My Take

[sutomcat]

I have limited time, so let's stop wasting time and get this post going,

Another surprising result in a season full of them. When a team is killed that badly, you wonder how good they are. Well, Miami beat Purdue early this season. They have had a series of heart breaking 1 or 2 point losses but had won 2 of their last 3, including a win against a decent NC State team in Raleigh and a win at home against UL (they were ranked #16 at the time).

They miss Lykes a lot. Losing a senior PG is always a big blow. But he has been out since the first two games of the season. Still, you can tell they lack a leader running the half court offense. They did not do a good job attacking the zone.

Good to see the backcourt playing well again. Might be the first game all 3 guards played well. Hope to see more of that. It seemed like things started to roll when Kadary came in and JGIII was moved to the 2. He can attack defenses from the wing playing the 2, can get the ball closer to the basket, making it easier for him to get looks from the paint...in short, he has a lot more freedom to try and get open in places where he can score. And Kadary looked for him and get him the ball in those places. We need to see more of that. There was chemistry there that I don't see a lot with JGIII and Buddy.

Alan seems to have games where he is just not there mentally. This was one of them. He just stood around on the perimeter when he was in, and jacked a couple of bad 3s, where he was either too far from the basket or had someone in his face. Air balls. He comes back in and almost immediately throws a really risky pass to a player underneath, but reads the cut wrong and the pass goes to no one. Just mindless, awful basketball. I think he was frustrated at getting pulled early and let it affect his play. He has to work harder to get open. Can't just force bad shots from the perimeter and expect to do well.

Marek was again not himself. Didn't even take a shot until late in the game. I think he had 2 rebounds late in the game. Barely even touched the ball. Since he was hit in the face by the Georgetown kid, he has not been the same.

UNC 35 minutes, 2-3 from the field, 2-2 from the FT line, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 6 points
Pitt 39 minutes, 4-6 from the field, 6-8 from the FT line, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 14 points
Miami 27 minutes, 0-1 from the field, 0-0 from the FT line, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 0 points

He has taken 10 shots in 3 games. He should be doing that for every game. He has 10 rebounds in 3 games. Edwards had 6 in 23 minutes last night. Hope he gets his mojo back. We need him to score and rebound the ball.

It looked like there was some effort made to get the ball to Quincy down low. I think this is becoming a point of emphasis, which is great to see. Kadary in particular is good at finding him open down low.

Edwards is not a great rebounder. He is going to be in position, get his hands on the ball and get it knocked loose a lot. He is going to get knocked on his butt a lot. Just doesn't have the strength he needs. I so hope there is a major change in the way the players work during the off season where they can be introduced to weight training to gain muscle mass and strength. We have to have the worst weight training program in the country and it is costing us a lot of victories. I hope this is not by design (and that we want the weakest team in the country every season). Please, make the players lift weights, eat right and develop bodies comparable to the rest of the teams in the ACC. Please.

That said, Jesse has some athletic ability. He is long, noticeably longer than Marek to my eye (think wingspan) and when Miami got the ball into the paint, Edwards affected some shots. He was only credited with 1 block (I think they might have missed one or two) but this was the first time this year I have missed opposing players show some concern over taking shots inside (they should be concerned about the great weak side help Q is providing a couple of times each game as well).

Good to see Kadary playing with confidence again. He was still a bit more tentative than I would like but he is clearly our best guard passing the ball, especially down low, and he is a major disruptive force up top in the zone. I will be very interested to see what kind of numbers he puts up for blocks and steals when he starts playing 30 or more minutes a game.

Glad Buddy and JGIII are feeling better. I suspect the bad UM defense was also partly responsible for their major improvements but good to see them making a lot of shots, and I was happy with Joe's shot selection (only one suspect shot, a very long 3 at the start of the shot clock which he made). Sad Braswell played so little in a game where Alan was a non factor. Did we really need to play Buddy at forward so much in the 2nd half?

I am wondering though if the reason this was done was to see how well things went with JGIII, Buddy and Kadary all playing at the same time. It might be something he is going to use more as the season progresses. Because that 3 guard grouping was very effective on offense and not bad rebounding or defending.

Alan better step up his game or his minutes are going to be going down.

