I've been expecting Jimmy to start over Benny because of the experience factor...at least through November & December. But in 25 minutes tonight, he filled the stat sheet...
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In those minutes he had 5 steals, 1 block, 5 rebounds, 3 of 3 FT and was 4-5 from the field.
I know JB always favors experience like Jimmy's early in the schedule, but I also know JB can see from the sideline when a guy like Benny with all his gifts is making plays all over the court. You know how he liked Marek? He makes the defense better, he makes the rebounding better, he makes the ball movement better...
How can he keep Benny off the court when facing the toughest opponents?
He won't, of course, cuz Benny will play A LOT even if he does come off the bench.
The question I'm entertaining is if perhaps JB is seeing a reason
now for why he might want to put Benny in the starting line up from the get go. No, his game isn't perfect. He's not The Guy--
right now, anyway--that you're gonna turn to when the team needs a bucket. But it's
everything else that's so important & JB sees it clearly.
So what I'm saying is I think there's
a chance, now, of Benny replacing Jimmy in the starting line up.
**Edit: JB has certain coaching 'instincts' he relies on. #1 is he always will turn to experienced players if he's got them. It's probably his most reliable tendency. That instinct keeps telling him Jimmy's the one, at least over the next 2 months.
But Jim Boeheim also has a special appreciation for super-talented big guys--Derrick Coleman comes to mind--who show him they have the physical talent & instincts to go after the ball, make a steal, grab a rebound. I got this sense in this game that Benny's showing him that he's gonna win some big games down the road, that he's a powerful weapon to develop.
In other words, JB's probably already treasuring Benny the way he treasured DC.
But what complicates JB's decision is the fact that Benny seems comfortable with 1) coming off the bench at this early point in the season & 2) seems content with the idea of a 2-yr career at SU. That reality gives JB an additional reason to lean into his pro-experience bias. And yeah, it would be nice to start Jimmy if he can really justify it to the rest of his coaching instincts.
I don't know when or if Benny will start this year, but I think that JB is gonna be feeling torn between those two competing instincts this year: 1) bet it all on experience, as the never-questioned constant priority, or 2) go with his other instinct which is to always have a multi-talented athlete like Benny on the court any time the game is in doubt.
I'm thinking he's really wavering on these two considerations. Of course, there's always the possibility that he will do both as we've always speculated: start Jimmy until January & then make a line up change. That way he could yield to both of the competing instincts and just embrace them at different times.
We shall see...
