Inside Out

Seeing as though we are in the midst of the NBA Finals, I felt it only right to talk about how the champions did what they did to become who they are. There is a lot that goes into being the champion. There's the mindset, the strategy, the personnel and a little bit of luck. In this case, I want to focus on the strategy and personnel.

People like to pit the organization against the players as to which is more important when in reality it takes both. The organization has to be open-minded enough to see the potential in the players and disciplined enough to let them do their jobs. The players have to be trusting enough that the organization will find the right pieces and they have to go out and execute the overall plan to achieve a championship. With that said, I want to delve in deeper to the game itself.

In my opinion, the two most important factors for teams to win is their defense and offensive game plan. Sounds like a no brainer right? Well it is. You keep the other team from scoring and you win, also when you score more points than the other team you win.

One thing that has coaches over thinking is the offensive game plan. I was taught to keep the game simple. In this case, all championships are won by playing inside out on offense. When you think about all the teams to win it all, they did it by winning the battle in the paint and then working their way outside. There have definitely been different styles to accomplish this but it all remains the same theory. Start in and work your way out. The Celtics with their front courts pounded the paint while the Lakers ran the floor to beat you to the paint. Then if the Lakers couldn't get there before the other team set up their defense, they went down low to their centers (Mikan, Wilt, Kareem, Shaq). The Bulls' use of the Triangle Offense always started with an entry pass to the post and a cut to the basket.

Though they were no exception, the Bad Boy Pistons played inside out even though their biggest scoring threats were in the back court. If you look back at their games you will see the amount of times their plays were designed to get layups and close buckets regardless of who was scoring. This was probably the first time that championships were won without the Center position being the focal point of all the inside out play. You can say the Bulls were lead by Jordan and he was the focal point. That makes sense to the average fan but those that study the game understand that the Triangle Offense is predicated on having an excellent passing Center. That offense doesn't work without the Center being on the low block to start everything.

All of that leads me to the current NBA Finals. I agree there are more three pointers attempted and made in the current NBA than previous generation of champions. Again, which ever team wins will be the one that won the battle of inside out. The Celtics situation is a little more obvious with Al Horford, Marcus Smart and Jaylen Brown battling in the paint. The less obvious, and somewhat deceiving, version is the Warriors. The topic is always how many threes they took and from what distance. Very seldom do commentators mention how that only became possible after teams collapsed their defense to prevent the numerous back cuts and slipped screens for layups. This is the new twist on inside out. This core from the Warriors are the next evolution of the Bad Boy Pistons. The Warriors are doing the same thing but with a different strategy. All of the layups and close baskets by the Warriors back court have allowed them to show off their amazing shooting. We all talk about the long distance shots, its a fan favorite and rightfully so. Just remember, all of that started because they were able to win the inside battle first and then add to it the outside shooting.

So, no matter the style or the team or the era, one thing is a constant for champions. The game is always won by playing inside out.