My Take | Syracusefan.com

My Take

sutomcat

2024 Iggy Award (ACC Tournament Record)
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This has to be short. I have to work the election tomorrow and that means I gotta get up at 4 AM.

I like the new orange zone thing. It appears to be designed to make the fans get out loud and rowdy when there are two stops in a row, but the fans really didn’t understand it, and there was no noticeable increase in noise. So far. But the idea as promised. Also, I think we need to make three stops in RL, everyone supposed to go crazy and celebrate, and when we got three stops in a row, nothing really happened. One time they finally showed the three steps that happened on the scoreboard, but the first couple of times we did it. There was no mention of recognition of any kind. So bugs need to get worked out on this. But it looks promising.

I will be honest. I was worried about Nat,George and the way he played in the two exhibition games. He had a bunch of unforced turnovers and really looked sloppy and unfocused. He was terrific today. His defense was great. 5 steals. He passed it well and when he had a shot, he took it and often made it. It is so nice to have a plane card with great vision who is good at throwing the alley oop. Very little in the way of the pick and roll, which I find interesting and kind of puzzling. I think he’s really good at running it, and I’m guessing we’re trying to avoid using it much until Vegas. Time will tell.

Thought Kyle looked really good. Aggressive on offense and defense. Very athletic and a smart, veteran presence inside. Could it be that we actually have a low post scoring threat? It sure looks to be the case.

Freeman kind of quietly did damage all game long. He does everything well and has a lot of skill. I like when he gets the ball near the basket, he takes the time. gets in position and gets a quality shot off. And usually makes it. I was most excited about his week side defemse, which was very good. He disrupted a number of plays helping out. So much more aware this year. Great to see.

Anthony seem to force things a bit early on, but as time went on, he seemed to get in the flow much better, and did a lot of damage, mostly inside. He moves without the ball very well, and we have a bunch of guys who found him when he cut to the basket.

Disappointing JJ is hurt again. I guess this is just who he is. Really was hoping his senior year would be a fully healthy one. Hopefully this is a minor injury and he will be 100% again soon.

White didn’t shoot very well and didn’t do much on offense but man he is fun to watch on defense. I think the rest of the team feeds on his intensity. That said, the starters came out from the beginning of the game and played super intense defense. I was honestly shocked by how good it was. I.

Bingo is not good. Destroying them doesn’t mean a great deal, but it’s great to be destroying teams again. Maybe, just maybe this is the start of a special season?
 
I've been trying to come up with a comp for Kyle and really couldn't, but my wife said he reminded her of Maliq Brown. So, let's go with Maliq but more polished and a better leader on the offensive end.
 
not very similar

he reminds me a bit of the Denver Nuggets player Kenneth Faried
I see where you are coming from but last year at UCLA, Kyle averaged less than 3 ppg and 2 rpg. Faried graduated as the all time leading rebounder in NCAA history.
 
Absolutely the most fun game I have seen in a long time. Fast playing, man to man defense and how many alley oops? I lost count. They are always so exciting. They played like a team. Passed well, assisted on shots. Very little to complain about...maybe nothing to complain about. Too bad for JJ. LOVE Devo. Seriously ACCN better use him for every game.
 
Didn’t see it. Curse you YouTube TV.

1762237894098.gif
 
I've been trying to come up with a comp for Kyle and really couldn't, but my wife said he reminded her of Maliq Brown. So, let's go with Maliq but more polished and a better leader on the offensive end.
With much respect... your wife don't know basketball ;-)
Kiyan is like Carmelo...in that he just seems to have a great feel for the game. I don't like seeing JJ getting hurt, but was a good chance to get some other guys some more minutes and confidence
Yes, completely agree. Sucks badly for JJ (and us). Regardless what people think about his play, he's carried himself so well since he's been at Cuse and represents the school well (which we can't say about many lately, esp Red's first year). However, this might ignite a talent in Kiyan that otherwise wouldn't have gotten the chance right away. I think Kiyan is going to kick some ass this year.

Absolutely the most fun game I have seen in a long time. Fast playing, man to man defense and how many alley oops? I lost count. They are always so exciting. They played like a team. Passed well, assisted on shots. Very little to complain about...maybe nothing to complain about. Too bad for JJ. LOVE Devo. Seriously ACCN better use him for every game.
Exactly. Even though the game had an exhibition feel to it, I loved watching our guys from tip to 0 on the clock hustle, play d, and appear to have fun out there. Definitely a very talented team - question is whether they can play together well enough and will Red utilize guys at the right moments (the latter concerns me most).
 
