Wayne Winston is a professor at Indiana that happens to be an NBA advanced stats guru. He has consulted multiple NBA teams, including the Dallas Mavericks, on what lineups and players to use. He has no affiliation with the Grizzlies or the Clippers so I asked him to consult us on what is happening in the series. I think there is real value in listening to someone that has no bias. He is not telling us what he thinks he sees, and he is not looking to defend his favorite player or defend the coach. He simply looks at the data and the data tells him what is working and what is not.
I have been very critical on the strategy used in this series so far and what we learned from Winston made me feel much better about my feelings. Lionel Hollins is simply not using the best lineups at his disposal nearly enough. If he figures it out the Grizzlies can beat the Clippers and make a dent in the next round. If not, they are goin fishing.
What are the Grizzlies doing when they are winning?
Who is most important to their success offensively?
What is the Clippers kryptonite?
Who is killing the team when they are on the court?
Who should be playing more and who should be playing less?
Wayne Winston covered all of these topics.
Here is the interview...