Observations - Questions from Northeastern | Syracusefan.com

Observations - Questions from Northeastern

pfister1

2023-24 Iggy Winner ACC & OOC Record
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These observations tend to the critical side, but they are not offered in the spirit of the sky is falling rather observations of small things that I think we still need to fix/resolve.

1. Too many 3 point attempts? Last night we attempted 31 shots from 3 and only 29 from inside the arc. I'm not sure I know what the right mix is, but I still feel like we are taking way too many shots from 3. Stop settling. Generally the team seemed to do a much better job of moving the ball, but too often we still settled for long shots.

Last night OB was 2 of 7 from 3. He also went to the hoop quite a bit which was fantastic, but I'm not a big fan of him taking 7 three point attempts in any game. He isn't hitting at a high enough rate and he isn't going to be on the offensive boards if he is out beyond the arc hoisting shots. Shoot the occasional three, but you should not be a high volume 3 point shooter.

2. Battle 2 points? 2 points and only 7 shot attempts. Reverses the trend of him getting his offensive game going over the last few games. His shot really looked off last night and he also didn't really look to score in other ways. He seemed almost invisible on the court last night.

3. Brissett missed dunks - C'mon big fella you've got to get more consistent in converting at the rim. He is very frustrating close in. Misses lots of contested shots at the rim. Then when he has basically uncontested shots he puts some mustard on the attempt and misses that too. Young man dumb it down, keep it simple and put the ball in the hoop.

4. Is MD the King of the Cheap Foul? For a guy with such a high basketball IQ he picks up more "dumb" fouls than anyone I can remember. If you've ever played pickup basketball at the Y he is that guy on the other team that after you secure a defensive rebound insists on swooping in and trying to knock the ball loose from you and in the process pokes you in the eye or scratches you. C'mon MD just get back on D, and stop the cheap give away fouls, you are smarter than that..... I think.

5. Sidibe - injury, poor play, other? Bourama only got 5 minutes of game time, same amount of run as Robert Braswell. I'm not suggesting he should have gotten more run, he hasn't been playing well. That said, with the amount of run that other subs got last night the 5 minutes suggests something more than just general poor play may be at foot with BS. If our center rotation is going to continue to be 1. PC; 2. BS and 3. MD than you would feed BS minutes at the end of a game like last night to try to get him on track. We didn't. Is he injured or is JB becoming resigned to a a shift in the C rotation?
 
Re: Sidibe -- he is still recovering from offseason surgery. His mobility / explosiveness are not where they need to be yet, but he's improving. Additionally, he spent the offseason recovering physically as opposed to playing games and working on his skills. So there is ring rust that will continue to shake loose throughout the course of the season. He should be more comfortable physically as the season wears on.

Frank is similarly impaired, and has a similar upward curve as he regains his mobility and gets his legs. Please also note that he missed a month of preseason practice, and that the team missed a month of having him out there practicing / building chemistry with the team. So execution will be a work in progress until the group gels.

To a lesser extent, Jalen Carey's injury was also poorly-timed. When the team was missing Frank, he also missed several weeks of practice. Wouldn't be as big of a deal for a more experienced player, but for an incoming frosh it was a setback.

In a nutshell, those are the major problems holding the team back, IMO. And each of those three things can be overcome.

Please note, I'm not saying that the team is without flaws, and that once these three round into form all will be cured. But when all three round into form, this team is going to be a lot better than the vast majority of teams out there.
 
With regards to #1... I thought Northeastern did a great job of collapsing on everything inside of the three point circle and they were playing off our goes on the perimeter so that we couldn't easily drive. They were basically conceding the three point shots so we took them and beat them by 20. It sounded like NE was forced to play that way because they have a number of guys hurt and a really short bench. I usually am not a fan of so many threes either but if that's what we are getting and they were WIDE open I have no problem with it in this case.
 
I think the number of attempts for the 3's isn't as big an issue as the quality of the attempts. When we do an in and out and get 3's that way I like. When we do the magic circle and throw up a forced 3 two feet beyond the arc - not a fan.

Oshae takes way too many 3's IMHO.
 
That was a smart strategy from NE. We started off really strong with some threes and some interior lobs that the radio broadcaster questioned how long NE would stay in zone but I think their strategy made complete sense. Lure us, a team that has had multiple terrible shooting games, to shoot threes. We jacked a lot of them and made a few. NE did not shoot great from deep, sans a few stretches especially early, but that's what they needed to win. Luckily we seemed a lot more aggressive on O last night, both rebounding and attacking the paint to offset a lot of shots from deep.
 
Not seeing HW tells me that he is likely gone before the end of the season. Too bad, I thought he showed promise at times last year and could have been a good program kid.

I don't put too much stock in these early games. I get the feeling that Battle could have dropped 35 on them if he wanted. He could have drove whenever he wanted, but what would the team have gained/grown?
 
Please note, I'm not saying that the team is without flaws, and that once these three round into form all will be cured. But when all three round into form, this team is going to be a lot better than the vast majority of teams out there.

Always assuming no further injuries.
 
