Frank Vogel’s defensive genius versus Houston

Los Angeles Lakers: Frank Vogel's defensive genius versus Houston https://t.co/cTrYlz8aF3

— LakerTom (@LakerTom) September 10, 2020

1. Cut the head and the body will follow

We know very well that James Harden is the fulcrum of the Rockets’ offense. Without him this small lineup would not exist. The whole team would not exist

Harden had 21 points in the first half because Frank decided to not double team him until halftime, maybe to spare his players the huge expenditure of energy that doing it the whole game entails. The Beard scored just 12 points in the second half when LA began double-teaming him again. As for Westbrook, we will see later why its performance is not to be overrated.

2. Reacting to the double teaming

Playing without bigs gives the confidence to know that it will not probably be a player alone in the middle of the area. All the Rockets station around the arc, which means the risk of a lower percentage shot. You prefer leaving that alone. You can leave with it.

What has been most remarkable of Vogel’s plan, though, is that he remained cool. He did not panic rushing into changing approach. He stayed the course. Because such a drop was expected. It is part of the idea that at some point they are going to make those threes but it is not going to last forever, and they will not be enough to even the missed ones that allowed the opponent to build its lead.

3. Mixed defense

While after every basket the Los Angeles Lakers would play man-to-man (obviously, the rule is switching on every screen), after a missed shot or a turnover their defense would shift to a 1-2-2 zone.

Reminding of Game 2, Vogel also went on a hint of Box-and-One on Eric Gordon at the end of the first quarter, when Harden was on the bench, and also a 3-2 zone in the last seconds.

4. He was counting on Russell Westbrook

The idea was that by double-teaming Harden and consequentially rotating, the Los Angeles Lakers could afford to leave Westbrook alone on the arc. And in fact, he did not disappoint, going 1-for-7 from three in Game 2. He also turned the ball over seven times, finding the area filled when he

5. The final stroke

For the grand finale Vogel had one more ace up his sleeve. The unexpected move that took the Rockets by surprise throwing them off balance. Putting Rajon Rondo on a full-court pressure on Harden.

6. The unforeseen

Even Frank Vogel did not predict it. This was the unexpected component of the Los Angeles Lakers’ game. LeBron James’ defensive effort is out of the charts. For the series, he is averaging 2.7 blocks.

At 35 years old he is flying in the area like he was in his twenties, rejecting opponents shots with emphatic home-run blocks in key moments of the games. In Game 3, he had four huge blocks, going short of the fifth because his finger got entangled in the rim.