Jon Rothstein live from Cuse practice today

[iommi]

Interesting. I'm maybe the biggest Battle fan on this board but this is good news. This means that Howard is killing it and we all know Gillon will play plenty at PG as well. Battle can be more versatile and do more damage at the 2, imo. Probably means his shooting is better than advertised as well. Giddy!

Battle can shoot. He told me that it bothers him that people say he can't shoot and that he's going to try to prove those doubters wrong.

 

[SoBeCuse]

Battle can shoot. He told me that it bothers him that people say he can't shoot and that he's going to try to prove those doubters wrong.

I wasn't really a skeptic re: his shooting just glad he is doing well and not brick city. He's the best all-around recruit since Melo, imo.

 

[iommi]

Battle can shoot. He told me that it bothers him that people say he can't shoot and that he's going to try to prove those doubters wrong.

Here's the exact quote from Battle: "I'm very confident. I can shoot from all positions (on the floor).: three-ball, pull up, mid-range and I get to the basket as well. I'm always working on it, trying to improve that. I'm going to surprise some people next year."

 

[iommi]

I wasn't really a skeptic re: his shooting just glad he is doing well and not brick city. He's the best all-around recruit since Melo, imo.

I wasn't saying you were a skeptic but there are plenty out there.

 

[SoBeCuse]

I wasn't saying you were a skeptic but there are plenty out there.

No, I hear you man. Eager to see this team gel.

 

[Briancuse]

Doubtful.

That would only happen if we had major foul trouble, or injuries.

 

[Toga]

 

[CuseMan4]

White and Battle start in the backcourt

No
Gillion or Howard will start at PG and I thought for sure it would be Gillion once he committed but Howard put in a lot of work this summer, gained a lot of muscle, serviceable shooter and worked on his floater this summer. He's been eating up Gillion in workouts so far. Granted Gillion is not considered a "workout player" he does not have good workouts, but he's a gamer for sure, so should be interesting.

 

[44doubledees]

My prediction/preference is

Howard 30mins
Battle 30mins
White 30mins
Roberson 30mins
Coleman 15mins

6th man Lydon, 30mins (I predict 10mins at the 5 spot)
7th Chukwu 20mins
8th Gillon 15mins
9th TT

Moyer (shirt)

 

[Cusefan0307]

Wooden Award Finalists don't come off the bench.

 

[asj410]

No
Gillion or Howard will start at PG and I thought for sure it would be Gillion once he committed but Howard put in a lot of work this summer, gained a lot of muscle, serviceable shooter and worked on his floater this summer. He's been eating up Gillion in workouts so far. Granted Gillion is not considered a "workout player" he does not have good workouts, but he's a gamer for sure, so should be interesting.

...and how has Gillon been doing in practice? I kid!

 

[jordoo]

How do some still want Lydon coming off the bench? My brain is going to explode soon.

I am really excited about this team. JB's saying we have all the pieces which many posters here also noted after we became aware of the possible addition of White.

 

[shandeezy7]

The guy who makes the most sense to come off the bench as an energy 6th man is Roberson. I know Boeheim won't do that to a 4th year senior starter though.

 

[Brooky03]

How do some still want Lydon coming off the bench? My brain is going to explode soon.

I am really excited about this team. JB's saying we have all the pieces which many posters here also noted after we became aware of the possible addition of White.

I don't think it's so much that they want Lydon to come off the bench as it is that they think White is just too good not to start. Some still don't see Lydon as a capable SF. I don't know how they don't see it, but they don't. And White is obviously the more natural SF. That means Lydon would have to start over Roberson at PF. Given Roberson's seniority, that's unlikely despite the skill gap. That said, we'll see plenty of Lydon on the court with White. They're both All-American caliber players. Lydon will be the better pro.

 

[iommi]

I don't think it's so much that they want Lydon to come off the bench as it is that they think White is just too good not to start. Some still don't see Lydon as a capable SF. I don't know how they don't see it, but they don't. And White is obviously the more natural SF. That means Lydon would have to start over Roberson at PF. Given Roberson's seniority, that's unlikely despite the skill gap. That said, we'll see plenty of Lydon on the court with White. They're both All-American caliber players. Lydon will be the better pro.

