One hundred and two.
That’s how many days it took for the Atlanta Dream and the New York Liberty to play for a second time during the regular season.
During that first meeting in June, both teams looked a little bit different.
Satou Sabally was healthy and playing a big role off the bench as she was getting her conditioning back. Sabrina Ionescu was out, nursing a back injury. Betnijah Laney-Hamilton wasn’t just with the Liberty still – she was actually playing minutes for them.
The Dream are different, too, as they were a team who was planning to have Brionna Jones back for the second half of the season. DeWanna Bonner was on the Phoenix Mercury. Amy Okonkwo was on a developmental contract on the bench.
A lot of time passed between the meetings.
But fast-forward to the present, and the Liberty and Dream are on a collision course to earn a spot in the WNBA Finals.
The Dream took the season series against the Liberty, two games to one, but it’s important to contextualize those games.
As we’ve mentioned, the teams looked a lot different on June 11 compared to September 21 and September 23. But there were tangible changes that took place between those matchups, too.
As the two teams get ready for a best-of-five series, I went back to watch all 12 quarters that they’ve played against each other to see how the Dream adjusted after the Liberty beat them at home handedly.
Allisha Gray said after the Dream defeated the Mystics in the first round of the playoffs that it was time to go watch film on the Liberty.
They learned from their missteps in that first meeting against the Liberty to take the final two games of the regular season against them in Brooklyn (Breanna Stewart was out the final game of the regular season).
Here are the biggest changes that showed up on the film from that first meeting to the subsequent matchups.
Defensive assignments
In the first matchup against the Liberty, the Dream stuck Rhyne Howard on Breanna Stewart as her primary defender for 91 percent of the possessions they were on the court together. With Ionescu out, Gray guarded Marine Johannés, with Jordin Canada guarding rookie Pauline Astier.
One of the bigger things that I wanted to keep an eye on was how the Dream would deploy their defensive matchups against the Liberty in their second game with everyone (mostly) healthy and available. The only key players who didn’t suit up were Jones and Sabally, who were both ruled out for the year by that point.
Howard, again, drew the assignment of Stewart aside from the occasional switch with Naz Hillmon, who was guarding Leonie Fiebich. There was, though, an initial switch in coverage when Bonner subbed in for Hillmon in the second quarter.
Smesko gave Bonner, with her length, the assignment of Stewart as the primary defender and switched Howard to Fiebich. This lasted for three possessions – two of which Stewart immediately drove and took Bonner on the low block for back-to-back buckets. After a Dream timeout, Smesko swapped the coverage back, leading to Howard taking on the Stewart assignment going forward.
In the fourth quarter, Stewart drew three fouls on Howard within 90 seconds, leading Howard to go to the bench and Bonner resuming the coverage on Stewart.
A lot is discussed about Defensive Player of the Year Angel Reese being able to defend players 1-5, but Howard does the same at a high level.
It’s just the foul trouble that she’ll have to avoid getting in during the series against the Liberty. Once Stewart can draw one, expect her to try to draw more and more.
Countering the Liberty’s length on defense
The one thing that’s apparent about the Liberty – they are long. It was more apparent in the June matchup between the teams, when Sabally came off the bench and imposed her will. Still, as is, their roster features imposing length led by Stewart, Jones, Fiebich, and Han Xu. It gave the Dream fits in the first game, especially offensively.
The Liberty were able to close the driving lines, extend help on players driving to the basket, and cheat off of their assignment and still close out in time against a Dream offense that was having troubles solving the Liberty’s length and looked stagnant offensively.
They ended up finding success on some quick hitters on some pre-designed plays that allowed their bigs to get behind the defense and find success in transition.
During the second matchup, though, the Dream obviously adjusted to the length that the Liberty have. They were drawing up a lot of double-high screens where Reese and/or Hillmon would set a screen for a guard, and then opposite big would immediately set a second screen to get the Liberty defense in motion, allowing the initial screener to slip behind the Liberty bigs for an easier look at a layup.
