My fear for this year

[OGBJ20]

He was not just on the team, he led the team and they win it easy if he doesn't hurt his ankle in the 1st min/2nd qtr of the 3rd game. He had 7 of his 11pts in the 1st qtr. It was a very good experience for him. As I stated earlier, he has been at SU all summer looooooong working and improving on all aspects of his body and game. BJ continues to do well to date and we be ready to go. He is gotten taller and probably more of 6'8" and than was me standing next to him. He continues to add strength but because he continues to grow, it is a constant progression to add size to muscle as he continues to get taller. However, he had made great strides in that area. From what I noticed in his game, he has become more consistent in shot making and finishing in traffic. We have also talked about him being a great defender and rebounder in which he will be from any position on the floor. Also using his quickness and athletic ability to his advantage. He will be fine. NOW YOU KNOW IN DONT COMMENT ON ANY OTHER OF THE PLAYERS OUT OF RESPECT FOR BJ AND THE TEAM!!! See you at Orange Madness!!! LGO!!! Here is the maturing body composition from 16 to 18+

. Keep in mind of what I said about the growth spurts.

 

[OGBJ20]

He was not just on the team, he led the team and they win it easy if he doesn't hurt his ankle in the 1st min/2nd qtr of the 3rd game. He had 7 of his 11pts in the 1st qtr. It was a very good experience for him. As I stated earlier, he has been at SU all summer looooooong working and improving on all aspects of his body and game. BJ continues to do well to date and we be ready to go. He is gotten taller and probably more of 6'8" and than was me standing next to him. He continues to add strength but because he continues to grow, it is a constant progression to add size to muscle as he continues to get taller. However, he had made great strides in that area. From what I noticed in his game, he has become more consistent in shot making and finishing in traffic. We have also talked about him being a great defender and rebounder in which he will be from any position on the floor. Also using his quickness and athletic ability to his advantage. He will be fine. NOW YOU KNOW IN DONT COMMENT ON ANY OTHER OF THE PLAYERS OUT OF RESPECT FOR BJ AND THE TEAM!!! See you at Orange Madness!!! LGO!!! Here is the maturing body composition from 16 to 18+View attachment 27803 . Keep in mind of what I said about the growth spurts.

Canada Trip before season!

 

[OGBJ20]

View attachment 27804 Canada Trip before season!

 

[OGBJ20]

past summer

 

[realorange]

Thanks OGBJ. We are all looking for BJ to make big strides this year. LGO

 

[VaBeachOrFan]

My biggest concern is the coach sacrifices offense for defense like he has the past 4 or 5 seasons. This year of all years we need to reward players for good offense and not punish them for bad defense. I don't want to see a bunch of young players have their confidence shattered because they are getting yanked out of games for a dumb defensive mistake. I do for once want to see players yanked if they stop the ball and try to iso all the time. No one on this team is good enough to get the melo/gmac green light so I want to see some real offensive sets built on ball and player movement and for God sakes I want to see some fundamentally sound interior passes at the proper angle and the proper height.

So how does BJ stack up defensively? He scored a lot of points in Europe, which is why I think he could be a big contributor this year and why I'm surprised that he was left out of many of the above posts. Maybe the question we should ask is: Who are the top defenders at each position in terms of ability and grasp of JB's zone principles?-VBOF

 

[SBU72]

Wouldn't surprise me to see CMac as our 2nd best 3pt shooter.

Being the 2nd best shooter doesn't guarantee much. CJ had a good-to-excellent % going into his sr year but was not enough of a threat to make a huge difference. Then when he was needed, his % fell off. I can't see CMac being encouraged to take a lot of shots from beyond the arc.

 

[tee1222]

View attachment 27805 past summer

Thanks, OG! Looks like progression to me. He looks pretty diesel in that last one.

 

[OrangeDW]

All these BJ comments (don't mean to pick on this one) are eerily similar to Mookie comments from a few years ago. I hope BJ makes the strides that Mookie did not.

I think Mookie was a good player, but he was here at a bad time for him. He always had guys who did more things well than him, ahead of him. If he was here last year, he would've been a huge contributor in my opinion.

