Duke Thoughts...

[Cusefan0307]

I agree but I don't think we can be good without him being productive.

Benny has played 69 career games and scored double figures 12 times and had 3 games with double digit rebounds.

Taylor has played 43 games, scored double digits 8 times and had double digit rebounds once.

Bell has played 44 games and scored double digit points 14 times.

The board thinks Benny is better than he is. He’s just as inconsistent as the other guys.

 

[SU91]

I agree. Z Sims was a guard who I wished would shoot a little more but he helped us get to the championship game. This guard will probably never play in and NCAA tournament game unless his mindset changes.
It's tough to watch the constant NBA audition.

I don’t think he’s auditioning for the NBA so much as this is the player he is. He’s not really a point guard in the true sense. This is what you’re going to get out of him because this is essentially his game. I think those waiting for him to blossom will remain disappointed.

 

[capeorange]

I don’t think he’s auditioning for the NBA so much as this is the player he is. He’s not really a point guard in the true sense. This is what you’re going to get out of him because this is essentially his game. I think those waiting for him to blossom will remain disappointed.

Believe me, I'm not waiting for him to blossom. I wish Red would move him to the 2. I'm not holding my breath waiting for him to run the offense and set up others with a drive and dish. He's a good baller but not a good point guard.

 

[FrancoPizza]

Maybe it's just me, but I feel like we're switching too easily at times on the perimeter. It's not easy to fight through screens but still something I'd like to see.

This. I see other teams hedging a lot more than switching. Switching is easier, doesn't mean it's always the right decision.

 

[CardiacCuse]

Yeah he played the entire game. 3 points in the first half. 2 quick buckets in the second half for 7 points. Then literally did nothing until he hit a layup at the very very end.

JJ needs more volume ...for whatever reason, he defers...but the coaches need to forcefeed him shots

he can score a lot more than he is.

 

[CardiacCuse]

To be fair, I noticed Red calling a bunch of plays and then the offense completely bungling them up with execution issues. Frequently terrible passes. Guys not sealing defenders. Fumbling passes. Etc. execution was piss poor.

i can beleive this...they are more "freestylers"

maybe stick to 1 or 2 plays per week...until they get them down

 

[CardiacCuse]

He literally cannot dribble or pass or shoot

he had a really bad game...but he can dribbble and pass

problem was Duke took away the drive and closed down passing lanes in a way he wasnt used to...and he didnt adapt. just keptplaying like he "normally" does vs teams that give more space.

 

[Fly Rodder]

this is why I liked Symir last season. Ran offense, was a distributor. Would rather have a pg that creates offense for others.

Symir has backup QB reputation. Looks good for a few minutes but gets exposed soon after.

This years roster is just a bit of a mess with a lot of similar players. The staff did the best job that they could, I guess, but it's hard to completely revamp the roster in a few months especially when the new coach has existing relationships with most of the guys already on the team. I think at the halfway point, we know what we have and Red is playing everyone who can play and then some. I thought Straughn was supposed to bring someone with him, Justin Moore(?) as a shooter, and while he's not exactly lighting it up for 'Nova, it would be nice to have him here.

 

[CardiacCuse]

Benny has played 69 career games and scored double figures 12 times and had 3 games with double digit rebounds.

Taylor has played 43 games, scored double digits 8 times and had double digit rebounds once.

Bell has played 44 games and scored double digit rebounds 14 times.

The board thinks Benny is better than he is. He’s just as inconsistent as the other guys.

hes had good games against Duke before though...have bell and taylor?

Benny was just a better matchup for this game...but gluing him to the bench until mid 2nd half isnt exactly the recipe for getting him going, is it?

i mean, should he be ready to come in late in the game to change it? i guess

i think its going to rare to see him have a good game if you barely play him until the 4th quarter...and that goes for most players.

 

[shandeezy7]

Believe me, I'm not waiting for him to blossom. I wish Red would move him to the 2. I'm not holding my breath waiting for him to run the offense and set up others with a drive and dish. He's a good baller but not a good point guard.

If he moves to the 2, who plays point? This team has no true point guard on the roster.

 

[shandeezy7]

hes had good games against Duke before though...have bell and taylor?

Benny was just a better matchup for this game...but gluing him to the bench until mid 2nd half isnt exactly the recipe for getting him going, is it?

i mean, should he be ready to come in late in the game to change it? i guess

i think its going to rare to see him have a good game if you barely play him until the 4th quarter...and that goes for most players.

