I had the opportunity to attend yesterday's hoop practice at the Carmelo Anthony center, and see this year's team live / in person. Very exciting to see our team back in action--and to see some new faces [Roberson / Obokoh] out there that we weren't able to observe during the Canadian exhibition tour.
I'll start out with some preliminary info. We got there a bit early for practice, and got to watch GMac playing a fast paced full court game with the team managers. Gerry looks to be in great shape--no doubt he could still lace 'em up.
Speaking of the managers, there are a TON of them. I used to be a regular practice attendee back when I used to live in Syracuse. Back then, there might have been about 4-5 managers--guys to coordinate the timing of practice, and occasionally to fill in and shag rebounds or give the coaches someone to pass the ball to when the team is practicing defensive sets. These days, it seems like there are at least 12 or so--which is about one for each player.
Adrian Autry spent some time shooting in front of us while the players were stretching at the beginning of practice. After starting slow, he got on quite a streak and knocked down three after three. Like GMac, he looks like he's in great shape. Too bad he doesn't have any eligibility left; he looks capable of helping us shore up the lack of depth at PG behind Ennis.
On to the practice observations...
As mentioned above, we got there early--and at that point the only player who was on the court was Tyler Roberson, who spent about a half-hour [that we saw] before practice working on his shooting with Hopkins. Roberson passes the looks test. He's got a good frame for an incoming frosh--a little skinny, but that's pretty common for a kid just getting into a college S&C program. Broad shoulders--looks like he could easily carry 25 more pounds--and decent arm definition. Man, what a shooting stroke this kid has! Textbook form on both his release and his use of legs. During drills, he really looked like he saw the floor / passed the ball well, delivering some nice passes to cutters. I saw him viciously throw down an offensive rebound dunk after a miss, and he looks like an instinctive rebounder--but today he was largely relegated to playing a drill decoy, as apparently he'd suffered a very minor hamstring strain the day before. Roberson spent the majority of practice riding a stationary bike, but I'm told that him sitting out was totally just a precautionary thing. Very solid first impression--I think this kid is going to be a good one.
I read Mike Waters's chat yesterday, where he discussed how practice is a mixture of old and new drills that the coaching staff has added over the years. That observation was spot on--as there were a lot of new techniques that the coaching staff utilized that were quite a bit different from the practices I used to attend in the mid-to-late 90s. Lots of crisp defensive drills that focused upon moving to the right spots in the zone and trapping. On the opposite court, the big guys also had a drill where they were doing very fast paced circular rotations in response to ball movement. Hopkins would then fire the ball hard off of the backboard and the big guys would fight for the rebound.
In fact, rebounding seemed to be a major focal point of the coaches attention throughout practice. A welcome change, given how defensive rebounding challenged we often are.
The team then ran through some basic offensive skill drills, dribbling to spots and then driving around defenders for shots from various spots on the floor. Next, the team begin to do 2 on 2 and 3 on 3 offense / defense drills. CJ was impressive in this part of practice. Not surprisingly, nobody could really guard him, and he finishes around the basket in a variety of ways. He really shot the ball well throughout, and looked poised as usual.
The team then broke into UCLA drills -- constituted by a 3 on 2 fast break one way [to help the team learn how to execute a fast break when they have a numbers advantage, as well as for the defense to practice how to stop the fast break when they have a numbers DISadvantage]. After the shot, the two defenders then take it back the other way against one defender, for the same type of situation. After that, the team broke into a fast paced, full court layup line that had them running hard, before the team finally began to scrimmage.
One of the things that jumped out to me right off the bat in the scrimmage is how we basically have a full two-deep again. Our second unit consists of talented players like Gbinije, Patterson, BJ, Keita. The lone exception being that there isn't a legit backup point guard--they had to use a walk on who just wasn't the threat to penetrate / score that a real D1 player would be. But other than that, this year's team is going to enjoy the same kind of depth that the previous two teams have had.
In general, our frontcourt is LOADED. Think about it for a second: CJ and Grant at forward, with Roberson backing them up. Coleman and Rak waging a spirited battle in the pivot, with the steady / dependable Keita also capable of delivering major minutes there. And I haven't even brought up BJ, who is working exclusively with the forwards as a 3. Tons of depth and talent in that crew.
Back to the centers for a bit. I'll start with Rak. You can totally tell that he's an upperclassman now. He just looks bigger. He's always had a decent frame, but he looks like a man now--looked very strong, and he rebounded aggressively. Seemed to finish better inside with either hand, but didn't demonstrate appreciably better offensive capabilities. I think he's going to be more solid and consistent than he's been.
Coleman looks to be in even better shape than he was this summer. He's still a bit of a bull in a china shop, meaning that he's probably going to be foul prone due to his size / physical play, but the reduced weight has helped his lateral mobility a bit. Kid runs hard all the time--very fast for a guy that size in a straight line. Seemed to rebound well, got blocked a few times [what's new], but also threw down some dunks. I expect improvement from DCII. How much [from both DCII
and Rak] will likely determine what this team's ceiling is.
Keita got to practice later than the others [had a lab], but once he warmed up and got out there, he made an impact. It was like watching the NCAA tournament all over again. He hustles all the time, runs hard, and is disruptive defensively. Not much offense, and obviously he hasn't gained weight, but at the end of practice he stepped to the line and calmly knocked down a pair of free throws that prevented the team from having to sprint. He's a real asset.
