Roc Burned $$$$$$$ Today

[moqui]

I don't think its hyperbolic to say Roc may have dropped out of the first round after today
.

correct . . . but it is hyperbolic to have called him a first rounder to begin with

this draft is deep in young, talented bigs - emphasis on the young part. Roc left this game the same way he entered it - as a 2nd rounder

 

[KingOnuaku]

Okafor established position against Rak pretty much at will. Rak, not so much.

Rak had position on many occasions. They just didn't fall tonight. Rak played his ass off and was a force on defense despite playing with early fouls.

 

[Ghost]

Okafor established position against Rak pretty much at will. Rak, not so much.

Well, that's not really true at all.

 

[samspann1]

Well, that's not really true at all.

Well, I disagree.

Seemed to me that Rak was outmuscled/ outpositioned for much of the game

 

[samspann1]

Rak had position on many occasions. They just didn't fall tonight. Rak played his ass off and was a force on defense despite playing with early fouls.

How was he on the boards tonight?

 

[Jake]

Rak was forced 3-4 feet further from the basket than he's used to. This is not a debatable point.

 

[SWC75]

Rak struggled and Okafor had good numbers. But Okafor had more defensive help than Rak got. Our guards allow way too much penetration.

 

[samspann1]

You need to watch more closely. Rak was forced 3-4 feet further from the basket than he's used to. This is not a debatable point.

Seemed pretty clear to me.

 

[Ghost]

Well, I disagree.

Seemed to me that Rak was outmuscled/ outpositioned for much of the game

Okafor had one basket with Okoboh on him (I think - he may have had free throws), 3 dunks off of penetration early in the second half, and also one on a fast break dish from Quinn Cook that I recall. Otherwise, he had five or six field goals. At least two others were put backs on rebounds. Now we're down to four tops (off the top of my head) that could have been post moves on Rak.

If he was out-muscling him all game and Rak was over-matched I would think it would have much been much uglier FG wise. Or Duke just decided not to use the focal point of their offense when he was open...

 

[djcon57]

Of all of players...THIS IS THE KID YOU KNOCK!!!
He has defenses designed specifically to stop JUST HIM cause no one else can score or hit open shots.
Name another big man that plays 40 mins. It's ridiculous

(Just wanted to see how it felt to white knight. He played real bad today. It's ok to say so too.)

 

[Ghost]

You need to watch more closely. Rak was forced 3-4 feet further from the basket than he's used to. This is not a debatable point.

I was disagreeing that Okafor was getting post position at will. Rak was pushed out a bit more than normal. Less so in the second half, but more so than normal overall.

He does set up that far outside quite often though, that spin move starts fairly well off the post. It's not all that unusual. However, he very rarely (if ever - that I recall) got the ball right in on the blocks though - which is atypical.

 

[MadNY3]

Disagree. Sort of. He could elevated his draft status, but he blew it.

He blew it?

Or how about he played his ass off, even had five assists, a bunch of blocks...but missed shots and was clearly not as good as the future #1 or #2 in the draft?

Blew it? C'mon. Give the kid a break.

 

[Ghost]

Of all of players...THIS IS THE KID YOU KNOCK!!!
He has defenses designed specifically to stop JUST HIM cause no one else can score or hit open shots.
Name another big man that plays 40 mins. It's ridiculous

(Just wanted to see how it felt to white knight. He played real bad today. It's ok to say so too.)

lol....dear god, I don't know why I don't use this.

Thanks for the laugh.

 

[OttoinGrotto]

I think Rak was worried about getting in to foul trouble and it affected his game.

 

[SUbear]

Rak missed a bunch of easy looks that always go down. Still had some huge blocks and played hard. Still a late 1st rounder.

It is not the fact that he missed one or even a couple, but he missed a bunch where he had beaten Okafor but put up weak shot attempts instead of going up strong, and that is what the scouts will see.

 

[SUbear]

He hasn't looked right since Pitt. The past two games he isn't finishing as strong.

I think he has a little nagging injury bothering him.

He may be injured or not, but I think the pounding he is taking from being our only center is also taking a slow inexorable toll on him physically, even the best conditioned athletes can be worn down.

 

[longislandcuse]

He blew it?

Or how about he played his ass off, even had five assists, a bunch of blocks...but missed shots and was clearly not as good as the future #1 or #2 in the draft?

