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| Wednesday, October 17 Little Linehan big on defense By Andy Katz ESPN.com |
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Providence's diminutive John Linehan will alter games more than any other men's college basketball player this season. He will force coaches to think twice about their offense and potentially take the ball away from their best ballhandlers in hopes of freeing up their offenses. Opposing teams must plan on having only 24 seconds to run their offensive sets, not the full 35, since those first 11 ticks or so will be taken away by Linehan's dogged pressure on the man moving the ball out of backcourt. "He turns the other teams' offense into disarray," Providence coach Tim Welsh said. "He totally disrupts the other team's rhythm or changes their philosophy for one game. Look at what happens to the other team. Their offense drifts so far out. Instead of taking the offense from 18 to 20 feet from the basket, he pushes them to start it even further out. And he makes a player feel embarrassed when he gets stripped."
"If I disrupt the point then I've done my job, and if I do that, then I get the team off balanced and out of sync," Linehan said. He is low to the ground, so low that the 5-9 senior seems like he's in a constant defensive stance. He allows the Friars to gamble off the ball as much as any team in the nation because they know Linehan will frustrate whoever has the ball. And he looks as if he's in his 30s, with a rigid jaw, high forehead, a light beard and mustache. This wouldn't matter, if it didn't make him that much more intimidating to baby-faced freshmen. "I can be intimidating by putting pressure on 94 feet and trying to get in the passing lanes and deflect balls and help out any big man by slapping away at the ball," said the nation's biggest pest. "I'm a threat in so many ways. That's why I'm considered a good defensive player." Linehan has all the numbers as the reigning Big East defensive player of the year. His most impressive might be his assist-to-steal ratio in his Big East career, which is nearly 1-to-1 (179-149). But his importance is immeasurable to the Friars. When he's on the court -- and he probably will have to be taken off kicking and screaming even for a quick breather this season -- the Friars have a legitimate chance to win. When he was hurt with a groin injury, or a broken wrist that ended his 1999-2000 season after just six games, then the Friars were more likely to lose ... and they did. Teams can talk all they want about needing a scoring threat, a finisher in the post or a shooter. But few teams rely as much on a lock-down defender on the ball as much as Providence.
"His defense is infectious," Welsh said. "Our wings feed off of that. It's something that you can't put on paper. We all feed off his energy, his toughness. He's a tremendous leader." Linehan led the Friar revival last season as Providence went from 11-19 to 21-10 and an NCAA Tournament appearance. He never seems to slack in a game, practice or even a pickup game. A few weeks ago, this was Linehan's typical workout day: He worked out for a strong hour, dripping with sweat as he took 3s, jumpers, free throws, drives to the basket and a few defensive slides with assistant coach Bob Walsh. Then, he made life miserable in a simple pickup game for his teammates a few hours later. He wasn't about to let his teammates run any offense, let alone individual moves. He never let up, even in a simple five-on-five pick-up game to nine. "If a high-profile player or a point guard is having trouble bringing up the ball and I can get a steal, then I'm in his head," Linehan said. "I can control him and get him all messed up. If I can get a steal or a five-second call, then that gives me a rush. For a big man, a blocked shot is the same thing. A five-second call or a steal is my blocked shot." Linehan has the instincts to make it work, but he wasn't always about 'D'. His thinking on the game changed during his senior year at Chester High (Pa.) when he told his coach he wanted to stop a kid on Lower Merion (Pa.) by the name of Kobe Bryant. The current Lakers star has spoken about Linehan's defense, and to hear Linehan say it, the 6-6 Bryant was frustrated. "I know I stole it a few times on him," said Linehan on potential folklore, but a true story for him. "That's when I took defense seriously." But college coaches didn't come calling with offers, and Linehan went to Winchendon Prep (Ma.) for a postgraduate year in the hopes he could get a Division I coach to take a chance on him. Linehan's opportunity came from then-Providence coach Pete Gillen, who didn't have to drive far to see Linehan's defense in person. "I had to find something that would set me apart from other players," Linehan said. "All the small guards have good handles and can shoot, but they weren't willing to play 94 feet of defense. I wanted to shut guards down. A lot of people try to save themselves on defense and a get a rest. If you rest it's on offense. Defense is the most important part of the game. You can keep a player from scoring, get him to go from an 18-point average to 10." Linehan played sparingly as a freshman but started all 30 games as a sophomore when Welsh replaced Gillen in 1998-99. His defensive reputation came quickly, as Linehan led the Big East in steals his second season, averaging 3.3 a game (as well as 4.3 points and 2.3 assists) during Providence's 16-14 run to the NIT. But the co-captain in '99-00 saw his season cut short by a broken wrist suffered in the sixth game. Last season started with another injury, this time a strained hamstring in the opener that kept him out of the next five. But once healthy, Linehan led Providence back to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1997. Linehan spends hours watching video on players, seeing which directions they go first, studying their habits. And once the game starts, he waits a few possessions before trying to gamble, sensing a weakness and then trying to capitalize. "I always want to get an early steal to set the tone," Linehan said. But this Muggsy Bogues clone isn't one-dimensional. Welsh said when he first got to Providence, Linehan wasn't a threat to score. Some teams simply wouldn't defend his shot, daring him to shoot. But that has changed. His 3-point percentage climbed from 23.3 percent as a freshman to 35.5 as a sophomore to 41.7 as a junior. His average has also climbed from 4.4 ppg as a sophomore starter to 10.7 last season. "I'm working on my jump shot, shooting off the dribble and creating on my own more," Linehan said. Duke's Shane Battier is gone, meaning the Defensive Player of the Year award is open, and Linehan is the top candidate. He's the favorite for the Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award, given to the top senior shorter than six feet. And he's ESPN.com's best defender in our search for the Ultimate Player. "I know the NBA needs defensive stoppers," Linehan said. "I can do that in that league." Or wherever else there's a game. Andy Katz is a senior writer at ESPN.com. |
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