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[QUOTE="KevMonstah, post: 5548496, member: 327"]
I would agree JB understood the zone as far as it being analytics - teams weren't full of shooters - but then
the game changed and everyone got afflicted with "Steph Curry disease" and it enough of them became
good enough shooters that it limited the zone's effectiveness, and he was slow to realize that.  So, even
if the assistants are great zone D guys, and got the teachings, the zone is still not going to be as effective
when the opponent can run out a lineup full of shooters who can hit Js from 24 feet away.  Sometimes it
wasn't even effective against a single guy who could hit from deep, cuz there were many games you'd 
know the gameplan was "don't let X shoot", and he'd finish the game with 27 pts on 7-9 from deep.

And just reading this entire chain, about the 'lack of focus for SU players', that has always been an issue
for SU.  Even going back to their great their late 80s great teams.  Think DC and Billy Owens were always
focused?  Noooo.  They'd get way up, let teams back into, and turn it on to win, but they'd lose because
of it.  SU could, and for much of the last 40 years has, gotten away with it due to sheer talent, turn it on, 
lose it, then turn it back on.  It's more noticeable when the talent is less.  And when they maybe had less
talent, but a very challenging D, you could do it then too, cuz you could count on the opponent to
just chuck up a ton of bricks.  You can't do it now, when you're maybe not as talented, and the D style
can't count on the opponent to beat themselves.  If I'm playing a team, and I can count on them to shoot
25% from the field, I'm not focused on them, no way.  But I doubt that's the case anymore.  And I don't
think the team, not that SU is alone in this, has figured it out.  Others have.  They keep winning.  Maybe 
you do need a hardazz coach for it.

Kev
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