 

[GoSU96]

I have limited time, so let's stop wasting time and get this post going,

Another surprising result in a season full of them. When a team is killed that badly, you wonder how good they are. Well, Miami beat Purdue early this season. They have had a series of heart breaking 1 or 2 point losses but had won 2 of their last 3, including a win against a decent NC State team in Raleigh and a win at home against UL (they were ranked #16 at the time).

They miss Lykes a lot. Losing a senior PG is always a big blow. But he has been out since the first two games of the season. Still, you can tell they lack a leader running the half court offense. They did not do a good job attacking the zone.

Good to see the backcourt playing well again. Might be the first game all 3 guards played well. Hope to see more of that. It seemed like things started to roll when Kadary came in and JGIII was moved to the 2. He can attack defenses from the wing playing the 2, can get the ball closer to the basket, making it easier for him to get looks from the paint...in short, he has a lot more freedom to try and get open in places where he can score. And Kadary looked for him and get him the ball in those places. We need to see more of that. There was chemistry there that I don't see a lot with JGIII and Buddy.

Alan seems to have games where he is just not there mentally. This was one of them. He just stood around on the perimeter when he was in, and jacked a couple of bad 3s, where he was either too far from the basket or had someone in his face. Air balls. He comes back in and almost immediately throws a really risky pass to a player underneath, but reads the cut wrong and the pass goes to no one. Just mindless, awful basketball. I think he was frustrated at getting pulled early and let it affect his play. He has to work harder to get open. Can't just force bad shots from the perimeter and expect to do well.

Marek was again not himself. Didn't even take a shot until late in the game. I think he had 2 rebounds late in the game. Barely even touched the ball. Since he was hit in the face by the Georgetown kid, he has not been the same.

UNC 35 minutes, 2-3 from the field, 2-2 from the FT line, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 6 points
Pitt 39 minutes, 4-6 from the field, 6-8 from the FT line, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 14 points
Miami 27 minutes, 0-1 from the field, 0-0 from the FT line, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 0 points

He has taken 10 shots in 3 games. He should be doing that for every game. He has 10 rebounds in 3 games. Edwards had 6 in 23 minutes last night. Hope he gets his mojo back. We need him to score and rebound the ball.

It looked like there was some effort made to get the ball to Quincy down low. I think this is becoming a point of emphasis, which is great to see. Kadary in particular is good at finding him open down low.

Edwards is not a great rebounder. He is going to be in position, get his hands on the ball and get it knocked loose a lot. He is going to get knocked on his butt a lot. Just doesn't have the strength he needs. I so hope there is a major change in the way the players work during the off season where they can be introduced to weight training to gain muscle mass and strength. We have to have the worst weight training program in the country and it is costing us a lot of victories. I hope this is not by design (and that we want the weakest team in the country every season). Please, make the players lift weights, eat right and develop bodies comparable to the rest of the teams in the ACC. Please.

That said, Jesse has some athletic ability. He is long, noticeably longer than Marek to my eye (think wingspan) and when Miami got the ball into the paint, Edwards affected some shots. He was only credited with 1 block (I think they might have missed one or two) but this was the first time this year I have missed opposing players show some concern over taking shots inside (they should be concerned about the great weak side help Q is providing a couple of times each game as well).

Good to see Kadary playing with confidence again. He was still a bit more tentative than I would like but he is clearly our best guard passing the ball, especially down low, and he is a major disruptive force up top in the zone. I will be very interested to see what kind of numbers he puts up for blocks and steals when he starts playing 30 or more minutes a game.

Glad Buddy and JGIII are feeling better. I suspect the bad UM defense was also partly responsible for their major improvements but good to see them making a lot of shots, and I was happy with Joe's shot selection (only one suspect shot, a very long 3 at the start of the shot clock which he made). Sad Braswell played so little in a game where Alan was a non factor. Did we really need to play Buddy at forward so much in the 2nd half?

I am wondering though if the reason this was done was to see how well things went with JGIII, Buddy and Kadary all playing at the same time. It might be something he is going to use more as the season progresses. Because that 3 guard grouping was very effective on offense and not bad rebounding or defending.

Alan better step up his game or his minutes are going to be going down.

agree about griffin

if sidibe ever comes back he’s the guy moving down IMO

 

[malpearl31]

I have limited time, so let's stop wasting time and get this post going,

Another surprising result in a season full of them. When a team is killed that badly, you wonder how good they are. Well, Miami beat Purdue early this season. They have had a series of heart breaking 1 or 2 point losses but had won 2 of their last 3, including a win against a decent NC State team in Raleigh and a win at home against UL (they were ranked #16 at the time).

