If (God forbid) Keita is out for the year...

[Sgt Cuse]

Here's the funny thing about this. Literally 15 people sitting near me all at once when he got the ball yelled "SHOOT". I GUARANTEE you that half of the people in chat hell also screamed at the TV this exact word when he got the ball. Then they play the "What is he doing" card. Comical.

But the thing is, it's not what the crowd wants, or what they are shouting. The problem is what JB wants, and what Roberson's role is supposed to be. IMO, it is not to take a relatively early in the shot clock, 3 pt attempt. It's not his strength, and more importantly it is not why JB has him in there.

If Roberson hasn't fully grasped his role as a forward, how can anyone expect him to go out of position and provide impact at center? Doesn't seem reasonable. Also, it seems like it would slow down Robersons development at forward. Seems to me like Chino would be a better back up center option.

 

[Orangezoo]

I brought this up in another thread.. but agree with RF's sentiments. If the kid was ready to go then I could see a sliver of justification for bringing him back. But if he is too raw and would be lost at times on the court its far better to get roberson going instead. Grant is capable playing the 5 in short stints but will be prone to fouls there against a team like pitt so gotta have tyler ready to play more and be productive.

 

[Waltdods]

Here's a thought... They could play him for the last 15-20 games (depending on how far we go in March) and then, redshirt him NEXT year if they really want a 5th year for him.

And as many have said earlier in this thread, it's not like we can't recruit another big man down the road if/when needed.

I have literally no idea whether Obokoh can contribute, but if he can I think there's no question you burn the redshirt here. RF's point on this isn't promising, and if he can't contribute, then you don't play him. (Although "can't" has to be measured against the alternatives, which in a Keita-less world aren't great.) But saving the redshirt is not a reason. Hell, if he was able to contribute, it's a near-certainty he'd end up with more minutes than Patterson or Johnson, so it is hard to even describe it as a "burn."

That said, Boeheim's tendency has always been to use the guys he trusts, even if that means some weird positional choices or kids playing a gazillion minutes. So while I think many coaches might reach for Obokoh (again if Keita's out), it doesn't quite strike me as Boeheim's MO.

 

[Marsh01]

But the thing is, it's not what the crowd wants, or what they are shouting. The problem is what JB wants, and what Roberson's role is supposed to be. IMO, it is not to take a relatively early in the shot clock, 3 pt attempt. It's not his strength, and more importantly it is not why JB has him in there.

.

Thats fine but my argument was that people say they had a problem with the shot and yet would have cheered like hell had it went in.

To be honest I had a much bigger problem with Grants flying acrobatic shot early in the first half that somehow went in. Its the reversal of Robersons shot. Grants shot (which was 100X worse) went in so it was ok.

 

[Knicks411]

It seems to me like that play was pretty much run for Roberson to get that look, so I can't hate on him taking the shot.

 

[TacoTime75]

Keita was out rebounding warmup shots in the 2nd half. Just pointing out an observation. I refuse to jinx this team in any way.

 

[Cusejuicy]

As several have pointed out, this is all speculation at this point.
Keita's injury could be nothing or season ending or something in between.
The guy I think has been speculating the longest and most in depth is JB. He and his coaches most likely have been thinking about what they could do if (God forbid) they lost another center from the moment it became clear DC was done for the year.
They may even have tried a couple of options in practice for all we know but I think they know what to do that will work best.

 

[DoctorBombay]

I love me some JB- always have, always will. And yes, we know he's not changing a thing.
But if there's anything about his coaching philosophy that I'd disagree more about, it'd have to be his thin bench.
Seriously, we've seen this movie before. Yes, injuries are part of the game and can't be avoided, but the positive options would increase exponentially if he'd nurtured some more game experience on the bench.
Instead of only having a wide-eyed freshman in Roberson, we'd at least have BJ and Buss able to maybe step in and give our guys some relief...even for a little bit.
Am I the only one that's noticed that both Tyler and CJ look a little (ahem) sluggish at times? They're getting worn out, and JB refuses to alter his "Ironman" philosophy. We always seem an injury away from disaster in this program, and one missing piece equals turmoil.
I just don't get the "play 'em till they drop" coaching philosophy. JMHO

 

[Orangemen]

But the thing is, it's not what the crowd wants, or what they are shouting. The problem is what JB wants, and what Roberson's role is supposed to be. IMO, it is not to take a relatively early in the shot clock, 3 pt attempt. It's not his strength, and more importantly it is not why JB has him in there.