Thanks for the write up, Tom, and thanks for working the polls. 4 a.m.? Yeesh!

The students filled 2 1/2 sections and they were loud and energized, just like the rest of the crowd. And guess what? So was the team! What a happy congruence! The crowd was loud in appreciating the players - the defense in particular - rather than being loud to encourage them to DO BETTER. The team came out doing better, full of vigor and determination. I don’t know if the crowd understood that we had to kill poor Binghamton because of the NET and Quad crapola that the tournament now relies on, or if they just took great joy in seeing the guys play well. In any case, there was an energetic synergy that Captain J would have greatly appreciated. (I wonder where he is now?)

I feel so sad for JJ and his body, which seems to betray him over and over. Hopefully, he will heal quickly.

Like Tom, greatly relieved that George played the way he was rumored to have played. The alley oops to Kyle were spectacular and something we haven’t seen in years. During one time out I noticed that Red was being very forceful, and it was good to see. He made a flat swiping motion with his hand over and over again, something he clearly wanted the team to do but I have no idea what. I walked during halftime but noticed when peeking at the court that Red had the kids in a semi-circle shooting 3’s.

It was great fun to see Kiyan step up. I wanted to see Sadiq more, but his time will come.

Was very happy that the walk to the Dome was so pleasant. No rain or wind! During the game I had several friends text me about pouring rain, high winds, and hail! But the walk back to the car was perfectly fine and even pleasant. Whew!

To quote a certain someone, I am pleased.
 
This has to be short. I have to work the election tomorrow and that means I gotta get up at 4 AM.

I like the new orange zone thing. It appears to be designed to make the fans get out loud and rowdy when there are two stops in a row, but the fans really didn’t understand it, and there was no noticeable increase in noise. So far. But the idea as promised. Also, I think we need to make three stops in RL, everyone supposed to go crazy and celebrate, and when we got three stops in a row, nothing really happened. One time they finally showed the three steps that happened on the scoreboard, but the first couple of times we did it. There was no mention of recognition of any kind. So bugs need to get worked out on this. But it looks promising.

I will be honest. I was worried about Nat,George and the way he played in the two exhibition games. He had a bunch of unforced turnovers and really looked sloppy and unfocused. He was terrific today. His defense was great. 5 steals. He passed it well and when he had a shot, he took it and often made it. It is so nice to have a plane card with great vision who is good at throwing the alley oop. Very little in the way of the pick and roll, which I find interesting and kind of puzzling. I think he’s really good at running it, and I’m guessing we’re trying to avoid using it much until Vegas. Time will tell.

Thought Kyle looked really good. Aggressive on offense and defense. Very athletic and a smart, veteran presence inside. Could it be that we actually have a low post scoring threat? It sure looks to be the case.

Freeman kind of quietly did damage all game long. He does everything well and has a lot of skill. I like when he gets the ball near the basket, he takes the time. gets in position and gets a quality shot off. And usually makes it. I was most excited about his week side defemse, which was very good. He disrupted a number of plays helping out. So much more aware this year. Great to see.

Anthony seem to force things a bit early on, but as time went on, he seemed to get in the flow much better, and did a lot of damage, mostly inside. He moves without the ball very well, and we have a bunch of guys who found him when he cut to the basket.

Disappointing JJ is hurt again. I guess this is just who he is. Really was hoping his senior year would be a fully healthy one. Hopefully this is a minor injury and he will be 100% again soon.

White didn’t shoot very well and didn’t do much on offense but man he is fun to watch on defense. I think the rest of the team feeds on his intensity. That said, the starters came out from the beginning of the game and played super intense defense. I was honestly shocked by how good it was. I.

Bingo is not good. Destroying them doesn’t mean a great deal, but it’s great to be destroying teams again. Maybe, just maybe this is the start of a special season?
One note: George ran the pick and roll all game long, mostly with Kyle, maybe a few times with Freeman. Kyle scored a ton off that action. Great write up otherwise.
 
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Kiyan is like Carmelo...in that he just seems to have a great feel for the game. I don't like seeing JJ getting hurt, but was a good chance to get some other guys some more minutes and confidence

My comp for Kiyan is…. Poetry.

Both are athletic, but not elite athletes.
Both crafty and have a multitude of ways to score, and are just smooooth and don’t get sped up.
They know how to get to their spots and do so on the regular.

And both as Frosh were guys not expected to contribute much early,
but then came in and balled out and earned their minutes.
 

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