IthacaMatt
Old Timer / Unofficial Contributor for 25+ years
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I re-watched the 2 exhibition games last night, since there wasn't much else on TV. Armed with my amazing insights, here's how it looks to me.
Hughes was so impressive. Very confident bringing the ball upcourt against the press. Making the first three of both games. Showing off a much improved handle and ability to drive the lane. Just going on tears offensively. I am very comfortable with him as our alpha dog this year.
Buddy hasn't been "peak Buddy" yet, but he's the number 2 guy on the team. He has gotten stronger, but his footwork on defense looked a little slow. Of course, he's not in game shape yet, but that's something to keep an eye on. We can't afford for him to be a liability at the top of the zone, because his shooting and composure are so important for us.
Guerrier has shown shades of sophomore Oshae Brissett - too much time at the 3 point line, not nearly enough time inside. Sitting out nearly the entire first half against Carlton got him playing the right way in the second half, but we need him to understand that's where his bread is buttered on this team. We've got a lot of guys who shoot it better from 3 than him, and the only ones he should be taking are when he is wide open, like CJ Fair when he was a frosh.
Bobby Braswell looks very good. This kid will make the rotation. I think JB ought to think about using him at center instead of Marek, and start grooming him for that role as a 2nd or 3rd string center. That's a way to get him on the floor, and wow, imagine him as a stretch 5 with his ability to hit threes! It would pull the opposing center away from the basket in a way that none of our other candidates at the 5 can do.
Marek looks about the same. He's got a terrific floor game but is reluctant to try to score. If this team can run more, I think that will help him. But I'm starting to wonder if we are seeing his ceiling.
Brycen Goodine looked like he belongs. He looked comfortable on the ball, he has a sneaky good handle, a pretty good shot, and 'gets it'. He should make the rotation, too.
Carey is a great defender and has outstanding athleticism. If he could make better decisions and not dribble into traffic so much, and if he could handle ball pressure better, he could be a useful PG. He still seems like a second unit player to me, though. He's a bit better, he had a couple stretches where he played well, but I think he's going to get a lot of quick hooks and lectures from Boeheim between now and December, and we'll see how well he responds to those, and if he can figure out how to do what Boeheim wants him to do. Right now, I am not that optimistic.
Jesse Edwards looked pretty good, in stretches, at center. His hands are too weak, but he has skills. He can block shots and get some rebounds, but he obviously needs a year or two to become a really solid player. I think he can contribute this year as a back-up center.
JBA is bigger and stronger than our other center prospects, but seems very, very raw. There were times in these games where he lost where the ball was, and was looking around like a baseball catcher who doesn't see where the foul ball went. He's a "break glass in case of emergency" guy for this year.
Sidibe looked healthy, but not up to game speed yet. Cautiously optimistic. He's our starter for now. He is going to continue to be foul prone, and mistake prone, but there is talent there, if he can stay healthy and play with high energy.
That leaves us with Joe Girard. I don't want to get carried away, but he handled the ball much better than Carey (or Boeheim, for that matter). He has super confidence, and he has a quick release on his shot that I think is going to translate much better than people thought during the summer. He plays like a football player, with forearm shivers to keep the defender off him. He's going to get called for a lot of offensive fouls this year, but the kid has toughness and moxie. Whoever compared him to Aaron Craft made a good comparison.
Going out on a limb, it wouldn't surprise me to see this as the rotation come January, in terms of minutes, not position-specific:
Elijah Hughes - 35
Buddy Boeheim - 30
Quincy Guerrier - 30
Bourama Sidibe - 20
Joe Girard - 15
Brycen Goodine - 15
Marek Dolezaj - 15
Jesse Edwards - 10
Jalen Carey - 10
Bobby Braswell - 10
That leaves 5 minutes left over for someone to grab.
My takeaways are that right now, Goodine and Girard both look better than Carey, and if Carey wants to be anything other than a token starter, it needs to start with the Virginia game. I see the potential for him to get absolutely undressed by their defense, even if they do have 4 new starters, just like us.
I think that Marek is a great glue guy, but if he isn't going to start scoring at least 6-8 points a game, he's vulnerable to being overtaken by Bobby Braswell. Braswell has game. He could be our emergency center, if Boeheim wants to invest the time in teaching him the ropes. I don't think JBA is going to help us this year. He just looks so lost out there. If it's Marek, well, opponents won't have to guard him on defense.
You can see that Goodine and Girard have been working as a unit together against Carey and Boeheim in practices, and probably this summer, too. They have visible chemistry between them when they share the floor. I was more comfortable with the 2 of them in there together than I was with Carey in the game, to be honest.
I think that somewhat surprisingly, Carey and Marek are the 2 guys most at risk of losing playing time.
