Ennis- PG in the ACC

[NineOneSeven]

As great as I think he is going to be, I hope people realize there will be struggles. Takes me back to last year with the mid-season posts about people saying they were ready for Ennis over MCW . Still can't wrap my head around that one.



Most freshman not named Carmelo have a learning curve , particularly PG's and centers. Considering he is our only true PG, we are going to be extremely reliant on this young kid.



Can't wait to watch him play, but considering our lack of PG depth/experience, this could get exposed in some games. That being said, compared to 95% of teams, we are in pretty decent shape I'd say. Go Orange!

 

[Cusefaninvirginia]

There will be a learning curve and some growing pains along the way, as there always seems to be with true freshmen playing starting roles, but I think even given that, Ennis will be as good as any PG in the ACC, with the possible exception of Quinn Cook. Otherwise Ennis will be right there with Eric Atkins and Marcus Paige, and hopefully by March a little better. Sure I'd like to have a little more depth as insurance against injuries and foul trouble, but aside from that, I think we are in good shape heading into the ACC.

 

[edowd26]

As great as I think he is going to be, I hope people realize there will be struggles. Takes me back to last year with the mid-season posts about people saying they were ready for Ennis over MCW . Still can't wrap my head around that one.



Most freshman not named Carmelo have a learning curve , particularly PG's and centers. Considering he is our only true PG, we are going to be extremely reliant on this young kid.



Can't wait to watch him play, but considering our lack of PG depth/experience, this could get exposed in some games. That being said, compared to 95% of teams, we are in pretty decent shape I'd say. Go Orange!

Hogwash. He will make Chris Paul look like Horace Grant running the point. We may not lose this season... I dunno I haven't decided yet.

 

[cusetown1]

If he struggles it will be unnoticeable because he will be playing with a beast of a front court.

 

[jordoo]

I'll worry once there is reason for now I'm excited and confident.

 

[orangefan13]

I view it differently.
MCW wasn't scoring in the lane at all to the last 1/3 of the season last year. Thats when his draft stock jumped. It was more his lack of ability at that point then a midseason swoon. Defenses got better and he couldn't find as many open players to create instant offense, as he drove to the midpost and passed off for the first half of the season at will.

1.I expect Ennis to match MCW ability to drive by his man. Hes not quite as fast as Mike, but is still really fast with better ball handling skills that will make up for Mikes speed. Like MCW's he will still need a screen against great defenders even the best pg's in college ball do. Mike Waters said in a Q/A the other day, the two isolation players on this team he thinks will be MCW and Ennis.That alone will put ennis ahead of 09-10 scoop, who didn't really break out the isolation ball skills to march of that year.

2. The key is can Ennis passing be better then MCW's. And two things have to happen to make that so.

A)Alot of emphasis will be put on the scorers he has to find, and how they can give ennis a instant assist after recieving the ball. I would say Ennis could have a edge in that this season over mcw as we have 2 outside shooters, and better post/midrange scoring as well as our off forward being able to score off the bounce and pound it midrange and in where Southerland couldn't. That is key. The only dimention mike had over Ennis was a SG who could pull up midrange off the dribble in Triche, and while they won't match Triche I like Gbinije/Bj's/Cooneys prospect of learning to do alittle bit of this by march.

B) Can Ennis score from Midrane is even a bigger question. Hes not going to get to the rim as atheltic as mike. Mike learned you have to have a midrange floater or jumper. Hes not quite as tall as mike and will depend more on a jumpshot midrange this year then a floater I think. hes got to either pull up with that jumpshot a step or two earlier or learn to extend his floater layups 5-6 feet back to beat the help defense. You have to make opponents double you to find the open man sometimes or once you drive as a pg with no midrange game you will end up like a deer in the headlights just insde the foul line. Without a midrange game even the best pg's aren't going to be elite in assists reguardless of how athletic, fast, and how much court vision they have.

As far as forcing passes, there will be some mess ups but not so many. Ennis is a general and a floor leader type of pg who plays more off understanding then the athletic force things transition feel that most young pg's play with. That shows a seniority maturity element to his understanding of the game. imo, the only thing that can stop him from being a true leader and not just a ball handler is pulling up from midrange 4-5 times a game at a good shooting percentage while maintaining the court passing vision. Hes got to much speed and handles in isolation otherwise.

