№45: Togetherness: Learning more about Indiana Pacers Basketball from head coach Frank Vogel
March 4, 2022
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In October 2013, the NBA sent the Indiana Pacers and the Houston Rockets to the Philippines as part of their NBA Global Games initiative. Several events were held days prior to the Pacers and the Rockets pre-season matchup,2 among them was the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) NBA Coaches Clinic that was held in the Mall of Asia Arena on October 8, 2013.
Coach Frank Vogel, who was entering his third year as the head coach of the Indiana Pacers that season (2013-2014), and the Pacers staff took time out of their busy schedule to conduct a free clinic for Filipino basketball coaches.
I was among those in attendance.
More after the jump.
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Togetherness: Learning more about Indiana Pacers Basketball from head coach Frank Vogel
Words by: Dr. Tedi Gustilo Villasor
On October 8, 2013, I was counted among the many coaches who participated in the NBA coaches’ clinic held at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City. The free clinic, sponsored by the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP), featured a number of the Houston Rockets coaches and the entire coaching staff of the Indiana Pacers taking time out of their busy Global Games schedule to share their basketball knowledge with those in attendance.
As a sport psychologist, I have always jumped at rare opportunities like this in order to learn from the game’s best and take a proverbial peek at their psychology of coaching (e.g., coaching philosophies, decision-making process, etc.). You see, once you look at the game of basketball from a scientific perspective, you will cease to see it as just a game or form of entertainment. In many respects, it becomes a chess match—a game within a game. What coaches have to do in order to put their players in a position to be successful.
I was especially delighted with coaching delegation of the Indiana Pacers that featured: Associate head coach Nate McMillan (former Seattle Supersonics and Portland Trailblazers head coach, USA Basketball assistant coach), assistant coach Ron “Popeye” Jones (former Dallas Mavericks and Brooklyn Nets assistant coach), defensive coach Dan Burke,3 and head coach Frank Vogel.
Learning from the Pacers head coach
Prior to the SBP NBA clinic, I had not known much about coach Vogel other than the fact that his start in professional basketball was very similar to Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra. Both men started out as video coordinators with Vogel getting his shot as the head video coordinator of the Boston Celtics. But once coach Vogel took center court and addressed the audience, I could immediately tell that he had a lot of confidence and leadership behind his voice.
The biggest thing that goes into what the Indiana Pacers have been able to do for the last couple of years…and it is a word that when the Big Three of the Boston Celtics were put together, when they brought in (Kevin) Garnett, Ray Allen, and Paul Pierce together; I studied that team and Doc Rivers used the word, “Togetherness.” About 50 times a day, every single day that he was with that team—and although they had great talent—it was their ability to come together as a team that helped them achieve their ultimate goal of winning a championship.
So we talked about the word “togetherness” everyday much like Doc Rivers did so we could sort of achieve the type of teamwork, team play, and togetherness that they were able to achieve. It has helped us achieve some pretty high level of success as well.
On the subject of offense, Vogel added, “We define “togetherness” by our ability to pass the basketball and the ability to share the basketball and not play one-on-one—where one person is shooting (while) the other four players are standing. But to really play the game for each other. That set-up mentality with the basketball: Whoever does not have the basketball (has to) have (an) aggressive mentality—understanding that the man with the basketball is going to be setting them up. They’ve got to space the floor; they’ve got to look at the floor; they’ve got to cut; they’ve got to screen; they’ve got to move without the basketball. So we can achieve the kind of offensive togetherness that is necessary to win a championship.”
Coach Frank then put some emphasis on the heart of the Pacers clinic: Passing fundamentals. “There are a lot of fundamentals that go into a great passing team and playing the team style of play so we try to do some level of passing drills every single day.” While explaining the intricacies behind the two-man pick-and-roll action, Vogel shared, “(It) must be run with one purpose and that is to force the defense into rotations. If you can force the defense into rotations, you’ve got them right where you want them. Because then you have the best chance of achieve the kind of passing necessary to win a championship.”
