As this game goes along through the first ten minutes one thing becomes clear. Pope's team will push the ball off every make and miss. They have designated lanes that go right into the Zoom, Stagger, or high ball-screen. There is no pulling the ball out to align for a half-court set. Transition goes seamlessly into the half-court.
Off a Kansas three the ball is brought down the left side of the floor, and then goes to Khalifa at the top. Now they are in Zoom. The corner back-cuts along the baseline. The next cutter is #20, Spencer Johnson, on the wing. He gets a screen from #1, Trey Stewart, who then cuts through to get out of the way and provide spacing. Remember that Kansas is switching, so the switch onto Johnson is from the top side. He sees this and cuts his route short. Khalifa pitches the ball to him, and Johnson drives baseline to reject away from the switch. He drives until he is cut off by two Jayhawks along the baseline. But the drive also causes Hunter Dickinson to sag off Khalifa to provide help in the lane. Khalifa is wide open for the three on the kick-out.
This shows the importance of a skilled center who can handle and shoot. It's a reason why the defense just can't drop a big to stand in front of the rim. Pope said he compared Khalifa to Jokic. We all know he was nowhere near that good, but he was Pope's Jokic. This offense reminds me very much of some of the things the Denver Nuggets do with the Joker handling the ball at the top of the key in the middle of the floor. Same principles.