Not seeing HW tells me that he is likely gone before the end of the season. Too bad, I thought he showed promise at times last year and could have been a good program kid.

I don't put too much stock in these early games. I get the feeling that Battle could have dropped 35 on them if he wanted. He could have drove whenever he wanted, but what would the team have gained/grown?
Or he might be redshirting.
 
Not seeing HW tells me that he is likely gone before the end of the season. Too bad, I thought he showed promise at times last year and could have been a good program kid.

I don't put too much stock in these early games. I get the feeling that Battle could have dropped 35 on them if he wanted. He could have drove whenever he wanted, but what would the team have gained/grown?

I think he might be contemplating a redshirt and or saving this year if he transfers
 
Just because you play in a few games doesn't mean you cant redshirt. I thought the number was if you play in 30% or less of the games you would be eligible, especially since he is coming off an injury I think this is def the plan or at least it should be. The rule is below, he still is eleigble.

A hardship waiver may be granted to those athletes who sustain a major injury while appearing in less than 30% of team competitions, nor can they have participated after the midpoint of a season.
 
That was a smart strategy from NE. We started off really strong with some threes and some interior lobs that the radio broadcaster questioned how long NE would stay in zone but I think their strategy made complete sense. Lure us, a team that has had multiple terrible shooting games, to shoot threes. We jacked a lot of them and made a few. NE did not shoot great from deep, sans a few stretches especially early, but that's what they needed to win. Luckily we seemed a lot more aggressive on O last night, both rebounding and attacking the paint to offset a lot of shots from deep.

This is exactly Boeheim's rationale for his defensive strategy.

So it's mind-boggling that it continues to be a problem when our offense faces a zone.
 
This is exactly Boeheim's rationale for his defensive strategy.

So it's mind-boggling that it continues to be a problem when our offense faces a zone.

Agreed. I liked the Maryland and Duke games last year when Marek was making great passes from the high post. I’d like to see him there and OB running short corner to short corner.

Haven’t seen last nights game yet so not sure if we did any of that?
 
one would think that offense strategy would be predicated upon matching your strengths against their weaknesses. that calculation alone should determine if you attack outside or inside .
 
one would think that offense strategy would be predicated upon matching your strengths against their weaknesses. that calculation alone should determine if you attack outside or inside .
when an opponent is over matched physically you simply pound it inside and control the game.
 
Agreed. I liked the Maryland and Duke games last year when Marek was making great passes from the high post. I’d like to see him there and OB running short corner to short corner.

Haven’t seen last nights game yet so not sure if we did any of that?
md had a couple of terrific passes from the high post, one inside to chukwu for a dunk, one back out to buddy for a three
 
1. Too many 3 point attempts? Last night we attempted 31 shots from 3 and only 29 from inside the arc. I'm not sure I know what the right mix is, but I still feel like we are taking way too many shots from 3.
note: i listened to the radio broadcast & have only seen the "condensed game" version

i'm not concerned about the number of 3 pt attempts. you have to take the open shots that the defense gives you. from what i can tell - and correct me if i am wrong - it is not as if a lot of those attempts were bad ones.

here's the other thing: i think this version of the orange is actually a solid 3 pt shooting team. as in all things this year, i consider the first four games to be our preseason. they count in the standings but they are not reflective of what the team is going to be the rest of the year.

since frank has returned & the squad has been at full strength (even if not yet at full health), they have hit 35 of 96 three point attempts - even including last night's bad showing. that's a .365 clip. the d-1 average is .337. take out frank's woeful 4/21 start, and the team 3 pt shooting is .413 over this stretch.

last year, after a slow start in pre-conference play, frank hit .359 in the acc. i expect a similar rebound this year when he gets fully healthy. i don't expect this squad to hit over 40% of its threes going forward, but i do think we'll end up shooting in the upper 30s & be well above average from the arc
 
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It’s hard to tell. NE made it easy for us as the one poster indicated. All we had to do was move the ball and shoot. Make the shots. We could even get away with almost all of the time moving the ball east-west then launching. Still, this game made me more optimistic about attacking zone in the future when we do see it. They will be a jump shooting team. That’s it for better or worse. Especially now with little penetration from Frank. They won’t be able to score much inside if at all against a good zone or M2M, IMO.

But, I want to see this team play offense against a really good M2M team. NE got us to play away from our flaws and weaknesses. Over dribbling and too much ISO. We had plenty of airspace to shoot as well and made the nice simple extra passes. The scheme on offense doesn’t give us a lot of wiggle room or Plan B’s if a team is sticking to us like glue and making us discombobulated. That’s what I want to see. The D will need to be elite in those games and we score just enough to W, most likely, even though it feels like a root canal. Best case.
 
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Re: Sidibe -- he is still recovering from offseason surgery. His mobility / explosiveness are not where they need to be yet, but he's improving. Additionally, he spent the offseason recovering physically as opposed to playing games and working on his skills. So there is ring rust that will continue to shake loose throughout the course of the season. He should be more comfortable physically as the season wears on.

