A couple of game observations

[Bornorange]

My suggestion is that in practice, every time DC brings the ball down low - practice is stopped and electroshock applied.

They tried that with McNeil but it proved to be ineffective, he liked the shocks.

 

[007]

I view it as us really having three centers [Coleman, Rak, Keita], even though Rak might get a token start at the 4.

Also having three forwards [CJ, Grant, Roberson], all of whom are going to play.

Three guards [Ennis, Gbinije, Cooney, with Buss maybe getting some token time], and there's your 9 /10 player rotation.

Fully agree with almost all of this, most especially that Roberson is not a 5

Up until last year, I was reluctant to consider that any JB team could make it to the FF without an interior scoring threat. IMO, that was his best coaching...ever.

All three of the guys we have at the 5 are limited offensively. So, JB has to play the guy who, first and foremost, provides the best interior defense, including shot blocking - you can NOT play JB's 2-3 without a legitimate shot blocker because of all the ground the Fs are required to cover.

The next requisite at the 5 is rebounding. This could be mitigated somewhat by the insertion of Grant, who, IMO, is the best rebounder on the team, followed closely by Fair (great combination). On the other hand, MCW was an outstanding rebounder from the G spot in the zone and this will be a significant, and under appreciated loss. Silent G might be able to take up some of this slack.

Finally, the 5 has to bring energy.

Who provides the best combination of all 3 of those skills?? My guess is Kieta, but he will not start (doesn't really matter). Rak and DC will get their chances, and we probably will need all 15 fouls on some nights in the new league, especially on the road.

Which brings me back to Roberson. He can not defend the interior at 200 lbs. But, IF he can block shots, rebound, provide energy, AND provide an interior scoring threat...

 

[baggerbob]

Actually I thought Coleman played better on the wing then inside, he seemed more comfortable not being the last line of defense.

 

[cuseinseattle]

Thanks for the post. The biggest thing I took away was Grant making 2 3's and the Ennis stuff. I was hoping for that out of Ennis but it's good to hear and Grant having confidence to shoot a medium range jumper consistently let along 3's is awesome. IS IT NOVEMEBER YET!

 

[Quazzum69]

It's been less time since the end of last season to now than now to the end of this season.

The center position is the epitome of this team: versatility and depth. On any given night, Keita, Rak or Coleman could play really great and the chances that all three play awful are very low. No concern there.

Team scoring will not be a problem - Fair, Grant, Gbinije and Ennis will probably average 50 in total (Fair, Triche, MCW and Southerland combined for 56 last year in BE), not to mention at least 10 from the centers (Keita and Rak combined for 6.4 last year in BE). If we play at the same pace as last year, that's only nine points less per game than last year in conference play. If Cooney can actually shoot above .300 from three and 'Beast' or another freshman contribute, we should be competent on offense, which would be an improvement.

 

[General20]

I am going to channel my first post and say that I don't want to draw definitive conclusions from such a lopsided exhibition game. But none of the bigs looked appreciably better yesterday, at least offensively. Like you, I have hope that Coleman will make the sophomore jump, but some of the post moves exhibited by Rak looked really disappointing. Keita is what he is--hopefully he'll continue to sustain the improved level of play that he demonstrated last postseason. But Coleman looks like he might have at least some of the same issues he showed last year [bringing the ball too low, getting blocked, shying away from contact instead of putting his body on someone and initiating it as he goes up, etc.]

The problem is, center is a very important position for our team defensive concept. Rak played better there yesterday defensively than Coleman [again, very limited data set], but was lost on offense. Coleman played a little better offensively than Rak, but wasn't noticable defensively, in part because he got into early foul trouble.

I'm excited to see what Roberson can do, but I'm pretty well convinced that CJ / Grant will get the majority of PT at the forward positions -- and rightly so. Not sure that Grant / Roberson could handle the defensive responsibilities we require from center to run an effective zone [similar to why we couldn't really play Grant there last year for any appreciable length of time]. At approximately 200 pounds, I can't see Roberson being able to man the pivot this season, playing alongside those other two forwards. I know he's supposed to be a good rebounder, but...

I view it as us really having three centers [Coleman, Rak, Keita], even though Rak might get a token start at the 4.

Also having three forwards [CJ, Grant, Roberson], all of whom are going to play.

Three guards [Ennis, Gbinije, Cooney, with Buss maybe getting some token time], and there's your 9 /10 player rotation.

You are right, nobody but Coleman, Rak, and Keita is playing the 5 for Syracuse when it matters.

If Syracuse is going to have Roberson, Grant, and Fair on the court at the same time it will be with Fair at the 2.

 

[baggerbob]

Lets wait till these games are over, but someone who has had 2 years in the program, like Cooney has to play better then last night.