other than Jasekevicius, the best players on those teams are all Americans who grew up playing American ball. I never said Parker wasn't good, he just is not good enough to play American ball with American stars. He is great at using his superior athleticism over Euro guards to put up great numbers over there. NOT to say there are not athletic Europeans, but there are a large number of slow, non jumping non athletic small forwards who can not guard the athletic american 6'4 6'5 forwards. In the NBA the only non athletes are big men, with most of those being the euro bigs, since other than Shaq, America doesn't produce true bigs anymore, we only make 7'0 string beans who can jump out of the gym.

This is the very essence as to why Euro teams play slower, team games, with team zone defenses. They simply could not guard American players man-to-man consistently. Not saying anything bad about Euro guys though, cuz most Americans can't guard Americans either.

As to a zone defense being easier to play. Yes if you are talking about a simple 2-3 that really has to point other than to occupy space. But to play a true zone defense, with traps, rotations, multiple formations, etc. is much much much harder to learn than straight up man to man. It is much easier to coach against man to man defenses as well. The best defenses teams in college basketball all utilize zone defenses. I have played competitive basketball at high levels of competion most of my life, and I loved AAU when it was only NBA style of man to man up and down the court. But when you play against a team that truly knows how to work a 2-3 or a 1-3-1 trapping zone, it is frustrating as hell because no shot is a good shot against those defenses. You must work very hard to get good looks.

One last comment on Parker v Ginobili, when Parker makes an NBA all star team, you can compare them. American players are to be graded against the american big time league, the NBA. If you want to compare Jasekevicius, a Euro player, to an American, I agree its ok because he grew up playing Euro ball and the domination of Euro ball is equal to Americans dominating American ball. But Parker is American grown and couldn't cut it with American big boys, that is why he is in Europe.

[Riot]

Oh god, now it's turning into a "bash Americans" thread. You know what? I think you need to shut the hell up. You need to go and wash the shit out of your mouth with a beday or whatever the hell they are called.

[shachaf]

Zone isn't so easy that you tthink, and now i have to agree with mhood7,
Zone can be a really good defanse if you know how to use it well.
Maccabi, for exampele, using a matcup- zone, a Man-To-Man defanse that changes during the play, and it really bring to confusion on the offensive side, But it's a defaanse who neede a lot of coordination.

About offensive rebounds, that's ridiculous. Detroit and San Antonio, that both playing a great man-to-man D, Have both averaged more than 10 Offensive rebounds per game, and both teams are also very good at rebounding.

I'm sick from the argument abouth parker. You think he would warm the bench if he was at the NBA, And I think he would have a success.
That doesn't bring us for something.

[Riot]

It's a proven fact that zone defenses give up more open jumpers and allow the other team to grab more offensive rebounds.

Pistons get a lot of offensive rebounds because they are long, athletic, and they miss a lot of shots.

[AlwaysWhat,NeverWhy]

Parker is American grown and couldn't cut it with American big boys, that is why he is in Europe.

Manu Ginobily was not supposed to be able to 'cut it' from the ages of 22 through 25, that's why the Spurs left him in Europe, to develop... Who's to say that Paker has not developed as well? We can only know once he goes to the NBA...

Oh god, now it's turning into a "bash Americans" thread. You know what? I think you need to shut the hell up. You need to go and wash the shit out of your mouth with a beday or whatever the hell they are called.

Bah, drop another bomb and get it out of your system...

It's a proven fact that zone defenses give up more open jumpers and allow the other team to grab more offensive rebounds.

Try it against let's say the Bucks, with a backcourt of TJ Ford, Redd and Desmond Mason, keep tabs on Redd and see how effective it would be... I hope nobody here thinks that zonal defenses should be emplyed THROUGHOUT the game... just when it matters...

[shachaf]

It's a proven fact that zone defenses give up more open jumpers and allow the other team to grab more offensive rebounds.

Pistons get a lot of offensive rebounds because they are long, athletic, and they miss a lot of shots.

Think again. In zone, you can control the paint and allow yourself to send 3 players for a rebound.

The number of shot depended on the game rhythm, not the defanse you play.

You explained the offensive boards of detroit, but what about 19 from the spurs?

[Riot]

They crash the boards. They aren't shooting a huge percentage either.


Sure, in zone you can control the paint but if you crowd one side of the zone (say the weakside) and shoot from the strong-side the rebound is going to go to the weakside more often than not. You have 3 guys other there to 2 guys on defense, you don't have enough people to box out. That leaves an open lane for that guy to go in and get the offensive board. And when you play zone, there is no man you are in charge of when it comes to boxing out. If you can't find a man then you are in trouble. When the shot goes up you have about 1-2 seconds to find your guy and put a body on him, when you play zone defense it takes about that long just to find the closest guy next to you.

No matter how you slice it, zone defense gives up more jumpers and more offensive rebounds. Sure, it might work good against certain teams but if you play it against everyone for an extended amount of time you are going to get killed in the NBA.

Now, before you fire back with some irrelevent comment, THINK. I'm not going to change my opinion and I don't give a damn if you don't change yours. I'm pretty sure you don't give a damn about mine either.

[Jackal]

God, don't you all get it, he's in love with that Paker person, whatever you say, he'll counter it. Let it go already, what's the use of arguing with a brick wall? He's as hard headed as they come, now I want this Parker person to come to the NBA, let's really see how much of a Jordan he is. Hell, even that Michael Pietrus guy was compared to Jordan.

[AlwaysWhat,NeverWhy]

Now, before you fire back with some irrelevent comment, THINK. I'm not going to change my opinion and I don't give a damn if you don't change yours. I'm pretty sure you don't give a damn about mine either.

Oh America... how we love you... j/k

Let it go already, what's the use of arguing with a brick wall?

Astute as always...

[mhood7]

O'Doyle Rules!!!!