If it’s true what the experts say, that the NBA playoffs are about adjustments, Sonics coach Nate McMillan’s list is virtually empty.
After winning the first two games of the series in Seattle – leading all but 50 seconds in the two games combined and enjoying 20-plus-point leads in each – McMillan has almost nothing to adjust to.
On the other hand, Sacramento coach Rich Adelman’s sheet of paper for tonight’s Game 3 in Sacramento includes the words “Use Both Sides, if Necessary.”
He will. And it is.
To win four of the next five games – and that’s what Sacramento has to do to avoid elimination – the list of needed adjustments is long and difficult.
Tuesday’s night’s destruction, so deceptively kind in its 105-93 final margin, began unraveling in the second quarter and continued in the third, when Seattle took an 88-62 lead.
So much went right for the Sonics. So much went awry for the Kings.
The Sonics administered the royal beating by playing the type of buzz-saw basketball they played in November. The irked Kings, faced with having to plug too many holes in the dike, took it out on the referees and on each other.
“They became more physical and aggressive,” Adelman said. “We just started messing with the referees. That’s not the way you’re going to win the series.”
Finally, Adelman benched his ineffective starters in the fourth quarter and the reserves made a run to cut the lead to eight. The Sonics got lazy but survived, helped by back-to-back 3-pointers by Ray Allen.
“That’s something our starters are going to have to deal with, because Seattle is playing harder,” reserve guard Bobby Jackson said.
As difficult as it is to believe at this point of the season, effort may be on the top of Adelman’s list. But close to it is the name “Jerome James.”
Inexplicably coming up huge in two straight games, James has consistently governed inside play on both ends of the court. For some reason – only Adelman knows for sure – the Kings never double-teamed the 7-foot-1 James and he made them pay. It probably cost Sacramento the series.
James made Tuesday’s performance, 17 points, 15 rebounds and 9-for-11 shooting from the floor, look easy. That’s because he’s learned to use his big, athletic body to its fullest potential. Watching the 6-7 Corliss Williamson try to match up with him was almost comical.
“This is the NBA, and if you leave a man one-on-one that close to the basket, he’s going to score 60 percent of the time,” said James, a free agent at season’s end. “My motto this year is, ‘There’s no food in the freezer, and I gotta eat now.’”
Lost in James’ offensive explosion is the fact that he’s staying out of foul trouble, a chronic problem throughout James’ career. Silly fouls have limited him to single-digit playing time. McMillan told reporters that the recent turnaround is because James is getting back to basics.
“He’s moving his feet and getting body stops,” McMillan said. “Usually, he likes to try to block shots, which leads to fouls, as opposed to getting his body in front of the ball. He’s moving faster and quicker from block to block.”
But how can the Kings stop him. Their all-star center, Brad Miller, is in the early stages of recovering from a broken leg and moves only glacially. James can beat him down the floor on transition and also get favorable position in the half-court offense.
Greg Ostertag, at 7-2 and 280 pounds, seemingly could have some success against James just because of his physical presence. But Adelman, apparently, has lost faith in him. Ostertag played seven minutes in Game 1 and nine in Game 2.
One of the few worries McMillan has is point guard Luke Ridnour’s dismal shooting, although Ridnour has made valuable contributions in every other area.
Then, too, is the prospect of playing in Arco Arena, a hostile house of hearing loss that may, just may, get the Kings energized.
McMillan knows firsthand, both as a player and a coach.
“It’s a loud building,” he said. “They are always sold out. It’s a building with a lot of energy. The fans can be loud and they can be rough. They say things that grab your attention. In the playoffs, they’ll be even louder.”
Unless, of course, the Kings give them about as much to be loud about as they did in Games 1 and 2.
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