My Take

[sutomcat]

Gotta be quick here. Have good stuff to watch on tv and an early tee time (which is surely going to be frost delayed).

First, the major disclaimer. This was N exhibition game against a team much less talented than the teams we will play in the regular season. It is not a great idea to draw any major conclusions from what happened today.

That said,,,,

Thought Jaquan was everything I was expecting.hoping for today. He ran the offense well in fast break situations and in the half court. Je played under control but still pressed it up the court whenever possible. When he had a chance to score, he took it and usually converted. And he looked like our best defender by a fairly large margin.

There is something almost magical about having a senior PG running the show. We have lacked that veteran presence for a long time and it is good to have it on this team that features so many new players.

JJ also looked like a savvy veteran and made a lot of good decisions. Shot it well, thought he looked really good. Veteran guards Re awesome.

Even Lucas Taylor looked good at guard and shows some veteran savvy. And I liked what I saw from Elijah Moore, who seems advanced for a true frosh and might be our second best guard defender was a frosh.

Freeman is a freak athlete who is going to do some amazing things. I expect he will force some shots and make some mistakes on defense but he knows how to play already and has a ton of god given talent. Enjoy him while he is here. I agree with those saying he is a one and done.

Bell looks like he might have made a big leap. He looks stronger and he played today with a lot of confidence. Drove to the basket, drew fouls, shows some interest in playing defense and made not one but two terrific passes.

And of course shot well from the perimeter.

Thought Lampkin did a lot of nice things on offense. He showed an ability to finish plays and play in the low post we have not seen since Jesss left. Passed it as well as we were told he would. Might well finish second in the team in assists. That said, he was awful on defense and his matador defense has to improve. To be fair, Clarion has no true center and it is going to be hard for anyone as big as Eddie to cover an agile forward. But I think his defense is something to worry about. Also not thrilled with him jacking 3s.

Thought Petar looked really comfortable and smooth for a true frosh. He clearly m odd how to play. Established position down low a bunch of times, can finish with either hand, sets screens too. But he also looked suspect in defense and made some silly fouls to get I foul trouble very quickly. Has to do better on the defensive end.

Naheem didn’t play much but I thought he looked quite good when he was on. Moved well, and when he was in, Clarion did nothing in the paint.

Cuffe always looks kind of wild and out of control to me. I have a hard time seeing him getting a lot of PT with the other guards on the roster but maybe he will surprise me. I hope so. To me he seems too small to score inside and not a good enough shooter to score consistently from the perimeter. And o am not sold he is a defensive whiz. But I hope to be proven wrong on this.

Davis didn’t seem to play a ton but I liked what I saw from him. There are going to be games when Donnie and Petar get in foul trouble or struggle otherwise and I think Davis will be a factor at times. If he shows he can be a shut down defender, that will help get him playing time. Not sure if this will happen.

Good to see us play man all game. It wasn’t the greatest man ever seen but it was oasssble. I liked that we pushed the ball a lot and played fast. We looked a lot deeper, played a lot smarter and I saw a lot of unselfishness and good ball movement.

I thought it was a very good start.

 

[hoopsupstate]

Nice recap. Agree that Eddie has to defend better. He was getting beat off the dribble by smaller forwards.

 

[bballbeadle]

Tom, I always look forward to your assessments, particularly since you (and a few others like Steve) help me to understand what I just saw. I was very preoccupied by trying to identify the players, and chagrined that both JJ and Bell have changed their hair. Lampkin is easy. The rest will come. Was Jaquan #5? I am hoping to catch a replay tonight so I can see faces better and get the players more firmly in my “mind.”

Last night I got back from a Codger Cruise with Viking, going from Amsterdam to Switzerland and staying an extra two days in Lucerne. Listen, codgers or not, Viking had us hopping non-stop. Not quite Disney but certainly not a lackadaisical “cruise” either. A great experience!

My daughter and I are sitting in new seats and were most excited to to be in them. She loved the chairs! No more buying stadium seats. We are sitting in the third row of the new 309 and the view was great! Practically center court. The guys behind us, two in their mid-forties (?) were SO GOOD. We were immediately talking back and forth like we had been sitting together forever. I even gave one of them a playful diss and he said, “Do we know each other well enough for this?” In the second half, I was just about to ask them, are you stay-to-the-end fans, when John asked me, “Hey, are you stay to the end fans?” We assured them we were.

