Chapter 751: Chapter 6 System_2
In this respect, Adelman was overly kind, treating people with compassion and equality, without putting on airs, which also led to a lack of the decisiveness expected from a top-ranking head coach.
This time, the Trail Blazers’ rookie training camp was primarily run by Shalov and Weitzer, allowing Beelman and Adelman to take the opportunity to come to Los Angeles for a meeting, making final preparations for the new season’s training camp.
Unexpectedly, during the meeting, a major trade took place, and the training camp began discussing what new strategies the Portland Trail Blazers would adopt to defend their title in the new season.
For Beelman, this was a learning opportunity, but sometimes having too much information is not necessarily a good thing, as every coach has their unique ideas, which all seem quite reasonable.
For Beelman, the foremost problem he faced was how to effectively communicate his philosophy to every player, as his understanding of data and efficiency was sometimes too abstract and even counterintuitive.
The "Two Reductions and One Increase" strategy set in 1988 had been well implemented over the past few seasons, but as times keep advancing, this phrase alone was far from sufficient to encompass the core of the Trail Blazers’ tactics.
On the last day of the conference, another significant trade excited the coaches: the Chicago Bulls sent rookie power forward Stacey King and a future first-round pick to the New Jersey Nets in exchange for Buck-Williams.
The Nets had experienced a tanking season last year, and Buck-Williams was waiting to be traded, but a suitable trade partner had not emerged.
At the 1990 NBA Draft, the Nets secured the first overall pick and selected the talented forward Derek Coleman.
The Nets no longer needed Buck-Williams as they had already found a new cornerstone for their team.
Now, he finally got his wish, moving to a strong team capable of contending for the championship, collaborating with Michael Jordan.
Before the 1990-1991 season even began, the arms race between the Trail Blazers and the Bulls had already filled the entire league with the smoke of competition.
After acquiring Buck-Williams, the odds for the Bulls to win the championship in ’91 rose from fourth to second place, only trailing behind the Portland Trail Blazers.
Familiar with the Trail Blazers, Jack Ramsey reminded Beelman, "Bobby, perhaps you need a clearer, more precise system to help the players understand your offensive and defensive strategies. A system isn’t omnipotent, but a good one allows a team’s combat strength to endure, helps players get through the long regular season, and maintains their combativeness and enthusiasm year after year in the quest for championships.
"The Bulls are a strong challenger, and everyone is looking forward to your showdown with Chicago. But you mustn’t forget that the Los Angeles Lakers are also a tremendous threat, they’ve acquired Sam Perkins, and their core lineup is still highly competitive."
"The current competition in the league is truly frightening, with everyone utilizing systems to better communicate with players, train, fight, and coalesce into a solid group."
Bobby Beelman agreed with Ramsey’s comments, as more and more coaches began to develop their unique tactical systems in the ’90s, combining logically consistent basketball philosophies with classic tactical routines into a complete "package."
The advantage of a package is that it is theoretically sound, clear in logic, backed by practical experience, and ready to use. Coaches could follow the manual, and players could systematically learn and understand.
For instance, John Wooden’s "UCLA system" was extensive, intricate, encompassing everything, and theoretically not very suitable for NBA teams due to the extensive integration needed.
Moreover, the style of NBA games is quite different from college basketball, where individual heroism is significant, especially in the playoffs.
After taking over the Utah Jazz, Jerry Sloan began to use UCLA’s tactical system to build the team, but from the Jazz’s playoff performance in the last two seasons, it seems to be somewhat out of their element.
During critical moments in the playoffs, tactical systems tend to falter under intense defense, and individual player performances fail, causing the Jazz to be repeatedly eliminated in the first round.
Then there’s Seattle SuperSonics assistant coach Bob Kloppenburg’s "SOS Pressure Defense System," which had its moments in the late ’80s, but its effectiveness was short-lived.
In the playoffs against Ah Gan and the Trail Blazers, it had some success, but ultimately it was broken through by Ah Gan’s fierce offense and flexible choices.
Defensive tactical systems always face the issue of endurance because it’s hard for players to maintain their defensive enthusiasm for a long time, whether in a single game or throughout a whole season.
This summer, after Seattle SuperSonics let go of Xavier McDaniel and head coach Bickerstaff resigned, Dale Ellis was put on the trade block, signaling the failure of the rebuilding efforts around Chambers, McDaniel, and Ellis following Jack Sikma’s departure. They selected point guard Gary Payton from Oakland during the 1990 draft, beginning a new round of team rebuilding.
However, Bob Kloppenburg stayed on, continuing as the team’s defensive assistant coach, and carried on the SOS Pressure Defense System as the SuperSonics’ hallmark tactic.
Then there’s the Chicago Bulls’ "Triangle Offense," a system without set plays but full of basketball philosophy, highly esteemed by Phil Jackson and considered the best way to meld Jordan with his teammates.
