Let's not kid ourselves, you can't even call this one a matchup. After the jump we'll take a look at the stats and try to figure out how Sammy can at least limit the damage Dwight Howard inflicts on the Sixers.
The Stats
My Take
Let's just start by saying Dwight Howard has an immeasurable advantage on both sides of the floor. That fact is not up for debate. I do have several keys for Sammy to help minimize the damage.
Defensive rebounding - If Sammy can somehow manage to keep Howard off the offensive glass, he will have done his part.
Catch the ball - If the Andres, Lou and Thad are attacking the paint, like they should be, Dwight Howard is going to be looking to set block records. Whenever Howard leaves Sammy, he needs to head right for the front of the rim and get ready because there will be opportunities if he can catch the passes
Watch your fouls - In the three games against Orlando, Sammy managed to stay out of foul trouble only once. In that game he notched a double-double. In the other two, his minutes were cut severely due to foul problems
Use them wisely - That being said, Dwight Howard is an atrocious free throw shooter, so make your fouls count. Don't give him a touch foul as he dunks the ball, hit him hard and make sure that every time Howard is fouled, he feels it and cannot convert on a traditional three-point play.
Advantage Magic: Sammy has come up huge in some very big games over the past two seasons, but even his very best won't be as good as Howard. This is the biggest advantage on the floor and I believe the stats will reflect it at the end of each game. Now that I've said all of that, I think it's vitally important that the Sixers allow Sammy and Theo to play Howard straight up. I'll explain why later in a post later today.
Vote below, thoughts in the comments, check out the rest of the matchup previews here.
Our slashers have to incorporate the pull-up from 5-8 feet negating Howard's block opportunities. We obviously don't shoot jumpers well and when our slashers attack the rim they always seem to want to go all the way (which, sometimes, is beneficial to getting Howard in foul trouble). Howard isn't going to commit a foul everytime. So those pull-up jumpers or floaters could be to our advantage, but our guys just don't seem to take them when the defense allows for it.
If the staff hopefully plays Howard straight up, those two pointers given up instead of three's will be crucial when the 4th quarter rolls around.
Agree, teams with good midrange shooters (like Detroit) can give Orlndo fits. Unnfortunatately, I don't see Iguodala Lou or Thad as players with good pull-ups or midrange games. Only Miller really meets this description.
They will need to secure rebounds to get out on the break. Whoever shoots (Lewis, Hedo) the defender needs to cherry pick to punish the shooter. If they miss, the long rebound needs to turn into a dunk on the other end. that will get into the shooters head and play to the Sixers strengths... But for this to happen all 4 of the other Sixers have to track the rebound. They can't expect Sam to get it. In fact I'd rather someone other than the center gets the board so to better trigger the break.
Agree that Dalembert has to play Howard 1-on-1 to give the Sixers a chance. If not, too many perimeter guys will be open. Have a feeling Ratliff could end up playing as much as Dalembert in this series, depending on fouls and Dalembert's shoulder. Don't forget Howard only played well (for him) in one of the three regular-season games and was in foul trouble twice.
Practice update: Had a 95-minute film/walk-through. Talked to DiLeo and Green afterward. Nothing much to report, except Green saying he likes the underdog role because "there's no pressure on us" and DiLeo thinks the Sixers' advantage is the fast-break.
I think the goal is to keep Howard off the offensive glass, and making sure that we have to double team him as little as possible. That's all we can realistically expect.
Theo is going to be important in this series. He has been reliable this season when called upon.
The one guy who needs to cut to the hoop for easy baskets is Speights. He is our one big man who is not offensively challenged. I'm looking out for the Lou/Speights combo because Lou is the hardest to stop on a drive. He can draw loads of shooting fouls and hopefully he can find Speights often for easy baskets.
Howards achille's heel is his love for the big block. He works best as a weakside shot blocker, where he can avoid fouling.
The Sixers need to jump into him and concede the miss. If they do this 15X a game they will be certan to draw 5 fouls. That would be worth the misses- some of which could be cleaned up by Sam or others after the shot is blocked.
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Our slashers have to incorporate the pull-up from 5-8 feet negating Howard's block opportunities. We obviously don't shoot jumpers well and when our slashers attack the rim they always seem to want to go all the way (which, sometimes, is beneficial to getting Howard in foul trouble). Howard isn't going to commit a foul everytime. So those pull-up jumpers or floaters could be to our advantage, but our guys just don't seem to take them when the defense allows for it.
If the staff hopefully plays Howard straight up, those two pointers given up instead of three's will be crucial when the 4th quarter rolls around.
Agree, teams with good midrange shooters (like Detroit) can give Orlndo fits. Unnfortunatately, I don't see Iguodala Lou or Thad as players with good pull-ups or midrange games. Only Miller really meets this description.
They will need to secure rebounds to get out on the break. Whoever shoots (Lewis, Hedo) the defender needs to cherry pick to punish the shooter. If they miss, the long rebound needs to turn into a dunk on the other end. that will get into the shooters head and play to the Sixers strengths... But for this to happen all 4 of the other Sixers have to track the rebound. They can't expect Sam to get it. In fact I'd rather someone other than the center gets the board so to better trigger the break.
Agree that Dalembert has to play Howard 1-on-1 to give the Sixers a chance. If not, too many perimeter guys will be open. Have a feeling Ratliff could end up playing as much as Dalembert in this series, depending on fouls and Dalembert's shoulder. Don't forget Howard only played well (for him) in one of the three regular-season games and was in foul trouble twice.
Practice update: Had a 95-minute film/walk-through. Talked to DiLeo and Green afterward. Nothing much to report, except Green saying he likes the underdog role because "there's no pressure on us" and DiLeo thinks the Sixers' advantage is the fast-break.
I think the goal is to keep Howard off the offensive glass, and making sure that we have to double team him as little as possible. That's all we can realistically expect.
Theo is going to be important in this series. He has been reliable this season when called upon.
The one guy who needs to cut to the hoop for easy baskets is Speights. He is our one big man who is not offensively challenged. I'm looking out for the Lou/Speights combo because Lou is the hardest to stop on a drive. He can draw loads of shooting fouls and hopefully he can find Speights often for easy baskets.
Howards achille's heel is his love for the big block. He works best as a weakside shot blocker, where he can avoid fouling.
The Sixers need to jump into him and concede the miss. If they do this 15X a game they will be certan to draw 5 fouls. That would be worth the misses- some of which could be cleaned up by Sam or others after the shot is blocked.