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How big is the paint in basketball
How big is the paint in basketball
What is The Paint in Basketball - What are the Rules?
The colored rectangular area on a basketball court is known as the paint. Other common names include The Lane, Free Throw Lane, and The Key. Here is everything you need to know and more about the painted area on a basketball court!
How Big is the Paint in Basketball?
The width of the painted area is 16 feet long and 15 feet wide in the NBA/WNBA, while the NCAA basketball court paint is 12 feet wide. A regulation basketball court for the NBA, WNBA, and NCAA is 94′ long x 50′ wide. For a High School court, their total dimensions are 84′ long x 50′ wide. With the court being smaller, their pant is only 15′ x 12′.
Why is it Called the Paint?
The area of the basketball court that is a different color from the rest of the wooden panels is the paint. The painted area on the court represents the free throw line all the way to the basketball hoop. Typically speaking, the painted area is the color of the home team.![]()
For example, TD Garden (Boston Celtics) is green, while Madison Square Garden (picture above) for the New York Knicks is orange.
What are the Parts of the Basketball Paint Area?
- Top of the Key: Represents the half-circle in front of the free-throw line
- High Post: A place slightly closer to the basket compared to the top of the key where players might post up to take a shot
- Low Post: An area beneath the high post where players might post up to take a shot from a pass
- The Block: The shapes along the free-throw lane lines where players line up during a free throw attempt
How Many Seconds Can You Be in the Paint?
The defense and offense can only stay in the paint for three seconds or risk a three-second rule violation. A defensive player can’t stand inside the color for more than three seconds unless they actively guard an offensive player.
A defensive player that stays in the paint for more than three seconds without defending an offensive player result in a technical foul.
Offensive players have to leave the paint after three seconds as well during a play. If an offensive player stays in color for longer than three seconds, it loses possession of the ball for their team on that play. That is why players stand outside the paint on offensive plays.
When Did the 3-Second Rule Enter the NBA?
The 3-second rule violation in the NBA became part of the league in 1936.
What is the Restricted Area Arc on The Court?
The restricted area is a half-circle that sits directly underneath a basketball hoop via a four-foot dotted or closed circle. A defensive man can’t take a charging penalty within that circle while standing in this area playing defense. If any contact occurs in that restricted arc area, the defensive player automatically gets charged with a foul against the opposing team.
In 1997, the restrictive area became an official rule in the NBA. The restrictive site on the court stops a defensive player from camping out underneath the hoop to draw a foul. For example, you can’t have a defensive player run to this spot to collide with a player on a layup to draw a foul on them.
Other Violations in the Painted Area to Know About
Another violation in the paint is during a free throw attempt with the offense or defense. For example, if a shooter’s teammate enters the paint before the ball releases from their hand, the point won’t count even if they make the basket. If a defensive player enters the paint before the shot from a free throw attempt, the offensive team can shoot again even if they miss.
What Does it Mean to Score in the Paint?
Scoring in the paint means that points occur within that painted area on a basketball court. Points can be from a dunk, a layup, or a field goal when the player is in the paint.
Why Does the Paint Yield a High Percentage Shot?
The paint is close to the basketball hoop, which yields high percentage shots. That means a high percentage chance of scoring since the offensive team can dunk, layup, and hit a field goal from a short distance. Unlike a three-point shot that sits 23 feet and 9 inches from the hoop, the paint is much closer to the hoop, making it easier to score points.
How Do Teams Use the Paint During a Basketball Game?
Teams might have their big man or power forward post up near the paint to wait for a pass to then shoot the ball. Depending on the offensive team’s play, you will see that player enter the paint quickly to signal a pass. From there, the big man might take a shot, lay the ball up, or even dunk without creating a three-second violation since the sequence was so quick in that area.
How Can a Defense Protect the Paint?
Some teams like to run a 2-3 zone defense scheme to protect the painted area during a game.
The 2-3 defense means you have two players playing the top of the court with three in the back. Having three players play closer to the hoop means one player is in the paint. However, that player needs to leave the color if they are not actively guarding an offensive player or receive a violation.
General Basketball Lines on a Court
- Jump Area: Where the jump ball begins during a basketball game in the 12′ circle in the middle of the court
- Baseline out of Bounds (BoB): This area sits on each side of the court behind the hoops signaling out of bounds
- Free-throw Line: This is where you go to take a free throw shot after a foul
- Half Court Line: Separates the two sides of the basketball court
- Three-Point Line: Anything past the arc that sits 23.9 feet away from the hoop will count as three points on a shot
- Sideline Out of Bounds (SoB): This sideline represents in and out of bounds
Other Sizes to Be Familiar With on the Court
The basketball rim size is 18″ in diameter.
There is no size difference from High School to the NBA via the rim. The hoop sits 10′ off the ground from the rim to the floor, while the backboard is 72″ by 42″.