The guy I was sitting next to was nice enough but often sat hunched forward and seemed to be one of those muttering fans that feel every lapse or mistake spells doom. (I have my new Gary.) There was a 6 year old boy in front of us who is a A N. He intently watched every play, groaned in misery when the other team scored, cheered loudly when we did. He would yell out things like “the lane is open!” Or “pass pass!” Or “crash at center court!” Cuter than I can describe.

Our old section friends of the last 15 years are in a bad situation. They sit in Row A in the new 308. This is right where the dome turns the corner. The new seats are lower and if you sit back in them, you can’t see half the court. It is awful! And I found out the woman has Stage 4 cancer, which has made me so sad. She needs the back support but has to sit forward in order to see. This is a terrible design flaw which needs to be rectified. I am going to write to Pete Sala to see if anything can be done. She and her (short) husband deserve better than this.

I will be very interested to hear how other people like their new seats. Maybe there will be a thread?

I was very happy to see us break 100. It’s been a while since we did that in an exhibition game. I wanted to see Duke-like dominance, and pretty much got it. They are an inferior team and we should monkey spank them, which we did! I do not feel uneasy about this team. And I’m not going to qualify it with “yet.”

 

[cliftonparksufan]

Gotta be quick here. Have good stuff to watch on tv and an early tee time (which is surely going to be frost delayed).

First, the major disclaimer. This was N exhibition game against a team much less talented than the teams we will play in the regular season. It is not a great idea to draw any major conclusions from what happened today.

That said,,,,

Thought Jaquan was everything I was expecting.hoping for today. He ran the offense well in fast break situations and in the half court. Je played under control but still pressed it up the court whenever possible. When he had a chance to score, he took it and usually converted. And he looked like our best defender by a fairly large margin.

There is something almost magical about having a senior PG running the show. We have lacked that veteran presence for a long time and it is good to have it on this team that features so many new players.

JJ also looked like a savvy veteran and made a lot of good decisions. Shot it well, thought he looked really good. Veteran guards Re awesome.

Even Lucas Taylor looked good at guard and shows some veteran savvy. And I liked what I saw from Elijah Moore, who seems advanced for a true frosh and might be our second best guard defender was a frosh.

Freeman is a freak athlete who is going to do some amazing things. I expect he will force some shots and make some mistakes on defense but he knows how to play already and has a ton of god given talent. Enjoy him while he is here. I agree with those saying he is a one and done.

Bell looks like he might have made a big leap. He looks stronger and he played today with a lot of confidence. Drove to the basket, drew fouls, shows some interest in playing defense and made not one but two terrific passes.

And of course shot well from the perimeter.

Thought Lampkin did a lot of nice things on offense. He showed an ability to finish plays and play in the low post we have not seen since Jesss left. Passed it as well as we were told he would. Might well finish second in the team in assists. That said, he was awful on defense and his matador defense has to improve. To be fair, Clarion has no true center and it is going to be hard for anyone as big as Eddie to cover an agile forward. But I think his defense is something to worry about. Also not thrilled with him jacking 3s.

Thought Petar looked really comfortable and smooth for a true frosh. He clearly m odd how to play. Established position down low a bunch of times, can finish with either hand, sets screens too. But he also looked suspect in defense and made some silly fouls to get I foul trouble very quickly. Has to do better on the defensive end.

Naheem didn’t play much but I thought he looked quite good when he was on. Moved well, and when he was in, Clarion did nothing in the paint.

Cuffe always looks kind of wild and out of control to me. I have a hard time seeing him getting a lot of PT with the other guards on the roster but maybe he will surprise me. I hope so. To me he seems too small to score inside and not a good enough shooter to score consistently from the perimeter. And o am not sold he is a defensive whiz. But I hope to be proven wrong on this.

Davis didn’t seem to play a ton but I liked what I saw from him. There are going to be games when Donnie and Petar get in foul trouble or struggle otherwise and I think Davis will be a factor at times. If he shows he can be a shut down defender, that will help get him playing time. Not sure if this will happen.

Good to see us play man all game. It wasn’t the greatest man ever seen but it was oasssble. I liked that we pushed the ball a lot and played fast. We looked a lot deeper, played a lot smarter and I saw a lot of unselfishness and good ball movement.

I thought it was a very good start.

I thought the passing and ball movement were something we haven't seen in the Dome since I don't know when. Almost zero ISO and guys making real basketball plays. A couple give and go's that were text book and will be successful against almost anyone.