Frank is similarly impaired, and has a similar upward curve as he regains his mobility and gets his legs. Please also note that he missed a month of preseason practice, and that the team missed a month of having him out there practicing / building chemistry with the team. So execution will be a work in progress until the group gels.

To a lesser extent, Jalen Carey's injury was also poorly-timed. When the team was missing Frank, he also missed several weeks of practice. Wouldn't be as big of a deal for a more experienced player, but for an incoming frosh it was a setback.

In a nutshell, those are the major problems holding the team back, IMO. And each of those three things can be overcome.

Please note, I'm not saying that the team is without flaws, and that once these three round into form all will be cured. But when all three round into form, this team is going to be a lot better than the vast majority of teams out there.
Seems like I heard the same thing in JB's Presser
 
Re: Battle. Was he backing off because Boeheim told him to let other players get established, or was he backing off because . . . What? I’m not sure Hughes even scored in the Cornell game, but he certainly scored last night. Is there some kind of law that we can’t have THREE players scoring in the 20’s? (Joking.)
 
Re: Sidibe -- he is still recovering from offseason surgery. His mobility / explosiveness are not where they need to be yet, but he's improving. …..

Frank is similarly impaired, and has a similar upward curve as he regains his mobility and gets his legs. ….

To a lesser extent, Jalen Carey's injury was also poorly-timed. …..

Frank's limitations are obvious -- he isn't driving and he lacks the explosive quality we saw last season. JB also notes that his shooting isn't close to what it was over the summer, pre-injury.

Carey's situation is very different. He was 100% at MSG and in many stretches he was our best player. With Frank back (though limited), Carey is learning to be a good sub, and also learning what JB expects him to do as a distributor and play-maker, rather than a scoring guard. Helps Carey's development that Frank isn't playing 36 min/game.

Battle's off night was a benefit to Buddy. He needed the opportunity to score, and took advantage.

Sidibe -- I am not sure we really know whether it is rust. He is moving well, getting up to block shots, but not getting much else done. The center position remains our big issue.
 
1. best game BY FAR from assist-turnover ratio and by total number of assists. previous games: 11assists:10turnovers, 11:14, 10:11, 12:17, 13:9, 13:13, 9:10, 20:7.

20 assists, 7 turnovers is a huge outlier so far this season - and it wasn't an accident, imo.

the offensive approach shifted. first order of business on every possession seemed to be get the ball into the paint or 2 point area - then pass, shoot or dribble (mostly pass) from there to create shots - and it worked. I expect this to be the "new" approach from now on - whether the team is facing man to man or zone. at least, it should be.

on a night when battle and howard went a combined 2-12 and 0-7 from three - the team still won by 23! this would've been impossible last season.

2. the "inside-out" passing approach is better offense than the heavy ISO, pass-around-the-perimeter until 5 seconds in the shot clock approach - but does it limit battle and/or howard? do they feel less in control in this type of offense and could that explain why they both ha limited impact with this approach? will be interesting to see if the team can develop this ball movement approach and how it effects the leaders of the teams' ability to impact the game...

3. either frank howard cannot drive or he's not doing it purposely until he gets back to 100%...he's also shooting very poorly. i expect him to get better once he is fully healed/in rhythm - either way - dribble drives could and should be a key weapon for the team 's offense - and so far they aren't. what would be great is if the first drive and dish leads to a second - cuz that second one is usually to wide open man - who can step into a wide open 3 - and those 3's are much better for this team's shooters.
 
1. best game BY FAR from assist-turnover ratio and by total number of assists. previous games: 11assists:10turnovers, 11:14, 10:11, 12:17, 13:9, 13:13, 9:10, 20:7.

20 assists, 7 turnovers is a huge outlier so far this season - and it wasn't an accident, imo.

the offensive approach shifted. first order of business on every possession seemed to be get the ball into the paint or 2 point area - then pass, shoot or dribble (mostly pass) from there to create shots - and it worked. I expect this to be the "new" approach from now on - whether the team is facing man to man or zone. at least, it should be.

on a night when battle and howard went a combined 2-12 and 0-7 from three - the team still won by 23! this would've been impossible last season.

2. the "inside-out" passing approach is better offense than the heavy ISO, pass-around-the-perimeter until 5 seconds in the shot clock approach - but does it limit battle and/or howard? do they feel less in control in this type of offense and could that explain why they both ha limited impact with this approach? will be interesting to see if the team can develop this ball movement approach and how it effects the leaders of the teams' ability to impact the game...

3. either frank howard cannot drive or he's not doing it purposely until he gets back to 100%...he's also shooting very poorly. i expect him to get better once he is fully healed/in rhythm - either way - dribble drives could and should be a key weapon for the team 's offense - and so far they aren't. what would be great is if the first drive and dish leads to a second - cuz that second one is usually to wide open man - who can step into a wide open 3 - and those 3's are much better for this team's shooters.

Good post. All of a result of them playing zone. Good sign for sure how they attacked it most of the time like you said.

We’ll see what happens against better M2M and zone. Whether the ball movement stops and/or the bad habits manifest themselves again.
 

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