Conclusion: What is the Paint in Basketball?
In summary, the painted area is usually a different color from the rest of the court, which allows it to stand out on the playing surface. It also yields high percentage shots for offensive teams. For the defense, they can collect rebounds or stop the offensive from getting easy layups during a game if they can protect this area.
However, one thing to remember is that it comes down to referees to enforce the three-second violation rule for either the offense or defense. Both the offense and defense can’t camp out in the painted area for too long without potentially having a violation occur.
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In The Paint Basketball
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Table of Contents
- The Paint
- How Big Is the Paint in Basketball?
- History and Rules
- Gameplay
- FAQ
The Paint
The paint in basketball is a rectangular area on the court extending from the foul line to the baseline with perpendicular lane lines enclosing the shape.
It is also known as the “foul lane'' or “the key,” for short.
The paint gets its name from the shading done on courts to denote its shape. Attached to the paint are the blocks where players line up for free throws. The low blocks are a common spot for players to post up.
Different leagues have slightly different shapes and markings for the paint. The NBA and FIBA have a restricted area within the paint, but the NCAA does not. This arc denotes where a player is unable to draw a charge from. There is also a dotted semicircle within the paint for leagues that do not use alternating possessions, like the NBA.
How Big Is the Paint in Basketball?
The size of the paint varies among basketball leagues. In the NBA and the WNBA, the paint is 16 feet wide and 19 feet long, with the foul line painted 15 feet from the backboard. In NCAA play, the paint is the same length, with the foul line in the same position, but it is narrower, at 12 feet wide.
History and Rules
In basketball, certain rules apply to the paint.
Violating these rules can lead to a technical foul or turnover, depending on which team possesses the ball.
NBA Basketball Paint Violations
Unless actively guarding a player, defensive players are forbidden from standing inside the paint for more than three seconds. This deters having a player in a zone scheme who just stands underneath the basket. This violation results in a technical foul. Offensive players are also not allowed to stay in the paint for more than three seconds, and this infraction results in a turnover.
NCAA Basketball Paint Violations
In NCAA basketball, there is no defensive three-second violation. This allows teams to use a zone scheme on defense, which typically features a defender roaming the middle of the paint. However, there are still offensive three-second violations in NCAA basketball, with the same rules as the NBA.
FIBA Basketball Paint
Similar to NCAA basketball, FIBA basketball does not penalize defensive players for standing in the paint for more than three seconds.
Consistent with most other leagues worldwide, FIBA rules state that an offensive player may not stand in the paint for more than three seconds.
Gameplay
Since players are more likely to make shots closer to the basket, a common statistic noted is points in the paint (PITP). The NBA also records an advanced statistic called paint touches, which averages a player’s number of possessions in the paint per game. Teams that can outscore their opponent inside typically have a better chance of winning the basketball game.
FAQ
What is the paint in basketball?
The paint itself is the rectangular colored area directly surrounding the basket. It has four hash marks extending from it for players to line up on during free throws. The paint’s width varies depending on the league; in the NBA, the lane is 16 feet, and in college, it is 12 feet.
What is the purpose of the paint in basketball?
The paint allows referees to more easily officiate the game by making a colored area where they can clearly enforce certain rules.
The paint is also a reference for players to position themselves both on offense and defense. Plays are drawn up where players need to be in certain spots on the court, and the paint is an easy reference point.
What are the rules of being in the paint?
There are rules regarding how long a player can stand still in the paint. In the NBA, defensive and offensive players are only allowed to stay inside the paint for a maximum of three seconds before exiting the paint. However, players may exit and then immediately re-enter the paint as often as they want. An exception to this rule is that defensive players can stay as long as they want if they are within arm's length of an offensive player. In NCAA and high school basketball, only offensive players are prohibited from standing in the paint for more than three seconds. These rules are in place to deter players from standing in the paint for an entire possession and not moving around the court.
In basketball, what does it mean to “go hard in the paint”?
The phrase “going hard in the paint” is a common term in basketball, which is used to define a situation where a player is advancing aggressively towards the basket in an attempt to score, by necessity passing through the paint.
In basketball, being “in the paint” refers to when a player positions themselves in the area of the court known as the paint, which is the shaded rectangular area surrounding the basket. The paint is also known as the lane, key, and free throw lane.
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Basketball court markings: standards and norms
Author of the article
Khvatkov Dmitry
Consultant in the production of rubber coatings
Basketball field marking requirements are approved by the FIBA standard. The site must be flat with a hard surface, free of bends, cracks and other obstacles. The accepted dimensions of the field are 28 m long and 16 m wide. By NBA standards, the field is slightly larger: 28.7 m (94' ft) long and 15.
3 m (50' ft) wide.
Areas not intended for international competitions may differ from accepted standards (for public use, in schools or universities, etc.) and usually vary from 20 to 28 m in length and from 12 to 16 m in width.
