Seven games are left before tournament time. Seriously, check the schedule.
The Wolfpack is sitting at 6-5 in the ACC, after losing four extremely close games and getting rained on by 3-pointers in one that was not so close. With the personnel the Pack has, the talent and the record are not consistent.
I attest this inconsistency to one thing: a deficient togetherness that all the great teams possess. I’m not saying the Pack is playing selfish basketball, but I am saying that the Pack is not playing unselfish basketball. At the moment, the team’s cohesion is not worthy of a deep tournament run that we’re all hoping for. Let me show you what I mean.
It doesn’t take a basketball mastermind to realize that a team’s chemistry cannot be undervalued. It takes time and commitment. We’ve learned this from the NBA.
Two years ago, the Miami Heat fell into a mid-season slump and promised that after more minutes on the floor together, they would understand each other’s tendencies and develop stronger team chemistry. The nuances of the game would come as second nature. And guess what? They won a championship the next year.
Now we can look at the Los Angeles Lakers and after watching them for five minutes, gather that their chemistry is awful, and their record reflects that. But next year, after a summer of practices and workouts, I sure wouldn’t want to have to play against those three, maybe four, future hall-of-famers.
But N.C. State basketball isn’t the NBA. This team, favored in the preseason to win the ACC, will not have an off-season to fix things like the Lakers will. This team will lose seniors Scott Wood and Richard Howell, and will likely lose C.J. Leslie and Lorenzo Brown to the NBA.
This team needs to find the rhythm and cohesion that will generate defensive stops. Because stops lead to easy points in transition, which lead to runs, which lead to wins, which lead to greatness. This team has shown flashes of greatness, and if you’re reading this column, you’re wondering why flashes are all we’re getting. Let’s break it down.
First, it needs to be said that Lorenzo Brown is the unquestionable leader of this group. He is the heartbeat, the floor general. Brown is what Travis Barker was to Blink-182 — he’s the component that makes the Wolfpack the Wolfpack. The team needs him. He is a scorer and a distributor and can dictate the pace of any game. He has the experience and basketball IQ to bring the best out of his teammates.
This is not to knock Tyler Lewis, because Lewis has proved his craftiness in scoring and involving his teammates, but he’s not on Lorenzo Brown’s level. Not yet. So obviously the three games Brown missed hurt the Pack, but there is no question that he can, and must, rejuvenate the team down the stretch.
It is essential that Brown’s crisp and unselfish offensive attack carries over to the other players. This means ball movement in the half-court sets, kick-outs to shooters like Wood or Purvis when a forward is double-teamed in the paint, and rhythmic basketball play. This is the only way the UCLA high post offense works. It allows for excellent floor spacing, and the Wolfpack need to take advantage of that and not rely too heavily on one guy.
Too many times I see a guy catch the ball with his mind already made up to shoot, instead of playing what the defense gives him. That is not team basketball. It is unsustainable basketball, especially with the shorthanded seven-man rotation that the Pack runs. A team that lacks depth must have a balanced attack to succeed.
The key to settling the Wolfpack’s woes is Rodney Purvis. I believe in Rodney Purvis, and I don’t think his skills are being maximized. Right now, Purvis is not getting touches in the spots that best serve his skill set, which has led to a scoring slump, which has lowered his confidence.
It is up to the older guys to reignite that confidence he showed us earlier in the season. Leslie or Howell need to find him when he’s slashing to the basket, or get him the ball off a screen for a 12-footer. This guy is a supreme talent and was one of the most sought-after recruits in his class. A team with good chemistry plays to their strengths, and so far, Purvis has played more like a freshman and less like a McDonald’s All-American.
With all that said, the Wolfpack still have the fifth best field goal percentage in the country, which tells us that defense is being undersold. There were too many communication breakdowns against Duke at Cameron, which led to easy lay-ups or wide open 3-point shots for the Blue Devils.
Developing chemistry on the defensive end is just as important as on the offensive end. Someone needs to set an aggressive Metta-World-Peace-like tone that will energize his teammates (C.J., I’m looking at you). Again, State needs to stay disciplined and trust each other.
Going under the screen set for Seth Curry to pop the three over and over again is not staying disciplined. Throwing out an arm and trying to pass it off as help defense is not disciplined.
When the game is on the line and two guys go for the blocked shot instead of boxing out, an opposing player is going to be left for the tip in. That has happened twice. Remember, Gottfried stresses rebounding, then pushing the ball up the court for transition points. But this can only happen if the Pack communicates and plays aggressive team defense.
I predict that State will finish the season strong with Brown back and will find the cohesion that they found late last season that allowed for a Sweet Sixteen run.
If there’s a better 3-point shooter in the country more capable than Scott Wood, I’d love to meet him. If there’s a tougher, harder working forward than Richard Howell, please show him to me. And C.J. Leslie—please, in the time it takes me to blink the guy can go from the free throw line to high above the rim prepared to throw it down.
My point is that most coaches would kill to acquire the type of talent that comes plentifully for the Pack. It’s time for State to come together, trust the younger guys and make the push that everyone knows they’re capable of making.