 

[OGBJ20]

So how does BJ stack up defensively? He scored a lot of points in Europe, which is why I think he could be a big contributor this year and why I'm surprised that he was left out of many of the above posts. Maybe the question we should ask is: Who are the top defenders at each position in terms of ability and grasp of JB's zone principles?-VBOF

He knows the zone from the top to the bottom of the zone and you don't play unless you can get after it defensively. I think he has the ability to be a great defender for the team. Just like many of the posters or writers of whom only go on someone's guess or suggestions but not facts of what is going on with the player have their opinions of what they expect. Some are waiting to see the product as well.

 

[bballbeadle]

Is that, like last year, we don't have a viable 3 point threat to help Cooney out. We all saw the issues with this- Cooney running around screens like a coked-up jitterbug, leading to off-balance fades. In today's game, you need to have big men who can hit three pointers. Look at Wisconsin last year.

Who will emerge? Will Johnson get minutes? Can G develop a consistent shot (~35%)? Apologize in advance, I don't follow recruiting, so no idea if Joseph is known for his J.

I liked you for "coked up jitterbug."

 

[OrangeFoo]

So how does BJ stack up defensively? He scored a lot of points in Europe, which is why I think he could be a big contributor this year and why I'm surprised that he was left out of many of the above posts. Maybe the question we should ask is: Who are the top defenders at each position in terms of ability and grasp of JB's zone principles?-VBOF

I could care less if he can play the zone or not. In the ACC the zone is good enough to keep the tempo slow and the game close, but last year showed me that ACC teams are to disciplined and talented on O to fall into the trap of the zone. Every ACC team played the zone with the same expertise of Pitt and ND who have had years to perfect their zone busting strategies. Given the zone won't be the same weapon in the ACC that it was in the BE we need to start putting people on the court who can accomplish the main goal of basketball with some efficiency... Put the round thing in the basket at the end of the court.

So if BJ can score I don't want him benched for dumb mistakes on D as long as the effort is there. Enough with scores in the 60s lets get back to the true spirit of SU hoops.

 

[NineOneSeven]

I could care less if he can play the zone or not. In the ACC the zone is good enough to keep the tempo slow and the game close, but last year showed me that ACC teams are to disciplined and talented on O to fall into the trap of the zone. Every ACC team played the zone with the same expertise of Pitt and ND who have had years to perfect their zone busting strategies. Given the zone won't be the same weapon in the ACC that it was in the BE we need to start putting people on the court who can accomplish the main goal of basketball with some efficiency... Put the round thing in the basket at the end of the court.

So if BJ can score I don't want him benched for dumb mistakes on D as long as the effort is there. Enough with scores in the 60s lets get back to the true spirit of SU hoops.

Got a feeling you might be disappointed..

 

[OrangeFoo]

Got a feeling you might be disappointed..

That's fine by me... I've been an Orange fan since I was a kid in the late 80's. Last year I had my own kid and watching Syracuse games became a question of opportunity cost between spending time with the family and time watching hoops. The last month of the season for the first time ever I found myself choosing to not watch SU hoops because it just wasn't worth it. The games were not entertaining and frankly looked more like the rock fights in the big 10 that we have made fun of forever. If JB continues to prioritize defense over offense then I will find myself watching less and less Syracuse hoops.

It's kind of funny... a decade ago I would have said college hoops was better than NBA hoops without even thinking about it. Now I think NBA hoops is a much better product than college and it's not even close. The only thing that keeps me following college is Syracuse hoops and slowly but surly I find myself losing that connection as we look more and more like we have no idea what to do on offense, our teams peak in December, there is always some controversy or drama around the program, the coach is becoming more and more stubborn and we play fundamentally terrible basketball on offense.

I hope I am eating my words and the team that we roll out in March is much better than the one which takes the court in a few weeks. I also hope that for once we have an offense worth watching so I am not falling asleep during games. I know this is a pretty negative post but I always used to think that Syracuse hoops was better than the crap, mediocre hoops we have been seeing the last 5 years. I stopped watching non-SU hoops a long time ago but now I think SU hoops is just as painful to watch and it really saddens me to say that.

