Rak...

[jekelish]

I'm not sure there's a right or wrong in this argument. I remember Rak as a frosh and thinking 'whoa, this kid has some really intriguing skills for an SU big -- we don't often see a kid with hands, quick hops and some semblence of an idea on a jump shot.' Now obviously he was raw, but the tools were there.

My feeling is that they waited 2.5 years for Rak to really want this, then he earned trust the second half of last season and coming back as really the only proven entity on this roster (G is OK, but I doubt anyone really knows what to think of him; Cooney is fine but had a huge roller coaster of a year), he is bound to get more touches.

The good news is whatever happened the past three years, if this team is focused on at least getting Rak involved to some degree each game, this team benefits significantly.

Very much agree with this assessment.

 

[billsin01]

I'm well aware of his % and have discussed it in depth on this board. (Right Ghost? ) He made dunks and put backs, which was a huge improvement over his sophomore year. He had an annoying habit of taking the ball away from the basket and setting up. This was very seldom successful.

I'm on board with this. I think Rak's biggest improvements last year were in terms of consistency of effort and mental approach. Stayed away from terrible fouls, got himself in better positions and worked harder. The result was his best season to date. This year, perhaps he takes another step forward and maybe even adds a post move or two. That would be enormous for this team.

 

[Oakland]

Please direct me to the thread where Rak's FG% on non-dunks and putbacks is analyzed. Thanks.

I'm well aware of his % and have discussed it in depth on this board. (Right Ghost? ) He made dunks and put backs, which was a huge improvement over his sophomore year. He had an annoying habit of taking the ball away from the basket and setting up. This was very seldom successful.

 

[Oakland]

Enjoy your beer.

No. I'm having a beer. Well, a few actually. Go find them yourself. Besides, I just summed it up nice and tidy for you.

 

[OttoMets]

If he'd gotten this many touches, he'd have put up these offensive numbers for four years. He's had the skills.

 

[Cheriehoop]

I really like Rak and think he always has had so much potential. However Rak has been his own worst enemy defensively by picking up early fouls. Last season he averaged about 23 minutes a game and had 4 fouls or fouled out in 16 out of our 34 games. He had 107 fouls last season and 172 rebounds. He had 3 games where he played 12 minutes or less and had 4 fouls twice and 3 fouls in another. Tough for a coach to have confidence in a player when you can't count on him lasting in a game. This doesn't count defensive lapses that don't result in a foul.

Hoping this year he stays focused, motivated and uses good judgement on the defensive end so we can see his offense. He needs to be a little more subtle, polished in his moves to the basket & using his elbows - I think he got caught twice tonight and had 4 in total against an undersized team. We can't afford him being in constant foul trouble with an inexperienced backup center especially if he starts picking them up on the offensive side. Glad to see him do well tonight and hoping he has a monster season.

 

[Ghost]

I'm well aware of his % and have discussed it in depth on this board. (Right Ghost? ) He made dunks and put backs, which was a huge improvement over his sophomore year. He had an annoying habit of taking the ball away from the basket and setting up. This was very seldom successful.

Yeah - I still think a lot of the awkwardness we saw was because of limited touches though!

He was reacting to his opportunity to score much like a seldom-used Frosh would when he comes in with 5 minutes to go - this is IT, my big chance, time to impress! I remember him looking fairly skilled in the exhibition games Soph/Jun year, but then the season starts and his touches went from limited to nonexistent.

I agree though - a lot of times he would set up, and he would try to pound the ball into the floor unnecesarily at times as well. Still, he's a pretty good passer, and overall think he was severely underutilized.

 

[tptcuse]

As fans it may seem somewhat irrelevant, but let's not forget that he already earned a college degree. He really can truly focus on basketball right now and I, for one, respect the hell out of that.

 

[dundundun]

As fans it may seem somewhat irrelevant, but let's not forget that he already earned a college degree. He really can truly focus on basketball right now and I, for one, respect the hell out of that.

I wasn't aware of that, but that's awesome. Good stuff, Rak!