If Roberson hasn't fully grasped his role as a forward, how can anyone expect him to go out of position and provide impact at center? Doesn't seem reasonable. Also, it seems like it would slow down Robersons development at forward. Seems to me like Chino would be a better back up center option.

Roberson took the shot, and grant immediately got off the bench and went to the scorers table.

That is all you need to know about the rightness or wrongness of the shot.

 

[pearl31]

Keita was out rebounding warmup shots in the 2nd half.

Is this true?

 

[longislandcuse]

Yeah, Gbinije didn't do anything wrong. I don't like him there for a number of reasons, though. In no particular order:

1. We don't want our only reserve guard (assuming Boeheim doesn't consider Patterson an option) burning fouls or energy while playing forward;
2. We give up height at forward with Gbinije back there;
3. Every minute Gbinije plays as a forward takes away from his development as a guard;
4. Every minute Gbinije plays as a forward takes away from Roberson's development.

I don't like the safe option here. If we need a fill-in because we've got no centers left, give us the high-ceiling guy. That's Roberson. Better rebounder and more offensive ability than Gbinije, assuming that he's not playing in two-minute spurts while looking over his shoulder.

The 3 guard lineup is utilized alot in basketball now and yes, it may hinder Roberson's development a little but if Roberson wants to play, he needs to be more effective on the wing than G is. Right now G plays the wing very well imo and gives us another outside shooter. If we have to go small, we might as well make it an advantage on the other end of the court. The more I watch G, the more I think he's incredibly close to becoming a very solid player. He's already our best perimeter defender. His shots are always right there, eventually they'll start falling. Loved his attack of the rim yesterday even though he got blocked.

 

[cusetown1]

Is this true?

He was At least I thought I saw him out there. They also came back from intermission very early never seen that before . There was like 8 min of halftime left .

 

[SaltLakeOrange]

I don't think playing Chino would be a help at this point, way too late in the season to throw him to the wolves.

If Baye is out and Rak needs to come out, I would like to see them try Roberson at center rather than Grant, especially if the opponent doesn't have a dominant center. I'm sure JB knows which alignment works better and that is the why we saw Grant there, but it seems like we would be better off playing one guy out of position than weakening two spots by playing Grant out of position and throwing Roberson in at Grant's spot.

Like you said, it would depend on the opponent. With a strong center, throwing Roberson in there would be like throwing him to the wolves. This topic makes my head hurt...

 

[SaltLakeOrange]

Agreed. People were giving him crap about that shot in the chat room. Blew my mind.

And no chance Chino comes in, imo. All I heard about him was how raw his was. Coming in mid-season won't help at all.

While wide open, I don't like that shot. He's our 4th option. It was too early in the shot clock for that shot.

 

[SaltLakeOrange]

To be fair he has a much smoother stroke that jerami.

But he's the fourth option. That's not a good shot.

 

[OttoMets]

He was I saw him out there. They also came back from intermission very early never seen that before . There was like 8 min of halftime left .

About 7:30 left before the half - that's customary, if maybe a few seconds late. I've seen Boeheim hold them until 6:30 or so once in a blue moon (if we're playing poorly), but more often than not we're coming out at 7:50.

Anyway, Baye did indeed limp out about two minutes later with his full warmups on and something bulky around his knee. He was chatting with Rakeem and Jerami and rebounding from a pretty stationary position the whole while.