A silent appreciation
By this point in the SBP NBA clinic, Coach Frank had captured everyone’s attention—including mine. It was a silent appreciation as coaching participants from every level of basketball in the Philippines were tuned into the Pacers’ mentor who took time to not only explain different pick-and-roll concepts but also define them. Among the topics that were discussed included: the pocket pass, forcing rotations to the defense, mirror the basketball, side pick-and-roll, Eyes-Closed-Trust, domino spacing, corner weight spacing or towing the circles, one-bounce set-up, the importance of one-on-one basketball, solo-cut, opposite big diver, the dunkers spot, and my personal favorite: smash mouth basketball.
Here are a number of highlights: (Coach Vogel used technical terms to explain these points.)
Describing the “side pick-and-roll”– “We run side pick-and-roll with the purpose of trying to bring two defenders to the ball and (then) deliver the ball to the screener with the pocket pass without getting a deflection or a turnover because we know that a pass will force rotation that will trigger all the passing in our offense.”
On the big man passing scheme known as “Eyes-Closed-Trust”– “We want to have a situation involving two big men wherein once the screener slips out of the pick-and-roll, I want the passer to be able to close his eyes and understand on his catch, his opposite big man, his teammate will be right in front of the rim.4 As the ball is delivered,5 he can touch pass with his eyes closed and know that his teammate is going to be there wherein he can finish at the rim or have another shot at the post.”
The “one-bounce set-up” to draw the defense further into the paint– “In our system, we feel like every time you take a hard bounce to the rim, all defenders are going to rush to the ball because that is what great defenses do, right? They swarm to the basketball. So we know that if the defense is going to swarm to the basketball, we are leaving weak side shooters on the perimeter. So the big guys with the pick-and-pop game, you are either going to take one dribble towards the baseline and hit a teammate over in the corner or you could pop to the wing, one-dribble middle, and hit the man on the top. We’ll still get the same type of action only we’ve drawn the defense in a little bit more with that extra bounce set-up.”
Vogel adds, “(you need to) have a set-up mentality with the basketball and a scorers mentality without the basketball.”
Situational preference for “one-on-one basketball” – “The one area of basketball that we do like to play one-on-one basketball is out of the low post. You (may) think one-on-one basketball is low percentage basketball but when you’ve got David West, you’ve got Roy Hibbert, Luis Scola, Paul George, and Danny Granger to take their man down here. If you can post up with (at lease one) foot in the paint. Boom! Smash mouth basketball and play with physicality. That’s where we like to play one-on-one basketball. The low post offense is not a one-man offense. The low-post offense is a five-man offense were we’ve got to get moving, we’ve got to get spacing, and everybody has a role.
The need for a “solo-cut”– “All of our post passers are required to solo-cut baseline and reshape the weak side so we have good spacing. The opposite big man (e.g., David West) has two responsibilities. First is what is called, the opposite big diver, when the ball goes inside and you go through your solo cut. (For instance,) I’m going to make a forceful cut right here (in the paint) looking for a give-and-go but also drawing all my weak side defenders to the post. So we might get something on the weak side. When you dive and look for something that is not there, (that man) is going to step out to what we call the dunkers spot (located at the hash mark along the baseline). So he’s second responsibility is as the other big (e.g., Roy Hibbert) goes into his move, is crashing the glass. We don’t believe in the one-shot offense with the Indiana Pacers.”
Defining “smash mouth basketball”– “(The Indiana Pacers) believe in smash mouth basketball and getting guys on the offensive glass and giving support. So when (e.g., Roy Hibbert) goes into his move and goes middle, (e.g., David West) is going to try and get (into position) as a late pass option but also be available to tip in any missed shot. If (Hibbert) goes baseline, his opposite big guy (e.g., Paul George or Danny Granger) is going to flash to the middle for a late pass and if the shot goes up (George or Granger) is looking for a tip in or some way that (George or Granger) can give support on a miss. We don’t believe in one-shot offense, we believe in smashing it through there as many times as we can.”