Also, I think the guys up in 311 are going to be busy with hopefully a plethora of "D"'s and "3"'s

 

[cliftonparksufan]

Tom, I always look forward to your assessments, particularly since you (and a few others like Steve) help me to understand what I just saw. I was very preoccupied by trying to identify the players, and chagrined that both JJ and Bell have changed their hair. Lampkin is easy. The rest will come. Was Jaquan #5? I am hoping to catch a replay tonight so I can see faces better and get the players more firmly in my “mind.”

Last night I got back from a Codger Cruise with Viking, going from Amsterdam to Switzerland and staying an extra two days in Lucerne. Listen, codgers or not, Viking had us hopping non-stop. Not quite Disney but certainly not a lackadaisical “cruise” either. A great experience!

My daughter and I are sitting in new seats and were most excited to to be in them. She loved the chairs! No more buying stadium seats. We are sitting in the third row of the new 309 and the view was great! Practically center court. The guys behind us, two in their mid-forties (?) were SO GOOD. We were immediately talking back and forth like we had been sitting together forever. I even gave one of them a playful diss and he said, “Do we know each other well enough for this?” In the second half, I was just about to ask them, are you stay-to-the-end fans, when John asked me, “Hey, are you stay to the end fans?” We assured them we were.

The guy I was sitting next to was nice enough but often sat hunched forward and seemed to be one of those muttering fans that feel every lapse or mistake spells doom. (I have my new Gary.) There was a 6 year old boy in front of us who is a A N. He intently watched every play, groaned in misery when the other team scored, cheered loudly when we did. He would yell out things like “the lane is open!” Or “pass pass!” Or “crash at center court!” Cuter than I can describe.

Our old section friends of the last 15 years are in a bad situation. They sit in Row A in the new 308. This is right where the dome turns the corner. The new seats are lower and if you sit back in them, you can’t see half the court. It is awful! And I found out the woman has Stage 4 cancer, which has made me so sad. She needs the back support but has to sit forward in order to see. This is a terrible design flaw which needs to be rectified. I am going to write to Pete Sala to see if anything can be done. She and her (short) husband deserve better than this.

I will be very interested to hear how other people like their new seats. Maybe there will be a thread?

I was very happy to see us break 100. It’s been a while since we did that in an exhibition game. I wanted to see Duke-like dominance, and pretty much got it. They are an inferior team and we should monkey spank them, which we did! I do not feel uneasy about this team. And I’m not going to qualify it with “yet.”

Sorry to hear about your friends in Row A. I thought the seats were a huge upgrade, although I wonder about the projected lifespan of them.

Also, I thought the video board looked a lot clearer. Maybe my eyesight got better, but I really doubt it. Lol!!!

 

[SWC75]

This was just an exhibition game, (why aren't the FCSs in football exhibition games?), So won't be doing my Updown or Net Points. I'll just comment on each player.

Poor Chance Westry, blue chipper coming out of high school . He plays 14 games for Auburn to seasons ago, gets hurt and misses the rest of the season, gets hurt before last season and never plays, although it's said that he could have before the end of the season and was one of the team's best players in practice. Now, as this season beings, he's sick and cant play as his new teammates are staking their claim to positions he might play. The fates need to give this guy a chance!

One of them Is Jaquan Carlos, who made a spectacular debut with 14 points, 10 assists, 3 steals and no turnovers to establish that he will be our point guard. He was in complete command out there but he looked like a guy who will be in complete command of ACC games, too. He doesn't try to do everything himself. He tries to get everyone involved. He runs the offense, which means we have on this year. You feel good things will happen when he has the ball.

JJ Starling had a solid game with 17 points and 5 rebound, although I don't know that he get as many rebounds against larger teams. He was 7 for 9 form the field and 3 for 5 from three. That's what a shooting guard is supposed to do. Interesting that he became the point man when Carlos wasn't in. Will that happen when Westry finally gets his chance?

Elijah Moore hit a couple of threes with 3 assists but a couple of turnovers. He'll be an option all year. But don't expect 67 points or 13 threes. He averaged 16.9 points and 34% from three in high school last year.

Kyle Cuffe hit a three but committed 3 fouls in 8 minutes. He's our fifth guard, assuming that Westry will be in the backcourt.