 

[OttoMets]

The 3 guard lineup is utilized alot in basketball now and yes, it may hinder Roberson's development a little but if Roberson wants to play, he needs to be more effective on the wing than G is. Right now G plays the wing very well imo and gives us another outside shooter. If we have to go small, we might as well make it an advantage on the other end of the court. The more I watch G, the more I think he's incredibly close to becoming a very solid player. He's already our best perimeter defender. His shots are always right there, eventually they'll start falling. Loved his attack of the rim yesterday even though he got blocked.

I think that's more reason to keep him at guard - let's keep things consistent and simple for him.

His decisive take was a good one; sorry we didn't get a replay, because that was a serious block.

 

[HoustonCuse]

He can't be worse than Dash Riley in the NCAA Tournament lol

The problem is- yes he can be worse. Dash at least had a few appearances earlier in the year. Look at Coleman on the defensive end last year - we would have been better playing only 4 guys than have Coleman out there on defense. At least then nobody would think anyone is there behind them to stop anyone. If Baye can't run, just post him at the offensive end 100% of the game. Any rebound we do manage to snag on the defesive gets an immediate outlet to him under the basket for a layup.

 

[Antiprodigy]

The problem is- yes he can be worse. Dash at least had a few appearances earlier in the year. Look at Coleman on the defensive end last year - we would have been better playing only 4 guys than have Coleman out there on defense. At least then nobody would think anyone is there behind them to stop anyone. If Baye can't run, just post him at the offensive end 100% of the game. Any rebound we do manage to snag on the defesive gets an immediate outlet to him under the basket for a layup.

He can't catch a majority of the balls that come his way. That's why he doesn't score much or get many rebounds. Not a good idea. Not to mention that playing 4 on 5 on defense is a sure recipe for having few run-outs.

 

[Garbs]

Is this true?

yes

 

[Dave85]

I just really believe that if BMK was out for the year, we would see Chino. Gut says BMK will only miss one game though.

I think we don't see Keita play again until BC. And then only for 10 minutes. Hopefully at that point Keita will be fully healed and ready for the Duke game.

 

[cuseincincy]

The problem is- yes he can be worse. Dash at least had a few appearances earlier in the year. Look at Coleman on the defensive end last year - we would have been better playing only 4 guys than have Coleman out there on defense. At least then nobody would think anyone is there behind them to stop anyone. If Baye can't run, just post him at the offensive end 100% of the game. Any rebound we do manage to snag on the defesive gets an immediate outlet to him under the basket for a layup.

You got me a little confused. Chino could be worse because Dash "had a few appearances earlier in the year"? If this were to happen the PT Chino would get the remainder of the year would dwarf the time Dash had to prepare. And though I know you were only joking, why would you leave Baye on the offensive end where even healthy he is mostly useless (other than making some good entry passes from the top of the key). I hope Baye is healthy because he is a very valuable piece of the team this season. But this is nowhere near as crushing a blow as losing Fab and Arinze were. They started and played both ends of the floor.

 

[AZOrange]

But he's the fourth option. That's not a good shot.

He was wide open, if wide open guys can't pull the trigger they shouldn't be out there. Has to be a threat.

 

[iommi]

You got me a little confused. Chino could be worse because Dash "had a few appearances earlier in the year"? If this were to happen the PT Chino would get the remainder of the year would dwarf the time Dash had to prepare. And though I know you were only joking, why would you leave Baye on the offensive end where even healthy he is mostly useless (other than making some good entry passes from the top of the key). I hope Baye is healthy because he is a very valuable piece of the team this season. But this is nowhere near as crushing a blow as losing Fab and Arinze were. They started and played both ends of the floor.

This would be a knockout blow. We would not be a title contender without BMK. It would weaken us in a multitude of ways.

 

[iommi]

He was wide open, if wide open guys can't pull the trigger they shouldn't be out there. Has to be a threat.

Nope. Jerami is wide open outside the arc probably 10 times a game. He doesn't and shouldn't take the shot.