Right now, at this point in time | Syracusefan.com

Right now, at this point in time

pearl31 said:
Our best lineup is one without Chris McCollough in it. Discuss.
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I don't want to start a deal of slamming Chris but I agree. I like Roberson in his place right now.
 
I have to agree with you, but a recruit like him needs even more of a chance to succeed, we take him out and give him Patterson or BJ minutes that doesn't help us with recruiting.
 
Agreed. McCullough is hesitant and soft on offense and often out of position on D.

Love the way Roberson has been playing, especially on the boards and he is an ox on defense.
 
I really enjoyed the Cooney, Patterson, and G back court as well. Patterson isn't shooting well but he is a natural creator with the ball in his hands. I felt that group got the best offensive movement I had seen all year. Not to mention that group works their tales off on D.
 
rrlbees said:
McCullough will bounce back. He's got too much talent.
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I think he'll bounce back and become a good player, but I think the development will be slower than we thought it might be.

He needs to get a lot stronger and that's not going to happen over the next few months.

He needs a whole year, at least, to fill out and get stronger, and if decides to leave early before that happens, I can see him finishing his basketball playing days in Europe.
 
pearl31 said:
Our best lineup is one without Chris McCollough in it.

Discuss.
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uhhh... you missed the villanova game when they carved up our defense and rebounded at will with CM out of the game.

We need CM to break out of his offensive slump. But we need his height and athleticism on the court.
 
CusefanATL said:
uhhh... you missed the villanova game when they carved up our defense and rebounded at will with CM out of the game.

We need CM to break out of his offensive slump. But we need his height and athleticism on the court.
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Teams carve it just fine with CM in there. Roberson, right now, plays better defense and rebounds better. Hopefully Chris snaps out of this because, like you said, we need him.
 
pearl31 said:
Our best lineup is one without Chris McCollough in it.

Discuss.
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Only if you've just watched the last four games.

Every one of the main six guys have played very well over a series of games, but only Christmas has played consistently well throughout the season. The other five have all been ineffective or looked lost in various games. I find it difficult to believe that the McCullough we saw early on (whom JB uncharacteristically talked up before he had played a single game) was an aberration.
 
CuseHulk said:
Play Roberson at the 4, and McCullough at the 3.
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This, this, this. It seems like we're playing him at the 4 simply because he's taller. A 6'8" PF who can handle contact and go up strong is better than a 6'10" PF who could get knocked over by a stiff wind.

The difference between 3 and 4 is not huge, but if it means getting him the ball more outside of the paint, then I'm all for it. We don't need him trying to force inside shots or trying to post-up.
 
In Chris's defense, we're not running many set plays where he is a first option. He's mostly being used as a screener or as a high-post flash option (which he reads pretty well for a young player). This limits his scoring opportunities, which mostly come rolling off of screens, in transition, or on second-chance opportunities. Unfortunately, his lack of strength often prevents him from finishing these chances. This is compounded by his reluctance to take the ball up strongly, often opting for finessing his shots in traffic.

Defensively, it is clear that he is still learning his responsibilities. He is often late crashing to the blocks when the ball enters the high post, and he struggles to close out on shooters. The fact that he is trying to learn the center's responsibilities because we have no other option for when Christmas is out of the game likely adds to the learning curve. In short, many aspects of our zone don't seem to be "second nature" to him at this point, a sign that he is thinking too much instead of seeing and understanding situations.

The raw athletic talent is there, and some of the fundamentals are in place. I still think that Chris has the potential to be our best offensive recruit since Carmelo (but not as good as Anthony). To reach that potential, though, he needs to be stronger physically, he needs to develop his fundamentals (go to the hoop strong, use ball fakes, handle the ball with both hands, etc.) more, and he needs plays designed to get him the ball in spots that he can excel. There's a good chance that we won't see all of these come to fruition this season.
 
I dont agree with this topic. McC is still, in my view, much better than Roberson. He alters a TON of shots on defense and is much better at getting to the foul line. I know he has missed a bunch of them, but its still a good trait to have.
 
Brooky03 said:
This, this, this. It seems like we're playing him at the 4 simply because he's taller. A 6'8" PF who can handle contact and go up strong is better than a 6'10" PF who could get knocked over by a stiff wind.

The difference between 3 and 4 is not huge, but if it means getting him the ball more outside of the paint, then I'm all for it. We don't need him trying to force inside shots or trying to post-up.
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Chris's offensive skill set seems more suited for the 3 than the 4. Plus, we run more set plays for the 3 than the 4, which would provide him more scoring chances.