Benny had one good game against Duke, which we lost by 25. The other two games he played against Duke prior to last night, he scored 4 points and 0 points, respectively. Both also 20+ point losses.

 

[CardiacCuse]

Benny has played 69 career games and scored double figures 12 times and had 3 games with double digit rebounds.

Taylor has played 43 games, scored double digits 8 times and had double digit rebounds once.

Bell has played 44 games and scored double digit rebounds 14 times.

The board thinks Benny is better than he is. He’s just as inconsistent as the other guys.

bell has not gotten 14 double digit rebounds

how many games has benny gotten 30 minutes? i bet less than the other 2.

regardless, its pick your poison situation at the spot.

I still sway towards benny, amongst the 4, because the other 3 have serious physical limitations that make them total non factors vs the big boys.

bennys size at least will always allow him to shoot and score vs anyone...

 

[Cusefan0307]

hes had good games against Duke before though...have bell and taylor?

Benny was just a better matchup for this game...but gluing him to the bench until mid 2nd half isnt exactly the recipe for getting him going, is it?

i mean, should he be ready to come in late in the game to change it? i guess

i think its going to rare to see him have a good game if you barely play him until the 4th quarter...and that goes for most players.

He played 4 less minutes than Taylor last night and had one more point and one more rebound. He’s scored 0, 2, and 4 points the last 3 times against them.

He had 14 and 6 in a game 2 years ago against them. That was so long ago I have zero idea why anyone is hanging their hat on that. He hasn’t improved at all since he’s been here.

 

[CardiacCuse]

He played 4 less minutes than Taylor last night and had one more point and one more rebound. He’s scored 0, 2, and 4 points the last 3 times against them.

He had 14 and 6 in a game 2 years ago against them. That was so long ago I have zero idea why anyone is hanging their hat on that. He hasn’t improved at all since he’s been here.

Taylor looks ike hes gotten worse

Benny has had good games against better teams than Taylor has

i did say it is pick your poison, didn't I?

last game I wouldve gone with taylor and benny and benched the other 2

 

[Ozone!]

We need reliable shooters, which we clearly don’t have. At this point, we need to realize what we have. A team like Duke is loaded with top end talent, thanks mostly to retired Coach K.
Also, it will take time for the coaches to instill, in the players, their style and to actually run the plays Coach asks for, during timeouts.
This year, it will be a work in progress and we need to win our home games and enough road wins to seen as March Madness worthy!

 

[IthacaMatt]

Umm id rather compare this team to last years team than cherry pick a weird worst case comparison scenario. Louisville roster and coaching transition was nothing like ours

Yes, but coaching changes bring risk, especially when the program had been sliding in Boeheim's last few years. Autry was hardly a "sure thing", and we took chances on a bunch of portal guys coming off injuries. We could easily be sub-.500 if someone else took over this group. Hell, we could have been sub-.500 right now, if he hadn't sat down Benny twice, but then successfully brought him back into the team.

I don’t disagree that he won’t go, but I don’t think he’s much better than last year and if that’s the case then the case can be made that he’d probably make more in NIL money than he would going pro.

Well, he barely shot 30% from three after a late flurry of making shots toward the end of last season. This year, he is more dependable, he's scoring more and he's getting to the line a ton. So, by the stats, you would be wrong. He has improved.

 

[dcw914]

Playing devil's advocate, I'm not sure the issue is the true talent on this roster and more about the talent just hasn't fully materialized or become consistent enough yet. I'm sure a lot of that has to do with youth, but also guys still learning how to play together. Not to mention Red isn't exactly consistent with his lineups or rotations so often times I think guys are trying to figure it out in real time. That isn't conducive to success against the Tennessee's, Duke's, and Gonzaga's of the world.

They're all still growing and these are the unfortunate growing pains against top competition. Quadir went from ACC player of the week to a bad-shot turnover machine last night. Chris Bell went from scoring 16+ points earlier in the season to a shell of himself recently. Justin Taylor fluctuates his impact on a game by game basis. Same with Benny. JJ too gives you two good games, then two bad. And everyone just listed except Benny is a sophmore, it's okay to still be learning and growing and I don't meant to say that as an excuse... it's just the reality of this team.

