Here is the 2nd player we introduce to you as a part of the “Video & Stats Talk” series.
Kevin Bleeker is a big man on a mission. Since his graduation from Canisius College (US) he has been growing each season and this season with Landstede Hammers he’s made a good name for himself playing both in the Dutch Basketball League as well as the FIBA Europe Cup.
We put together a number of questions sent forward by our owner Mr. Duran to Kevin Bleeker to go over:
– what are the 5 critical aspects of your opponent to focus on?
– For me, as a big, I always focus and want to know if he really runs the floor in transition, both defensively and offensively. Some bigs really run the floor in offensive transition and that’s something I really want to know.
– I also want to know how hard a player crashes the offensive glass. There’s guys that crash no matter where and when, while others almost always get back on defense unless the ball will basically drop in their hands. This is important to focus on as a big.
– There are also big differences in three point shooting ability amongst bigs. It’s important for me to know a player’s shooting percentages so I can defend him accordingly and possibly change my positioning on the court.
– The last thing I really focus on is what hand the player likes to finish with on the block. There’s guys who will almost always come back to one hand, so I can adjust my defensive positioning accordingly.
– how do you prepare for your opponent utilizing video?
At Landstede Hammers we watch video on team plays, tendencies and things they do different than other teams collectively. We get sent clips individually of all the things we watched together, as well as individual clips of players. That way you can prepare by looking at your possible matchups.
– Do you solely rely on the cuts shared by assistant coaches?
No, I also watch games myself of other teams where you can find little things or tendencies. Also, in the DBL we play every team 4 times a year (excluding Cup games and Playoffs), so you really get a chance to get to know the other teams and their players. After playing a team a few times already, you pick up tendencies from other players pretty quickly. For example, during free throws for ZZ Leiden Worthy de Jong always acts as if he’s not even going to rebound, only to quickly turn around and try to sneak back in for the rebound. These are things you find out by playing teams more often.
– What stats do you look at in your opponent in order to check for weaknesses?
I check his fouls per game to see if he’s foul prone, his blocks per game so I know if I have to use more shot fakes around the rim, his offensive rebounds per game to find out if I have to really focus on boxing him out, even in situations where I wouldn’t expect it. I also always check his free throw percentage. If he shoots a low percentages I’m more likely to foul him in situations where he has me beat, to make him earn his points from the line.
A video highlight of Kevin’s performance across the last 10 games he played:
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We’d like to thank Kevin for his time and wish him well for next season!
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