They miss Lykes a lot. Losing a senior PG is always a big blow. But he has been out since the first two games of the season. Still, you can tell they lack a leader running the half court offense. They did not do a good job attacking the zone.

Good to see the backcourt playing well again. Might be the first game all 3 guards played well. Hope to see more of that. It seemed like things started to roll when Kadary came in and JGIII was moved to the 2. He can attack defenses from the wing playing the 2, can get the ball closer to the basket, making it easier for him to get looks from the paint...in short, he has a lot more freedom to try and get open in places where he can score. And Kadary looked for him and get him the ball in those places. We need to see more of that. There was chemistry there that I don't see a lot with JGIII and Buddy.

Alan seems to have games where he is just not there mentally. This was one of them. He just stood around on the perimeter when he was in, and jacked a couple of bad 3s, where he was either too far from the basket or had someone in his face. Air balls. He comes back in and almost immediately throws a really risky pass to a player underneath, but reads the cut wrong and the pass goes to no one. Just mindless, awful basketball. I think he was frustrated at getting pulled early and let it affect his play. He has to work harder to get open. Can't just force bad shots from the perimeter and expect to do well.

Marek was again not himself. Didn't even take a shot until late in the game. I think he had 2 rebounds late in the game. Barely even touched the ball. Since he was hit in the face by the Georgetown kid, he has not been the same.

UNC 35 minutes, 2-3 from the field, 2-2 from the FT line, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 6 points
Pitt 39 minutes, 4-6 from the field, 6-8 from the FT line, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 14 points
Miami 27 minutes, 0-1 from the field, 0-0 from the FT line, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 0 points

He has taken 10 shots in 3 games. He should be doing that for every game. He has 10 rebounds in 3 games. Edwards had 6 in 23 minutes last night. Hope he gets his mojo back. We need him to score and rebound the ball.

It looked like there was some effort made to get the ball to Quincy down low. I think this is becoming a point of emphasis, which is great to see. Kadary in particular is good at finding him open down low.

Edwards is not a great rebounder. He is going to be in position, get his hands on the ball and get it knocked loose a lot. He is going to get knocked on his butt a lot. Just doesn't have the strength he needs. I so hope there is a major change in the way the players work during the off season where they can be introduced to weight training to gain muscle mass and strength. We have to have the worst weight training program in the country and it is costing us a lot of victories. I hope this is not by design (and that we want the weakest team in the country every season). Please, make the players lift weights, eat right and develop bodies comparable to the rest of the teams in the ACC. Please.

That said, Jesse has some athletic ability. He is long, noticeably longer than Marek to my eye (think wingspan) and when Miami got the ball into the paint, Edwards affected some shots. He was only credited with 1 block (I think they might have missed one or two) but this was the first time this year I have missed opposing players show some concern over taking shots inside (they should be concerned about the great weak side help Q is providing a couple of times each game as well).

Good to see Kadary playing with confidence again. He was still a bit more tentative than I would like but he is clearly our best guard passing the ball, especially down low, and he is a major disruptive force up top in the zone. I will be very interested to see what kind of numbers he puts up for blocks and steals when he starts playing 30 or more minutes a game.

Glad Buddy and JGIII are feeling better. I suspect the bad UM defense was also partly responsible for their major improvements but good to see them making a lot of shots, and I was happy with Joe's shot selection (only one suspect shot, a very long 3 at the start of the shot clock which he made). Sad Braswell played so little in a game where Alan was a non factor. Did we really need to play Buddy at forward so much in the 2nd half?

I am wondering though if the reason this was done was to see how well things went with JGIII, Buddy and Kadary all playing at the same time. It might be something he is going to use more as the season progresses. Because that 3 guard grouping was very effective on offense and not bad rebounding or defending.

Alan better step up his game or his minutes are going to be going down.

Great write up. And I think you’re right - I think JB wanted to get a good, long look at the KR/JG/BB lineup - which we have hardly seen so far this season. To me, that’s always been one of the biggest drawbacks of the zone, it doesn’t typically lend itself to ‘playing small’, and JB may have found something with Kadary on the floor with both Joe and Buddy. Although a lot of posters on this board poke fun at the concept of ‘spacing’, it certainly did appear that Kadary had a ton of room to operate/penetrate and create opportunities inside for Quincy, in particular.