In closing, Coach Vogel shared, “We feel good about the Indiana Pacers ability to pass the basketball, to establish our togetherness, our teamwork, our team style of play. That’s one of the things that defines the Indiana Pacers, is—aside from Paul George trying to buck the trend—that we’re not a superstar team. We’re a team-first team. We don’t have LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Chris Paul, or some of these guys—Dwight Howard. We got a bunch of really good players—not one great player—and when we have a team that is set up to be like that, then we’ve got to be a team-first team. That starts with our togetherness. Our passing. And the rest of our identity that lends itself to smash mouth basketball and physicality.
I want to thank you guys for having us here today. You’ve got a beautiful city, I’ve met so many brilliant people here and we’re just having a great time. Thank you.”
Playing for Coach Vogel
For much of his 40-minute lecture and long after, Coach Frank Vogel words left me generally inspired to the point that if I were a professional basketball player, it wouldn’t really matter what my imaginary salary was, I would definitely play for him. At least for me, Coach Vogel attention to detail (e.g., Pointing out to the coaching participants that in a post feed situation, only the only player on the court that shouldn’t be moving is the one receiving the ball in the post. That “a post feed should trigger a four-people movement.”), value for teamwork (e.g., “Teamwork is something you strive for. (It’s) something you achieve not just something you talk about. You achieve it on the offensive end with your passing fundamentals and your desire to set up a teammate.”), and knack for consistently reinforcing the Pacers theme of “Togetherness” (e.g., “We preach patience—to become a team-first type of team. Togetherness. Passing. To get the ball moving. Getting the defense in rotations so we’re tough to guard.”) was infectious to the point that one would take his philosophy to heart—which is not oftentimes easy, especially in the world of professional basketball.
Basketball, much like Coach Vogel describes it, involves five men working as a single unit. A majority—if not all—of the players playing in the NBA are the best players in their respective high school and college programs and have reached the professional level on their individual merits. They are accustomed to being “the man” and often have to deal with the harsh reality that their role may change once they get to the NBA. Vogel’s philosophy cuts straight through that and focuses on the most important thing: Togetherness.
Things are looking up for the Indiana Pacers this coming season6 and I am excited to see how much they will accomplish together.
About the author: Dr. Tedi Gustilo Villasor obtained his Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology (2009) and Masters of Science in Guidance and Counseling (2002) from De La Salle University-Manila (DLSU). He has also completed a Certificate in Sports Counseling (2006) from San Diego University for Integrative Studies (SDUIS). Aside from his private practice at the Makati Medical Center, Dr. Villasor was a columnist for Baby Magazine wherein his column, "Rules of Engagement" (formerly known as “Understanding Your Child”), focused on children 10 years of age and above. For more, you can visit his website at www.tedi31.com or follow him on Twitter or Instagram. ■
About
Tedi Gustilo Villasor, Ph.D. is a former columnist for Baby Magazine (Philippines) as well as a past contributor to NBA.com/Philippines. His other works include the indie comic books Lindol and OBIsessions.
Click here for more information on his work as a psychologist.
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We caught a late screening of The Batman (2022) in the theatre today. Hence, the late post.
The first NBA preseason game in Southeast Asia.
Who at that point had been with the Pacers organization for the past 16-years.
Located in-between the charge circle and the bottom half of the free throw circle.
The screener receiving the ball triggers the entry of the other big into the paint.
The 2013–2014 Indiana Pacers had their best start in franchise history that season (16-1). The team had the fourth best record in the NBA (56 wins and 26 losses | 68.3%) and ranked first in the Eastern Conference and the Central Division. The Indiana Pacers made it all the way to the Eastern Conference Finals before falling to the Miami Heat (4-2).
Unless something exciting comes up that necessitates an additional entry.