I had assumed that Lucas Taylor would be in the mix at shooting guard but he's 6-5 and Red wants to use him to back up Chris Bell. He showed some hops when he nearly dunked in a follow shot from Hak Warrick range. Unfortunately, his shot was off, (1 for 6) and he scored 3 points in 17 minutes. But it was just one game.

I'm a believer that Chris Bell will have a real break-out year and he looked it in this game. He was 4 for 8 from three and those were his only shots. But showed he could dribble to set up shots and not just be a stationary jump shooter. He drove the to basket a couple of times but showed he could pass back out with 3 assists. He also had three rebounds. No longer a 'deer-in-the-headlights', he'll be one of the leaders of the team this year and one of it's most reliable players.

As I expected, Petar Maistorovic, (Matt Park pronounced it 'Mast-toro-vich'. The guy at halftime called him 'My-Store-Ovich'), was impressive. He's only 19 but his game seemed very mature since he's been playing pro ball in France. He scored 8 points in 14 minutes on 4 for 6 shooting, (0 for 2 from three). But had 2 steals and rebounds. He ran the break well. One play interested me and it's not in the box score. He got a pass early n one break and immediately looked down court. Far Down court. But he spotted a couple of defenders coming at him and chose a more conservative pass. But he's always looking to see what possibilities exist down the court.

Donnie Freeman was kind of raw but you could see has a big future. He can hit threes or slam in dunks or anything in between. And the dunks don't have to start near the basket. He scored 16 points, pulled down 7 rebounds in 20 minutes and had a spectacular block that was called goaltending by the refs. But he'll get that call down the line. Freeman and Maistorovic make the power forward position, which was a disaster last year, into a major strength.

Jyare Davis could play either forward position but his skills are that of a smallish 4. Red wants him to develop his outside shot but it wasn't there today. He was 1 for 4 from the field and 0 for 3 from the arc, scoring 2 points in 19 minutes. He did have 4 rebounds but it wasn't a good start for Davis. It's just a start.

Naheem McLeod didn't play until the second half. Maistorovic and Freeman played center before he did. But it's hard to tell what the depth chart is from this game. Somehow, Naheem looked even bigger with a close-cropped hairdo. It seemed to emphasis how enormously large his body is. He tried to drive to the basket from the high post in two long strides. He didn't make it there but wound up on the line, where he made two free throws. He scored 67 points in 5 minutes. Red's strategy in this game seemed to be to limit the minutes of the guys had showed him what they can do last year and use the game to have a look at the new guys.

Eddie Lampkin showed me a lot. I wanted to see him in the man-for-man defense because II thought Red would have to lay mostly zone because of Lampkins' and McLeod's supposed inability to guard people 'in space'. I thought Eddie did a good job of keeping people in front of him. He looked like Arinze Onuaku in the paint, moving from side-to-side, preventing opposing players from getting to the basket. McLeod can guard the paint with his huge size. I'm old-fashioned. I think a center's job it to guard the paint, not the three point line. Offensively, Eddie was as advertised. He had 8 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists in 19 minutes. The assists mostly were from the high post and were things of beauty, using his long arms to get the ball around defenders and his big hands to rifle the pass into a man under the basket- or a guy who's going there.

Overall I liked the offense, with the excellent ball movement ands the lack of "hero ball, where a guy is going 1 on 5 to score. Harry Truman said "It's amazing what can be accomplished when no one cares who gets the credit" That's the theme for this team.. Still we missed 22 threes and 7 free throws. We need to do better there. We had as many steals as turnovers. I thought our defense kept control of the game when we hit an offensive rut late in the first half and into the second. At one point, this was a 14 point game. Then the offense got going again and we won by twice that. That's what good defense can do for you.

 

[phreddie]

Naheem McLeod ... He scored 67 points in 5 minutes.

That's quite impressive!

 

[SWC75]

That's quite impressive!

Even more impressive is that I got through that whole thing with just one typo. Or did I?

 

[Bulldog04]

Gotta be quick here. Have good stuff to watch on tv and an early tee time (which is surely going to be frost delayed).

First, the major disclaimer. This was N exhibition game against a team much less talented than the teams we will play in the regular season. It is not a great idea to draw any major conclusions from what happened today.

That said,,,,

Thought Jaquan was everything I was expecting.hoping for today. He ran the offense well in fast break situations and in the half court. Je played under control but still pressed it up the court whenever possible. When he had a chance to score, he took it and usually converted. And he looked like our best defender by a fairly large margin.

