I would love a player like John Mooney on our team

[Caboose]

Yeah, but neither of those guys took a shot outside of 5 feet

We didn't need them to do that.

 

[Lucid]

That lob to Chukwu was quite literally unbelievable to watch.

Ok, fine, you can’t covert the alley-opp, no worries. You’re over 7 feet tall... basic stuff... come down with the ball, keep it above your head, and go right back up with it. I mean, even if he was skilled, gathering like he did is stuff you teach middle school kids not to do.

If I were a coach, I'd make Pascal watch the video of that over and over until he pukes. Call it the Clockwork Orange style of coaching.

 

[xc84]

no love or Andre Hawkins here?

 

[CuseFaninVT]

That lob to Chukwu was quite literally unbelievable to watch.

Ok, fine, you can’t covert the alley-opp, no worries. You’re over 7 feet tall... basic stuff... come down with the ball, keep it above your head, and go right back up with it. I mean, even if he was skilled, gathering like he did is stuff you teach middle school kids not to do.

It's literally the thing I said before the season that I hoped I'd never see again. I say again because he did that last year four or five times, minimum. So no, it was not unbelievable to watch. It was exactly what we've seen from chewy for years.

Never recruit a tall non basketball player again. Please.

 

[br801]

It's literally the thing I said before the season that I hoped I'd never see again. I say again because he did that last year four or five times, minimum. So no, it was not unbelievable to watch. It was exactly what we've seen from chewy for years.

Never recruit a tall non basketball player again. Please.

You'll be singing a different tune when he unleashes some of these moves against Duke and UNC...

 

[CuseFaninVT]

You'll be singing a different tune when unleashes some of these moves against Duke and UNC...

Clearly. They'll also be carting me off to the nut house if that actually happens.

I'm laughing to myself trying to think of who could wear a full body Chewy suit and pull that off. Durant?

 

[br801]

Clearly. They'll also be carting me off to the nut house if that actually happens.

I'm laughing to myself trying to think of who could wear a full body Chewy suit and pull that off. Durant?

Wilt was pretty smooth for 7'1 or 7'2

 

[pfister1]

That lob to Chukwu was quite literally unbelievable to watch.

Ok, fine, you can’t covert the alley-opp, no worries. You’re over 7 feet tall... basic stuff... come down with the ball, keep it above your head, and go right back up with it. I mean, even if he was skilled, gathering like he did is stuff you teach middle school kids not to do.

If I am remembering the play correctly it became unbelievable when it went from just not being able to convert the scoring opportunity to giving away a foul trying to recover the ball that had been fumbled away.

 

[realorange]

Wilt was a great athlete and not just a basketball player. Those of us who saw his play back in the day would tell you that as well as how strong he was.
I've told the story before, but John Havlichek said when he was a rookie NBA player he was determined to stop Wilt from dunking a ball. He grabbed Wilt's shooting arm with both hands and said he had to let go or Wilt would have put him in the basket as well.

 

[AlaskaSU]

Forth and Chewy are both on my All-Elmer Fudd S.U. list (missed bunnies).

I remember Seikaly missing a bunnie as a frosh so bad that he brought the house down. Anyone remember what game that was?

 

[bozophobe]

I remember Seikaly missing a bunnie as a frosh so bad that he brought the house down. Anyone remember what game that was?

I don't remember which game, but I do recall Boeheim pulling him quite a few times for a fairly intense talking-to.

 

[CousCuse]

What about Etan?

 

[orangepassion]

The problem is when we do pass to him or Chukwu they score about 25% of the time when wide open. I mean that lob to Chukwu and that subsequent pass to Sidibe were embarrassing to watch. These guys are struggling to catch a pass and finish a layup. It's hard to get them more involved in the offense when even a simple pass becomes an adventure

I agree with you about Chukwu, but not about Sidibe. He's shown glimpses both this year and last year. However, b/c he so rarely gets the ball, I believe he is pressing when he does get it. Anyone who's played the game at any level knows that confidence is huge when it comes to shooting. When no one is passing you the ball, it's hard to shoot with confidence.

 

[RF2044]

No offense but seeing him in high school, especially a center, it's very difficult to predict success. The best college coaches have trouble scouting centers, just because you saw him play doesn't really matter or mean anything to me.

Luckily in basketball and other sports there are statistics to measure a player's skill level and it seems pretty clear where MDs is, he wasn't even great for the juco he played for and hasnt done much since high school, some guys peek early and don't develop, he can be one of those guys.

Statistics are an incredibly poor way to evaluate a high school prospect's potential -- especially for bigs. It is far more important IMO to look for both athleticism and skill sets that are translatable to the next level. And Diange was a big, strong kid who excelled scoring inside with either hand, had jump hooks with both hands, was comfortable turning over either shoulder, etc. Really, he was atypical of the types of bigs we usually get -- a big, strong kid with a solid feel for low post offense, instead of a shot blocking jumping jack who doesn't do much else.

The OP in this thread expressed how it would be nice to have somebody like that -- a 6-9 240 pound guy. I was merely pointing out that we did, but got screwed over by the NCAA.