 

[jekelish]

The one thing I think we'll see a major improvement in is fewer turnovers from the point guard position, by a pretty substantial amount. MCW was talented but made a lot of boneheaded decisions and got his pocket picked way too much, and I don't think we'll see nearly as much of that from Ennis.

 

[NineOneSeven]

The one thing I think we'll see a major improvement in is fewer turnovers from the point guard position, by a pretty substantial amount. MCW was talented but made a lot of boneheaded decisions and got his pocket picked way too much, and I don't think we'll see nearly as much of that from Ennis.

Probably not, but we also haven't seen him play a single game at this level that means anything.

 

[br801]

The one thing I think we'll see a major improvement in is fewer turnovers from the point guard position, by a pretty substantial amount. MCW was talented but made a lot of boneheaded decisions and got his pocket picked way too much, and I don't think we'll see nearly as much of that from Ennis.

Considering the amount of time he had the ball in his hands, on the whole MCW really didn't turn it over that much, IMO. But he did have a few awful games taking care of the ball (as did BT), and some of MCW's turnovers were so spectacular they were permanently etched in my mind.

All indications are that Ennis will be less of a high-risk/high-reward PG. Given he lacks a proven back-up, that can only be a good thing.

 

[CaptainSyracuse]

Probably not, but we also haven't seen him play a single game at this level that means anything.

If the new rules are adhered to by refs I believe Tyler will be much more successful because he will be less worn down by physical play. Time will tell how the refs will respond to the new rules.

 

[senorpalmer]

Considering the amount of time he had the ball in his hands, on the whole MCW really didn't turn it over that much, IMO. But he did have a few awful games taking care of the ball (as did BT), and some of MCW's turnovers were so spectacular that they got permanently etched in my mind.

All indications are that Ennis will be less of a high-risk/high-reward PG. Given he lacks a proven back-up, that can only be a good thing.

Along those lines, I also don't expect to see Ennis having the dreadful shooting nights that Mcw was prone to. For all his natural ability, Mcw himself was a work in progress last year, put into a role he had never been in. At his worst, he could really drive you nuts sometimes, though luckily he also brought a lot of positives to the table.

 

[realorange]

I expect Tyler to make more solid decisions than MCW. He might not be as good a passer, but they will be passes that are made with more thought. Bigs that are open and get passes that should be converted will not be on the floor very long if they don't.

 

[rstone7727]

Tyler will hit the ground running, he showed what he can do against two pretty good guards in the Carlton game. Are they ACC guards? No, but PG is not a position on this team I will worry about unless he goes down with an injury or is hit academically (not likely).

 

[Capt. Tuttle]

Can't wait for Joseph

Sent from my SCH-I200 using Tapatalk 2

 

[LGO85]

I have a good feeling about this kid. He looks like he's been playing collage bball for a few years. Very poised and collected. He doesn't show signs of having freshman jitters. I'm excited to see how he does this season.

 

[Knicks411]

Takes me back to last year with the mid-season posts about people saying they were ready for Ennis over MCW . Still can't wrap my head around that one.

Just wait for the first time Tyler shoots 1-7 with 6 TO or something. It's gonna happen, and the board is gonna explode.

but I think even given that, Ennis will be as good as any PG in the ACC, with the possible exception of Quinn Cook. Otherwise Ennis will be right there with Eric Atkins and Marcus Paige

This will be a really fun season if that is true

 

[orange2win]

It's more than just a Frosh learning curve, tactically teams will be zeroing in on him, knowing we have no serious replacement. They will try every nasty trick in the book to unsettle him. It will not be easy. If they find they are able to throw him off, JB will have to deal with it.

 

[jordoo]

It's more than just a Frosh learning curve, tactically teams will be zeroing in on him, knowing we have no serious replacement. They will try every nasty trick in the book to unsettle him. It will not be easy. If they find they are able to throw him off, JB will have to deal with it.

Ummm right because teams never try to take out yourmost important player? How manytimes did Melo foul out? Gmac? Jonny? Red? Pearl? Sherm?

Play the best players as much as you can . . . . cause it works and they get better. Especially with Ennis because there is really no replacement for him this year. So get him used to it and used to avoiding fouls. Kids 19 stop with the tierd sheet please! I've been tierd as long as I can remember but it never stopped mefrom puffing tuff of doing any physical activity I wanted to. Kids recover fast we don't.

