Charlotte Hornets coach Steve Clifford offered insight into what made Cleveland CavaliersCenter Jarrett Allen has been successful this season heading into his game on Monday.
Clifford was asked to compare Nick Richards and Allen, as they are both traditional greats. He was quick to point out how they have different strengths despite fulfilling similar roles.
“They don’t look much alike, to be honest,” Clifford said. “Pseudo [Richards’s] the game is built more on strength and you know physicality. . . Allen’s game is much more about effort and scoring. His roll to the rim and his second effort [are things] he does it very naturally, which is not easy to do.
Allen did this without being one of the most physically imposing centers in the league
“I would say that’s why his physical gifts are length and size,” Clifford said. “He’s done a great job developing and improving his strength over the years, but he was a good player when he was young and very thin.”
According to Clifford, Allen achieved success through relentless effort.
“I think he knows how he has to play to play well and to make the team work, and he does it every time,” Clifford said. “He’s not one of those guys who runs whenever he feels like it. He handles every possession. If you watch him ride, he sprints to the edge. He does it every time.
Understanding your role will always allow you to be the best version of yourself. This is something that is not discussed enough when evaluating players.
“I think one of the hardest things for players, and especially now where they’re not playing as long in college and they’re not spending as much time with their high school coaches, is just [knowing how to] play to your strengths,” Clifford said. “You know what your strengths are and you play to your strengths. »
This is something that sets Allen apart.
“It’s a huge skill,” Clifford said. “It’s not just the center position, but there are guys in this league who score every night and they’re not very good. We don’t have guys coming into the league like him anymore who, to me, know how they should play. It’s a real challenge.”
Allen has repeatedly shown that his feel for the game can mask his lack of physicality in the regular season. This was, however, a problem last year in the first round match against the New York Knicks due to Cleveland’s lack of rebounding
Clifford noted that an issue like that is more of a team-wide failure rather than that of an individual player.
“I think some of that comes down to the other people he’s on the field with,” Clifford said after being asked about overcoming physicality in the postseason. “I think that’s where [Evan] Mobley would be important.
Clifford went on to say that the Knicks are difficult to deal with. Matchups like that force everyone to step up their efforts to contain them on the glass in a way the Cavs weren’t able to do last spring.
Despite the worry, Allen continues to get the most out of his game every night. He also attributes this to his understanding of his game.
“I love the analogy that Bret Brielmaier came up with to get me into this league,” Allen said. “It’s like building a house. We wanted to build solid foundations in terms of understanding the game, understanding small movements. How to establish a good pick and roll. How to find the open man. You want to look at the basket first, the corner, then the top quadrant.
“We wanted to make sure I had a fundamental understanding of basketball before I could turn around and take someone off the dribble and do all that. So what do I get? [Clifford] Is saying. That was the plan since I came into the league.