Basketball Court Marking Standards
Basketball court markings are conventionally divided into 5 components:
- Boundary lines. They are located along the perimeter of the site and set its size. The lines that run along the field are called side lines, and those that are behind the baskets are called front lines.
- Central line. Divides the court in half parallel to the front lines.
- Central zone. It is a circle and is placed in the middle of the center line, and, accordingly, in the center of the entire field.
- Three-point line. It is a semi-ellipse and is located around the shields on both sides of the field. It limits the close range.
- Free throw line. It is located in front of the boards parallel to the front line and is limited on the sides by paint lines.
The standard line width is 5 cm. All outlines and lines must be of the same color (usually white) and be clearly visible from anywhere on the court.
Common lines
Common lines are used to limit the playing area of the court. The side lines (along the field) according to FIBA standards should be 28 m long, and the front lines - 16 m. For public areas, deviations from the accepted standards are allowed. Typically, basketball courts in schools or gyms are made from 20 m long and 12 m wide.
Central lines
The center line is parallel to the front and divides the field exactly in half. According to the standards - it should extend beyond the side lines by 15 cm on both sides.
In the middle of the center line there is a circle with a diameter of 3.6 m, which limits the central zone of the field. In this zone, the ball is played at the beginning of the game.
Three-Point Line
Three-Point Lines are located around the backboards on both sides of the field and consist of two straight lines 2.
9 long9 m and a semicircle. Straight lines run perpendicular to the front at a distance of 0.9 m from the side lines. Despite the fact that visually the distance from the ring to the side of the three-point line seems to be less than to its central part, the distance from the backboard to any point is 6.75 m.
Penalty lines
Penalty lines limit the nearest area at the backboard. They consist of a trapezoid and a free throw zone.
Despite the name, the "trapezium" is a rectangle (until 2009year it really was a trapezoid), which is located under the shield. Its dimensions are 5.8 meters long and 4.9 meters wide. The shield is located at a distance of 1.575 m from the end line in the middle of the site. In front of the backboard, at a distance of 1.25 m, there is a semicircle that limits the area for picking up the ball.
At a distance of 4.225 meters from the backboard, the trapeze zone ends and the free throw zone begins. It is a semicircle with a diameter of 3.
6 m (like the central circle).
Paint zone lines
These lines are serifs on both sides of the trapezoid (parallel to the side lines). They limit the areas for players who are fighting for the ball during a free throw.
Zones on the basketball field
The basketball court is divided into zones using markings. Each zone has its own specific rules.
Center circle
The center circle is used as a separate kick-off area at the start of the game. One representative from each team stand in a circle from their side and fight for the ball in a jump, after it is dropped by the referee. All players are exclusively on their side of the field, except for one who rebounds on the opponent's side.
Neutral zone
The peculiarity of this zone is that as soon as the player of the attacking team with the ball crosses the center line and is on the side of the opponent, he cannot pass the ball to the player of his team who is on the other side of the field (i.
e. behind center line on your side).
Three-point zone
The three-point line limits the near zone of the shot. Hitting the basket from outside the basket brings the team three points. If the throw was made inside the zone, then it brings two points.
Three-second zone
This is the zone in close proximity to the ring. It is called three-second, since the player of the attacking team cannot be in it for more than three seconds. Most balls are thrown in this zone, so when attacking, it provides maximum protection.
Free throw area
In controversial situations, a free throw is provided from this area. The player of the attacking team must score the ball without stepping over the line of the trapezoid. At the same time, the players of both teams are not in the three-second zone. They take up positions along the paint lines on the sides of the trapezoid and may not step outside the lines until the free throw shooter has shot the ball.
How to mark a basketball field?
Basketball field markings, whether it is an international competition court or an open-air amateur field, are best applied using special equipment.
This will ensure the long life of the coating, the lines will not clog and will promote fair play.
You can order the marking of a basketball court in Moscow and the Moscow region from Rezkom. We will measure the premises and develop a design project for the field so that it complies with generally accepted rules and is convenient for operation. For more details, you can contact our manager by phone 8-495-64-24-111.
The Most Important NBA Coaches: Who Created Modern Basketball - Openers - Blogs
Basketball is constantly changing. Someone considers this an evolution, someone is disgusted by these rebuilds, but the game continues to move on. Basketball, which was 10 years ago, is already very different from what it is now. Priorities are changing, the game pattern is changing. And if the story of the NBA with championships can be told through the players, then the story of basketball with game change can be told through the coaches.
While coaches don't always initiate change, they are the ones who make it happen.
Players join the league like never before, with an unfamiliar set of skills or an unprecedented combination of skill and size. And coaches, and with them basketball, adapt to these people: teams are built around them, they learn to play against them.