 

[MSOrange]

Obviously they are different people, but I remember Alan's dad Adrian hanging around in the NBA because he was a smart player who hustled and played really good defense. Seems like Alan would have picked up some of that, but I guess you never know.

 

[stuckinbig11]

"I am wondering though if the reason this was done was to see how well things went with JGIII, Buddy and Kadary all playing at the same time. It might be something he is going to use more as the season progresses. Because that 3 guard grouping was very effective on offense and not bad rebounding or defending."

a coaching decision that many do not understand

 

[Alsacs]

"I am wondering though if the reason this was done was to see how well things went with JGIII, Buddy and Kadary all playing at the same time. It might be something he is going to use more as the season progresses. Because that 3 guard grouping was very effective on offense and not bad rebounding or defending."

a coaching decision that many do not understand

Please explain the coaching decision so everyone can understand it?

 

[Alsacs]

Great write up. And I think you’re right - I think JB wanted to get a good, long look at the KR/JG/BB lineup - which we have hardly seen so far this season. To me, that’s always been one of the biggest drawbacks of the zone, it doesn’t typically lend itself to ‘playing small’, and JB may have found something with Kadary on the floor with both Joe and Buddy. Although a lot of posters on this board poke fun at the concept of ‘spacing’, it certainly did appear that Kadary had a ton of room to operate/penetrate and create opportunities inside for Quincy, in particular.

How many minutes last night did KG/BB/JG play together last night?

 

[kcsu]

Jesse and Kadary are the keys to this team winning games. In college bball you dont win many without a solid point and center.
Our best overall team is
Jesse
Q
Marek
Buddy
Kadary

Joe Griff Bras and hopefully Frank are others based on who we are playing and how well the starters and they play. When Joe is hot he plays. Same with Griff. Otherwise they are both liabilities on D.
Bras brings energy he is long and he plays solid D. I want more of him.
Interestingly the key to all of this is less PT for Buddy. His minutes force others out of their natural positions. Joe is a 2 and Griff is a tweener 2/3. So Buddy needs to be hot as well or he needs to sit.
JB has plenty of talent. He needs to do a better job with the management of them. Last night was a start.

 

[Orangezoo]

Good points on the 3 guard lineup. I think you have to point to the fact that Buddy is at least capable of driving it once and a while and is effective in the mid range on some nights. Griffin is not comfortable handling it at all let alone doing do with his back to the defender to prevent his pocket being picked. It really makes him one dimensional and then he gets lazy on defense too. The one problem with this lineup, and Miami exposed it twice is that once you throw a 6-8/6-9 athletic wing in there on Buddy's side you are going to give up a bucket quite often. I think you have to be running Jesse at the 5 to offset that somewhat.

In regard to Jesse I agree with being hesitant to be too excited but overall, even in his lesser performances his length and size has provided a much bigger roadblock around the rim. He may not be strong enough yet but he is so much better of an option to help slow down the rash of success teams are having in the post this year. Also while Jesse needs to get stronger it's notable that it's the chest up where he needs to do so. He actually has a decent base and holds his ground while also being able to move his feet. It's up top where he gives up way too much. This is a shame because unlike Marek he has the frame to handle another 25 lbs with ease.

 

[Alsacs]

Jesse and Kadary are the keys to this team winning games. In college bball you dont win many without a solid point and center.
Our best overall team is
Jesse
Q
Marek
Buddy
Kadary

Joe Griff Bras and hopefully Frank are others based on who we are playing and how well the starters and they play. When Joe is hot he plays. Same with Griff. Otherwise they are both liabilities on D.
Bras brings energy he is long and he plays solid D. I want more of him.
Interestingly the key to all of this is less PT for Buddy. His minutes force others out of their natural positions. Joe is a 2 and Griff is a tweener 2/3. So Buddy needs to be hot as well or he needs to sit.
JB has plenty of talent. He needs to do a better job with the management of them. Last night was a start.

I don’t think AG and BB are that different.
Both get hot.
AG is a better rebounder.
BB doesn’t make dumb turnovers.
Both are chuckers and streak shooters.
One shouldn’t play 16 minutes and the other 35 minutes.

We need Kadary at PG
Split SG minutes between JG and BB
Give JG the backup point guard minutes 5 per half.
Cause remember these are kids who don’t get tired unless it means more playing time for Buddy. He doesn’t get tired even though he just had Covid.

