What does this mean?

[Ima Facultiwyfe]

Turgeon said this when answering how they figured out how to beat Duke with Kelly in the lineup.

“Coach (Scott) Spinelli, it was his scout, he said we’ve got to switch 1 through 4 the entire game,” Turgeon said. “I said, ‘I don’t know if we can do that the entire game.’ But we stayed small and our small lineup worked. We switched, and they missed some shots for us.”

Can somebody 'splain what switching 1 through 4 means? This is when I miss Al McGuire. He explained everything to me so well.
Love, Ima

[captmojo]

Offensive players are assigned number positions on the floor. In a man-to-man defensive coverage, switching your man can sometimes be necessary when another offensive man screens you away from your designated opponent. The theory implied by Turgeon is involving a strategy of what switches they were looking to accomplish to leave the offense with a possibly undesired shot.

[Ima Facultiwyfe]

OK, so they switch defensive men on our #1 through #4 for an entire game. I assume that's to keep us from getting into a groove. So they leave the same guy on #5? Who is #5, Plumlee? Am I even close to understanding this? Bless my heart?
Love, Ima

[devildeac]

OK, so they switch defensive men on our #1 through #4 for an entire game. I assume that's to keep us from getting into a groove. So they leave the same guy on #5? Who is #5, Plumlee? Am I even close to understanding this? Bless my heart?
Love, Ima

#5 is Mason, both on his jersey and the position he plays on the court . He was guarded by whoever played the center position for md, aka as the "5 spot" when you are numbering the positions on the court.

[Devil in the Blue Dress]

The system of numbering positions is attributed to Dean Smith.

[captmojo]

The system of numbering positions is attributed to Dean Smith.

And, it used to have different meanings among different teams.

[Ima Facultiwyfe]

OK, so can I take this a step farther? further? (I can never remember which.) Are there a lot of teams who can do that to us? That is rotate 1 through 4 effectively?

I know, I know, I'm just a grandmother, but hey I need to know this stuff.

Love, Ima

[Native]

Traditionally:

1 - Point Guard (Quinn)
2 - Shooting Guard (Seth)
3 - Small Forward (Sheed)
4 - Power Forward (Kelly)
5 - Center (Mason)

K doesn't typically believe in these "positions", per se, but it's sometimes helpful to think about our team in this way. On this year's team, Sheed is more of a guard but is often put on the other team's 3 simply because he has a longer wingspan and is a more versatile defender than either Seth or Quinn.

(Sidebar: Sometimes you'll also hear the term "combo guard", which means a combination of point guard and shooting guard — someone who's good enough to be a good passer and distributor but can also score the ball very well. Jay Williams is a good example of a combo guard, in my opinion. I'd argue that Nolan Smith and Jon Scheyer also come to mind as more recent examples.)

To answer your question, no, not many teams can rotate positions 1 - 4 well, which is part of the reason why we're 18 - 1 and undefeated in the regular season with Kelly in the lineup. For example, would you risk switching defenders on every screen the offense runs if it meant risking putting, say, Quinn Cook on C.J. Leslie? This is the gamble you take as a strategist and coach — your defense doesn't get caught up in screens, but it opens up mismatches that favor the offense.

This is where having Kelly is such a huge advantage. The vast majority of teams don't have a 1, 2, or in some cases even a 3 who has the sufficient combination of size and speed necessary to effectively guard a 4 as versatile as Kelly. Most power forwards play closer to the basket, albeit not as close as a center. Maryland obviously caught us on a bad day — even Coach Turgeon admits that we missed some shots we should have made — but their smaller guards were determined to play good defense on us, and it showed.

One of the teams that has the size and versatility necessary to take this gamble is Miami, which is why they match up so well with us. A lot of their guys are big for their positions, especially at the 2 - 4 (and experienced enough to play great fundamental defense) but are still fast enough to guard smaller players when it becomes necessary. Julian Gamble and Kenny Kadji, for example, are both 6' 10" or 6' 11" and can defend in the post, but are also athletic enough to guard Kelly when he wants to drive the ball.

I attribute the Maryland loss to (1) our physical limitations involved with guarding quick guards one-on-one — *cough* Dez Wells *cough* — (2) an off shooting night, and (3) just a lackadaisical effort by the guys. Obviously, K and company will have (3) corrected this week, and (2) just happens sometimes.

...but (1) is more interesting. Personally, I'd like to see a return of the defense we used in 2010 — don't pressure the ball as much, pack it in, and play great help defense (i.e. have plenty of guys sliding over to help if a man gets beat one-on-one). I think 'Sheed, Quinn, and Thornton are our only guys who have the potential to play elite one-on-one defense on quick guards. While Seth does a lot of things very well, he isn't a phenomenal defender, for example. Quinn and 'Sheed aren't elite defenders yet, but I believe they'll improve as they get older. I think we need to instill more of a team concept on defense to make a deep tournament run, because we just don't have the right combinations of athleticism and experience on the defensive end of the floor quite yet.

/rant

[OZZIE4DUKE]

To clarify the numbers for you, Ima (and anyone else wondering):
1. Point guard (Quinn)
2. Shooting guard (Seth)
3. Small, or shooting forward (Rasheed)
4. Strong, or Power forward (Ryan)
5. Center (Mason)

2, 3 and sometimes 4 are also called "wings", and next year our wings will be OUTRAGEOUSLY athletic - Rasheed Sulaimon, Rodney Hood and Jabari Parker. A couple of my insider mavens have been drooling over this combination since long before Parker committed.

Ever since Danny Ferry, Duke has utilized beg men, traditionally the 4, as a "stretch 4", meaning he plays inside and out, and can shoot the eyes out of 3-point shots, like Ferry (the original stretch 4) and now Ryan, who is the best stretch 4 in the country. Many other teams try to emulate this now.

Enough about next year. Let's win on Friday and take it all the way through April 8th!

[OZZIE4DUKE]

Note to Native: Great Minds Think Alike!

[Native]

2, 3 and sometimes 4 are also called "wings", and next year our wings will be OUTRAGEOUSLY athletic - Rasheed Sulaimon, Rodney Hood and Jabari Parker. A couple of my insider mavens have been drooling over this combination since long before Parker committed.

Ever since Danny Ferry, Duke has utilized beg men, traditionally the 4, as a "stretch 4", meaning he plays inside and out, and can shoot the eyes out of 3-point shots, like Ferry (the original stretch 4) and now Ryan, who is the best stretch 4 in the country. Many other teams try to emulate this now.

Yeah, next year will be crazy. Don't forget about Alex Murphy, Semi Ojeleye, and Matt Jones, who by all accounts are highly athletic and skilled as well and should prove to be excellent additions to the stable mentioned by Ozzie.

Note to Native: Great Minds Think Alike!

Yes. Yes, they do!

[Ima Facultiwyfe]

OK. Thanks. You guys have verified what I was thinking. So I'm simultaneously relieved and worried. Go Devils!
Love, Ima