Somewhere a strange line-up is gathering, combining people who seem to be not very compatible in terms of the usual idea of the game. And they also learn to work with it. This pushes the coaches to create something new, some schemes that will make such a composition competitive.
Well, somewhere the idea of the right basketball is born, which gives an advantage and is maximally adapted to the modern realities of the NBA.
One way or another, behind every change in the game is a coach who was not afraid to take an unexpected step, cracking the old basketball or creating a new basketball.
And today we will talk about the most important coaches of the last 10 years. About the people who actually created modern basketball.
The key factors in the selection of coaches were the brightness of the impact on basketball and the success of the team over the past 10 years.
Stevens and Snyder are excellent coaches who make the most of their teams. But they didn't exactly turn the game around, and their teams are not exactly the main contenders for the title.
Doc Rivers is a reputable coach, but Lob City never got past the second round, and the specialist's main successes with the Celtics were even before 2010.
Casey and Brooks have been managing serious teams for a long time, but it's hard to say that they greatly increased the chances of the Thunder and Raptors with their work.
Liu was the coach of the champion team, but his team was nowhere near coaching.
Would the history of the NBA and basketball have changed if these people were replaced in the previous decade by a conventional average specialist? Hardly.
Below are the coaches without whom it is impossible to tell the story of the last decade in the NBA.
There are mainly coaches-champions, coaches-innovators and coaches-champions-innovators.
The Dallas coach spent most of the decade doing less than rewarding tasks. There were not very successful attempts to initiate the last trip for Nowitzki, then it was time to create a new team without Dirk, which meant rebuilding through the draft. This is not the job that makes you one of the top coaches of the decade. But the decade began with Carlisle.
It is impossible to tell the history of the NBA in recent years without Dallas 2011.
The Mavericks are often cited as one of the prime examples of a one-star champion: the team had no stars other than Nowitzki. And, of course, Dirk receives his portion of historical recognition for this achievement. But what about the coach of this team?
Yes, even though Butler was injured, that Dallas had a deep team, but in terms of star potential, they were losing to their main opponents. They had one star in their roster, and Dirk didn't even make the top five in the NBA that season (he made the second).
At the same time, the Mavericks scalped the Lakers (Bryant - the first five, Gasol - the second), Thunder (Durant - the first five, Westbrook - the second) and the Heat (James - the first five, Wade - the second). It was Carlisle who built this system, which resulted in something more than just the sum of its parts, and due to this, Dallas won back the gap in stellar talent.
And this machine grinds everything it sees. The same Lakers and Thunder took one game from the Mavericks for two. And in the final, Carlisle just tore apart the big Miami trio to pieces and strangled LeBron. Taking advantage of the Heat's lack of shooters, Carlisle played high defense on the pick-and-roll, preventing James from breaking away and gaining momentum: LeBron simply rested on Chandler or Nowitzki. But at the same time, due to the safety net, “Dallas” and “paint” were left closed.
Now it's impossible to play like that at all: your opponent will throw open three-pointers at you. The game is wider, and it is impossible to cover everything.
But then it was not customary to throw a lot of distant ones. In addition, it was considered quite normal to release compositions where 1-2 people can consistently throw. There was about one shooter at the start of the Heat, and that was Bibby, who made the playoffs 26% from 3-3. Naturally, in such basketball everything is tighter, it is easier to switch in defense. You don’t have to go to someone at all, you can be a little late to someone, someone will open not on the arc, but on the middle one, and it’s easier to get there. There were much more gaps and tolerances than now.
In fact, it was Carlisle that killed this old basketball, showing how vulnerable it is even played by the wildly talented team. That final is a clear demonstration that you can be whatever LeBron you want: you won’t do a damn thing against a competent team if there are no right partners around. And Carlisle was the architect of this most competent team, which made a number of distinguished veterans champions and changed basketball.
In the new decade, Rick will have one of the most exciting jobs in the league, building a team around Doncic and the coach is already developing an offense with 5 throwers and a near-star center unable to play post. This is a wildly ambitious project, so it's likely that Carlisle will again be one of the most important coaches in the NBA.
After Carlisle killed the old basketball, someone had to create a new one. It became obvious that Miami could not play the same way again, something had to be changed.
It is after the 2011 final that this gathering of snipers around LeBron will begin. First, Battier gets on the team and gives Miami flexibility. Now they can release Battier instead of the center, moving Bosh to the "five" and LeBron to the "four". This gives them an extra sniper in Battier.
Except this move didn't seem obvious at all in 2012. Spo convinced Riley for a long time that such a smallball could work and that it was necessary to release Battier instead of a center in the playoffs from the first minutes (in the regular season, Battier left the bench).
In the end, Spoelstra talked the boss into the correctness of the idea, and Shane did not disappoint. In the final, Battier has an offensive rating of 163. Typically, these numbers are a glitch that only occurs with people who get trash minutes. Battier played almost 190 minutes in that series.