I swear we aren’t going to be our best team unless the minutes are more balanced and the better players are playing more.
Kadary had no business playing the 6th most minutes yesterday.
The game was over at halftime.
Miami couldn’t score.
We didn’t bring Kadary in till over half of the second half was played.

The idea that JB wanted to experiment with the 3 guard lineup has no evidence.
He didn’t play the 3 guard lineup till he took Griffin out for Buddy at the 9 minute mark in the first half.
The 3 guard played the last 9 minutes of the first half.
Then they played 5 minutes in the second half together when the game was over 20 points.

It was a grand total of 14 minutes. Of which the team was ahead 10+ points the entire time.

It’s spin to infer it was an experiment. It was a chance to keep Kadary in the game and get “spacing” that Griffin couldn’t provide.

 

[longtimefan]

I have limited time, so let's stop wasting time and get this post going,

Another surprising result in a season full of them. When a team is killed that badly, you wonder how good they are. Well, Miami beat Purdue early this season. They have had a series of heart breaking 1 or 2 point losses but had won 2 of their last 3, including a win against a decent NC State team in Raleigh and a win at home against UL (they were ranked #16 at the time).

They miss Lykes a lot. Losing a senior PG is always a big blow. But he has been out since the first two games of the season. Still, you can tell they lack a leader running the half court offense. They did not do a good job attacking the zone.

Good to see the backcourt playing well again. Might be the first game all 3 guards played well. Hope to see more of that. It seemed like things started to roll when Kadary came in and JGIII was moved to the 2. He can attack defenses from the wing playing the 2, can get the ball closer to the basket, making it easier for him to get looks from the paint...in short, he has a lot more freedom to try and get open in places where he can score. And Kadary looked for him and get him the ball in those places. We need to see more of that. There was chemistry there that I don't see a lot with JGIII and Buddy.

Alan seems to have games where he is just not there mentally. This was one of them. He just stood around on the perimeter when he was in, and jacked a couple of bad 3s, where he was either too far from the basket or had someone in his face. Air balls. He comes back in and almost immediately throws a really risky pass to a player underneath, but reads the cut wrong and the pass goes to no one. Just mindless, awful basketball. I think he was frustrated at getting pulled early and let it affect his play. He has to work harder to get open. Can't just force bad shots from the perimeter and expect to do well.

Marek was again not himself. Didn't even take a shot until late in the game. I think he had 2 rebounds late in the game. Barely even touched the ball. Since he was hit in the face by the Georgetown kid, he has not been the same.

UNC 35 minutes, 2-3 from the field, 2-2 from the FT line, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 6 points
Pitt 39 minutes, 4-6 from the field, 6-8 from the FT line, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 14 points
Miami 27 minutes, 0-1 from the field, 0-0 from the FT line, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 0 points

He has taken 10 shots in 3 games. He should be doing that for every game. He has 10 rebounds in 3 games. Edwards had 6 in 23 minutes last night. Hope he gets his mojo back. We need him to score and rebound the ball.

It looked like there was some effort made to get the ball to Quincy down low. I think this is becoming a point of emphasis, which is great to see. Kadary in particular is good at finding him open down low.

Edwards is not a great rebounder. He is going to be in position, get his hands on the ball and get it knocked loose a lot. He is going to get knocked on his butt a lot. Just doesn't have the strength he needs. I so hope there is a major change in the way the players work during the off season where they can be introduced to weight training to gain muscle mass and strength. We have to have the worst weight training program in the country and it is costing us a lot of victories. I hope this is not by design (and that we want the weakest team in the country every season). Please, make the players lift weights, eat right and develop bodies comparable to the rest of the teams in the ACC. Please.

That said, Jesse has some athletic ability. He is long, noticeably longer than Marek to my eye (think wingspan) and when Miami got the ball into the paint, Edwards affected some shots. He was only credited with 1 block (I think they might have missed one or two) but this was the first time this year I have missed opposing players show some concern over taking shots inside (they should be concerned about the great weak side help Q is providing a couple of times each game as well).

Good to see Kadary playing with confidence again. He was still a bit more tentative than I would like but he is clearly our best guard passing the ball, especially down low, and he is a major disruptive force up top in the zone. I will be very interested to see what kind of numbers he puts up for blocks and steals when he starts playing 30 or more minutes a game.

