Lydon at the 5 - prediction

[orangemass]

On offense, you might be right. Robey scored 8.8 (overall/season) last year. I'm not sure Chukwu's going to score that much ... although 5 ppg isn't unrealistic with his ability to slam lobs and get put-backs.

Defensively ... Chukwu be a major presence, obviously.

Rebounding: Robey's a talented offensive rebounder, no doubt. But overall rebounding numbers .. pretty hard to say he's a better rebounder than chukwu (my guess).

So this will probably come down to game situations .. like playing TL in the middle for extra scoring when we're behind.

Exactly why we will see lots of Lydon at the 5... If JB falls behind early he will play that card quickly... Not know for his patience...

 

[skurey]

Howard dishing to Gillon Battle White and Lydon.

 

[reedny]

Exactly why we will see lots of Lydon at the 5... If JB falls behind early he will play that card quickly... Not know for his patience...

Let's hope we don't see that often.

 

[Gonzo]

With the skill set and experience levels of our top 8 players, I would think it would be difficult to pre-determine the starting five at this juncture. All eight (all scholarship players minus Moyer and Thompson) are likely to see serious minutes throughout the season. And JB will have luxury to greatly mix his lineups as per the matchups and situations dictate. Whoever plays best will play the most

 

[cuseinseattle]

Why leave Robey at PF and bring in Lydon at the 5 to add a shooter, when you can just have Lydon sub for Robey and put Chukwu in the middle? That accomplishes the same thing offensively (more scoring) and provides even better rebounding/defensive presence inside.

The other consideration would be FT's in end-game situations. Even there, although Robey was pretty good down the stretch in games last year, he's still shaky at the line (his FT percentagehas declined every year).

I completely disagree regarding rebounding. Robey is a great rebounder and usually big guys that block shots aren't great rebounders (Fab Melo), so I can't imagine Chukwu will be able to equal him let alone pass him. I also think Lydon and Robey is a big offensive difference from Lydon and Chukwu.

 

[cuseinseattle]

I agree playing Lydon at the 5 would be great. What do we do when we play teams that have multiple skilled big guys who are going to crash the boards hard. I think we need Chukwu, Lydon and Robey in there. What about when we play Duke with Giles, Bolden and Tatum. If they are rotating Giles, Bolden, Tatum and Jefferson are we going to leave White out there in the frontcourt? Maybe I'm underestimating White I really haven't seen him play that much.

 

[senorpalmer]

I would wager that we will definitely see some Lydon at the 5, and not just sporadically. Before White's commitment I figured Lydon at the 5 would be minimal, but minutes will likely need to be created for White and some of those minutes will be at the expense of DC/PC.

 

[l'orange]

JB has played 4 vs 5 for most of the last 4 years imo. Even if you go back...

Christmas in his senior year was the backbone of that offense. If only Christmas could have been on last years team... Wow!

 

[Dave85]

Lydon has had a whole summer of weight training and he's a year older. He was pretty strong playing center last season. I think he could play a lot at the 5 against teams that do now have big strong guys who are low post offensive threats. Once Lydon gets beat on the low post then we will see the other bigs play center. What is intriguing about Lydon playing center is having a faster team for pressing and a better team on offense. This is a really cool lineup: Gillon, Battle, White, Roberson, Lydon. Roberson is just way too good of rebounder to not get minutes. And with four good shooters in this lineup it will be really tough to defend. This season is going to be so much fun to watch!!!

 

[721Comstock]

Lydon has had a whole summer of weight training and he's a year older. He was pretty strong playing center last season. I think he could play a lot at the 5 against teams that do now have big strong guys who are low post offensive threats. Once Lydon gets beat on the low post then we will see the other bigs play center. What is intriguing about Lydon playing center is having a faster team for pressing and a better team on offense. This is a really cool lineup: Gillon, Battle, White, Roberson, Lydon. Roberson is just way too good of rebounder to not get minutes. And with four good shooters in this lineup it will be really tough to defend. This season is going to be so much fun to watch!!!

Actually, he was NOT "strong" playing center, at all.
He got big-boyed pretty badly by larger dudes.
AO's little bro just scored on him again.

He was remarkably effective playing center, in spite of his lack of bulk.
Skills, smarts, and timing somewhat made up for his lack of size there.

But, he's still a really skinny dude, even with a year and the weight training.