With the move to a pair of James-Battier forwards, Miami received the necessary structural changes that allowed the team to work. There was more space, LeBron came into the operational space and was able to exert an influence corresponding to the status of the best player in the world.
After that, Shane Battier and Mike Miller started more often even in the regular season. And the global result of the fact that the main team of the league plays without the classic "fourth" was the gradual extinction of powerful forwards as such. At one time, the league was overloaded with all these Boozers - big men on the "four" without a long-range shot. Within a few years of the Heat's success, they all either moved to center (like the same Bosch, who, by the way, began to throw), or flew out of the NBA (like the same Boozer).
Looking at Miami, suddenly the league decided that lack of shooting and lack of mobility was taking too much from the team. So many that it can not be compensated by the pluses of additional dimensions. There was no point in keeping a full-size "fourth" on the parquet just because "it's customary".
Today it seems obvious. What could be more natural than moving LeBron to a B? But it was Spo who took the first step. It was he who took a risk and took the path of strengthening skills and abilities at the cost of reducing size.
As a result, Spoelstra, whom LeBron initially tried to throw out of the coaching bridge, made a huge contribution to James' first title and generally changed the format of modern basketball.
Over time, Spo gained recognition and became one of the most prestigious coaches in the league. Now he continues to work in Miami, where he has assembled a very nice and very coaching team. The current "Hit" use a lot of non-standard elements.
For example, it is difficult for them to single out a point guard, and the load in the attack is distributed fairly evenly. The game has a lot of movement without the ball and openings. And they also release two "big" ones at the start, which change roles when they cross the center line. But most importantly, the Heat are the most zoned team in the NBA. It was Spo who brought the zone defense back to the league a couple of years ago, showing everyone that such a defense can work. And it is Miami that now most often in the NBA defends non-personally.
Tom Thibodeau (Chicago, Minnesota)
Tom Thibodeau is the ultimate example of the rare event: a coach with a short and bright prime.
Tom has been an assistant for a long time, and finally, in 2010, he gets a job as head coach of the Bulls. Thibodeau, known for his defensive building work, makes the Bulls defense first in the NBA, Chicago wins the regular season, Rose is the MVP, Thibodeau is Coach of the Year, and Lenin is so young.
.. And after Rose's injury, Thibodeau manages to build game through Noah. And young Butler is progressing like hell.
Tibbs becomes a real sensation. But suddenly Thibodeau has two problems.
First of all, his great defense, which was so useful in the early years in Chicago, turns out to be not very productive after that. The main idea behind Thibodeau's defense was a wildly aggressive back-up, and that worked great in the early tenths. And then, when the number of shooters began to grow, it was no longer possible to play like that. But Tibbs doesn't know how to do otherwise . In Minnesota, he continued to drive his spades, despite the fact that the players could not cope with him, and the entire league was moving away from such protection, and his hoarse “ice” from the edge only infuriated everyone.
In a sense, Thibodeau was so successful that he dropped out of the league. Tibbs adapted so well to that basketball that he was one of the reasons basketball changed.
Teams began to build and attack differently, moving the game to the plane where Thibodeau's achievements were useless. He didn't have any others.
And secondly, Thibodeau drove his leaders in the tail and in the mane. Tibbs couldn't trust the bench, and his key players were always leading the NBA in minutes. It is not known for certain how Thibodeau is involved in the injuries of the players of that "Chicago". But it is known that Deng, Noah and Rose were on the verge of retirement by the age of 30. And those who still survived - Butler and Gibson, Tibbs took with him to Minnesota to finish off (he dragged Rose and Deng there too).
More importantly, apparently, it was the manic nature that forced Thibodeau to drive his leaders that prevented him from negotiating with people and adapting. And while the fact that Thibodeau is at odds with bird droppings in the head of Chicago managers can be considered a plus, the ability to get along with the players is still an important skill for an NBA coach.
And Tibbs did not succeed in this. At all.
In general, Thibodeau left an undeniably bright, but also very controversial mark in the NBA.
In recent years, Popović has been mainly engaged in the destruction of his own heritage. Judge for yourself:
– Unwillingness to go into perestroika locked the team in a swamp.
- An organization in which Pop is not only a coach, but also the king-god, issues contracts one by one, and then throws Bertans out, only to sign Morris, who in the end does not sign.
- After the Tony-Timmy-Manu trio, the Spurs had three All-Star players, and each of them demanded a trade (yes, I counted DeRozan, because he came in as an all-star).
- The team continues to play the old fashioned way. In the past, you could say “yes, but it works.” But now it doesn’t work anymore: with the results of the Spurs, you can’t get into the playoffs even in the East.
But Popovich has done too many cool things in this decade.
And no matter how he tries to cross it all out, his efforts are not enough.
And Popovich's main feature in this decade: within the same club, he built 2 fundamentally different teams around different leaders, and both of these teams were real contenders for the title .
