By Nikos Varlas/ varlas@eurohoops.net
Big games are decided in details and in the special situations at the last seconds. Barcelona was leading 65-63 and Panathinaikos had the ball. No matter what the outcome of Diamantidis’ shot was – even if he missed it and the Catalans prevailed – Barcelona chose the worst of its options in this play and paid a hefty price by losing the game and the home court advantage. Let’s analyze it.
- Barcelona had 3 team fouls. It was out of the question that its players should have made one more when Panathinaikos was setting its pick and roll in order to gain some time, without giving free throws to the Greens. As coach Pascual said in the press conference after the game, he had told them to do the fourt foul in order to gain time.
- After that, there would have been two choices. The Catalans could have made – or not – one more foul and send PAO in the free throws line. The worst case scenario of this option would have been for the Greeks to tie the game and then Barcelona would have had the last possession of the game and the chance to win it. Also, this way they could have excluded the possibility of being defeated by a three pointer.
- It was 100% sure that Diamantidis will have the responsibility of the last possession and decide what to do with the ball. He is one of the most notorious clutch players in Europe the last years, but Barcelona decided NOT to foul him.
- In such a low scoring game this decision is not necessarily wrong. However, it leads to an other cross road. 1) To force Diamantidis pass the ball by bringing some defensive help, something Barcelona used as a tactic throughout the game, taking the risk of creating an open shot, like it did happened with Bramos scoring a big corner three a little earlier. 2) To switch defenders in the screen, the most common defensive choice that creates a miss match as the defender of the screener will have to switch to the ball handler. That meant Naithan Jawai against Diamantidis. Big mistake! You don’t send your slowest big over 3D in the play that could decide the outcome of the game. A player like Sada will be ideal. In Diamantidis own words after the game: “I was waiting to see what Barcelona will do. They decided to switch and Jawai was guarding me. My first though was to do a drive. When I started going left, he momentarily lost his step. That’s way I did a step back and shot”.
- In the last possession of the game, Panathinaikos did the same, but in the switch Stephan Lasme was guarding Navarro. Lasme has really QUICK feet, so he did block the shot of “La Bomba”.
The conclusion is simple. The combination of not fouling and the switch on the screen, when you have a slow big on the court against the ball handler – in this case Mr. Clutch Diamantidis – was a fatal choice. And it’s a big flaw the fact that in Barca’s roster there isn’t one really quick big.