Yeah, it's not that we want Lydon off the bench. Battle is a 2, White is a 3. Both of them start, therefore unless you want to shoehorn start one or both of them out of position, those are their starting roles. As Brook03 said, Roberson will start, considering his tenure as a starter, therefore Lydon would have to come off the bench. Lydon could start, absolutely. He could start at the 3 or the 4. If he starts at the 4, that's the easiest, in that no one is out of position. I just think he wouldn't be bothered by a bench role, as he will still get the most minutes and he's used to coming in off the bench.

The who starts debate doesn't matter, it's all about the minutes. Maybe JB thinks like cusefan0307 and figures he has to start Lydon but all of this is just a fun debate and not paramount to the team's success.

 

[#FRANchise]

The guy who makes the most sense to come off the bench as an energy 6th man is Roberson. I know Boeheim won't do that to a 4th year senior starter though.

I don't really agree with that. TRob has always been that grinder that's not afraid to get his body in there and fight for rebounds. I think that's needed at the 4.

My line up would be:

Frank
White
Lydon
TRob
Coleman

Battle as the energy 6th man, instant offense (Take out TRob, bump White to the 3, Lydon to the 4)
Gillon replaces Howard
Chukwu comes in after 5-6 minutes
TT sees some time in the preseason, but doesn't see the court much in ACC
Moyer shirts

 

[jordoo]

I won't argue the Lydon not starting thing again. I've said my piece about it many times. I might be wrong but for me it does not compute.

 

[RF2044]

No
Gillion or Howard will start at PG and I thought for sure it would be Gillion once he committed but Howard put in a lot of work this summer, gained a lot of muscle, serviceable shooter and worked on his floater this summer. He's been eating up Gillion in workouts so far. Granted Gillion is not considered a "workout player" he does not have good workouts, but he's a gamer for sure, so should be interesting.

Cuseman4, I don't mean to aim this at you, because you have been bringing outstanding info to the board, but your post is a convenient way for me to highlight this point.

The reports on here about what's been happening in practice are extremely exaggerated. It has turned into a huge example of the telephone game--it started out this summer as, "Wow, Howard is really impressive in summer workouts--he's gotten a lot better," to "I saw him outplay Gillon in an unstructured pickup game," and has now morphed into "he's eating Gillon up so far."

The escalation of how much Howard is destroying Gillon has been funny to read these past few weeks. It is almost like the observation gets more embellished each time it's passed along. Francis [who I love] makes one offhanded comment about it in his podcast, and then it gets picked up by the board as "fact."

For reasons that I will outline in my annual fall practice summary in the next week or so, let me reassure everybody that such reports have been greatly exaggerated. Howard might still end up starting at PG, but it will have nothing to do with him "eating up Gillon" or Gillon not being sufficiently capable.

 

[Dave85]

So much for staying under the radar where Cuse typically does best.

Radar and rankings are irrelevant. To quote JB, "Good teams win."

 

[Dave85]

Battle can shoot. He told me that it bothers him that people say he can't shoot and that he's going to try to prove those doubters wrong.

Driving to the rim and playing defense is why Battle will be the leading scorer.

 

[Dave85]

My prediction/preference is

Howard 30mins
Battle 30mins
White 30mins
Roberson 30mins
Coleman 15mins

6th man Lydon, 30mins (I predict 10mins at the 5 spot)
7th Chukwu 20mins
8th Gillon 15mins
9th TT

Moyer (shirt)

The only thing I would change would be Howard 29 minutes, Gillon 16 minutes.

 

[Dave85]

I just sobered up and now this thread has me completely Orange drunk again!!!

 

[AlaskaSU]

Can we have two basketball seasons instead of one football season and one basketball season?

 

[dollarbill44]

Lydon is one of the best all around players we have had here in years, would not be surprised one bit if he's a wooden finalist. White like Jake said is doing what the coaches expected, plus some. Tyus is just like Ennis not playing style wise but in the sense that no one is talking about him but a month in he's going to be nationally known. We have every single piece to take it all this year, just need the team to gel and to stay healthy.

I've been saying this since last February, he is Larry Bird (and no, not because he is white): same height, same frame, same speed, same skill-set, similar shooting style...right down to the cheesy mustache. If he can develop his dribble a little bit more, he will be right there.

 

[hungrychuck]

I've been saying this since last February, he is Larry Bird (and no, not because he is white): same height, same frame, same speed, same skill-set, similar shooting style...right down to the cheesy mustache. If he can develop his dribble a little bit more, he will be right there.

But he can jump.