Glad Buddy and JGIII are feeling better. I suspect the bad UM defense was also partly responsible for their major improvements but good to see them making a lot of shots, and I was happy with Joe's shot selection (only one suspect shot, a very long 3 at the start of the shot clock which he made). Sad Braswell played so little in a game where Alan was a non factor. Did we really need to play Buddy at forward so much in the 2nd half?

I am wondering though if the reason this was done was to see how well things went with JGIII, Buddy and Kadary all playing at the same time. It might be something he is going to use more as the season progresses. Because that 3 guard grouping was very effective on offense and not bad rebounding or defending.

Alan better step up his game or his minutes are going to be going down.

Re: Edwards and weight training--
Remember, he was "stuck" in Europe all summer, and arrived back on campus at the last minute.

 

[007]

Alan seems to have games where he is just not there mentally.

Marek was again not himself.


It looked like there was some effort made to get the ball to Quincy down low. I think this is becoming a point of emphasis, which is great to see. Kadary in particular is good at finding him open down low.

Edwards is not a great rebounder. He is going to be in position, get his hands on the ball and get it knocked loose a lot. He is going to get knocked on his butt a lot.

That said, Jesse has some athletic ability. He is long, noticeably longer than Marek to my eye (think wingspan) and when Miami got the ball into the paint, Edwards affected some shots.

Good to see Kadary playing with confidence again. He was still a bit more tentative than I would like but he is clearly our best guard passing the ball, especially down low, and he is a major disruptive force up top in the zone. I will be very interested to see what kind of numbers he puts up for blocks and steals when he starts playing 30 or more minutes a game.

I am wondering though if the reason this was done was to see how well things went with JGIII, Buddy and Kadary all playing at the same time.

Alan better step up his game or his minutes are going to be going down.

Tom, your posts should be required reading. I took the liberty to highlight some of the, IMO, key points.

Surprised more people have not commented on the use of Q last night. It was decidedly different. We have not seen that type of interior post up emphasis since...Rak

Kadary is a game changer...on defense (in addition to all the PG praise). The steals per minute stats, blocks, rebounding, disrupting passing lanes, and, less obviously, contesting entry passes to the high post are huge.

 

[malpearl31]

How many minutes last night did KG/BB/JG play together last night?

Great question!

In the first half, Kadary/Joe/Buddy were on the court together from the 9:08 mark (the score was tied 14-14) to the 1:02 mark. SU led 33-22 when JB subbed Griffin back in for Kadary. So 8 first-half minutes for that trio, in which they were +11.

In the second half, Kadary/Joe/Buddy were on the court together from the 9:51 mark (with SU leading 61-40) to the 1:22 mark. SU led 83-53 when JB cleared the bench. So 8-1/2 second-half minutes for that trio, in which they were +9.

So for the game, Kadary/Joe/Buddy were on the court together for 16:35 and they were +20 during that time period.

Pretty good.

 

[OrangeinDC]

Good points on the 3 guard lineup. I think you have to point to the fact that Buddy is at least capable of driving it once and a while and is effective in the mid range on some nights. Griffin is not comfortable handling it at all let alone doing do with his back to the defender to prevent his pocket being picked. It really makes him one dimensional and then he gets lazy on defense too. The one problem with this lineup, and Miami exposed it twice is that once you throw a 6-8/6-9 athletic wing in there on Buddy's side you are going to give up a bucket quite often. I think you have to be running Jesse at the 5 to offset that somewhat.

In regard to Jesse I agree with being hesitant to be too excited but overall, even in his lesser performances his length and size has provided a much bigger roadblock around the rim. He may not be strong enough yet but he is so much better of an option to help slow down the rash of success teams are having in the post this year. Also while Jesse needs to get stronger it's notable that it's the chest up where he needs to do so. He actually has a decent base and holds his ground while also being able to move his feet. It's up top where he gives up way too much. This is a shame because unlike Marek he has the frame to handle another 25 lbs with ease.

To me Woody and Bras bring some intangibles that none of the other guys have, Woody is bouncy, with quick feet and will go after boards and he can score. Woody also doesn't seem to mind mixing it up a little for boards. Bras give you constant D, height, length, and athleticism, plus he rebounds and occasionally shoots well.


Lastly, from what I've seen JE and FA can clearly give us 5/6 minutes a half at the 5.

I really like the pieces on this team and I think our potential ceiling is high.

