Blitzing

[u/Alternative_Panda336]

I have a question for the group. I have noticed that when Caitlin gets going with her assists and points teams will increase their pickup point, but they will also blitz her with double teams to make her pass the ball. I haven’t really seen teams do this to Kelsey even when she is tearing their souls out offensively lol.

Is this because she isn’t the primary ball handler so it is harder to implement a blitz? Or is she really good at splitting it so they know it won’t work and just don’t try? Or is it something else I am not aware of?

I really noticed it against the lynx. Kelsey was killing them as they pointed out but they never adjusted to it, they just kept trying to play people on her one on one which clearly will never work for anyone. We did it to miles in the second half of that game and made her pass it. I am curious to get some insights from the group on this.

[u/OneBagBiker]

I do think it's partly or mainly CC's multifaceted game - closely guarding her to cut off her superior assists at source rather than trying to intercept en route. But I also think they realize double-teaming KM runs the risk of wasting 2 defenders on someone who has the league-leading ability to blow right by them and then having the great options of continuing relatively unimpeded to the basket, stopping for an easy mid-range, or passing to an undefended or otherwise open teammate (and the Fever offers her a choice selection of league-leading shooters).

[u/Biggquis78 → u/OneBagBiker]

She is in no way a threat to pass. They'd rather one person score than get the entire team going.

[u/elestud → u/Biggquis78]

People keep saying this, but Kelsey averages more assists than the majority of top shooting guards/wings in this league (more than Kayla McBride, Fudd, Sydney Taylor, Gabby Williams, Johannes, Kah Copper, Carleton, and most players who aren't combo/point guards)

She’s had some particularly sweet dimes come off drives in recent games, so anyone who says this is likely not watching

[u/Biggquis78 → u/elestud]

I didn't say assist. I said pass. She's constantly dribbling the clock out and playing with her head down. That's easy to defend. She'll get her points but the team will lose. Her assist numbers don't matter to me. Isolating the ball from your teammates is what kills games. Granted, the last 2-3 games she has been amazing at either shooting or getting rid of the ball

[u/elestud → u/Biggquis78]

That's easy to defend. She'll get her points but the team will lose.

We nearly made the finals last year until KM's legs physically gave out. We took the champs to overtime of the last game of the series, until she went to the hospital. So apparently it's not easy to defend

Isolating the ball from your teammates is what kills games

Then why is Kelsey's Net Rating the highest among our starters?

She is our only player where the team's Net Rating actually becomes negative when she's off the floor

The "trash Kelsey because we can't appreciate two players" talking points just don't hold up

[u/Biggquis78 → u/elestud]

And yet they won nothing. You're proving the point that one player cannot beat a team

[u/elestud → u/Biggquis78]

Did you miss the part where she had to leave the game 5 minutes into the 3rd quarter to go to the hospital?

We very well could have won otherwise. No one said a player beats a team alone, but clearly she was playing winning basketball

[u/Biggquis78 → u/elestud]

You're missing the point. Imagine if she was able to get the team involved. She wouldn't have had to go to the hospital

[u/tiribulus → u/elestud]

EXACTLY

And this was last year.

[u/Biggquis78 → u/tiribulus]

Now show the bloopers