By Panos Katsiroumpas / info@eurohoops.net
We have already watched 2 games in each playoff series and now is time to conclude what we have seen in this 1st week of the road to Madrid games.
Barcelona vs Olympiacos
What a turn of events in this series, with 2 totally different games and different winner in each one of them. Barcelona opened the series with an easy victory. They played very well in defense and the key was the way Satoransky defended. With his big body he was very attacking against every screen and blocked the majority of the pick n roll plays of Olympiacos.
The Spanish team was in total control of the rhythm, they outrebounded Olympiacos, with their power forwards giving strength in this aspect. Lampe and Nachbar were great in offense and the provided, together with Tomic and Pleiss all the stops needed in the penetration plays of Olympiacos. The reds were not aggressive in offense, their execution was poor and they normally lost the 1st game.
In the 2nd game everything was turned on the other side. Olympiacos appeared hugely aggressive in defense. Their ball pressure was exhausting, their recoveries were huge and they denied almost every pass inside. Barcelona was not able to execute their plays and they manage to drain their 1st assist after 16 minutes of game.
Olympiacos was better in 2 other aspects. The way they defended Tomic and their execution. In terms of defending Tomic they preferred to give him some space with the ball after the pick, in order to force him put the ball on the floor or shot the ball from middle range (photo)! This way of defense blocked the creation of the Croatian center and minimized the risks and the rotations of Olympiacos.
On the other hand the Reds executed extremely well, with Barcelona tried to defend the vertical passes in the paint. The backcourt of Olympiacos found open shots from the wings and they executed with almost 50%,, that gave them huge advantage in a 65 point game.
What Barcelona should do
- Try to create from the post. This is one of the strengths of the Catalan team that we haven’t seen a lot. They put the ball inside many times in the 1st game, although in the 2nd one this tactical offense was almost absent. They have players that have advantage in situations like this. Tomic, Thomas, Satoransky and Lampe can score and also pass from inside
- Take advantage of miss matches. Even though Olympiacos preferred not to switch in many occasions, especially in the 2nd game, there are plays that Barca has clear offensive miss matches, but couldn’t pass the ball properly. Against a defense that gives very few things they have to take the maximum of these occasions.
What Olympiacos should do
DEFEND-REBOUND! If Olympiacos defend in the way they defended in the 2nd game, they are clear favorites to win the series. Pressure on the ball, aggressive confrontation of the screens away of the ball and denial of all passes inside. They also need to get the defensive rebounds. Barcelona has the size advantage, and if they rebound in offense they can have immediate execution or execution from the perimeter with one or two passes.
EXECUTION! Barcelona clearly risks the shoots of some players of Olympiacos. Mantzaris and Printezis combined for 18 points behind the arc, crucial points that punished the risk of Barcelona. With Spanoulis and Lojeski also in hot shooting nights, Olympiacos will not lose.
Key point
The psychological recovery of Olympiacos after game 1. The way the entered to play the 2nd game. Their toughness and aggressiveness primarily in defense. If we want to add a tactical aspect, is the way they limited the creation of Tomic with a different defensive approach that we analyzed before. He scored more, but he didn’t had the looks of the 1st game.