The Dream were also utilizing the weakside wing of the court, setting flare screens allowing Canada, Gray, and Howard to get behind the defense in the corner to get open looks at a three or allowing them to drive baseline and find a cutting big that got behind the collapsing defense.
The change really was apparent between the first game and the second two (the last one didn’t have Stewart, who plays a major role defensively for the Liberty). The Dream found success getting the Liberty moving defensively to counter the size disparity. Bonner’s length, too, was big for them especially when they were able to switch the coverage so that Jones was her primary defender. Bonner has the speed advantage on Jones, but has enough size to not be outmatched within 10 feet, too.
Ball screen defense
The Liberty were picking apart the Dream on ball screens in the first matchup. It has been an issue for Smesko’s defense since he took the job last year.
In the first matchup, Astier feasted on the Dream’s inability to slow her down and stop her from getting downhill and driving to the rim off of ball screens. When they adjusted and sent help, that’s when Johannés was sitting on the wing, knocking down open threes.
While the Liberty still found success on ball screens in the second matchup, there was more communication, blitzing, and 45-degree hedging from the help defender to limit the direct impact.
What’s underrated about the Liberty is their ability to go five-out but also have their two bigs and Fiebich excel as screens at just the right angle. They have the ability to set the hard screen and immediately re-screen, while still having the athleticism to quickly slip the screen if the defense is over-helping.
This is where bench players like Te-Hina Paopao, Izzy Borlase, and Madina Okot have struggled defensively this year. If they can’t defend the ball screens, their minutes will be limited.
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Angel Reese’s offensive adjustment
Reese has improved as a shooter this year. In the first matchup against the Liberty, at that point in time, she had three made three-pointers.
With Jones as her primary defender in both games, Reese had to adjust from the first meeting to the subsequent two. In the first one, Jones was begging her to take the shot from deep. She played at least five feet off of her, as if she was Kamilla Cardoso in college.
In the first half, Reese obliged, and she ended up going 0-of-4 from deep in the game. Eventually, in the second half, she adjusted and started to try to establish herself in the post more, but it was too late at that point.
In the next matchup, though, she fully changed her offensive approach. Jones, again, gave Reese a ton of space at the top of the key, daring her to shoot. Instead, Reese would drive on Jones, lower her shoulder, and take it strong to the hole by getting downhill. She also threw in some midrange jumpers and some dribble-handoff actions to keep the Liberty defense moving and adjusting.
It worked, as Jones had to close the distance between them as the game went on.
Reese will still take the open shot without hesitation, but there’s a difference between taking it as a threat, and taking it because it’s what the defense wants.
Rebounding
One of the keys for the Liberty’s win in June was their ability to win the battle on the boards, 40-24. Early on, the Liberty were creating second-chance after second-chance by extending possessions by crashing the glass and getting offensive rebounds.
The two teams finished No. 2 and No. 3 during the regular season in total rebounds, just behind the Washington Mystics.
In the second matchup, there was a more concerted effort by the Dream to close the rebounding gap. They still lost the battle, but they cut the deficit in half from 16 to eight.
What stood out was that as soon as the shot went up, the Dream would immediately box out their assignment to limit the second chances.
It sounds basic, but there’s a reason they are called fundamentals.
Post-to-post switching
With the agility and experience that Jones and Stewart have, they were able to cause fits with their screening and getting the matchups that they wanted in the first game. It was an advantage where they’d be able to draw a guard or a wing on the low block, forcing the helpside defender to either come in and leave their assignment or keeping a mismatch of Jones and someone like Canada on the block.
With the actions that the Liberty run, it would also cause confusion off the screens, allowing the screener or the big receiving the screen to break free to the rim due to miscommunication.
In the second and third matchups, the Dream were able to improve their post-to-post switching, allowing the defending bigs – Hillmon, Howard, and Reese, primarily – to switch during the actions when two bigs were screening for each other.
When it would result in Howard on Jones, Hillmon and Reese were quick to wait until the right moment when the ball was opposite of the ideal entry angle to sink down and switch back with Howard.
It’s a little thing, but it made a world of difference for the Dream in New York.