The fourth center in the rotation was a guy I was curious to see for the first time: Chinoso Obokoh. My first impression is that he's a bit shorter than what I expected--maybe 6-8 or so [tough to tell, but compared to the other players that's where I would gauge him]. But he isn't skinny like Keita is / was. He's actually got decent muscle definition and big shoulders, so there's no doubt in my mind that he'll eventually play around 230 / 240 after a few years of being in our S&C program. Runs the floor well for a big. Right now, at this stage of his developmental curve, he has no idea where he's supposed to go in terms of offensive movement, but his teammates were really patient with him, giving him pointers. And while he wasn't as "big" as Rak / Coleman, he really battled them inside, blocking some shots and snaring some tough rebounds. It was announced last week that Chino is going to redshirt--I think this is a great move to give him an extra year. Kid will be a good player for us down the road, whereas he wouldn't even play as the fourth center in an already overcrowded frontcourt rotation. After what I saw yesterday, I'll gladly trade this year for what his fifth year will be.
In the backcourt, Ennis looked smooth and in control. Had a gorgeous drive for a reverse layup early in the scrimmage that drew oohs and ahhs from the coaches. Not much to say here--he's going to be handed the ball from day 1, and appears to shoot it a little more consistently than MCW did.
After attending yesterday, I now understand why people say that Cooney makes everything in practice. In drills, he's absolutely lights out. Did some nice things yesterday, and shot reasonably well in the scrimmage, but I'd say going into the year that 2G is our biggest question mark. Not that he and Gbinije aren't capable of getting the job done, just that right now--until proven otherwise--this is the potential weak spot in the lineup.
Speaking of Gbinije, I watched the Canada games earlier this summer and came away without having a good feel for his offensive capabilities. I still don't have a great feel, even after watching yesterday's practice. Gbinije got quite a bit of run with the first team lineup, as the 3 in that lineup [tons of ball handling there, and Mike has sufficient size to be a 3 in our system--he's about as big as Kris Joseph was]. He's a good not great athlete, but seems to excel at taking it to the basket. He's not a pure shooter like I expected. His shot is mechanical and has a weird wrist hitch. I think he's the type of guy who will be a servicable shooter in a complimentary role, like a guy who makes 33% of his shots, knocking them down when he's wide open. He's not a point in a pure sense, but he seems to be a versatile guy who can handle a bit and do some nice things out there. Not sure if he's a two or a three.
Which is a great segue to discussing BJ Johnson--one of my favorite players in this incoming recruiting class. BJ is painfully skinny right now--he might have the smallest waistline I've ever seen on an adult male--but the work he's put in since committing last winter, when he only reportedly weighed 160 pounds, is evident. Love this kid's potential / skill set. Another lefty who can shoot and really put the ball on the floor. He had a couple of great moves taking it to the hole where he'd go around his back or between his legs to take a new angle to the basket when the defender cut off his lane. He reminds me of a bigger, better Lenzelle Smith from OSU. But for those who want him to play the 2 this year, I wouldn't get your hopes up. He worked exclusively with the forwards during yesterday's practice. Skill set wise, I could see him being a 2 down the road [in the same way that Kueth Duany was a hyrbid 2 / 3 his senior year]. Kid has game. Once his physical maturity catches up to his athleticism and skill level, watch out.
Patterson is a really confident kid. Really pushes himself hard in practice, and he's a big strong player for an incoming frosh. He took one contested, bad shot that drew Boeheim's ire. But when the coach stopped practice and asked him whether he thought that was a good shot, Patterson responded with a crisp: "No sir!" Seems very coachable. Plays hard. Doesn't shoot the ball consistently well right now, but the raw materials are there for this kid to be a good offensive player down the road. Really excels at taking it to the basket and exploding to the rim. Handle is weak. He'll never be a backup point guard, for those clamoring for that to manifest. Secondary ball handler all the way. But Patterson is a kid worth paying attention to. He'll be a four year program guy who could emerge as an important contributor down the road.
Not much to say about CJ and Grant, beyond what everybody already knows. Both guys look a bit stronger than last year, and both are smooth as hell offensively. Both look primed for big things this year. CJ was a bit more vocal than before, and clearly seems comfortable being "the guy." Seems like he makes about 80% of the shots he takes. He had some gorgeous finishes with his right hand, which has been noticeably absent from his game this far.
Grant looks like a carbon copy of his dad / uncle facially--it's uncanny how much he looks like them. He didn't participate in the scrimmage part of practice, so I didn't get a chance to see him play. Seems that he suffered a minor finger injury recently, and instead spent that half of practice sprinting on a treadmill. Kid is in great shape--I just wish he was about 10 pounds heavier to better absorb the pounding he's going to take inside, but he's poised for a big year. A BIG year.
Overall, I'd say that we are on the cusp of another exciting season. We've got it all--size, depth, experience, athleticism, scoring...with the lone exception being backup PG and backcourt depth. The main question marks to me with this squad are:
- Collectively, will we shoot the ball effectively from three?
- Can the backcourt come together and produce what a contending team needs from them?
- Will the bigs provide more consistency than last year?
I don't think there is a team out there this year that doesn't have question marks, even the ostensibly elite teams--even a team that everyone is anointing like UK. I'm not saying that a return to the final four is in the cards, but I think this year's squad can be very, very good. And if a couple of things fall into place...who knows? Love the frontcourt components and the versatility. If the backcourt rises to the occasion, this could be a special team.
Let's Go Orange!!!