In the 2013-14 season, the Spurs moved the ball until they were blue in the face. These are constant passes and discounts, passes and discounts that swing the defense until an open throw appears. It's always an extra pass to get an even better position. And this is a uniform distribution of the load in the attack. Those Spurs played aesthetically pleasing basketball, and they didn't just do it in the regular season, they won the finals.
In the 2016/17 season, the Spurs are already a static attack, solved by Kawhi and partly by Aldridge. This is an increase in the share of dribbling shots, and a course to turn Leonard into the center of the universe, through which all the offense goes.
And that season, Kawhi was a real MVP contender, and the Spurs outplayed the Warriors in Game 1 of the 2017 West Finals until Lenard crashed out with an injury.
Such lightning-fast reformatting without loss of quality and awareness of the very need for this reformatting is, of course, the highest level.
But Popovich is significant not only for his work in his team. Because during his years with the Spurs, Pop has nurtured a generation of coaches and managers. To take at least the people from this list: Kerr played with Popovich and said that he adopted some of his ideas. Bud was Popovich's assistant with the Spurs.
And when it comes to influencing the NBA, Popovich is on a different level. Because he taught those who influence the NBA.
After the 2013/14 season, the Warriors made the controversial decision to change their coach. Mark Jackson led the team to the playoffs for two seasons in a row, and by the standards of the “warriors” of those years, this was a huge success.
But that wasn't enough. It is authentically known that Jackson's attempts to build a sect within the team in which everyone is hated, including the club's management and some players, played a role in this decision. But I want to believe that the leadership of the Warriors saw the ceiling of Mark as a coach and realized the need for change.
Jackson was a great coach for the phase he was with the team, laying the foundations and lifting the bottom bar for the team. But the game under him was primitive and, if he had not been fired at one time, then Golden State would have been a Portland-level team (with all due respect).
Kerr, who replaced Jackson, made a number of changes to the game that raised the ceiling of the team.
First, under the new coach, Golden State began to actively move the ball. From 12th in assists per 100 possessions, the team soared to first. Curry began to throw much more often after passes from partners. This complication of the game with a greater emphasis on the movement of the ball allowed the strengths of the players to be revealed.
Curry was able to prove himself both on the ball and as a shooter, which opens on receipt, which is very handy, because Steph is very cool without the ball, and it’s stupid not to use it. In the new role, Curry will reach the MVP level. Steph's partners, who have decent vision, were able to control the ball more often with such a game. And this is also logical, because with the ball Iguodala, Livingston and Green are smart guys who can sharpen and give the pass. And without the ball, they are just bad shooters. That is, the game model chosen by Kerr simply suited the team much better and maximized the talent.
Secondly, Kerr was not afraid to reorganize the rotation. It all started with the fact that Iguodala was moved to the bench. But at the start of the season, it turned out that David Lee was also injured, then Draymond was shoved in his place. Greene was pretty damn good and Kerr had the guts to keep him in the starting lineup, making Lee a bench when he returned. Moreover, Kerr had enough curiosity to try Green on the "five", which gave him incredible versatility in defense and maximum movement in attack.
And Draymond Center is not what seemed obvious at all. Before Kerr, Green was either a fat "third" or a low "fourth". How many coaches in the NBA would have thought to try this half-ass on the "five"? But it was at the center position that Green gave the maximum benefit. Draymond ended up with a career he never dreamed of. In general, it is often said that Kerr works with outstanding players, but somehow they forget that these players became outstanding in part thanks to him. Where would Green be without Kerr and Curry? Tad Young (with all due respect)?
And thirdly, Kerr was not afraid to listen to other people. Mark Jackson kicked every smart assistant out of the coaching staff because he saw them as a threat. Kerr has one or two former or future head coaches at his side. In 2015, when Golden State moved to the small five in the Finals, it wasn't Kerr's idea. Just one of the staff members suggested this idea. As a result, the Warriors dismantled the Cleveland.
The Warriors made a move after which the game was over, the Caves with their injuries simply had nothing to answer.
This team needed Kerr to start winning big . Probably, the 2017 roster would have become a champion playing any basketball, but no 2017 roster would have been without success in the previous two seasons. The team was lucky with Kerr and his basketball, the coach's schemes optimally revealed the players.
As a result, Kerr built the main dynasty of the decade with 5 finals and 3 titles . And he did it on his own terms: Golden State continues to follow the principles with which Kerr came to the team. The ball moves, the players move, you don’t understand who the point guard is, all this was in the game of the “warriors” even this season, Kerr with his basketball made the Warriors not only successful, but bright and recognizable.
At the same time, it should be noted that Kerr was also lucky with the Warriors, because far from any set of personnel can be played in this style, and the ability to stage a different game at first raised serious doubts.
