Brad Stevens the Wizard

**Wesley** · 04-03-2011, 02:08 PM

Final Four Coverage: Butler Frustrates VCU Perimeter Game, An X's and O's Look - Mid-Major Madness

In defeating VCU 70-62 in the national semifinals yesterday, the Butler Bulldogs played the exact game they wanted to. Shelvin Mack will be remembered in the long term for his 24-point performance, just the latest big game he has produced in this tournament, but undoubtedly defense was the deciding factor. The Rams face paced offensive attack which hadn't been solved in five previous games, was limited to 68 total possessions, but more importantly held without a single fastbreak point - a tremendous accomplishment.

Giving Brad Stevens a week to prepare for a game is always dangerous as the Bulldogs head coach is a master of breaking down opposing teams and scheming against them. In yesterday's game it wasn't so much that Butler pressured the ball excessively and forced turnovers, rather they avoided getting sucked into the lane by the Rams dribble drive game which has proven so troublesome for opposing teams.

**Ficklone02** · 04-03-2011, 02:40 PM

Thx for posting I've been watching Butler with a close eye & alot of curiousity.

The real pressing question I have about Butler is, if they are getting back on defense so quickly, how are they rebounding so well on the offensive end?

**cyclones500** · 04-03-2011, 03:02 PM

Originally Posted by Ficklone02

The real pressing question I have about Butler is, if they are getting back on defense so quickly, how are they rebounding so well on the offensive end?

I didn't pay close attention on every trip, but from what I saw, as soon as a player is going into shooting motion, one player is crashing immediately, two others are immediately back ... it's almost like they aren't even waiting for the shot to go up.

**Ficklone02** · 04-03-2011, 03:11 PM

Originally Posted by cyclones500

I didn't pay close attention on every trip, but from what I saw, as soon as a player is going into shooting motion, one player is crashing immediately, two others are immediately back ... it's almost like they aren't even waiting for the shot to go up.

Thx, I'm gonna watch for that Monday nite.

**geburgess** · 04-03-2011, 04:19 PM

Brad Stevens is absolutely amazing, a statistical genius and has an unbelievable basketball IQ... Butler better pony up some huge $$$ in the coming years or struggling Big 6 conference schools are gonna beat them to the punch. No amount of loyalty can beat doubling/tripling a salary.

**cyclonenum1** · 04-04-2011, 02:42 PM

Originally Posted by Wesley

Final Four Coverage: Butler Frustrates VCU Perimeter Game, An X's and O's Look - Mid-Major Madness

Certainly, Stevens is a great coach...getting your team to back-to-back Championship games is no easy task.

However, this is not all about X's and O's. Butler does have some guys that can really play. Mack and Howard are NBA guys. Van Zant and Marshall also stand to become NBA players. Nored is a lock down perimeter defender.

I said in another post after seeing Butler play twice in New Orleans that they are much more athletic and deep than most people give them credit for.

**cyclonenum1** · 04-04-2011, 02:48 PM

Originally Posted by Ficklone02

Thx for posting I've been watching Butler with a close eye & alot of curiousity.

The real pressing question I have about Butler is, if they are getting back on defense so quickly, how are they rebounding so well on the offensive end?

These are not mutually exclusive items.

The bottom line with Butler is that they exert more effort on a consistent basis than about any team I have seen in a long time. They NEVER jog back to defense...it is an all out sprint...by all players. They are very smart on the offensive boards and clearly know the places to go to get the highest percentages of missed shots based upon where the shot was taken. They also play tremendous team defense with fantastic help...really easy looks against them are few and far between.

TV does not do justice to how hard Butler plays at both ends and between both ends.

**cyclonenum1** · 04-04-2011, 02:50 PM

Originally Posted by geburgess

Brad Stevens is absolutely amazing, a statistical genius and has an unbelievable basketball IQ... Butler better pony up some huge $$$ in the coming years or struggling Big 6 conference schools are gonna beat them to the punch. No amount of loyalty can beat doubling/tripling a salary.

Butler has already ponied up some decent money and more importantly some very long term money. Having said that, my sense is that if Stevens leaves he does not leave for a struggling school with no MBB history. If he goes he is going to a big time program with big time history...maybe IU if Creen can't get it back on the map...I could see that.

**CyJack13** · 04-04-2011, 03:15 PM

Originally Posted by geburgess

Brad Stevens is absolutely amazing, a statistical genius and has an unbelievable basketball IQ... Butler better pony up some huge $$$ in the coming years or struggling Big 6 conference schools are gonna beat them to the punch. No amount of loyalty can beat doubling/tripling a salary.

Brad Stevens is not going to a struggling major conference team. He will be at Butler until an elite level job opens up. Butler will give him another raise after this season I'm sure and he's already making right around $1M.