There is something almost magical about having a senior PG running the show. We have lacked that veteran presence for a long time and it is good to have it on this team that features so many new players.

JJ also looked like a savvy veteran and made a lot of good decisions. Shot it well, thought he looked really good. Veteran guards Re awesome.

Even Lucas Taylor looked good at guard and shows some veteran savvy. And I liked what I saw from Elijah Moore, who seems advanced for a true frosh and might be our second best guard defender was a frosh.

Freeman is a freak athlete who is going to do some amazing things. I expect he will force some shots and make some mistakes on defense but he knows how to play already and has a ton of god given talent. Enjoy him while he is here. I agree with those saying he is a one and done.

Bell looks like he might have made a big leap. He looks stronger and he played today with a lot of confidence. Drove to the basket, drew fouls, shows some interest in playing defense and made not one but two terrific passes.

And of course shot well from the perimeter.

Thought Lampkin did a lot of nice things on offense. He showed an ability to finish plays and play in the low post we have not seen since Jesss left. Passed it as well as we were told he would. Might well finish second in the team in assists. That said, he was awful on defense and his matador defense has to improve. To be fair, Clarion has no true center and it is going to be hard for anyone as big as Eddie to cover an agile forward. But I think his defense is something to worry about. Also not thrilled with him jacking 3s.

Thought Petar looked really comfortable and smooth for a true frosh. He clearly m odd how to play. Established position down low a bunch of times, can finish with either hand, sets screens too. But he also looked suspect in defense and made some silly fouls to get I foul trouble very quickly. Has to do better on the defensive end.

Naheem didn’t play much but I thought he looked quite good when he was on. Moved well, and when he was in, Clarion did nothing in the paint.

Cuffe always looks kind of wild and out of control to me. I have a hard time seeing him getting a lot of PT with the other guards on the roster but maybe he will surprise me. I hope so. To me he seems too small to score inside and not a good enough shooter to score consistently from the perimeter. And o am not sold he is a defensive whiz. But I hope to be proven wrong on this.

Davis didn’t seem to play a ton but I liked what I saw from him. There are going to be games when Donnie and Petar get in foul trouble or struggle otherwise and I think Davis will be a factor at times. If he shows he can be a shut down defender, that will help get him playing time. Not sure if this will happen.

Good to see us play man all game. It wasn’t the greatest man ever seen but it was oasssble. I liked that we pushed the ball a lot and played fast. We looked a lot deeper, played a lot smarter and I saw a lot of unselfishness and good ball movement.

I thought it was a very good start.

Where you golfing Tom?

 

[phreddie]

Even more impressive is that I got through that whole thing with just one typo. Or did I?

This one was technically true:

Elijah Moore hit a couple of threes with 3 assists but a couple of turnovers. He'll be an option all year. But don't expect 67 points

 

[JonB]

Seeing a little Ennis in Carlos.

 

[llandz]

As I pointed out in the game thread 27 assists. That is real teamwork. Even for an exhibition game. Usually we have 27 assists per month.

 

[SWC75]

This one was technically true:

Elijah Moore hit a couple of threes with 3 assists but a couple of turnovers. He'll be an option all year. But don't expect 67 points

It's not a typo.

 

[sutomcat]

Where you golfing Tom?

Green Lakes. After a two hour frost delay…

.

 

[zilo]

That's quite impressive!

67 points in 5 min is nasty work. And people STILL complain he's not that good. Start that man!

 

[syrBossHogg]

Green Lakes. After a two hour frost delay…

View attachment 246252.

Hopefully it's warm, tough to beat fall golf in Upstate NY when it's nice enough

 

[SWC75]

Green Lakes. After a two hour frost delay…

View attachment 246252.

Most of the leaves are down.

 

[Bulldog04]

Green Lakes. After a two hour frost delay…

View attachment 246252.

I will have to get you out to my club to play next year. I’ll send you a message

 

[tptcuse]

I thought the passing and ball movement were something we haven't seen in the Dome since I don't know when. Almost zero ISO and guys making real basketball plays. A couple give and go's that were text book and will be successful against almost anyone.

Also, I think the guys up in 311 are going to be busy with hopefully a plethora of "D"'s and "3"'s

The lack of ISO was almost jarring. So many extra passes. Loved it. Now---time to focus on defense.

 

[tbonezone]

impressed with the clarion cheerleaders .

the clarionettes .