I definitely agree that his performance at the collegiate level has been underwhelming, putting it mildly, but I don't agree with your conclusion that it was because he wasn't that good or peaked early or was just a man among boys at the HS level. This is a kid who not only had the tools, but he thrived playing at a high level of competition, and excelled against other top 100 caliber bigs when he went head to head.

Him getting poor coaching and playing against randoms at some community college was a huge setback for his developmental curve. If he'd come here, he would play against better competition in practice every day than what he gets in games at that level -- and it stunted his growth.

Really too bad -- he could have been a quality player here.

 

[CardiacCuse]

That’s simply not true re: Mooney. You can’t turn one or two possessions of a chicken wing and proclaim it’s happening every possession. The slightest bump and Sidibe/Marek/Chukwu pinball around from a guy like Mooney. He’s the kind of player who really makes our beanpoles look bad. He’s not great by any stretch nor could he play in JB’s zone but we see guys like him completely outclass our frontline. That’s how bad it is. He can seal those guys off and box out easily. The big from ODU did the same thing. Besides, our guys are told not to box out and they do not know how to bang and be physical. It’s almost a foreign thing.

we saw a different game - I saw at least 5 plays that could've been called offensive fouls on Mooney (plays that have been called against the SU centers)...he lowered his shoulder forced contact plowed into the defender and somehow that got him to the free throw line several times. ANY time chukwu, sidibe etc do that it's a foul - 100% of the time.

if they are gonna let the bigs bang off each other that's one thing - but it should be balanced. both sides should be able to do it - not just the irish cuz they are at home. to me, it seems like the SU bigs routinely get a shorter leash in terms of contact from refs...maybe that's my orange-colored glasses...

I think the refs call things way too tight in the NCAA this year and lately - if the contact creates an advantage that's when it should be a foul - not just on incidental contact that does not impact the outcome of the play. for whatever reason, the SU bigs get soo many of these incidental fouls that are not even intentional or for any strategic reason...and a lot of it is their own fault for being uncoordinated but in turn they are told to shy away from any contact - but still end up getting a lot of fouls in the process of trying to avoid them. Dolezaj is just reckless in some cases but the other 2 are trying to not "foul" but can't.

 

[Eric15]

Wilt was pretty smooth for 7'1 or 7'2

That's what 20,000 shes said.

 

[xc84]

we saw a different game - I saw at least 5 plays that could've been called offensive fouls on Mooney (plays that have been called against the SU centers)...he lowered his shoulder forced contact plowed into the defender and somehow that got him to the free throw line several times. ANY time chukwu, sidibe etc do that it's a foul - 100% of the time.

if they are gonna let the bigs bang off each other that's one thing - but it should be balanced. both sides should be able to do it - not just the irish cuz they are at home. to me, it seems like the SU bigs routinely get a shorter leash in terms of contact from refs...maybe that's my orange-colored glasses...

I think the refs call things way too tight in the NCAA this year and lately - if the contact creates an advantage that's when it should be a foul - not just on incidental contact that does not impact the outcome of the play. for whatever reason, the SU bigs get soo many of these incidental fouls that are not even intentional or for any strategic reason.

I agree...and I think the refereeing has got worse the last few years. I do like they they seem to agree on what I deem to be a travel call. I call it before they do at about an 80% rate.

 

[xc84]

That's what 20,000 shes said.

Wilt's house in Bel Air has been renovated and is on the market in case anyone needs that kind of pad to bring the lady's to. $19M.

 

[SoBeCuse]

we saw a different game - I saw at least 5 plays that could've been called offensive fouls on Mooney (plays that have been called against the SU centers)...he lowered his shoulder forced contact plowed into the defender and somehow that got him to the free throw line several times. ANY time chukwu, sidibe etc do that it's a foul - 100% of the time.

if they are gonna let the bigs bang off each other that's one thing - but it should be balanced. both sides should be able to do it - not just the irish cuz they are at home. to me, it seems like the SU bigs routinely get a shorter leash in terms of contact from refs...maybe that's my orange-colored glasses...

I think the refs call things way too tight in the NCAA this year and lately - if the contact creates an advantage that's when it should be a foul - not just on incidental contact that does not impact the outcome of the play. for whatever reason, the SU bigs get soo many of these incidental fouls that are not even intentional or for any strategic reason...and a lot of it is their own fault for being uncoordinated but in turn they are told to shy away from any contact - but still end up getting a lot of fouls in the process of trying to avoid them. Dolezaj is just reckless in some cases but the other 2 are trying to not "foul" but can't.

We definitely saw a different game. I didn’t really see any of the lowering of the shoulder by Mooney. Certainly not to the point of warranting a foul. I saw some initiating contact which is fine but our guys can’t even hold up there. Also, our bigs rarely will get called for those types of plays because they seldom happen. They don’t get the ball enough. When they do get it they are so uncoordinated that when they make a move they walk or it becomes a a tougher shot because they get themselves in a bind. On D they are both bringing their arms down too much raking guys against the arms/hands or reaching in. Most teams have stronger guys in the paint neutralizing Mooney’s move and offering some resistance. I think because they are so weak in the lower body and barely offer any resistance they get dislodged too easily thus making it appear that Mooney and others are committing offensive fouls. Not the case, IMO. It’s happened in many games. They just can’t hold their ground.