By: Eric Fawcett -- September 26, 2024 Florida basketball had a practice open to the media this past week, as well as an opportunity to open up coach Todd Golden to questioning. One particular answer was noticeably interesting, after Golden was asked about what statistical improvements need to be made on defense in order to make a jump. Here is what he had to say: How Rim Protection Played A Role In Florida’s Defensive Woes | GatorCountry.com
This was great. Wish Haugh had been included, but love the idea of Condon playing the bulk of his minutes at the 5. Especially given Chinyelu’s foul rate. I also think Alexis and Haugh will be more effective defending out in space against quicker 4s.
Good article. Less “matador” defense from our perimeter players, especially Clayton will be key. Not only does it reduce shots at the rim, but there’s less focus on interior D and therefore fewer chances for interior players to pick up fouls. Staying between the man and the basket is easier said than done at times, but we have enough lateral speed in our backcourt, we just need to be more disciplined and as/more importantly - bring effort and intensity on that end. We need more guys taking pride on defense, not just their ability to score. Hopefully Martin’s intensity and dedication will rub off on other guys. The good thing with great defense is it also can lead to easy transition baskets, so a low shooting % on one end leads to a high shooting % for us on the other. Let’s hope this new focus on defense translates to on-court success.
Good article. Noted Clayton's poor perimeter defense contributing to high rim %, but I think another aspect is our weak side help to protect the rim from Clayton's man thus leaving our big's guy wide open for an easy basket. That all starts with better perimeter defense.
