There is an awful film from 2011 called “The Adjustment Bureau” that is based on a Phillip K. Dick story. It stars Matt Damon and Emily Blunt and there are many reasons why it’s bad. Blunt and Damon aren’t why; it’s mostly just the convoluted story that classifies it as what I would call “meandering” at best. In the film, Damon plays a man who finds out that his destiny has been altered by a shadow organization and is actively preventing him from consciously coupling (?) with Emily Blunt’s character who **checks notes** is a ballet dancer. Sigh. Okay. There’s no need to further complicate the metaphor; this article is all about how the last class of MLL players ever fared in their first weekend in the superleague that is the PLL.
The first weekend of PLL action was filled with triumph and heartbreak, just like every great weekend should be. It served as a potent reminder to post your W’s along with your L’s. Or, in the case of the losing teams, the other way around.
So, one of the things to note is that the MLL and the PLL were/are different in seemingly minor, but crucial, ways. Everyone knows that Major League Lacrosse had a longer shot clock and a larger field. On the surface, those things feel very hand-wavy. In practice, they become somewhat impactful.
For example, let’s say you are used to playing in an offense where you’re utilized as an initiator up top and you take long hard runs across the top of the two-point line or down the alley. Your run-up can no longer take five seconds - that’s legitimately too long. And also, that run-up is cut by at least five yards. So, now you have to either adjust to being a catch and dodge player or find an angle that maximizes your speed and trajectory to get past a defender that you would normally have ten or more steps to dust.
Another example is this: You’re a defender that is used to being able to pressure out to the wing and not worry about getting back as fast because you have previously played with reliable short stick d-mids that help you. But now, you’re the No. 1 defender because the No. 2 defender can’t be bothered to do anything but throw checks and you’re tasked with leading the backline against literally the best players you have ever seen in your short but eventful life. These are scenarios that change not only how one looks at the game, but how one plays the game. There is a very real hierarchy and it’s not numerical; it’s matchup based.
The PLL has made lacrosse more exciting with these changes - but it has also decreased the margin for error. If you watched this weekend’s games you saw that certain games were decided by a few key plays and others were over before they even started. That’s not necessarily due to rules or adjustments. In the case of the latter, though, there were certain teams that helped their players ease into the Fast and Furious franchise that is Premier League Lacrosse.
The Whipsnakes are the best example of how to deploy new players. They already have a system in place that allows for players to be plugged in and contribute. On offense, they can lean on Rambo because you can lean a building on Rambo. Zed plays for the mismatch and the third attackman gets whatever is left to either play inside (like Carlson does) or hang on the wing looking for opportunities like Chris Aslanian did. And then there is Matt Abbott, who didn’t even play in the MLL last year but stepped right into the Whipsnakes midfield rotation because he is a freak. God, save some cookies for the rest of us.
The Cannons are an interesting case of a team that is completely new with true roots back to the MLL version of their team. This starts at the back with Nick Marrocco, who has actually transformed his game in the PLL. Goalie play is an interesting conundrum in the PLL because you can’t judge it by one game or even five. It’s an entire season worth of stopping missiles that get you a command. That being said Marrocco left his cage more in two games than his entire pro career put together. It was weird, but it seemed to work even if he didn’t look super comfortable doing it. Keep an eye on that moving forward.
Andrew Kew and Lyle Thompson already had chemistry from last year and looked like they hadn’t missed a beat in both of their games. Kew in particular shone in the second game against the waterdogs simply by slipping under his sliding defender and cashing in on the ensuing dump. And we all know the PLL had to adjust to Lyle Thompson; not the other way around. Meanwhile, SSDM Zach Goodrich is the best defender on the team. But then again, we already knew that.
Ugh. Now we get to the other side of the tracks. Look, there’s a three-legged bull and a damp dog with fleas and mange just wandering back and forth. The Atlas and the Waterdogs have problems that extend far beyond their personnel and both teams will look very different in three weeks' time. Because if they keep playing like this they aren’t going to win a single game. Roles are just as important as talent allocation in the pros. If you have guys playing above or below their station it annihilates the entire dynamic on the field - especially against teams that have their identity and schemes dialed in.
In the case of the Waterdogs, I mean, you can hardly place any blame for the team’s collapse on the shoulders of one player. But I’ll say this: You made Mikie Schlosser look sad, gave him almost zero touches, and then you lost your best playmaker in Michael Sowers because the only way he could create offense was to crease dive five times. The defense was also largely a no-show until a late run afforded more possessions, but that had more to do with a late-arriving ride than it did with any defensive cohesion. Dillon Ward can play the highest arc since DogeCoin but if there is no support he can’t get across to stop a shot that comes from the blindside.
Much blame was thrown at the feet of the Atlas defense for their dismal showing, but it’s never just one aspect that leads to a molly whopping like the one they suffered at the hands of the Archers. The bowmen are playing like they know they left glory on the field back in Utah and their additions all contributed to their advancement. Meanwhile, the Atlas is trotting out an entirely new defense (with three former MLL players) to play in front of Jack Concannon...and it was a disaster. Again, the speed is different and the caliber of offensive player is also, well, better. Sorry not sorry, guys. You can’t throw gimmicky junk slides at an offense that has Tom Schreiber as a second option and three all-world-level attackmen. Maybe learn how to defend a pick without switching every time? No, seriously, what are you going to do?
There is no perfect formula for any player to jump into the PLL and have immediate success. Ask any rookie how easy their transition has been. There is always an adjustment period and the best players eventually find their footing and rocket forward with the insane pace of the league. But the wrong team. The wrong fit. The wrong application of your skills can send you to the player pool. In pro lacrosse, you can never jam a square peg into a round hole. The best teams in the league already know this - everyone else is doomed to repeat their mistakes. Happy Death Day!