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Scout Team
- Joined
- Aug 29, 2011
- Messages
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grades from the scrimmages, imo:
Melo, A-. Huge improvement, obviously. Super mobile, is doing a good job keeping his feet on the ground. Flops too often. Gave up two layups by fishing low for the ball instead of simply putting his hands up. Got turned around and fell in transition defense. Ought to stay at home in the paint a bit more. His jump shot was good, but he took one off balance shot when he probably should have taken the ball to the rim. The high-low pass off of Xmas's foot was not great. As much as I love Fair, and hope CJ becomes our best player, right now Melo is the guy.
Waiters, B+. Dion made the most plays out of all of our guards and wings. He looked good in man, and made a lot of plays. Impressive rebound. As a tongue-in-cheek insult, Waiters is definitely decisive with the ball. He is a very good scorer, and if none of our guards are going to make plays for others, Waiters might be the best horse to ride.
Carter-Williams, B+. MCW's shots fell and his length created havoc on defense. He looked smooth and controlled to the basket, and also had poise starting the break. Like the rest of the guards, he didn't do anything to set up his teammates. On the one hand, I love how confident, quick and natural he look draining deep threes. On the other hand, we don't need more 25 footers, and I hope that making these early shots doesn't solidify a bad habit of shooting deeper than we have to.
Keita, B. BMK was really active and decisive. He went right to his post move when he got the ball in deep. He got pushed around on the blocks twice that I saw, but he was excellent on first and second jumps, keeping his hands up, position defense, and general awareness. He showed some issues with his hands on a couple of passes- I wonder if it was injury related, or if he just needs to improve catching the ball. He still seems lost on transition offense.
Fair, B. CJ was less decisive than usual, shuffling his feet and flubbing a couple of passes on offense, and falling behind the action a bit on defense. Showed a very solid shot. Didn't mix it up on the boards or on the floor as much as usual. Might be looking for his offense a bit. Had a great block that demonstrated how quickly he processes information.
Joseph, B-. Kris scored pretty well, cleaning up a few broken plays with smart moves to the hoop. Unfortunately, he did not look money on his perimeter shot, nor did he look explosive with his first step. Ultimately, I think KJo is a top tier shooter and a guy who could get to the line a lot, but I'm worried about his bounce. It will be hard to know what we'll get from KJo this year until he returns to full health. Still doesn't close out on the perimeter well.
Jardine, B-. Scoop did a few things well, hitting a three, taking the ball to the rim, and doing a good job taking rebounds and outlet passes and getting into transition. His transition offense decision making, however, was very poor. The national media incorrectly says that Scoop is very good in transition, but he really struggles in transition unless he connects on an alley-oop. Scoop's alley-oop to Triche was a lot of fun, but too frequently he wastes transition opportunities by dribbling into lane congestion and then fumbling off an indecisive pass. Scoop's half court play making was mostly non-existent, but none of the other guards created either, and Scoop is showing some promising discipline feeding the bigs the ball. Scoop simply misses way too many free throws, and it is a major reason why he is less efficient than Triche and Waiters, despite similar numbers from the floor.
A championship caliber lead guard would have carved Saint Rose up on the break, putting us up 20 in the first half, and never looking back. Instead, we fumbled our way to a solid win, by chunking in some deep bombs from 25 feet. We didn't run a good half court offense, and we didn't look sharp in transition. I like Scoop's attitude and demeanor so far, but he has a ways to go, let's hope he gets there and brings us along.
Triche, B-. Brandon was quick and decisive, but he wasn't all that productive with his shots and didn't create. His defense and team play were solid, but not game changing. He did get to the rim easily when he decided to work an iso, but so did the other guards, as one would expect against Saint Rose. It seems that the days of debating between only Scoop and Triche as Syracuse's best guard are over. I feel that Triche can become a special college lead guard, but he has yet to command the offense.
Cooney, B-. Cooney's less one dimensional than I thought, but still too one dimensional to offer much other than shooting to a team this good. He looked great shooting. His handle looks very solid, his energy is great, and he is ready for the speed of the game. Looks like he might have taken the lead for the #10 spot.
Christmas, C+. Rak didn't quite look as above the rim tonight as he has previously, despite some nice dunks. One one play, Xmas went up high to make a catch, then had a quick second jump to slam one home over two St. Rose defenders, but as impressive as that highlight was, I was kind of disappointed he was laboring through St. Rose defenders instead of soaring over them. Later, Xmas had two follow shot opportunities that could have been dunks, but turned into bunny shots and tips. Christmas fought for position all night, and Cuse guards failed to get him the ball when he did open up opportunities in the lane. He was solid, but didn't really make his mark on the boards or with blocks. He has much better hands and finishing skills than Keita, but otherwise seems a bit behind: but that is only because Melo and Keita have looked so good.
Southerland, C-. His shot takes so long to get off. He doesn't have the feet or handle to really get involved in the offense besides shooting and dunking. He did rebound well, but is slow defensively. Seems like he is hurting his chances to beat out TC as the #10, although I think Southerland will be given plenty of chances to win the #10 spot and I'd guess he will probably win. He can put up points in bunches and is dangerous in transition.
Mookie, D+. Looked very slow. Hit a three, but didn't show the all around game needed to see the court. Shaky handle.