For a long time, the coach's ego did not allow him to deviate from his principles, he always tried to win on his own terms, continuing to move the ball even when a transition to simpler basketball such as Curry's constant pick-and-rolls with Green or Durant's isolations was suggested. It wasn't until last season, when Durant was eliminated, that Kerr quietly switched to pick-and-roll, trusting the leader. But, if at one time Kerr had ended up in a team less talented or less suitable for his ideas about basketball, then he could have returned to the commentator's chair a long time ago.
For D'Antoni, the decade started out shaky. The glorious time of bright innovative experiments in Phoenix was already over, and the coach worked first at the Knicks and then at the Lakers. He did not achieve much success either there or there, and his future as head coach was in question. When Houston hired Mike, it seemed that this was the last chance. And he took advantage of this opportunity.
After joining the Rockets, Mike moved Harden to the formal number one position. James had fiddled with the ball a lot before, but it was D'Antoni who let the whole attack go through Harden. The number of pick-and-rolls the team immediately increased. In such a game, Harden opened up to the maximum, he accurately read the game and found the right solutions, and his skill set allowed him to complete the whole thing. As a result, Harden will turn into one of the most dominant on the ball and the most intimidating offensive players in the NBA. In search of a working defense against Harden, the NBA will go to hell.
In general, it must be said here that there is some kind of transcendent idyll in the D'Antoni-Mowry-Harden trio, they are created to work together, and at times it is quite difficult to understand who to praise for this or that success. D'Antoni certainly wanted to give the ball to Harden, but Harden somehow moved in this direction himself, and Maury gathered appropriate partners for him.
The same goes for building a team built to beat the Warriors.
It was obvious that the Warriors needed to trade against the movement of the ball, and D'Antoni and Bzdelik began to set up this defense. Mowry had just put together the right all-round line-up and Harden had never been able to get past the screen defensively, so it all came together here.
Against Harden, the teams were increasingly exchanging defensively, it was clear that this could be dealt with mainly through individual play, so Harden began to play isolation more often, and Mori found another person for the team who could go to the throw from isolation to Don't overload Harden.
These three have always been on the same wavelength, whether it's a game model, casting, or whining about judging.
And when the trio faced the problem of Westbrook and Capela's incompatibility, they all came to the same conclusion again - let's do without a center. And why should he? We still took Capela out at key moments, even when Westbrook wasn't on the team yet.
Capela was traded, Covington was added to the start, giving a lot more space, and this opened up Westbrook.
Russ was used to pick-and-roll through the center because it would pull the other big guy out from under the rim and give him a pass. Over time, he lost his shot, his pick-and-rolls stopped coming out, the defensive center remained under the basket, and Westbrook was no longer able to remain effective. Many said that he lost his athleticism, and no longer had time to crawl into those gaps between the defensive center and the ring, which he had enough before. But the thing is that without a shot, Westbrook gives the opponent a head start, and these gaps themselves have become much narrower. This is what made Russ wildly ineffective. It wasn’t that he sank a lot in athleticism, it was just that without a throw of athleticism, more was needed than ever.
And the fact that physics has not really gone anywhere became obvious when the Houston changed the scheme.
By clearing the runway under Russell and removing the center from under the ring, the Rockets made pick and roll optional. Now Westbrook didn't have to pull the center out from under the ring, this center is not there anyway - everything is on the arc. And Westbrook started playing in the best tradition of Giannis: passing through athleticism, where you are either faster or stronger than most NBA players. Westbrook still has explosive speed and can outrun a lot of people. And if the opponent decides to move away, removing Westbrook's advantage in speed, then Russ, who has accelerated in the aisle, can move even fairly large forwards.
In recent years at the Thunder, Westbrook looked like a completely useless player. He didn’t practice defense, flushed a huge amount of possessions down the toilet in attack (with the wildest low efficiency) and could not play without the ball because there was no shot, and he never knew how to set up screens or move without the ball. But Houston brought Westbrook back to superstardom.
It was possibly the best basketball of Russ' career.
Again, it's hard to understand how duties are divided at the Rockets. But Maury and Harden needed a coach who thought like them. I, D'Antoni may not be the primary architect of the Rockets' success, but without him this team battling the Warriors and trying to change basketball would be unthinkable. .
In the middle of the decade, Bud built a very nice team at Atlanta. Then the squad, in which no one scored more than 17 points per match, reached the conference finals, taking 60 matches in the regular season. And, on the one hand, this is an absolute indicator of coaching skills. On the other hand, it was difficult to believe in that “Atlanta” as a real contender for the title precisely because they did not have a real star in the roster, and Jeff Teague was the driving force of the attack. That is, Bud, of course, squeezed the maximum out of the composition of those Hawks, but this maximum does not exactly pull into the list of head coaches of the decade.
What really makes Budenholzer one of the most important people of the decade is his time at the Bucks. In principle, there are some parallels with Kerr in the Warriors. Bud joined a strong playoff team with a young leader and within a year made them regular season winners and MVPs.
