Tyson Chandler used to call himself a "chatterbox'' in the Charlotte Bobcats' defense.
Funny, that seems precisely what interim coach Paul Silas needs right now.
In that one season (an injury-filled misadventure) with the Bobcats, Chandler used to talk about how essential communication was to defense. It's a teammate shouting "pick left'' or "drop-down'' or whatever, but without that exchange of information, it's hard to move your feet to the right place.
That's what concerns Silas. Three times lately, he has brought up defensive communication as a telling flaw that is holding back this team. Silas knows. He learned as a Boston Celtic of past generation, and he sees how the current Celtics - the Bobcats' opponent tonight - do this particularly well.
"You cannot play good defense unless you talk; it's an impossibility,'' Silas said.
"Changing habits are very difficult. It takes about 28 days of doing something different to change a habit. I have to mention it to them every day that we're not talking.
"(He'll say), 'Look at this play right here: Two guys on the same end, another man is rolling, we're supposed to switch the thing. We didn't switch. Why? We didn't talk.
"Or they set a flair screen. The man is setting the screen and we didn't talk. You have to keep reiterating and reiterating. Soon they will get it. They'll start talking, and you'll be much better defensively.''
Silas wasn't dreaming up hypotheticals. Twice, late-game, coaches have specifically told the players to switch everything defensively, and somehow that didn't register. The "flair screen'' example was from the fourth quarter of Friday's loss to Miami, when guard Eddie House scored three quick 3-pointers off essentially the same play.
The players appreciate what Silas is teaching. But as Silas said, this is about changing habits in real time, and it's also about getting five players to all change what they're doing in interaction with each other.
"We can talk more on defense,'' said shooting guard Stephen Jackson. "And it's got to be all of us. Not three guys communicating and two guys doing their own thing.''
Chandler, who has been crucial to improving the Mavericks' defense this season, says it's impossible to guard effectively without the communication Silas describes.
"You've got to make (teammates) feel comfortable on the floor, and guys aren't going to be comfortable out on an island,'' Chandler said. "When you hear guys' voices, you know where you've got help. Not only that: It lets the offense know you are communicating, (moving) on a string.
"To be a good defensive team, you've got to have good communication from everybody - not just one guy.''
