Dwight Howard blocked a million shots last night… and once again… always from the help side. He's just lying in wait. And he's proved that you can't just loft one high off the board because he can go get that. In fact, those little floaters are just begging for him to show off his jumping ability.
I'm a big believer in your biggest strength being your biggest weakness. And that's the case here with Dwight Howard. His size and jumping ability are huge assets, but they're his biggest weakness because of his over-reliance on them. I saw a few different cases of it last night. One where Pierce drove past his guy, and as Dwight Howard came over to block the shot, he dumped it down to Perk for the slam. There were others where Dwight launched himself only to see the guy change his mind and spin away. But the point is, Howard over-commits to the block almost every time.
So the Celtics need to attack him and use that against him. They spent game 3 trying to launch shots from a spot out of Dwight's reach. Instead, they should go right at him. Attack him and use his aggression against him. When someone drives to the basket, someone else has to be there for a dump off. Or, when you spin past your man and you think you have a lay up… throw an up-fake. If Paul Pierce had just tossed a fake on this play, Howard would have jumped clear over him.
Dwight Howard is foul prone and flawed. He has weaknesses the Celtics can exploit, but it all starts with being aggressive. If the Celtics play the role of aggressor and take it right at him, you can get an advantage. Rajon Rondo needs to go to the rim, not toss up tear drops. If the Celtics play afraid, and try to play just out of Dwight's reach, then they have no chance. Attack Dwight Howard, use his strengths against him, and take control of this series. It can be done.
Herald: C's pull disappearing act | Trio invited to US Team camp | Truth is, C's need real Pierce back | Can't blame anyone but Green | Magic left in foul mood | Perk's work on Dwight a big factor | Globe: Magic rout Celtics | From thriller to snoozer | They made magic in the backcourt | Pickup game for Pierce | Celtics need to guard against this effort | Camerato: Who are these Celtics? | Celtics Hub: Worst D of the year (and how the Magic are handling Rondo)
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