Hornets coach James Borrego is seeking to give his team a fresh identity this season, labeling pace and ball movement as two important factors that can help the team, Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer relays. Borrego was hired by the Hornets in May after spending the last three years under Gregg Popovich with the Spurs, plus a stint with San Antonio from 2003 to 2010.
“When the ball is just being pounded and one guy has it in his hands for five or six seconds – when we’re just seeing him dance with the ball – the rest of the defense just gets to relax and load up,” Borrego said. “You’re not going to be perfect all the time, but let’s put pressure on the defense constantly. … We demanded it in San Antonio. My job is to sell that to the players to do what’s best for the team.”
The Spurs are known for picking apart defenses with crisp passing, spacing and off-ball movement, and that’s exactly what Borrego hopes to bring to the Hornets this season. Charlotte helped alleviate this issue by allowing Dwight Howard, a paint-oriented player, to depart for the Wizards this summer.
There’s more from the Southeast Division:
- Although Heat forward Justise Winslow is eligible for a contract extension, it remains unclear how the team plans to use the 22-year-old, as Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel notes in an “Ask Ira” mailbag. The Heat signed Winslow’s teammate and starting forward Josh Richardson to an extension last summer.
- Heat guard Dion Waiters continues to work his way back from an ankle injury that sidelined him for most of the 2017/18 season, but the Syracuse product has yet to be cleared by a doctor for full-contact play. “Once I’m cleared from the doc it’s on,” he posted on social media, according to the Sun Sentinel.
- Dwight Howard could be the missing piece the Wizards have been seeking for quite some time, Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington contests. Should he buy in, Howard’s ability to defend the rim, set effective screens and play in the pick-and-roll could pay dividends for Washington.
You are sure right about that Borrego, Lebron doesn’t seem to understand that. He holds the ball for much more than 6 seconds lmaoo.
It was the Cavs’ best offense, unless Wade was in the game. You & others cannot grasp that. Irving liked that too and led the team in shots taken. On & on you go not getting it.
The delays broke up the other teams’ rythyms too, especially if they were behind.
The style evolved organically and was maximized over time, going hand-in-hand with controlling matchups.
Bro chill no one controls an offense like Lebron lmao. Kyrie was moving off the ball a lot more on the Celtics and that’s what he wanted, Durant wanted the same thing. You really think Lebron is going to be moving off the ball on the Lakers? Hell no lmao. He’s making Ingram,Ball, and Caldwell-Pope all spot on the 3 point line.
Huh? KD was #3 in isolations/per game in the playoffs and both he and Kyrie were top 10 in the regular season. Both of them had better teammates to work with than LeBron.
Lebron had teammates it’s just he used them to his advantage and made them into robots.
I watch the finals. When James was on the bench, the rest of the team can’t dribble the ball to anywhere, partly because most of them are spot up shooters or can’t shoot at all. Hill, JR, Clarkson couldn’t make much plays either. So it’s either them chucking up crazy shots or let LBJ hold the ball a lot for the Cavs.
Yep. They didn’t have any other players who could create shots for themselves or others, with the exception of Love. And he would just back guys down using his post game. G Hill was disappointing for a vet like him to be practicality a no show.
Borrego sounds smart there, talking about keeping pressure on the defense as the main objective… this is a hard philosophy to stick to though. It requires keeping the other team in mind, prioritizing what THEY do NOT like more than what you might like.
Maybe Popovich has a system of keys for that.
Nice talk by Borrego, but ain’t gonna work in Charlotte with the players they have, so hopefully he has a plan B, otherwise he might be out of job by Xmas.
I agree DH12 is very much what Washington needed, hence why they are gonna be #4 in the east, behind Philly, Boston & Milwaukee, so hopefully they should even win a playoff round.
Funny how Howard is so in-fashion one place and so yuck something to get rid of in another.
The Nets wanted nothing to do with him and Dwightmare part 2 was over before it even started. It took a season w ATL, Same w CHA and a couple w HOU for them to see he didn’t fit. Most modern offensive schemes he doesn’t fit. He may in WAS because Wall and Beal will iso and could break a defense down and get him a bucket.
I wouldn’t say they “let” Dwight Howard sign with the Wizards, instead they traded him away, he was cut by another team, and then signed in WAS.
I’m just shocked Dionis didn’t find an opportunity to praise Malik Monk again lol
Good one
I trust the Popovich system and the people who learned from him similar to Bill Bellicheck and his disciples.