I found myself thinking, “Give the damn ball to Nash and let him do his thing.”
But, after a few deep breaths, and with a more level head, I decided to dissect why in the world Mike Brown would want to run the Princeton offense—one that has never won the ultimate prize at the NCAA or NBA level; one being implemented by Eddie Jordan who owns a career .428 winning percentage; and one that has been utilized by the Washington Wizards…
Why weren’t the Lakers picking-and-rolling teams to death with Nash and Howard, the two most ideal players to run basketball’s most functional, basic, and devastatingly effective play?
First of all, Jordan used the Princeton offense with vastly inferior talent—and from year two of coaching the Wizards through the following four seasons, the Wizards went 171-157. That’s with Gilbert Arenas running the show.
And while Arenas had his moments—60 against the Lakers comes instantly to mind—no person would ever think that he is a better player, let alone a better point guard than Steve Nash. Well, maybe except for Arenas…
As for the Lakers offense struggling…well, the numbers simply prove otherwise. They have the league’s sixth best offensive rating, and have turned the ball over less than their Staples Center counterparts who employ Mr. efficient-with-the-rock-as-anyone-to-play-the-game Chris Paul.
They can certainly be better. The turnovers have been sloppy turnovers—mostly the result of trying to feel each other out. But in terms of efficiency? Only Nash has struggled to adapt—which is really not a surprise since he’s coming from an offense that fully centered around his ability to create for others and has been asked to change his game the most--or to scale his game back the most.
But of all the starters, he also has the most ideal skillset to change his game. He is, arguably the best shooter in NBA history and the “no duh” statement of the year is that excellent shooting works in any system of basketball.
For the record, nothing is wrong offensively with Dwight Howard. He is averaging 26 points, 12 boards, 3 assists and shooting 63 percent from the field. The thing is, he could be doing even better. He’s looked rusty at times and has missed some shots that he normally always converts.
The Lakers other big, Pau Gasol, is posting what would be considered an MVP-worthy statline on any other team: 19.5 points, 11 rebounds, 4 assists, and 1.5 blocks. The shooting percentage is down a bit, but as the team gets more familiar with each other, it should go up.
The Princeton offense also optimally utilizes Metta World Peace since he excels at cutting, posting up, and slashing to the hoop (as opposed to standing in the corner and waiting to jack up threes). He can handle the rock well enough and is a willing passer. In game two, he hit 4-5 shots (including a pair of threes) and had 3 boards and 2 dimes.
Furthermore, Antawn Jameson and Steve Blake are familiar with the Princeton offense from their days playing under Jordan.
And while the focus has been entirely on how a 38-year-old point guard has disappeared on offense, little has been made of how efficiently the 34-year-old former MVP Kobe Bryant has been scoring. He’s averaged 26 points on a Howard-esque 62 percent. Also like Howard, Bryant could be doing better—having been forced to take some bad shots to try and get the team back into the first two games.
Kobe Bean and Superman are both shooting 60+ percent from the field and people are all in a tizzy that Nash isn’t running more pick and rolls.
The most exciting part for Lakers fans is the fact that Nash hasn’t taken the opportunity to run too many pick-and-rolls with Howard. The pick-and-roll is the most basic, the most unstoppable (if done correctly) play in basketball—especially for two players who are literally the best two players on the planet to execute it. But it is also predictable. It also wouldn’t optimally utilize Bryant, World Peace, or Gasol. Picking and rolling would turn all three into spot-up shooters on many offensive possessions. That is not smart basketball.
In the long run, it also wouldn’t optimally utilize Nash who is the oldest player on the team and who Brown and the Lakers staff is looking to conserve for the playoffs.
That said, once the Lakers figure this Princeton thing out, it’ll be child’s play for Gasol, Bryant, and Howard to seamlessly run pick-and-rolls/pick-and-pops with Nash. It only makes sense that a team with this much talent is too good for just one offensive scheme. Mike Brown’s plan is to have the Lakers get up to speed with the Princeton offense, and then let Nash pick and choose his spots to run his bread and butter. I can’t think of a scarier offense than that.
So, the Seven Seconds or Less Nash has most likely been retired. Sure, he'll pop up from time to time, orchestrating the offense and bringing smiles to our faces as we are reminded of his MVP days. But, day in and day out, Nash will get the Lakers into the Princeton offense, and the Lakers will ultimately be better because of it.
Now, regarding the Lakers defense…
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