my two cents

[kcsu]

Too much year-end stuff at the camp so i didn't go the game but did watch the stream. I like Devo in the color role. I think that he does a great job. As an SU fan it's great to get his take on the players and team. His take which is the guys all seem to like each other and are having fun was good to hear. He also made a point; I believe 4 or 5 times to specifically call out the fact that the guys were playing as a team and not individually. Good stuff from Devo.

Carlos, not much to add what so many have already posted. Simply put he checks all of the boxes. Complete PG. What a find by the staff. Watching him play I was thinking my God how long has it actually been since we have had a true point like this? I'm not really sure but it has been a forever. Obviously, we need him and Eddie to stay healthy but if they do, we will be in the dance.

Eddie, Same we finally have a true 5. Old schools which i like. Crafty and big as a bull. Very quick on his feet and agile for his size and his passing Wow. Two passes in particular stood out. One to the corner not sure if it was Bell or Taylor but it was a dime. And of course, the wrap around with English to a breaking Carlos was a thing of beauty.

In basketball you need to be strong at the Guard and Center positions and we finally are. Solid inside and out. Other quick notes. It's obvious watching Donnie that he is going to be a great pro. He looks close to 7 feet and has skills at his size that scream first round. What a job by Red to land this kid. I can also see why Brown choose to leave. With Donnie and Davis on the team there just wasn't going to be a natural spot for him. Great player but he's not even on the same planet as Donnie is.
As Tom posted Bell looks better. stronger and he looks to have developed a decent handle. JJ looked great. Looks like a more mature version of his HS AA self. So nice to have a true point and two running the G spot
Taylor Davis Petar all solid and all will contribute in a big way this year. I thought that Davis showed a great stroke. They didnt drop but you can see he has a solid shot. Petar is only going to get better. Another old school player that does everything right. Text book bball and another great find. Cuffe looked healthy and 7'4 looked to have lost some weight and seemed to move well in his limited time on the court.

Bottom line is we have a team that can compete with most of the teams on our schedule. If we stay healthy, we will make the dance. Go Orange!

Now let's beat VT on Saturday!

 

[SoBristol]

Nice post!
I expect Freeman will get better week to week, when he figures out how to defend, rebound and finish inside against good bigs. He has the shooting touch and obviously adds the height we lacked last year.
Pleased to see Lampkin’s passing and court sense.
I am less confident about Taylor, Davis and Cuffe. What role, how many minutes against good teams? The backcourt minutes will be dominated by JC and JJ. We don’t need Davis to launch 3s - and he did not do much inside against smaller guys yesterday. Just one exhibition so check back on these three.
You did not mention Moore. Think he has a good chance to contribute.
Petar for sure - he is more of an inside guy than Davis (obviously on limited information) and we need that.
How far this group will go will depend on defense and inside play. Seemed leaky yesterday.

 

[kcsu]

Geez how could i forget Moore. He does have a good chance to contribute. Beautiful looking shot and a better handle than i thought. I like him and Taylor think they are going to be good. Petar sure is fun to watch. great size and very agile. Doesnt jump to the moon but he doesnt need to. With Petar, Carlos, JJ, and Eddie you have three players that you can run the O through. All can score and most importantly pass.
The only glaring issue i saw with Donnie, is that he tends to take the ball low. Lots of big guys do but i hope he is coached to keep that ball no lower than his waist unless he is putting it on the floor. Lots of positives thought Red did a nice job playing different combos with his chess pieces.

 

[Dmcnabbrules]

Nice write up. I genuinely enjoyed watching yesterday’s exhibition. Ball moved well, some nice dunks, and no complaining. It’s not a real game I get it, still refreshing to see these things. Moving to the next game I want to see if Red changes the lineups or rotations.
Two things that surprised me a little. Carlos shot looks a little stronger than I expected. Hit a nice pull up and three doesn’t look broken at all.
Lucas Taylor gives Cuse a nice option at the 2 or 3. Big time athletic ability on both ends. Shot looked funky yesterday hopefully just nerves. Needed that size, defense and athleticism last year from Q just too much bs from him.

 

[kcsu]

Nice write up. I genuinely enjoyed watching yesterday’s exhibition. Ball moved well, some nice dunks, and no complaining. It’s not a real game I get it, still refreshing to see these things. Moving to the next game I want to see if Red changes the lineups or rotations.
Two things that surprised me a little. Carlos shot looks a little stronger than I expected. Hit a nice pull up and three doesn’t look broken at all.
Lucas Taylor gives Cuse a nice option at the 2 or 3. Big time athletic ability on both ends. Shot looked funky yesterday hopefully just nerves. Needed that size, defense and athleticism last year from Q just too much bs from him.

Taylor shot... I hope he had a sprained elbow Looked pretty bad

 

[23Zone]

Replaced one bad shooting Taylor with another bad shooting Taylor

 

[Niastri]

Replaced one bad shooting Taylor with another bad shooting Taylor

Nah, Lucas Taylor has a pretty good three point track record... The bigger difference is that last year's Taylor was glued to the starting lineup cause we didn't have anybody else. If Lucas Taylor doesn't play well, we've got at least 3 players who can do everything he can do, and that's if Westry never gets heathy.

 

[hoopsupstate]

I’m not sure why people thought Carlos can’t shoot. He score over 90 points in back to back high school games. You don’t do that if you can’t shoot.

 

[23Zone]

Nah, Lucas Taylor has a pretty good three point track record... The bigger difference is that last year's Taylor was glued to the starting lineup cause we didn't have anybody else. If Lucas Taylor doesn't play well, we've got at least 3 players who can do everything he can do, and that's if Westry never gets heathy.

Hope you are right. I watched him shoot yesterday. Fairly hideous. Also holds the ball incorrectly with his off-hand. With that said there is upside with his defense, high energy, and athleticism

 

[Orangezoo]

Hope you are right. I watched him shoot yesterday. Fairly hideous. Also holds the ball incorrectly with his off-hand. With that said there is upside with his defense, high energy, and athleticism

He’s always had that kind of odd looking shot but he can knock them down. The first miss he just short armed it second one he rushed it. His defense was very good though and he does a little bit of everything out there.

Lot of guys that can make a 3 with good form on this team. Outside shooting I highly doubt is of any concern this year. Even Davis who missed all 3, two of them were in and out.

 

[Orangezoo]

A couple things on Freeman- his defense needs to come around for sure.

On offense though that early drive and that mid range high release shot are two things that if he is confident with both are very difficult to guard. He gets his man on his hip at his size and that becomes a good option to get a late game bucket as we look for guys to go to.

Obviously no one is blocking his shot from 3 either.

 

[HyattsCuse]

JJ looked great. Looks like a more mature version of his HS AA self. So nice to have a true point and two running the G spot

I hope we finally hit on the G spot. It’s been awhile since we’ve found it.

JJ and Carlos made a great first impression and I think at least one of Taylor/Moore/Cuffe will be effective on most nights.

 

[tbonezone]

i do temper my enthusiasm with the fact that we were playing Clarion . a school i didn't even realize existed until tipoff . clarion sounds more like a hair curler or water filter or something.
" hey cool contacts ...are those the new clarions ? "

 

[kcsu]

A couple things on Freeman- his defense needs to come around for sure.

On offense though that early drive and that mid range high release shot are two things that if he is confident with both are very difficult to guard. He gets his man on his hip at his size and that becomes a good option to get a late game bucket as we look for guys to go to.

Obviously no one is blocking his shot from 3 either.

He needs to keep the ball up