The question, though, is what to do with Silent G if Chris is moved to the 3. G could conceivably move to point guard, but he has been excelling at the 3 over the last few weeks. Playing the 1 would remove G from the scoring situations in which he has recently flourished. Additionally, G doesn't seem to be the best option to handle the ball against pressing teams.

Still, in theory, Chris would probably fit more effectively as the 3 in our offense.
 
I think it's obviously very debatable right now. Tyler is starting to show signs of breaking out of his shell so I may agree with this in another few weeks but I am not there yet...but certainly the gap in game effectiveness is closing IMO between Chris and Tyler.

First and foremost Chris has to defend and rebound better...he was consistently slow recovering yesterday....that is a major problem and the main reason he sat for long periods of time.

I should say that I am hopeful that Chris is hitting rock bottom right now and will start to re-emerge very soon.
 
Coach Orange said:
Chris's offensive skill set seems more suited for the 3 than the 4. Plus, we run more set plays for the 3 than the 4, which would provide him more scoring chances.

The question, though, is what to do with Silent G if Chris is moved to the 3. G could conceivably move to point guard, but he has been excelling at the 3 over the last few weeks. Playing the 1 would remove G from the scoring situations in which he has recently flourished. Additionally, G doesn't seem to be the best option to handle the ball against pressing teams.

Still, in theory, Chris would probably fit more effectively as the 3 in our offense.
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Agreed but G has been the key to unlocking the offense. Having someone at the 3 who can score, which as you point out is pretty key in JB's offense, has really opened things up. I think Chris is struggling to adjust to the physicality, struggling to learn 2 positions on defense and on top of that is adjusting to a changed role now that Mike has come on. Tyler has benefitted from these changes because its mostly allowed him to come in off the bench and play his natural position (the 4) without needing to do anything outside of his comfort zone.
 
jordoo said:
Agreed but G has been the key to unlocking the offense. Having someone at the 3 who can score, which as you point out is pretty key in JB's offense, has really opened things up. I think Chris is struggling to adjust to the physicality, struggling to learn 2 positions on defense and on top of that is adjusting to a changed role now that Mike has come on. Tyler has benefitted from these changes because its mostly allowed him to come in off the bench and play his natural position (the 4) without needing to do anything outside of his comfort zone.
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Roles are pretty much set.

Chris will remain at the 4, but Roberson will spell him there when he struggles.

Patterson will continue to spell Joseph when he struggles.
 
jordoo said:
Agreed but G has been the key to unlocking the offense. Having someone at the 3 who can score, which as you point out is pretty key in JB's offense, has really opened things up. I think Chris is struggling to adjust to the physicality, struggling to learn 2 positions on defense and on top of that is adjusting to a changed role now that Mike has come on. Tyler has benefitted from these changes because its mostly allowed him to come in off the bench and play his natural position (the 4) without needing to do anything outside of his comfort zone.
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I should clarify the last sentence of my post. I meant that Chris playing the 3 would be more effective for him in this offense, but I wasn't suggesting he would be better than G has been at the 3. G has been outstanding, and I agree that his emergence has been a key to the improved overall offense. Both he and Cooney have shown tremendous growth in their fundamentals, and the offense has become more potent as a result.
 
Coach Orange said:
I should clarify the last sentence of my post. I meant that Chris playing the 3 would be more effective for him in this offense, but I wasn't suggesting he would be better than G has been at the 3. G has been outstanding, and I agree that his emergence has been a key to the improved overall offense. Both he and Cooney have shown tremendous growth in their fundamentals, and the offense has become more potent as a result.
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I understood that and again agree. This season Chris will have to work his way back as a complimentary offensive player for the time being, where he can still be very important.
 
If you look at the box scores the last few games, the production at both ends of the floor basically matches the level of experience. Freshmen are going to struggle .. that's part of the deal. Even our soph's that didn't play much last year (BJ/Roberson) are still finding their rhythm. It takes time.

As we've seen, there was no need to give up on TC after a slow start, and there's no reason to give up on CM during this slump. He has too much size and talent. In all likelihood, he'll be back on track in half a dozen games.

If not, the worst that could happen is the light doesn't go on this year, and he sticks around, builds strength and returns next season with TB and DC 2 to play on one of the nation's most talented front lines.
 
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