Buddy has to work on his footwork and quickness. He's done enough strength work for now; he's got to get his feet moving better.
Hughes was so impressive. Very confident bringing the ball upcourt against the press. Making the first three of both games. Showing off a much improved handle and ability to drive the lane. Just going on tears offensively. I am very comfortable with him as our alpha dog this year.
Buddy hasn't been "peak Buddy" yet, but he's the number 2 guy on the team. He has gotten stronger, but his footwork on defense looked a little slow. Of course, he's not in game shape yet, but that's something to keep an eye on. We can't afford for him to be a liability at the top of the zone, because his shooting and composure are so important for us.
Guerrier has shown shades of sophomore Oshae Brissett - too much time at the 3 point line, not nearly enough time inside. Sitting out nearly the entire first half against Carlton got him playing the right way in the second half, but we need him to understand that's where his bread is buttered on this team. We've got a lot of guys who shoot it better from 3 than him, and the only ones he should be taking are when he is wide open, like CJ Fair when he was a frosh.
Bobby Braswell looks very good. This kid will make the rotation. I think JB ought to think about using him at center instead of Marek, and start grooming him for that role as a 2nd or 3rd string center. That's a way to get him on the floor, and wow, imagine him as a stretch 5 with his ability to hit threes! It would pull the opposing center away from the basket in a way that none of our other candidates at the 5 can do.
Marek looks about the same. He's got a terrific floor game but is reluctant to try to score. If this team can run more, I think that will help him. But I'm starting to wonder if we are seeing his ceiling.
Brycen Goodine looked like he belongs. He looked comfortable on the ball, he has a sneaky good handle, a pretty good shot, and 'gets it'. He should make the rotation, too.
Carey is a great defender and has outstanding athleticism. If he could make better decisions and not dribble into traffic so much, and if he could handle ball pressure better, he could be a useful PG. He still seems like a second unit player to me, though. He's a bit better, he had a couple stretches where he played well, but I think he's going to get a lot of quick hooks and lectures from Boeheim between now and December, and we'll see how well he responds to those, and if he can figure out how to do what Boeheim wants him to do. Right now, I am not that optimistic.
Jesse Edwards looked pretty good, in stretches, at center. His hands are too weak, but he has skills. He can block shots and get some rebounds, but he obviously needs a year or two to become a really solid player. I think he can contribute this year as a back-up center.
JBA is bigger and stronger than our other center prospects, but seems very, very raw. There were times in these games where he lost where the ball was, and was looking around like a baseball catcher who doesn't see where the foul ball went. He's a "break glass in case of emergency" guy for this year.
Sidibe looked healthy, but not up to game speed yet. Cautiously optimistic. He's our starter for now. He is going to continue to be foul prone, and mistake prone, but there is talent there, if he can stay healthy and play with high energy.
That leaves us with Joe Girard. I don't want to get carried away, but he handled the ball much better than Carey (or Boeheim, for that matter). He has super confidence, and he has a quick release on his shot that I think is going to translate much better than people thought during the summer. He plays like a football player, with forearm shivers to keep the defender off him. He's going to get called for a lot of offensive fouls this year, but the kid has toughness and moxie. Whoever compared him to Aaron Craft made a good comparison.
Going out on a limb, it wouldn't surprise me to see this as the rotation come January, in terms of minutes, not position-specific:
Elijah Hughes - 35
Buddy Boeheim - 30
Quincy Guerrier - 30
Bourama Sidibe - 20
Joe Girard - 15
Brycen Goodine - 15
Marek Dolezaj - 15
Jesse Edwards - 10
Jalen Carey - 10
Bobby Braswell - 10
That leaves 5 minutes left over for someone to grab.
My takeaways are that right now, Goodine and Girard both look better than Carey, and if Carey wants to be anything other than a token starter, it needs to start with the Virginia game. I see the potential for him to get absolutely undressed by their defense, even if they do have 4 new starters, just like us.
I think that Marek is a great glue guy, but if he isn't going to start scoring at least 6-8 points a game, he's vulnerable to being overtaken by Bobby Braswell. Braswell has game. He could be our emergency center, if Boeheim wants to invest the time in teaching him the ropes. I don't think JBA is going to help us this year. He just looks so lost out there. If it's Marek, well, opponents won't have to guard him on defense.
You can see that Goodine and Girard have been working as a unit together against Carey and Boeheim in practices, and probably this summer, too. They have visible chemistry between them when they share the floor. I was more comfortable with the 2 of them in there together than I was with Carey in the game, to be honest.
I think that somewhat surprisingly, Carey and Marek are the 2 guys most at risk of losing playing time.
Buddy has to work on his footwork and quickness. He's done enough strength work for now; he's got to get his feet moving better.