On defense, Budenholzer's Bucks focused on defense under the rim. Their center, in fact, did not come out of the "paint", blocking the shots from close range, and the "small" ones on the arc climbed through the screens, driving other people's ballhandlers into the clutches of Lopez (by the way, Brook, who was never known for his defense, in under such conditions has become one of the most useful defensive players in the NBA).
As a result, the most effective throws overlapped. Giannis also found his niche in such a defense: when Lopez met an opponent under the ring, Antetokounmpo held Brook's player, and when Lopez returned to his own, Giannis restored his position in the corner. In this regard, the mobility and scope of the hands of the Greek proved to be very useful.
On offense, Bud pushed Lopez into the arc, surrounding Giannis with shooters. The Bucks already had one of the most athletic players in history who was extremely difficult to hold one-on-one, but now the Bucks could penalize for hedging against this player.
[In general, about half of Lopez's new contract should go to Badu. The coach reimagined Brook's role, and within a year, a 3M player turned into a great 52M center for 4 years.]
And, naturally, Bud let the whole machine run and throw. And run. And throw.
Before Bud came along, Jason Kidd pretended to be the Bucks coach, and he was trying to get one of the NBA's most dominant early offensive players to crawl. Under Kidd, the Bucks had the 20th pace in the NBA. Under Budenholzer - 2nd. Under Kidd, a team with a player pulling half of the team in the aisle almost did not shoot three-pointers (25th in the frequency of long-range shots). It would seem that Giannis should pass and fold, but no. And after the Bucks found a real coach, the team immediately became the third in the percentage of three-pointers.
Bud's exact role in all of this is, of course, difficult to assess. Because the contrast with Kidd is too strong. Jason is one of the worst coaches in the NBA in recent years, and it's not too difficult to look great against his background. But Bud did exactly what needed to be done. And his defensive model looked unusual. Plus, he clearly did a great job of fixing the weaknesses in the game system that were conspicuous in his first season with the Bucks. And, no matter how it ends, it is Bud who will remain in history as the coach who gave freedom to Giannis .
Before the 2018/19 season, the specialist received the position of head coach at Toronto. It was his debut as an NBA chief.
Before the 2019/20 season, Nick Nurse was named the best coach in the NBA.
And this recognition was due to the fact that Ners was not shy about radical measures. He brought back to the NBA long-forgotten tricks that are not commonly used in professional basketball.
That is, his coaching moves were bright. While other specialists were limited to not too obvious adjustments, Nurse blew up.
You don't have enough shooters? Great, then we'll play "box-and-one" or "triangle and two". These schemes involve man marking against leaders and zone defense against everyone else. Essentially, this creates a doubling on the opponent's stars at any point on the floor. This is how they play in school tournaments, where the difference in class between the best player on the team and the rest is too great. Nurs played like this in the NBA Finals: he trampled on the dignity of everyone who went out with Curry and Thompson, and dismantled the Warriors, in fact, leaving them no chance already at the level of schemes (something like how the “warriors” themselves dismantled in 2015 "Kavs"). “You have one shooter in your lineup, then two, why should I patronize the rest?” Simple logic. But that is not accepted.
Already next season, a defense that no one had thought to use before is being used from time to time in the NBA.
Aggressive all-court pressing with doubles in the opponent's half is another forgotten move that Nurs has brought back to life. In recent years, this was done only when they tried to slow down the opponent. For example, at the end of the quarter, when your opponent can time it right and get two possessions, leaving you with only one. Then you can pin the opponent, and he will not have time to carry out an early attack, and he will not have time for a second possession. A very point theme that could not be seen in every match. Nurse won back 23 points from Dallas in the fourth quarter with this press.
He was down 23 points in the fourth, without something extraordinary he wouldn't have bounced back anyway. And if his press failed, then what does he lose? Simple logic. But that is not accepted.
The Raptors played two different games last season. In the matches that Kawai missed, the team showed more team basketball, because there was simply no player in the roster who could sharpen dribbles as effectively.
But when Lenard was on the floor, the entire attack went through him, and the Raptors' pass percentage immediately sank. Many said that it was impossible to play like that, and Leonard needed to be somehow integrated into the team. In the end, Ners Toronto just learned to play two fundamentally different basketballs and switch between them at the click of a button, which gave not just variability, but a full-fledged plan "B". What do you say, it's not accepted?
Lack of stereotypes and willingness to go to the end singled out Ners. And, in fact, due to these qualities, he again made coaching a cool . And all this is not just a show-off of a person who is not responsible for anything. The work of Ners gives the result at the highest level.
Nurse took the title last season. After that, he lost perhaps the best player in the world and another key starter, replaced them with about no one, but remained at the top of the conference, despite a bunch of injuries.
