BJ and Other Thoughts......

[newmexicuse]

I was intrigued by what I saw of BJ last night. The kid has a certain smoothness and fluidity about him that cannot be taught. He showed me enough in rebounding and passing skills to say that he deserves a solid spot in the rotation. He should not get any more DNPs. His O game is still a work in progress. I think the biggest issue is that he becomes hesitant after he misses a shot or two. If Jimmy lengthens the leash a little bit, I think BJ will improve his consistency and decision making as the season progresses. He needs to be confident enough to make his moves and take his shots when the opportunity expresses itself. As long as he doesn't force shots his O will be fine.

Other Thoughts:

Don't get fooled by the final score against an opponent who simply cannot score. They were so bad that for awhile I thought maybe we could do the impossible and pitch a shutout.

Rak - He has really progressed in his game. He now plays with confidence and wants the ball. Still has to prove he can do it against top talented foes, but I like the chances that he will be successful against almost anybody.

McC - He is fast and clever. He knows how to get himself open and how to finish. Too bad he is a likely one & doner. He needs work on his strength and his outside shot (it is good, but he can expand his range). If he goes pro after one year no doubt he will go in the first round. If he stayed one more season he would probably end up a Top Five pick.

Kaleb - Hard not to expect too much from a PG after MCW and Tyler, but I really like this kid's potential & I really like that it is unlikely he could go pro after one season. He has a great pullup J. Needs to use it as often as possible. He seems to have good, but not yet great court vision for a PG. Key for him this season will be to limit TOs.

Trevor - What can be said that hasn't already been said ? Yeah, he looked good on his drives, but he still has to prove he can do that against foes with more equal talent. Where oh where has his trey shot gone ??? This team so badly needs two or three three point threats & there is no way that can happen wo Trevor being one of them. I like his effort to expand his game, but if he can't find a way to make at least 35 to 40% of his trey attempts, his progression will still be net zero at best.

G - Kind of a glue guy, but the glue doesn't seem to have any greater adherence than it did last season.

O - I liked what I saw. Give the kid a chance to develop. No reason he shouldn't be able to spell Rak 5 to 10 MPG. He looks very strong & he takes up space. He showed that he can finish at least at point blank range and he should be solid off the glass.

Buss - Still mystery man to me as to what he might bring to the table. I just want to see him at least get his 5 to 10 MPG & go from there.

 

[OttoMets]

After I complained about his lack of playing time in New York, Obokoh didn't exactly prove me right. He looked bad in the first half, slow to react and baffled on offense (when Boeheim went to the two-bigs lineup that should be a good weapon, Rakeem was trying to make a high-low pass but Obokoh wouldn't even post up).

He looked better in the second half, though; it was great to see Patterson try to get him involved (and Obokoh showed excellent touch in catching and finishing). I'd still like to see him get 6 or 8 minutes a game. It'll be ugly at times, but he can do some things.

 

[Gormanite4L]

One major thought from last night is this team needs to play like a team. I noticed most times down the court it was one pass and then a shot. Many times down the court Cooney was set and waiting on the wing for a wide open three and they would rather go 1 v 3 for a contested layup. Trevor is money when he gets his feet set or can take a step and shoot. Coming off screens and fading away isn't working. We saw last night on a fast break with trevor on the wing they hit him he took his rythm step and made the three and the team knew it was in half the team didn't even run past half court. Seeing this during practice you would think they would look for him on breaks either trailing or on the wing. We need his shots and rhythm shots not fading away off screens.

 

[newmexicuse]

One major thought from last night is this team needs to play like a team. I noticed most times down the court it was one pass and then a shot. Many times down the court Cooney was set and waiting on the wing for a wide open three and they would rather go 1 v 3 for a contested layup. Trevor is money when he gets his feet set or can take a step and shoot. Coming off screens and fading away isn't working. We saw last night on a fast break with trevor on the wing they hit him he took his rythm step and made the three and the team knew it was in half the team didn't even run past half court. Seeing this during practice you would think they would look for him on breaks either trailing or on the wing. We need his shots and rhythm shots not fading away off screens.

