I think people underestimate how difficult it is to keep quick guards out of the lane on defense these days in the NBA. The rules have been changed to legislate against it. Just as they’ve been changed over the last several years to detract from the influence of big players.

In the old days, strong guards could defend quick guards by using hand checking. In many cases, players could make up for a lack of quickness by controlling an offensive player with their hands — think Terry Porter. That man did a terrific job of staying in front of quick players using his smarts and strength.

But rules change. Now you’re not allowed to put a hand on a player if you’re above the foul line. And coaches who expect players to be able to control a quick guard by themselves are often the victim of unrealistic expectations — unless they’re asking Rajon Rondo to do it. He’s about the only one in the league I’ve seen who seems to have consistent success at it.

NBA point guards are elite athletes and expecting a defender who doesn’t know which direction a dribbler is headed to stay in front of  him is borderline ridiculous. It’s like expecting a defensive back, by himself, to blanket Randy Moss on a pass pattern.

And don’t expect a ton of help from your big man, either. Those days are just about over. During the last few decades, a lot of the new rules have conspired to make it difficult for big men to have the impact they used to have on games, at both ends of the floor.

The first rule change aimed at the big guy was the three-point field goal.

When all shots were worth two points, it only made sense that the closer you get to the basket, the better your chances of scoring and the more efficient your offense was.  The mantra was always “get it in deep to the big guy” and the big guy always got a lot of shots.  Shots from distance were frowned upon in most cases in those days — it’s what you did when you couldn’t get inside or what you did to loosen the defense so you could get the ball inside.

That philosophy died hard, as veteran coaches clung to old ideas. It’s taken a long time for many of them to understand the value of three-point shots and the simple mathematics of being able to shoot a lower percentage of them and still net more points than if you shot a bunch of two-point shots at a higher percentage.

The three-point goal has turned a lot of big men into perimeter players. And at the same time, the illegal defense rules have kept the big guy from lurking in the lane like a goaltender on defense. I can remember Wilt Chamberlain and Bill Russell and Nate Thurmond, all great shot blockers, just camping out in the lane. Believe me, you didn’t want to go in there when they were lurking.

In most cases, they didn’t have to stray far from the pivotmen (now there’s an antiquated term) they were guarding because he was almost always strictly a low-post player who hung around the basket.

But now, if you hang in the lane, you’re going to give up a technical foul for being in the key three seconds — on defense! And besides, the big man on the other team is always pulling you away from the basket because he wants to shoot from distance just like the guards.

So what is a defensive team to do about guard penetration?

Help defense! Not help from big men, either, but rotation help. Beat one man and someone else has to be there. There are many systems to handle this but they all require alert defenders who will tirelessly rotate to people who aren’t “their man” to keep the opposing team from getting inside.

And at the same time, they must have enough energy to close out on the three-point shooters. It’s a difficult concept to teach and even more difficult to get players to accomplish.

It’s why only the elite teams seem to be able to do it. But it’s also why only a few teams have a serious shot at winning a championship. If you don’t defend in the NBA,  you can’t consistently beat the teams that do.

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This story is interesting in the wake of the Trail Blazers’ ridiculous defensive performance last night at Houston. I’ll have more tomorrow on this topic but it’s crazy to assume that Portland’s inability to defend (not just for this season but for most of last season) has everything to do with a lack of effort. One player hinted at the problems and he was backup center Joel Przybilla:

 ”Same (stuff) as last year,” center Joel Przybilla said, his cheeks red from agitation.

And here:

“It’s not one guy, as a team we weren’t on the same page,” Przybilla said. “We have to get it together as a team.”

These guys do not seem to have a team-defense system that allows them to consistently rotate and find defensive help, the way the good NBA teams do it. We saw the same thing last season. But people are constantly fooled by one-game shooting percentages. Just because a team doesn’t make shots against you, doesn’t mean you are playing great defense. It’s one indicator, but hey — some nights opponents just don’t make open shots.

That’s what happened in the opening game of the season when the Rockets couldn’t buy a basket against Portland. But they were getting good shots.

It’s NOT too early in the season to make a point about this. It’s a problem that has dogged this team forever, as Przybilla indicated. And effort alone is not going to cure it.

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So much focus is going to be on the three spots in the starting lineup that seem to be up for grabs. You know, small forward, center and point guard.

For me, that’s really kind of a misdirection. Andre Miller, Greg Oden and Martell Webster — if all are healthy — are going to eventually have to fill those spots. Anything less than that is something of a disappointment. They didn’t bring Miller in here to be a back up. Martell Webster owns that small-forward job if he’s healthy. And come on, Greg Oden is the franchise’s future — he’s going to be the starting center.

But let me say something else. That’s not going to be the story of the Trail Blazer season. The real issue coming up for this team, the ongoing secret to any real improvement on the journey to becoming a championship team, is going to have to be getting better at the defensive end.

Portland’s offense is good enough. Sure, a few more fast break points and more points at the post would be preferred, but really — moving forward, it’s not a real issue.

But if you watched the Cavaliers, the Celtics, the Magic, the Lakers, the Rockets last year — you know the difference between those teams and the Trail Blazers. It was defense. TEAM DEFENSE. You don’t get anything easy from those teams. You don’t get uncontested shots.

That’s where Portland was lacking last season. And team defense starts in training camp. And it doesn’t mean individual defense. It means a clearly designed and responsible format for players covering for each other at all times. It means limiting open shots. Contesting everything. Denying penetration. Overall, it’s a well-defined blueprint for winning.

I will emphasize once more that the players in training camp for Portland are pretty much the core group for whatever is going to happen here for the next five seasons. So don’t look for any defensive stoppers — there aren’t any on this team.

Sure, Greg Oden’s progress on defense is a big key. He’s the backstop. The goalie. But there has to be a system where Oden’s (and Przybilla’s) talents are maximized. Opponents have to be funneled toward the middle. A shell has to be built around the basket, all the while three-pointers are being contested. You can’t put all the responsibility for defense on the shotblockers. It’s way more complicated than that. They have to be put in positions around the basket to succeed, not placed on an island 20 feet from the basket trying to defend point guards.

Other players must take responsibility, too.

Folks, this is coaching — this is when the guys on the sidelines in the suits earn their money. There must be schemes and concepts designed to fit the personnel on this team. This is stuff drilled into teams from the first day of training camp to the final game of the playoffs. There won’t be any excuses about being too young. Or about having to integrate new players into a system.

How are they going to play the pick and roll? How much double-teaming will they do at the post? How much zone will they play? All of these things must be settled and burned into the players’ minds.

For the Blazers to succeed this season, they need to have these team-defense concepts installed and instilled. This must be Priority No. 1  — with no excuses from players or from coaches. Without this emphasis on defense, there will be no deep playoff run.

And that’s really what training camp should be all about this season.

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