 

[hoopsupstate]

Alan is still young and has plenty of time to grow into a guard. He has the scoring ability to be a solid two guard. He just needs a little time. He needs to be patient and coachable.

 

[sutomcat]

I don’t think AG and BB are that different.
Both get hot.
AG is a better rebounder.
BB doesn’t make dumb turnovers.
Both are chuckers and streak shooters.
One shouldn’t play 16 minutes and the other 35 minutes.

We need Kadary at PG
Split SG minutes between JG and BB
Give JG the backup point guard minutes 5 per half.
Cause remember these are kids who don’t get tired unless it means more playing time for Buddy. He doesn’t get tired even though he just had Covid.

I swear we aren’t going to be our best team unless the minutes are more balanced and the better players are playing more.
Kadary had no business playing the 6th most minutes yesterday.
The game was over at halftime.
Miami couldn’t score.
We didn’t bring Kadary in till over half of the second half was played.

The idea that JB wanted to experiment with the 3 guard lineup has no evidence.
He didn’t play the 3 guard lineup till he took Griffin out for Buddy at the 9 minute mark in the first half.
The 3 guard played the last 9 minutes of the first half.
Then they played 5 minutes in the second half together when the game was over 20 points.

It was a grand total of 14 minutes. Of which the team was ahead 10+ points the entire time.

It’s spin to infer it was an experiment. It was a chance to keep Kadary in the game and get “spacing” that Griffin couldn’t provide.

Me guessing what JB was thinking is not 'spinning' anything. Take the tin foil off your head, stop hating Buddy so much and relax a bit.

Buddy is a lot more effective when he is able to get the ball closer to the basket, and drive a bit. Miami did not over play him and try to deny him the ball. Better coached teams will do this. I am thinking it might be easier for Buddy to get his mid range game going when he is covered by a less athletic forward. Something to watch for in future games, especially when JB goes with the 3 guard lineup.

 

[Alsacs]

Me guessing what JB was thinking is not 'spinning' anything. Take the tin foil off your head, stop hating Buddy so much and relax a bit.

Buddy is a lot more effective when he is able to get the ball closer to the basket, and drive a bit. Miami did not over play him and try to deny him the ball. Better coached teams will do this. I am thinking it might be easier for Buddy to get his mid range game going when he is covered by a less athletic forward. Something to watch for in future games, especially when JB goes with the 3 guard lineup.

It’s not hate. The stuff you just said Buddy could do Alan Griffin can do as well.

One shouldn’t be playing 35 minutes and the other 16 minutes. The minutes are ridiculous. Sorry you disagree but you accusing it of hate tries to destroy any debate on the subject.

If we go to a 3 guard lineup it will have to be against teams like Miami which aren’t big.
Alan Griffin can take advantage of less athletic forwards as well.

 

[oTTo113445]

One or two of Eddie's rebounds were sky-high nearly Warrickesque. My only obvious argument outside of weight with him is don't foul on and find a way to slow down the Eurosteps.

 

[syrBossHogg]

I haven't watched much of VT this year but I wonder if we might see the 3 guard lineup again on Saturday

 

[OttoinGrotto]

My only quibble is that the game didn't seem to change when Kadary came in. It did change. We hit 4 shots in a row and Kadary got 2 steals right away.

 

[Cusefan0307]

I haven't watched much of VT this year but I wonder if we might see the 3 guard lineup again on Saturday

It's possible. As usual they are not big at all, but can shoot it. They also beat Miami by just 2. If we play the right guys we should win at home.

 

[syrBossHogg]

It's possible. As usual they are not big at all, but can shoot it. They also beat Miami by just 2. If we play the right guys we should win at home.

Yeah and definitely a game we can play Marek at C for a bit, though I hope we see Jesse.

 

[Consigliere]

We didn’t bring Kadary in till over half of the second half was played.

And in the first 8 minutes of the second half we outscored Miami 23 - 7. If it ain't broke....

 

[sutomcat]

It’s not hate. The stuff you just said Buddy could do Alan Griffin can do as well.

One shouldn’t be playing 35 minutes and the other 16 minutes. The minutes are ridiculous. Sorry you disagree but you accusing it of hate tries to destroy any debate on the subject.

If we go to a 3 guard lineup it will have to be against teams like Miami which aren’t big.
Alan Griffin can take advantage of less athletic forwards as well.

Alan played awful last night. Forced 2 bad 3s that were both air balls. Threw a crazy pass with almost no chance of success. 3 awful mental errors.

