Where is the hedge?

[108K11]

It used to be that the Center would make a hard hedge if his man set a pick. A move which used to cost Pitt many fouls, but now it seems that both Pitt and UNC ( and most teams I guess) do nothing but switch 1 through 5. They rarely then switch back, I understand that the point guard has the ball and leaving your man to make a switch with the center who is stuck on top of the key is risky but at the same time your point guard on defense is at a disadvantage against a big. From a technical standpoint why did the tactics change?

UNC it seemed to me set way more screens off the ball than I usually see, did it look that way to anyone else. Louisville does it to get Smith open, but UNC does it more as an element to their movement, maybe because they play small 1 through 5.

 

[Sean Miller Fan]

It used to be that the Center would make a hard hedge if his man set a pick. A move which used to cost Pitt many fouls, but now it seems that both Pitt and UNC ( and most teams I guess) do nothing but switch 1 through 5. They rarely then switch back, I understand that the point guard has the ball and leaving your man to make a switch with the center who is stuck on top of the key is risky but at the same time your point guard on defense is at a disadvantage against a big. From a technical standpoint why did the tactics change?

UNC it seemed to me set way more screens off the ball than I usually see, did it look that way to anyone else. Louisville does it to get Smith open, but UNC does it more as an element to their movement, maybe because they play small 1 through 5.

I have wondered the same thing. My guess is that teams don't hedge anymore because it puts your entire defense in a positional disadvantage and teams shoot too well and are good at finding open shooters. Lets play this out.

Lubin sets a screen on Leggett to free up RJD. Corhen hedges and sort of momentarily guards RJD while Leggett gets back in position. 1 Pitt defender in the corner needs to help off a 3 point shooter to prevent the Davis pass to Corhen for an easy dunk. Dixon's teams were outstanding at this but can you count on these rent-a-teams now to play this type of defense, take away the roll guy AND then be able to close out on a shooter. I dont think you can. And Corhen did a great job on Davis

 

[pittchagg]

Capel said they made the decision to switch everything at halftime, and it turned out to be a really good adjustment.

Corhen had a great defensive night switching because that’s what he’s used to doing from his time at FSU. He isn’t, and hasn’t been, good at the hard hedge all season, and that continued in the first half last night. Fede was really good at it, Kante’s pretty good at it but he struggles with some other aspects that put him out of position, and Guillermo’s pretty good at it, too. So we’ve had to adjust when Corhen’s out there because he just gets carved up when he isn’t switching.

 

[ebonylover40]

I have wondered the same thing. My guess is that teams don't hedge anymore because it puts your entire defense in a positional disadvantage and teams shoot too well and are good at finding open shooters. Lets play this out.

Lubin sets a screen on Leggett to free up RJD. Corhen hedges and sort of momentarily guards RJD while Leggett gets back in position. 1 Pitt defender in the corner needs to help off a 3 point shooter to prevent the Davis pass to Corhen for an easy dunk. Dixon's teams were outstanding at this but can you count on these rent-a-teams now to play this type of defense, take away the roll guy AND then be able to close out on a shooter. I dont think you can. And Corhen did a great job on Davis

You know who does that very well for Pitt? Papa K, thats who. Watch him if he ever gets back in a game. In the little that he plays, he does exactly what the Dixon bigs did, to help the defense. He is what is missing on defense, but Capel is choosing offense (Cohren) instead. The problem is that when Cohren plays a big who is phyical, he folds like a church chair. Kante my not have the offensive game, but he sure would help to stop the other team from scoring. The other thing he is got at, is a hard screen to help the double team on the guards. Just watch him when he is in the game.

 

[pittchagg]

You know who does that very well for Pitt? Papa K, thats who. Watch him if he ever gets back in a game. In the little that he plays, he does exactly what the Dixon bigs did, to help the defense. He is what is missing on defense, but Capel is choosing offense (Cohren) instead. The problem is that when Cohren plays a big who is phyical, he folds like a church chair. Kante my not have the offensive game, but he sure would help to stop the other team from scoring. The other thing he is got at, is a hard screen to help the double team on the guards. Just watch him when he is in the game.

Papa’s good at hedging the ball screen; it’s the stuff that happens after the hedge that’s been his issue. Capel talked about it the other day: he gets lost in coverage after the hedge, which puts him a position where he’s either going to foul, or it doesn’t put him in a good position to get the rebound. He’s got one of the lowest defensive rebounding percentages on the team, and it’s not because he lacks physicality - it’s because he isn’t quite there yet when it comes to being in the right position for the entire possession, instead of just the high hedge.

 

[cdheller76]

Switching 1 through 5 is simpler than hedging which requires team members to rotate. Those rotations are difficult and everyone needs to be on the same page or someone inevitably gets lost. Switching can result in bad mismatches ( guard on center for example), but players are less likely to get lost.

 

[TheWerewolfFromTwilight]

Not sure if anyone remembers Sonic Smith, but we always used to hedge when he was on the floor. Dude was a freaking hedgehog.

 

[Joe the Panther Fan]

Not sure if anyone remembers Sonic Smith, but we always used to hedge when he was on the floor. Dude was a freaking hedgehog.

He was good at keeping the other guys from getting to the ring.

 

[TreesHero]

As others have stated, switching is easier and can be safer.

1.) Big man fouls at the hedge and 2.) easy buckets resulting from slow recovery or missed slipped screens are the risks if your big man isn't good at hedging.

And a lot of big men aren't good at it. They have to be quick enough AND have a high BB IQ to anticipate, implement, and recover on time.