Crisis in the paint. How frontcourt injuries are hurting Khimki

Khimki had to play Loko without its two best centers in Game 2 of the playoff semifinals. James Augustine was in the stands, while Paul Davis suited up, but never took the court. This turned out to be a big problem for Moscow Region.

Backup center Ruslan Pateev was terrific in Augustine and Davis's absence. He ended the game with 18 points, seven rebounds, three assists, two steals and an efficiency rating of 25.

But Pateev wasn't enough on his own. Rimas Kurtinaitis tried to use Victor Claver as a backup, but the experiment did not end well. Khimki was much less effective when Claver was at center.

Konstantin Kucher looks at Khimki's issues when forced to play without a center for Breaking It Down.

The offense is too dependent on the backcourt
Both Paul Davis and Ruslan Pateev had a big impact on Khimki's offense in Games 1 and 2. The two big men were among the top scorers in both games and helped Khimki put pressure on Lokomotiv in the paint and take advantage of pick-n-rolls.

None of that was true when Claver took over at center. The Spaniard did have one impressive putback dunk on a Marko Popovic miss, but that was the exception rather than the rule.

Over eight minutes, Khimki's big men were not very active under the basket. The ball stayed with the guards, who tried to take care of business on their own. They had mixed success. In any case, Khimki's increased predictability noticeably impacted the team's effectiveness on offense.

Poor help defense
Claver and co. got a little too enamored with one-on-one defense at times and did not react quickly enough on help defense.

Plus, the home team often didn't have enough resources to stop Lokomotiv's big men when the trio of Rice, Koponen and Vyaltsev were on the floor. Khimki's three guards made the offense more potent, but couldn't hold their own on defense. After forcing Khimki to switch defensively, Richard Hendrix and Anthony Randolph had no trouble backing down smaller guards and scoring.

Maxim Sheleketo's dual role
Maxim Sheleketo's importance to Khimki's small lineups (with Claver playing center) is significant. Playing at the small forward position, Sheleketo often helps out the frontcourt on defense. The Yellow-Blues do a better job switching with Sheleketo on the court and he gives them an extra option for interior defense and rebounding.

But there is a price to pay. With Sheleketo on the court, the defense improves while the offense suffers. Sheleketo only knocked down two of eight field-goal attempts in the first two games. That's a big reason why he's yet to play more than 11 minutes in a game.

Difficulty defending Richard Hendrix
Khimki more or less managed against Anthony Randolph and Derrick Brown in Game 2. But Richard Hendrix was a dangerous threat at all times. He looked solid against Pateev and when he went up against against Claver, he was especially dominant. Hendrix ia a great athlete and loves use his strength to back opponents down, which he did against the Khimki defenders.

Lots of fouls
Claver also got himself into foul troube, drawing four fouls in eight and a half minutes. That was the biggest reason why we didn't see the Spaniard in the second half. Claver fouled both Loko's centers as well as guards Malcolm Delaney and Krunoslav Simon, indicating that Claver did not feel comfortable at the center position. On the one hand, he's able to go up against athletic centers, but on the other hand, he's not always quick enough to get back on defense.

His flagrant foul against Hendrix was just more evidence. To start with, he didn't help out in time. Then he got duped and had to give a hard foul to stop Hendrix.

There are several burning questions as the series shifts to Krasnodar. Will the doctors be able to get Paul Davis or James Augustine healthy? Is Ruslan Pateev ready physically and psychologically to play most of the game? Can Victor Claver get used to playing at center? Even one negative outcome could have serious consequences for Moscow Region. Without two of its best centers, Khimki does not look like the series favorite.

Konstantin Kucher