 

[OrangeTown]

I will have to get you out to my club to play next year. I’ll send you a message

Tom hasn't told you we're a package deal?

 

[Capt. Tuttle]

Tom hasn't told you we're a package deal?

Just hack Tom’s account. It’s easier

 

[billsin01]

Gotta be quick here. Have good stuff to watch on tv and an early tee time (which is surely going to be frost delayed).

First, the major disclaimer. This was N exhibition game against a team much less talented than the teams we will play in the regular season. It is not a great idea to draw any major conclusions from what happened today.

That said,,,,

Thought Jaquan was everything I was expecting.hoping for today. He ran the offense well in fast break situations and in the half court. Je played under control but still pressed it up the court whenever possible. When he had a chance to score, he took it and usually converted. And he looked like our best defender by a fairly large margin.

There is something almost magical about having a senior PG running the show. We have lacked that veteran presence for a long time and it is good to have it on this team that features so many new players.

JJ also looked like a savvy veteran and made a lot of good decisions. Shot it well, thought he looked really good. Veteran guards Re awesome.

Even Lucas Taylor looked good at guard and shows some veteran savvy. And I liked what I saw from Elijah Moore, who seems advanced for a true frosh and might be our second best guard defender was a frosh.

Freeman is a freak athlete who is going to do some amazing things. I expect he will force some shots and make some mistakes on defense but he knows how to play already and has a ton of god given talent. Enjoy him while he is here. I agree with those saying he is a one and done.

Bell looks like he might have made a big leap. He looks stronger and he played today with a lot of confidence. Drove to the basket, drew fouls, shows some interest in playing defense and made not one but two terrific passes.

And of course shot well from the perimeter.

Thought Lampkin did a lot of nice things on offense. He showed an ability to finish plays and play in the low post we have not seen since Jesss left. Passed it as well as we were told he would. Might well finish second in the team in assists. That said, he was awful on defense and his matador defense has to improve. To be fair, Clarion has no true center and it is going to be hard for anyone as big as Eddie to cover an agile forward. But I think his defense is something to worry about. Also not thrilled with him jacking 3s.

Thought Petar looked really comfortable and smooth for a true frosh. He clearly m odd how to play. Established position down low a bunch of times, can finish with either hand, sets screens too. But he also looked suspect in defense and made some silly fouls to get I foul trouble very quickly. Has to do better on the defensive end.

Naheem didn’t play much but I thought he looked quite good when he was on. Moved well, and when he was in, Clarion did nothing in the paint.

Cuffe always looks kind of wild and out of control to me. I have a hard time seeing him getting a lot of PT with the other guards on the roster but maybe he will surprise me. I hope so. To me he seems too small to score inside and not a good enough shooter to score consistently from the perimeter. And o am not sold he is a defensive whiz. But I hope to be proven wrong on this.

Davis didn’t seem to play a ton but I liked what I saw from him. There are going to be games when Donnie and Petar get in foul trouble or struggle otherwise and I think Davis will be a factor at times. If he shows he can be a shut down defender, that will help get him playing time. Not sure if this will happen.

Good to see us play man all game. It wasn’t the greatest man ever seen but it was oasssble. I liked that we pushed the ball a lot and played fast. We looked a lot deeper, played a lot smarter and I saw a lot of unselfishness and good ball movement.

I thought it was a very good start.

Very late to the party here but enjoyed the write-up. I'll add a few thoughts for whatever they're worth (with the additional caveat that, of course, it's one exhibition and things can change dramatically in a relatively short period of time).

First a couple overall impressions:
1) Really like the new look on offense; a bit disappointed to see what appears to be largely the same defensive philosophy. I didn't see quite as many sets as I hoped to potentially see but very, very few of our baskets were one guy driving and finishing his own play. Carlos had one and there were some others, but a ton of passing, not much holding the ball, and some solid cuts. Also saw Lampkin do his thing from the high post. The pass to Carlos was an exceptionally high-level pass.

Defensively ... just looked like last year to me and well-coached teams are going to torch that if we don't have a few wrikles or other gears. Lampkin had some ok moments here, also got torched a couple times. Donnie had some tough moments, Cuffe struggled on balance (despite the great block), etc., but generally this looks like five guys playing defense individually instead of a cohesive unit. We were OK vs. the high-ball screen (not great, but ok) but really struggled with the dribble handoffs. Communication needs to be better there.

