Darkwing Duck

Saw a thread by U17 on another board touching on that particular zone the Jazz deployed a bit last year.

Basically, it's a simple box zone with the lead on top of the key. In the NBA, it's played more like a 3-2 than a 1-2-2, but I would characterize the AK zone as a 1-2-2. The difference with the zone is that AK plays match-up zone in his territory. Actually it's more of an aggressive playing of it. He doesn't match up with those in his zone if they don't have the ball. The philosophy behind it is that it creates triangles of defense on the court. With the wings if the ball is up high, with the big and the wing if the ball is in the corner, and the two bigs if the ball is down low.

Now the issue with it, the question U17 posed, is that it's exposed to the offense players' comfort shots. Kirilenko is so hyper aggressive in that zone that while it can cause a lot of turnovers and offers good help defense down low, he gets out of position easily. Thus the box is forced to break down, losing containment in the zones, and the shots taken are bigs at the corner fifteen feet, a money shot for shooting bigs, and the corner three and wing three, both comfort shots. Break containment up top, and you have a lane to the basket.

It also wears AK out. His triangle coverage extends to both wing threes and a line down to the basket. Lots of running. It's a cool zone, designed specifically for AK, but the rewards don't outweigh the negatives after a two/three possession stretch.

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I hate posting when the Jazz lose, so I go missing for days.