Coach Shaw: Keep On Working
by Rob Laycock
May 14, 2012
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Paul George didn’t let his offensive struggles from Game 1 carry over to the next day. Before Monday's practice on the Main Court in the Heat’s arena, George took time to get one-on-one feedback and instruction from Associate Head Coach Brian Shaw. Shaw, who joined Coach Vogel’s staff during the past offseason, used the extra time to show George how he can increase his effectiveness against the Heat in Game 2 this Tuesday night.
“I just wanted to point out some things I saw as a player in terms of his aggressiveness at the beginning of the game, especially when he is guarding someone like Dwyane Wade,” said Coach Shaw.
Wade finished the game with 29 points and four assists. He and LeBron James combined for all of the points in the 10-2 run early in the fourth quarter that gave Miami its biggest lead.
“It is important for him to not give Dwyane Wade a night off on the defensive end. He has to keep the pressure on him and stay in attack mode.”
Coach Shaw is able to leverage his experiences as a player and a coach to give himself instant credibility with the team. This is especially true for Paul George, who looked up to players like Kobe Bryant while growing up in California. Bryant was teammates with and coached by Shaw.
“Having played with and coached a player like Kobe Bryant, when I see Paul not putting in the work or doing it at game speed I can say to him that it is not good enough.”
Ultimately, the relationship between Coach Shaw and Paul George works well because Coach continues to positively push him to get better every day.
“One of the things I try to stay in his ear about is no matter how much success you have, you have to keep on working.”