2) Our rotation won't be 12 guys ... and it potentially may not be much more than 7 or so (but mostly for good reasons). I think all these kids can play a bit but McLeod only logging 5 mins was odd ... kind of wonder how healthy he is and how much he'll contribute. Pure speculation, rooting for the kid ... just not totally sure. I think Cuffe also could be on the outside looking in at PT. Westry, again, rooting for him, but concerned that won't be happening. Those three would take 12 down to 9.

But the other piece of this is Starling, Lampkin (particularly on offense), Bell and Carlos look like they could be tough to take off the floor. Really wouldn't be shocked if those guys are at or very close to 30 mpg. Freeman will get minutes, obviously, so figure 20 at a minimum, probably more like 25 there and that's roughly 120-125 minutes of 200 minutes (at least in games that matter). I think that may be the low side of the minutes those guys get in real games. Again, it's early, but just a guess.

3) Hope we come off Lampkin/Majstorovic screens tighter. Lampkin is a really wide body and Majstorovic sets really solid screens but at times our guards came around with too much space. Love to see them set the screen up wide, but then run right off those guys' shoulders.

Player observations -- I'll break these into groups to shorten this a bit.

The savvy vets club: Starling, Bell, Carlos, Lampkin
These guys were the four best players on the floor (maybe the lead scorer from Clarion could be in that mix too, but at least 4 of the 5 best players). Starling took great shots, no weird wind up in his release, scored 17 or whatever it was without breaking a sweat. Just looked composed and confident all game. Bell not only hit his threes but moved well and made a couple plays with his passing and putting the ball on the floor. Not sure he'll ever be super well-rounded, but he certainly outclassed his competition. Carlos -- enough has been said here, but kid looked great. Lampkin, defensive questions, IMO, but rebounded well and is tough on the offensive end.

The 'other' bigs I want to see more of: Freeman, Majstorovic, Davis, McLeod
Kind of a weird night for McLeod because he didn't play much. Probably a TBD for him at the moment. Majstorovic was great off-ball and knows the game. Wasn't blown away by his athleticism so I'm thinking his ceiling will be determined by his skill level. We know he plays well off-ball, but can he become a good shooter at this level, handle a bit, create plays with his passing? I think the answer is yet, but the role for this year feels a bit TBD (which is fine, by the way, as we're talking about one exhibition).

Davis had a weird game based on the film we saw of him and what we heard from practice. Just looked a bit out of sorts and not terribly involved. Want to see him again.

Freeman -- to my eyes -- struggled a bit. The final numbers were impressive, which tells you how much talent there is there. His pick-and-pop three was a thing of beauty and I loved the confident stroke from 15 or 16 on his first jumper early. But he missed some bunnies, seemed unsure of exactly where to be on the court quite often, and had some real difficulties defending, particularly in terms of playing as part of team on that end. I came away not feeling entirely sure how polished he is.

Outside looking in (at the moment, if I had to guess): Moore, Cuffe, Taylor
Disappointing debut for Cuffe, even though I still have hopes for him as a player. Just looked a lot like last year and if you're going to be a defensive stopper, you should be dominating a group like the kids from Clarion. Moore looked pretty good but not sure they'll take Carlos or JJ off to get him in the game. Taylor showed nice activity and athleticism ... but was all over the place and his shot was brutal. I think all three have a chance to contribute, but if I'm just looking at the roster after seeing just that 40 mins, I'd say all three are going to need to show more to get on the floor.

Overall I thought it was an OK debut, but i'm hoping tomorrow night is a little for crisper for guys outside the veteran group of Lampkin/Carlos/JJ/Bell. Fun to watch, however.

 

[Capt. Tuttle]

Very late to the party here but enjoyed the write-up. I'll add a few thoughts for whatever they're worth (with the additional caveat that, of course, it's one exhibition and things can change dramatically in a relatively short period of time).

First a couple overall impressions:
1) Really like the new look on offense; a bit disappointed to see what appears to be largely the same defensive philosophy. I didn't see quite as many sets as I hoped to potentially see but very, very few of our baskets were one guy driving and finishing his own play. Carlos had one and there were some others, but a ton of passing, not much holding the ball, and some solid cuts. Also saw Lampkin do his thing from the high post. The pass to Carlos was an exceptionally high-level pass.