Trevor is an upperclassman and has to be responsible for his own shot selection. He simply should not be taking those treys where he doesn't have his feet set and isn't in rhythm. Unfortunately, Trevor hasn't been money at all since the middle of last season. Personally, I prefer the contested layup to a Trevor trey attempt at this point in time. I cannot read too much into one made trey in four attempts in view of his overall sub 30% trey shooting from distance.

 

[SoBristol]

Trevor had a solid game -- if he limits the number of 3 point shots, esp. those when moving laterally, and increases his drive moves, he is a solid contributor. Just get 10 to 12 points, getting to the foul line by being aggressive with drives.

BJ has some scoring talent. The only issue (one he can't do much about) is he gets out-muscled occasionally, on offense and on defense. The off-setting factor is he has more offensive game than G or Roberson.

You can see the opportunity for team improvement. Obviously, Joseph & McCullough. But we need more from that rotation of BJ, Mike G and Roberson. Not just from Mike (JB's special mention), but from all three of the forwards who provide the fifth man with the core 4.

 

[omniorange]

BJ made the most of his opportunity last night. Still apprehensive on the offensive side but his rebounding was sound and his passing is far superior to Roberson's.

Should definitely see more minutes in the next couple of games even if Tyler returns to the starting line-up.

Cheers,
Neil

 

[RF2044]

BJ made the most of his opportunity last night. Still apprehensive on the offensive side but his rebounding was sound and his passing is far superior to Roberson's.

Should definitely see more minutes in the next couple of games even if Tyler returns to the starting line-up.

Cheers,
Neil

...which might be the best thing long term for BJ's developmental curve. He has to make the most out of this opportunity, now that he won't have to look over his shoulder for a few games.

We need him to settle down and be an offensive threat.

 

[jordoo]

Trevor is an upperclassman and has to be responsible for his own shot selection. He simply should not be taking those treys where he doesn't have his feet set and isn't in rhythm. Unfortunately, Trevor hasn't been money at all since the middle of last season. Personally, I prefer the contested layup to a Trevor trey attempt at this point in time. I cannot read too much into one made trey in four attempts in view of his overall sub 30% trey shooting from distance.

The only excuse for some of the 3's he takes would be the shot clock is about to go off but that isn't the case. I want him to take the open good 3's he gets but 2 of his 4 last night where just awful no chance to make 3's. The other two where good. 1 open in the corner from Rak out of the double which he missed. One wide open in transition which he made. Hmmm 1-2 on good attempts and 0-2 on really bad attempts. It seems shot selection is the biggest problem.

 

[jordoo]

BJ showed why WHEN he gets comfortable and the jump shot falls more often he will be a very good offensive player. He showed a good ball fake, great willingness and ability to pass to the bigs (although this also caused a couple of turnovers and he needs to understand when he just needs to take it himself), a good enough handle to get his own shot most of the time, a nice looking pull up that he missed and most of all an aggressive offensive mind set. Yes he almost shot about 5 open 3's and didn't which may seem like a hesitant mindset but its just him trying to assimilate what the coaches have told him since MSG and trying to distinguish a good shot from bad and more importantly a shot that is too quick when we can get something better.

I continue to be amazed at his rebounding for his slight build. 30lbs from now he looks to be a beast on the boards.

 

[OttoinGrotto]

BJ showed why WHEN he gets comfortable and the jump shot falls more often he will be a very good offensive player. He showed a good ball fake, great willingness and ability to pass to the bigs (although this also caused a couple of turnovers and he needs to understand when he just needs to take it himself), a good enough handle to get his own shot most of the time, a nice looking pull up that he missed and most of all an aggressive offensive mind set. Yes he almost shot about 5 open 3's and didn't which may seem like a hesitant mindset but its just him trying to assimilate what the coaches have told him since MSG and trying to distinguish a good shot from bad and more importantly a shot that is too quick when we can get something better.

I continue to be amazed at his rebounding for his slight build. 30lbs from now he looks to be a beast on the boards.

I feel like the rebounding and passing are way more advanced than the scoring, which is totally unexpected. Once he starts hitting shots I think he'll be a much better all around player than I expected at this stage.