Blew it? C'mon. Give the kid a break.

Nobody is saying Rak sucks. He blew a chance on a big stage, against the top center, to improve his draft stock. That's a fact. He has a few more chances, including a rematch and then workouts to improve his draft stock, but today, yes, he "blew" a chance.

 

[Full_Rebar]

On the other hand, do people who don't really follow the NBA closely now understand why a bunch of teams are happy to lose to get a shot at Okafor? He's not ready defensively, but he's a much better post scorer than any recent Center besides Cousins.

 

[NineOneSeven]

He may be injured or not, but I think the pounding he is taking from being our only center is also taking a slow inexorable toll on him physically, even the best conditioned athletes can be worn down.

No they don't.

Signed,
Jimmy

 

[NineOneSeven]

He hasn't looked right since Pitt. The past two games he isn't finishing as strong.

I think he has a little nagging injury bothering him.

I don't tnink it's even a question.

He's come up wincing multiple times this year. He plays down low against the best competition, banging bodies for around 40 minutes.

Anyway who doesn't think he has some little injuries has never played basketball. And yes, I'm sure lots of players are dealing with this type of stuff, it's d1 ball, but it's magnified much more because of our depth and talent situation forcing him to stay in and be the guy.

 

[MCC]

A ton of eyes on this game. Scouts watching the Okafor- Christmas matchup very closely. What happened? Roc got outplayed from pillar to post by Okafor, who totally dominated Christmas. Roc missed at least 8 very easy shots and frankly, looked rattled. Okafor, after a slow start, settled in and put up huge numbers. It was a clinic. Okafor showed no fear and showed superior footwork, patience and fortitude. Roc played too fast and may have been trying to do too much. It was his second bad game in a row too.

I think Roc's stock plummeted today. Yes, it was just one game but our schedule has been terrible and the first time Roc plays a big time center, he looks like a flummoxed freshman out there. It's a damn shame too because Roc has carried this team on his back all year and has been an absolute warrior.

I don't think its hyperbolic to say Roc may have dropped out of the first round after today. He has three weeks or so to bounce back and show what he can do but make no mistake about it: today was not a good look.

Ridiculous IMO. Yes Okafor got good position most of the time, and he finished - he's an exceptional scorer. He also got swatted by Rak several times. Many of his points came off of dump-offs from penetrating guards. Rak would dunk those just as easily. Rak's footwork on offense was terrific. He missed his shots - it happens. Deer in the headlights? Come on.

Totally dominated? It was a clinic? What, exactly - catching the dump offs and stuffing them? You're employing hyperbole - no depth to your post. Rak maneuvered around Okafor many times and just missed the shot - under duress from a double in most cases.

You're only looking at the numbers, which don't indicate that Duke's guards were able to penetrate constantly and Okafor got many of his points then when Rak had to step up to help. You're also ignoring Rak's 5 blocks.

We may have to agree to disagree on this one - but I saw Rak make a number of terrific moves, block shots, and pass well. Okafor certainly outplayed him on offense - no argument there - but they weren't out there playing 1:1. There's 4 other variables - 5 if you count the disparate defensive systems the teams deploy - out there on the floor that impact the matchup.

 

[Cuse Action]

Yes, it's a shame. Many people thought Roc should be a Wooden Award finalist. It's a shame he didn't even play decently today against the best, yes it is.

Huge overreaction by you. Not surprising.

 

[Knicks411]

Can't believe the lack of basketball knowledge in this thread. Rak SHOT terrible. SHOT. He actually got any shot he wanted against Okafor. Scouts see that. Internet board posters don't.

I couldn't believe the number of good looks he missed. I don't think he missed them because he was intimidated, he missed them cause sometimes you miss shots you normally make. He had a good all around game as well.

I do thin Okafor is a beast on offense though

 

[SWC75]

I couldn't believe the number of good looks he missed. I don't think he missed them because he was intimidated, he missed them cause sometimes you miss shots you normally make. He had a good all around game as well.

I do thin Okafor is a beast on offense though

He missed them because he was too far from the basket. Okafor and Plumlee made sure he was.

 

[Dcuse]

He missed them because he was too far from the basket. Okafor and Plumlee made sure he was.

No he wasn't. He missed about 4 bunnies that he's made all year.