Defensively ... just looked like last year to me and well-coached teams are going to torch that if we don't have a few wrikles or other gears. Lampkin had some ok moments here, also got torched a couple times. Donnie had some tough moments, Cuffe struggled on balance (despite the great block), etc., but generally this looks like five guys playing defense individually instead of a cohesive unit. We were OK vs. the high-ball screen (not great, but ok) but really struggled with the dribble handoffs. Communication needs to be better there.

2) Our rotation won't be 12 guys ... and it potentially may not be much more than 7 or so (but mostly for good reasons). I think all these kids can play a bit but McLeod only logging 5 mins was odd ... kind of wonder how healthy he is and how much he'll contribute. Pure speculation, rooting for the kid ... just not totally sure. I think Cuffe also could be on the outside looking in at PT. Westry, again, rooting for him, but concerned that won't be happening. Those three would take 12 down to 9.

But the other piece of this is Starling, Lampkin (particularly on offense), Bell and Carlos look like they could be tough to take off the floor. Really wouldn't be shocked if those guys are at or very close to 30 mpg. Freeman will get minutes, obviously, so figure 20 at a minimum, probably more like 25 there and that's roughly 120-125 minutes of 200 minutes (at least in games that matter). I think that may be the low side of the minutes those guys get in real games. Again, it's early, but just a guess.

3) Hope we come off Lampkin/Majstorovic screens tighter. Lampkin is a really wide body and Majstorovic sets really solid screens but at times our guards came around with too much space. Love to see them set the screen up wide, but then run right off those guys' shoulders.

Player observations -- I'll break these into groups to shorten this a bit.

The savvy vets club: Starling, Bell, Carlos, Lampkin
These guys were the four best players on the floor (maybe the lead scorer from Clarion could be in that mix too, but at least 4 of the 5 best players). Starling took great shots, no weird wind up in his release, scored 17 or whatever it was without breaking a sweat. Just looked composed and confident all game. Bell not only hit his threes but moved well and made a couple plays with his passing and putting the ball on the floor. Not sure he'll ever be super well-rounded, but he certainly outclassed his competition. Carlos -- enough has been said here, but kid looked great. Lampkin, defensive questions, IMO, but rebounded well and is tough on the offensive end.

The 'other' bigs I want to see more of: Freeman, Majstorovic, Davis, McLeod
Kind of a weird night for McLeod because he didn't play much. Probably a TBD for him at the moment. Majstorovic was great off-ball and knows the game. Wasn't blown away by his athleticism so I'm thinking his ceiling will be determined by his skill level. We know he plays well off-ball, but can he become a good shooter at this level, handle a bit, create plays with his passing? I think the answer is yet, but the role for this year feels a bit TBD (which is fine, by the way, as we're talking about one exhibition).

Davis had a weird game based on the film we saw of him and what we heard from practice. Just looked a bit out of sorts and not terribly involved. Want to see him again.

Freeman -- to my eyes -- struggled a bit. The final numbers were impressive, which tells you how much talent there is there. His pick-and-pop three was a thing of beauty and I loved the confident stroke from 15 or 16 on his first jumper early. But he missed some bunnies, seemed unsure of exactly where to be on the court quite often, and had some real difficulties defending, particularly in terms of playing as part of team on that end. I came away not feeling entirely sure how polished he is.

Outside looking in (at the moment, if I had to guess): Moore, Cuffe, Taylor
Disappointing debut for Cuffe, even though I still have hopes for him as a player. Just looked a lot like last year and if you're going to be a defensive stopper, you should be dominating a group like the kids from Clarion. Moore looked pretty good but not sure they'll take Carlos or JJ off to get him in the game. Taylor showed nice activity and athleticism ... but was all over the place and his shot was brutal. I think all three have a chance to contribute, but if I'm just looking at the roster after seeing just that 40 mins, I'd say all three are going to need to show more to get on the floor.

Overall I thought it was an OK debut, but i'm hoping tomorrow night is a little for crisper for guys outside the veteran group of Lampkin/Carlos/JJ/Bell. Fun to watch, however.

Yolu were expecting them to run the whole playbook in the forst exibition game. By all means, lets have Tenessee, etc. have the full slate for video review.
The offensive sets, etc., will be rolled out over the season.

 

[zilo]

I didn't watch the game...but I'm gathering from everyone that our core 8 will be Carlos, JJ, Bell, Freeman, Lampkin, Petar, Davis, snd Lucas, with a sprinkle of Moore as the 9th? Sounds like McLeod will have a small role due to Davis and Petar, and sounds like Moore is better than Cuffe?