Melo, A-. Huge improvement, obviously. Super mobile, is doing a good job keeping his feet on the ground. Flops too often. Gave up two layups by fishing low for the ball instead of simply putting his hands up. Got turned around and fell in transition defense. Ought to stay at home in the paint a bit more. His jump shot was good, but he took one off balance shot when he probably should have taken the ball to the rim. The high-low pass off of Xmas's foot was not great. As much as I love Fair, and hope CJ becomes our best player, right now Melo is the guy.
Waiters, B+. Dion made the most plays out of all of our guards and wings. He looked good in man, and made a lot of plays. Impressive rebound. As a tongue-in-cheek insult, Waiters is definitely decisive with the ball. He is a very good scorer, and if none of our guards are going to make plays for others, Waiters might be the best horse to ride.
Carter-Williams, B+. MCW's shots fell and his length created havoc on defense. He looked smooth and controlled to the basket, and also had poise starting the break. Like the rest of the guards, he didn't do anything to set up his teammates. On the one hand, I love how confident, quick and natural he look draining deep threes. On the other hand, we don't need more 25 footers, and I hope that making these early shots doesn't solidify a bad habit of shooting deeper than we have to.
Keita, B. BMK was really active and decisive. He went right to his post move when he got the ball in deep. He got pushed around on the blocks twice that I saw, but he was excellent on first and second jumps, keeping his hands up, position defense, and general awareness. He showed some issues with his hands on a couple of passes- I wonder if it was injury related, or if he just needs to improve catching the ball. He still seems lost on transition offense.
Fair, B. CJ was less decisive than usual, shuffling his feet and flubbing a couple of passes on offense, and falling behind the action a bit on defense. Showed a very solid shot. Didn't mix it up on the boards or on the floor as much as usual. Might be looking for his offense a bit. Had a great block that demonstrated how quickly he processes information.
Joseph, B-. Kris scored pretty well, cleaning up a few broken plays with smart moves to the hoop. Unfortunately, he did not look money on his perimeter shot, nor did he look explosive with his first step. Ultimately, I think KJo is a top tier shooter and a guy who could get to the line a lot, but I'm worried about his bounce. It will be hard to know what we'll get from KJo this year until he returns to full health. Still doesn't close out on the perimeter well.
Jardine, B-. Scoop did a few things well, hitting a three, taking the ball to the rim, and doing a good job taking rebounds and outlet passes and getting into transition. His transition offense decision making, however, was very poor. The national media incorrectly says that Scoop is very good in transition, but he really struggles in transition unless he connects on an alley-oop. Scoop's alley-oop to Triche was a lot of fun, but too frequently he wastes transition opportunities by dribbling into lane congestion and then fumbling off an indecisive pass. Scoop's half court play making was mostly non-existent, but none of the other guards created either, and Scoop is showing some promising discipline feeding the bigs the ball. Scoop simply misses way too many free throws, and it is a major reason why he is less efficient than Triche and Waiters, despite similar numbers from the floor.
A championship caliber lead guard would have carved Saint Rose up on the break, putting us up 20 in the first half, and never looking back. Instead, we fumbled our way to a solid win, by chunking in some deep bombs from 25 feet. We didn't run a good half court offense, and we didn't look sharp in transition. I like Scoop's attitude and demeanor so far, but he has a ways to go, let's hope he gets there and brings us along.
Triche, B-. Brandon was quick and decisive, but he wasn't all that productive with his shots and didn't create. His defense and team play were solid, but not game changing. He did get to the rim easily when he decided to work an iso, but so did the other guards, as one would expect against Saint Rose. It seems that the days of debating between only Scoop and Triche as Syracuse's best guard are over. I feel that Triche can become a special college lead guard, but he has yet to command the offense.
Cooney, B-. Cooney's less one dimensional than I thought, but still too one dimensional to offer much other than shooting to a team this good. He looked great shooting. His handle looks very solid, his energy is great, and he is ready for the speed of the game. Looks like he might have taken the lead for the #10 spot.
Christmas, C+. Rak didn't quite look as above the rim tonight as he has previously, despite some nice dunks. One one play, Xmas went up high to make a catch, then had a quick second jump to slam one home over two St. Rose defenders, but as impressive as that highlight was, I was kind of disappointed he was laboring through St. Rose defenders instead of soaring over them. Later, Xmas had two follow shot opportunities that could have been dunks, but turned into bunny shots and tips. Christmas fought for position all night, and Cuse guards failed to get him the ball when he did open up opportunities in the lane. He was solid, but didn't really make his mark on the boards or with blocks. He has much better hands and finishing skills than Keita, but otherwise seems a bit behind: but that is only because Melo and Keita have looked so good.
Southerland, C-. His shot takes so long to get off. He doesn't have the feet or handle to really get involved in the offense besides shooting and dunking. He did rebound well, but is slow defensively. Seems like he is hurting his chances to beat out TC as the #10, although I think Southerland will be given plenty of chances to win the #10 spot and I'd guess he will probably win. He can put up points in bunches and is dangerous in transition.
Mookie, D+. Looked very slow. Hit a three, but didn't show the all around game needed to see the court. Shaky handle.