 

[NineOneSeven]

That's fine by me... I've been an Orange fan since I was a kid in the late 80's. Last year I had my own kid and watching Syracuse games became a question of opportunity cost between spending time with the family and time watching hoops. The last month of the season for the first time ever I found myself choosing to not watch SU hoops because it just wasn't worth it. The games were not entertaining and frankly looked more like the rock fights in the big 10 that we have made fun of forever. If JB continues to prioritize defense over offense then I will find myself watching less and less Syracuse hoops.

It's kind of funny... a decade ago I would have said college hoops was better than NBA hoops without even thinking about it. Now I think NBA hoops is a much better product than college and it's not even close. The only thing that keeps me following college is Syracuse hoops and slowly but surly I find myself losing that connection as we look more and more like we have no idea what to do on offense, our teams peak in December, there is always some controversy or drama around the program, the coach is becoming more and more stubborn and we play fundamentally terrible basketball on offense.

I hope I am eating my words and the team that we roll out in March is much better than the one which takes the court in a few weeks. I also hope that for once we have an offense worth watching so I am not falling asleep during games. I know this is a pretty negative post but I always used to think that Syracuse hoops was better than the crap, mediocre hoops we have been seeing the last 5 years. I stopped watching non-SU hoops a long time ago but now I think SU hoops is just as painful to watch and it really saddens me to say that.

People who still rip the NBA are the same ones who haven't wtched it for ten years. The offense of that league is silly. Anyone who knows, plays, or appreciate, basketball can see how insane those guys are at the game where the goal is putting a ball in a hoop.

 

[moqui]

I could care less if he can play the zone or not. In the ACC the zone is good enough to keep the tempo slow and the game close, but last year showed me that ACC teams are to disciplined and talented on O to fall into the trap of the zone. Every ACC team played the zone with the same expertise of Pitt and ND who have had years to perfect their zone busting strategies. Given the zone won't be the same weapon in the ACC that it was in the BE we need to start putting people on the court who can accomplish the main goal of basketball with some efficiency... Put the round thing in the basket at the end of the court.

So if BJ can score I don't want him benched for dumb mistakes on D as long as the effort is there. Enough with scores in the 60s lets get back to the true spirit of SU hoops.

I would just remind you that last year, when SU struggled to score, the defense carried the team to a 14-4, second place finish in the ACC. It is too small a sample to conclude anything about the effectiveness of the zone one way or another, but the single case we have is that it was very effective.

by the way, I am with you on the choice between family and SU hoops. I have always been a fanatic, but since my son was born, I choose my family over hoops every time.

 

[OrangeFoo]

I would just remind you that last year, when SU struggled to score, the defense carried the team to a 14-4, second place finish in the ACC. It is too small a sample to conclude anything about the effectiveness of the zone one way or another, but the single case we have is that it was very effective.

by the way, I am with you on the choice between family and SU hoops. I have always been a fanatic, but since my son was born, I choose my family over hoops every time.

I didn't realize we only lost 4 in the ACC... the last month of the season left such a strong impression that I forgot about the games we did win. I think the reason that last season left such a bad taste was that even the games we did win were so painful to watch (hello Pitt and NC State). I really really hope we take some lumps this year and focus on building a functional offense.

 

[Upstate]

My fear for this year? Too many free tacos.

 

[VaBeachOrFan]

I could care less if he can play the zone or not. In the ACC the zone is good enough to keep the tempo slow and the game close, but last year showed me that ACC teams are to disciplined and talented on O to fall into the trap of the zone. Every ACC team played the zone with the same expertise of Pitt and ND who have had years to perfect their zone busting strategies. Given the zone won't be the same weapon in the ACC that it was in the BE we need to start putting people on the court who can accomplish the main goal of basketball with some efficiency... Put the round thing in the basket at the end of the court.

So if BJ can score I don't want him benched for dumb mistakes on D as long as the effort is there. Enough with scores in the 60s lets get back to the true spirit of SU hoops.

I'm hoping we get both defense and offense this year -- not necessarily mutually exclusive. Every year I wish for a return to the 2009-10 and 2011-12 "steal-and-deal" teams with a deep bench and an attacking defense that generates transition offense and demoralizing runs. That may be more difficult with the younger (albeit more talented) players we're getting lately, but I keep hoping. Other than the '03 NC team, those two teams were my favorites and what I'd like to see as SU's prototype teams.-VBOF