What JB has been asking Alan to do is exactly what Buddy was doing last night. Get some penetration, get into the paint, get quality mid range jump shots. This is not something Alan has done. He is clearly uncomfortable doing it. Has made a lot of turnovers trying to beat his man, back him man down. He is way behind Buddy here but he is working on it and his career at Syracuse is very much tied to how success he is getting his mid range game going (also would like to see him sometimes finish at the basket).

I will say that I think one of the things Alan does best is finish plays in transition. He is fast and athletic and at his best in fast paced games where he can get out in 2 on 1 type situations. We are asking him to help out with defensive rebounding and focus on getting boards, so that part of his game has largely been taken away.

For Alan to truly thrive, he probably should be playing the 2. In that role, he would get a lot more good scoring chances. This would also require him learning to play the 2-3 up top. That is a problem.

He has usually been a major liability in the 2-3 zone. When Alan is in games, teams are routinely targeting his area of the zone to attack. Buddy is no Kadary playing in the zone but he is at least average. Asking him to start over and learn the responsibilities playing up top might not be the best strategy right now.

Anyway, I completely disagree with you about Alan doing things as well as Buddy, at least at guard. He can rebound better than Buddy for sure and I think he is a better finisher. Buddy is way better in the mid range game, he has far better judgement (look at the turnovers, my God) and is better defensively.

It is great to see Edwards and Kadary playing well. I hope they both get quality minutes the rest of the season. Hope there is PT made available for Braswell or Woody too...whichever is playing better in practice. I hope JB takes advantage of the developing bench and uses it to rest all the starters.

But unless Alan starts playing well soon, I suspect he is going to lose the most playing time of the starters. Who knows, maybe he had a cold or a pulled muscle last night. We have seen games where AG is terrific. He just needs to find a way to be more consistent. Along with the rest of this team.

 

[Alsacs]

Alan played awful last night. Forced 2 bad 3s that were both air balls. Threw a crazy pass with almost no chance of success. 3 awful mental errors.

What JB has been asking Alan to do is exactly what Buddy was doing last night. Get some penetration, get into the paint, get quality mid range jump shots. This is not something Alan has done. He is clearly uncomfortable doing it. Has made a lot of turnovers trying to beat his man, back him man down. He is way behind Buddy here but he is working on it and his career at Syracuse is very much tied to how success he is getting his mid range game going (also would like to see him sometimes finish at the basket).

I will say that I think one of the things Alan does best is finish plays in transition. He is fast and athletic and at his best in fast paced games where he can get out in 2 on 1 type situations. We are asking him to help out with defensive rebounding and focus on getting boards, so that part of his game has largely been taken away.

For Alan to truly thrive, he probably should be playing the 2. In that role, he would get a lot more good scoring chances. This would also require him learning to play the 2-3 up top. That is a problem.

He has usually been a major liability in the 2-3 zone. When Alan is in games, teams are routinely targeting his area of the zone to attack. Buddy is no Kadary playing in the zone but he is at least average. Asking him to start over and learn the responsibilities playing up top might not be the best strategy right now.

Anyway, I completely disagree with you about Alan doing things as well as Buddy, at least at guard. He can rebound better than Buddy for sure and I think he is a better finisher. Buddy is way better in the mid range game, he has far better judgement (look at the turnovers, my God) and is better defensively.

It is great to see Edwards and Kadary playing well. I hope they both get quality minutes the rest of the season. Hope there is PT made available for Braswell or Woody too...whichever is playing better in practice. I hope JB takes advantage of the developing bench and uses it to rest all the starters.

But unless Alan starts playing well soon, I suspect he is going to lose the most playing time of the starters. Who knows, maybe he had a cold or a pulled muscle last night. We have seen games where AG is terrific. He just needs to find a way to be more consistent. Along with the rest of this team.

I was talking about Buddy as a forward.
Alan can do that stuff.

When Buddy plays less than 20 minutes when he plays poorly then I will believe he gets treated like everyone else.
Buddy was awful against Pitt and he played 40.
So you point out all of Griffin’s bad from yesterday.

He sat.

Why can’t Buddy’s bad get him sat down?

Jim Boeheim can be questioned on this.
He doesn’t treat every situation the same.
I am sorry but people can say Buddy plays too much and that doesn’t mean they hate him. Using that language shuts debate down.