What to do about it? There's no easy answer but I think some more rigid minutes distribution and standardized lineups would help. I'd look to reduce Bell and Mcleod's minutes to the level of Kyle Cuffe. Those three are the 7,8,9 in the rotation and can give you spot minutes (more if they're hot or making an impact like Cuffe during the Oregon game). Rely on your best 6 of Judah, JJ, Quadir, Benny, JT, and Maliq. It's a flawed group but in my opinion the best bet to give this a team a shot at the postseason.

As a positive from last night, Maliq was sensational and I think you can certainly plan to play through him more. He deserves to have the ball in his hands quite a bit and would even probably have him enter the starting lineup. Lastly, I think it's interesting that JT had the best +/- on the team last night. I thought he played some pretty solid D and even though he gave next to nothing on the offensive end, I still think he's doing a lot of little things that help this team. I feel a lot better having him higher in the pecking order than Bell and just hope his offense starts to come along for the end of season. Lots of season left, I expect this group to keep fighting. Go Orange.

 

[Cusefan0307]

bell has not gotten 14 double digit rebounds

how many games has benny gotten 30 minutes? i bet less than the other 2.

regardless, its pick your poison situation at the spot.

I still sway towards benny, amongst the 4, because the other 3 have serious physical limitations that make them total non factors vs the big boys.

bennys size at least will always allow him to shoot and score vs anyone...

I said points for Bell, not rebounds. Benny averaged more minutes than both until this year and we know why that is. Benny has had 4 points or less 19 times in the past 40 games. He’s no different than the other two.

 

[Cstate]

Well, he barely shot 30% from three after a late flurry of making shots toward the end of last season. This year, he is more dependable, he's scoring more and he's getting to the line a ton. So, by the stats, you would be wrong. He has improved.

Judah has improved at one thing and one thing only from last season…. he takes and makes more free throws per game. Nothing else has improved! And for those that think differently, need to take the Orange colored glasses off. The 3 point shooting argument just isn’t there…..he has made ONE three pointer in the last FIVE games since the Cornell (not exactly good defenders) 5/7 outburst. He is at 36% on very low volume. Take away the Cornell game and he is at 28%, basically were he was last year. His assist to turnover ratio is getting dangerously close to the 1:1 ratio.

 

[Jeremy L.]

Any team that shoots 75% from the field and 100% from three in the second half is going to steamroll their opponent

 

[Cusefan0307]

Taylor looks ike hes gotten worse

Benny has had good games against better teams than Taylor has

i did say it is pick your poison, didn't I?

last game I wouldve gone with taylor and benny and benched the other 2

He hasn’t. He’s just the guy you’re most fixated on. His rebounding and defense have improved quite a bit. He just can’t score consistently like the other guys.

We have a roster full of misfits outside of Maliq Brown.

 

[Cuseball]

Any team that shoots 75% from the field and 100% from three in the second half is going to steamroll their opponent

Yes and any team that allows that to happen is not playing good individual or team defense. If we can’t consistently shoot we really need to lock down on defense and that’s not happening against quality opponents.

Cuse!

 

[MikeSU02]

Chris Bell has started 44 games in his career. Started 44. All of them. His TS% is less than 51% for his career and it's 48.5% this year. That's awful. He barely does anything other than shoot. If he's not making threes, it's over.

Here's the problem: We have three guys this year under 50% TS that play. That is awful. Benny is under 51%.

Bell is a problem, period, end of story. But so are others. I'm just using Bell as an example.

The team is incomplete. We're really flawed from a roster standpoint because of whatever reason and it's going to take some time to fix this.

The best players we have are: Judah... then Maliq... then there are a few guys that will sporadically be good most likely against inferior competition. The last group, let's be honest, if we were a legit team, aren't playing.

If we're rolling JT and Bell together in our starting lineup, we're not a serious team.

 

[Scooch]

He literally cannot dribble or pass or shoot

Q? He can dribble and pass. He did both at times just last night. His shooting is not great.

 

[M2MPrinciples]

Yeah, the margin of losses will keep us out if we’re on the bubble. Computers lack context.

Our KenPom ranking dropped from 83rd to 85th.
Our NET ranking dropped from 78th to 79th.
Our Torvik ranking dropped from 81st to 84th.
Our Evan Miya ranking stayed at 72nd.

There just isn't much evidence to support the idea that teams get significantly punished for losing convincingly to teams they're expected to lose convincingly to, at least not by computer metrics. I suppose if we keep getting blown out by good teams like Duke and UVA we won't get in, but in that case it won't be the MOV that keeps us out.