NBA teams are quick to imitate the champions in their league. Colleges and high schools then follow. The Pacers and the Thunder share a template that is sure to impact basketball at all levels in the future.
PACE- Their uptempo offenses are exciting to watch and have worn their opponents out. They run off rebounds like most teams. The Thunder are deadly in creating and running off turnovers. A lesson from the Indiana Pacers is the value of running off the opponents makes. They don’t do this sometimes, they do it every time. Every game it seems that Siakam get 6-8 points off layups after makes. And when he is not beating the other team up the floor, he is wearing them out.
Possible Impacts- 1) More HS teams develop true rim runners like Saikem. 2) More HS teams work to run out of the net on makes.
SPACE- Both teams create space offensively to make it hard for the defense to be able to fill the gaps and make it hard for defenders to rotate to shooters. While these two teams sometimes will play a non-shooter, most often they are playing five shooters to create space. The non-shooter must learn how to play the dunker spot.
Possible Impacts - 1) More HS teams will become less concerned with size and more concerned with getting shooters on the floor. 2) More HS teams will mimic OKC’s use of the dunker spot and go four out.
DEPTH- The Pacers and the Thunder have shown the value of depth. They come at their opponents in waves. Teams like the Lakers, Nuggets, Warriors, and Knicks may have had more star power but they could not keep up with them.
Possible Impacts- HS coaches will try to develop 8 player rotations vs. only 6-7 player rotations.
BALL PRESSURE- Both teams are unrelenting in getting up and putting pressure on the ball in both full and the half court. They seem to have a strategy to get up and guard hard at the beginning of the game to challenge the refs to call fouls. Both teams find a place for quick perimeter players who can play physical on the ball defense.
Possible Impacts- More HS teams will get up and pressure to try to create turnovers, more HS teams will challenge refs to call fouls on them.
BALL SCREEN OFFENSE- It is not unique to the Thunder and the Pacers, but the world of the NBA and most of college is centered around PNR, PNP, Zoom actions, DHO’s. This needs to be part of an offense and a defense has to have plans on how to defend the actions.
Possible Impact- HS will begin to use more variety offensively in the ball screen actions, and use more variety defensively in the ball screen defenses.
Be clear, I am not trying to imply just because the Pacers and the Thunder are doing certain things that immediately next season every NBA, every college, and every HS team is going to be doing things exactly like the Thunder and the Pacers.
I am saying that we can expect these distinct influences to begin to trickle down to all levels of basketball.
Basketball coaches are great imitators!!
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