Defense, classic or vanguard
A pair of lessons in basketball's supposedly less spectacular side - defense - highlighted Day 2 of the Olympic men's basketball tournament in Beijing.
First, we saw the Greek national team, second at the last World Championships, dominate Germany with a defensive clinic. The first victory of the tournament for the Greeks was another in their series of classic examples of why basketball, in its soul, is a team sport. When faced with trying to stop Germany's superstars Dirk Nowitzski and Chris Kaman, the Greeks collectively did everything a defense can do to neutralize players who are usually considered unstoppable.
Greece's defense started in transition, with ball-hawking in the backcourt and early body-to-body contact with the German stars. Then, they overplayed all passing lanes to discourage Germany's guards from even looking for Nowitzki and Kaman. If, however, the ball got through a forest of arms to reach the stars, two or three Greek players surrounded them immediately, forcing a tough shot, a reluctant pass or a turnover. Finally, the Greeks made sure to complete the effort by rebounding Germany's many misses. The results showed that Nowitzki and Kaman scored only 7 points between them after the first quarter and attempted just 11 of Germany's 53 shots in the game. Neither played the fourth quarter, because the game was over before then. Greece shut down the basket area so completely that Germany made only 7 two-point shots in the entire 40 minutes.
It is no surprise that a team with Dimitris Diamantidis, the four-time Euroleague Best Defender Trophy winner, can shut down opponents. But he had plenty of help in the paint this time, particularly from his Panathinaikos teammate Kostas Tsartsaris, Giannis Bourossis of Olympiacos and and Andrea Gliniadakis of Maroussi.
In the next game of the day, defense took on the rare, almost unprecedented, patina of an individual show in the person of 17-year-old Ricky Rubio, the DKV Joventut point guard whose incredibly fast hands and feet had most to do with Spain rallying from 14 points behind to defeat China in overtime.
In the fourth quarter of that game, a world audience got to see what we in Europe have enjoyed since Rubio broke into the professional ranks at age 14. As an open-court defender on the ball, Rubio is redefining his position, inventing new ways to get a hand on the ball, make veteran floor generals think twice and disrupt entire offenses. The entire court is his operating room, and whether he is defending on the ball or off it, Rubio is a constant concern to opponents - and constant fun to watch.
In Beijing on Tuesday, it is fair to say that Rubio broke the hearts of hundreds of millions of Chinese who were watching the game. It was that clear to everyone that without him harassing China's offense to a standstill, Spain would have lost. Most amazing is that he completely changed the outcome of the game without making a single basket.
With incredible balance, lateral speed and longer arms than most guards, Rubio has advantages that explain some of his revolutionary style of play. But perhaps his best attributes are positioning, ceaseless foot movement and an ability to read the offense's next move. He brought back memories of Michael Jordan early in that fourth quarter, when he followed the player he was matched with on a baseline cut toward the lane past Chinese center Yao Ming, who had the ball. A step or two later, Rubio suddenly turned back and stole cleanly from behind Yao as soon as the Chinese center took his first dribble.
Rubio was even better on the next-to-last play in regulation time, after his four steals in 8 minutes had already allowed Spain to even the score. With under 30 seconds left, Rubio was called for a phantom foul on veteran Chinese point guard Liu Wei. When China inbounded the ball again, Liu ran over Rubio, knocking him to the floor, but no whistle blew. As Liu got the ball back and raced to the other sideline, Rubio jumped to his feet and followed. As soon as he got there, Rubio knocked the ball off Liu's knee and out of bounds. In the final possession of a game it dominated, despite a bad call and being run over, Rubio stole China's last opportunity for the country's greatest basketball victory ever before a pass could be made.
Some experts have taken to calling him the European Pete Maravich, but that does Rubio a disservice. He is not the dribbling, passing and scoring wizard that Maravich was at nearly the same age almost 40 years ago - nor should anyone expect him to be. He is redefining the game in his own way, as a wizard on the other side of the ball. The Pete Maravich of defense, yes.
POSTED BY
Vassilis Skountis - Beijing, China
DATE:
Wednesday, August 13, 2008