 

[br801]

Along those lines, I also don't expect to see Ennis having the dreadful shooting nights that Mcw was prone to. For all his natural ability, Mcw himself was a work in progress last year, put into a role he had never been in. At his worst, he could really drive you nuts sometimes, though luckily he also brought a lot of positives to the table.

Yes, after playing sparingly as a freshman, MCW brought enough positives to the table as a sophomore to help get the team to a Final Four. Can't ask for much more than that.

As for Ennis, there will almost certainly be games where his shot is off or where by necessity he needs to be more aggressive offensively and things don't go smoothly for him. As talented and poised as he looks on the court, to expect otherwise is really setting the bar way too high.

 

[senorpalmer]

Yes, after playing sparingly as a freshman, MCW brought enough positives to the table as a sophomore to help get the team to a Final Four. Can't ask for much more than that.

As for Ennis, there will almost certainly be games where his shot is off or where by necessity he needs to be more aggressive offensively and things don't go smoothly for him. As talented and poised as he looks on the court, to expect otherwise is really setting the bar way too high.

Just to clarify, Mcw went thru stretches last season where he was taking more shots than anyone on the team, and often converting at terrible rates, ex. 2-12, 3-15 type of stuff. Ennis will inevitably have some bad shooting nights, but I would not expect him to take as many shots, let alone miss as many.

 

[RF2044]

Just to clarify, Mcw went thru stretches last season where he was taking more shots than anyone on the team, and often converting at terrible rates, ex. 2-12, 3-15 type of stuff. Ennis will inevitably have some bad shooting nights, but I would not expect him to take as many shots, let alone miss as many.

Ennis might not have to be as much of a scorer as MCW was relied upon to be, if the team's overall offense is better this year. Last season, we often struggled to score points, and MCW had to make things happen.

MCW was also a great zone defender. Not a good one, a great one--mostly due to his freakish size, length, and anticipatory instincts. Ennis has big shoes to fill in that regard.

But having seen Ennis in practice recently, I'm very confident that he's going to be up to the challenge. He's a different player than MCW. Doesn't make him better or worse, just different. From what I heard that day at practice, it doesn't sound like the staff expects him to be a four year player--so draw your own conclusions about how they view his potential.

 

[br801]

Just to clarify, Mcw went thru stretches last season where he was taking more shots than anyone on the team, and often converting at terrible rates, ex. 2-12, 3-15 type of stuff. Ennis will inevitably have some bad shooting nights, but I would not expect him to take as many shots, let alone miss as many.

I agree we are unlikely to see any of those train wreck shooting nights from Ennis.

And my comment about setting the bar too high for Ennis wasn't intended for you specifically, but more as a general observation about a lot of posts I've read on here lately. I think Ennis will ultimately be a very fine PG, but I'm willing to give him time to develop.

 

[weedsportwarriors]

I will go out on a limb and say that Ennis will be on the All ACC freshman team and might crack the all ACC 2nd team. I truly believe he will average around 8-10 points a game and 7 assists to only 3 t/o. With the offense we have around him if they hit their shots, 7 assists should come fairly easily with 36 minutes a game.

 

[cpatrocks]

I'm just happy we won't hear the Lord & Taylor chants this year.

 

[Waltdods]

Ennis might not have to be as much of a scorer as MCW was relied upon to be, if the team's overall offense is better this year. Last season, we often struggled to score points, and MCW had to make things happen.

I think this is a big question mark. As you point out, some of the MCW forcing shots was a result of the offense being less than spectacular. There are some reasons to expect this year's will be better. But there's really only one guy who's proven he can score consistently at the college level (Fair, obviously). As high as we all are on Grant, there's no guarantee he's going to be able to translate the potential into being a double-digit scorer as a sophomore.

And even if Grant or even Roberson is a legit second option (I tend to think JG will be), he and Fair will do most of their damage within 10 feet of the basket. Keita's likely to play a lot, and he is realistically not much of an offensive threat. I don't think we can expect Coleman or Christmas to be much of one either.

If Cooney and/or (less likely) Gbinje can be a consistent perimeter threat, then Ennis probably can just play field general for the most part. But if that doesn't happen, teams are going to collapse on Fair and Grant, mostly ignore Keita, and force Ennis to do things himself. He's almost going to need to take a lot of shots.