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Message: [QUOTE="reedny, post: 1208378, member: 1423"] We all knew there would be some growing pains -- replacing 60% of the offense from a team that averaged a 50 year low was never going to be easy. But I love our front line and I think KJ and CM are going to be a great players for us. CM's already getting lottery notice. Enjoy watching him play while he's here. I'm optimistic about this team because of our inside nucleus. Five games in, we're averaging 30 points between Rock and Cm. If this continues, they can pack it in all they want ... our bigs will be able to score, rebound and defend with the top teams in the league. You win games from the inside out. And we finally have the inside talent to do that ... conceding that depth and foul-shooting might become issues. Where I'm less optimistic is the backcourt and SF positions - 1 through 3. Up top, we're small and we look raw. MG brings in some size and defense, but his scoring has been limited to transition points so far. Similarly, at SF we don't have the experience or scoring talent we've had in the past. Outside shooting could improve somewhat as our younger players at the 1 and 3 get used to playing at this level. We may also get better looks as teams start concentrating on our inside scorers. But I don't think we're going to light it up from outside this year. And it's not just TC's fault. It's a problem with all the guards, SF's and rotation guys. These guys are going to have to find a shooting rhythm in order for us to beat any of the top tier teams in the ACC. I don't buy into the excuse that we won't need to shoot well because other top teams suck from the outside right now . Even if that's true, and I don't think it is, that's unlikely to be the case come January and February. For just one example, the Cal guards (Mathews and Bird) ate our lunch. They used simple high screens and splashed shots from all over the court. And we couldn't stop them. Those two guys alone went off for 38 points. Kavesh also hurt us a little from the foul line area. But poor guard play lost us that game. This isn't really a massive surprise, because our team is young. We've already improved our baseline defense since Cal. As Joseph, TC and Roberson/BJ get used to playing with each other and running the zone, the holes and passing lanes will start disappearing. We have great size and shot-blocking ability inside. If we improve our perimeter defense and make even marginal improvements in outside shooting and feeding the post, I think we can have a good season. Note: Cal averages better than 40% from outside. So do Michigan, Miami, Duke, V-Tech and ND -- all teams we play. So our perimeter D has to get better and I think it will have to if we are to survive and be successful. [/QUOTE]

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