Against smaller teams it could work, but against the ACC it's a losing strategy... Possibly if they press first and only go into the zone if they can't force a turnover or shot in transition, but even teams with three guard lineups will just fire away and let their forward dominate Torrence in that side of the zone.
Bees had Sy at PG, not over JGIII
JT looks more thick burger than Beyond meat
TBF, he said he wouldn't be surprised if Sy is there, not that he would be.
Hopefully JB uses his players based on match ups. If so expect to see lots of combinations.
Villanova, to me, is the blueprint for playing 3 true guards. I just can’t picture us getting after it on defense like that, and in that manner. But that’s what we’d have to do, IMO.
Time for a change. Teams getting used to the Zone.
I think it’s more that we don’t have an NBA level team in terms of height and athleticism, anymore.
Nobody said he isn't, but being flanked by forwards that are much less athletic that guys we had in the past leads to a less effective zone that what we've had.
Jesse
I agree, and I've always thought JT was the most likely candidate to start at the 3 next year. However, while discussing how underrated his 2022 class is, JB mentioned there's a first rounder ranked in the 50s (obviously referring to Mintz) and another ranked in the 80s (I think he said 80s; probably referring to Bunch). So, going into the season, JB might have the preconceived notion that Mintz and Bunch will be the freshmen starters. JB always says he doesn't select starters until the season starts, but he's human (I think) so he's prone to bias based on his preconceived notion. Bunch might get more PT than people suspect. He's also a natural 3, whereas JT will likely end up at the 2 once Joe leaves. I personally think both Bunch and JT will be good, and I could see JT becoming one of Coach's favorite, while I could see Bunch residing in the dog house.
I would bet Brown's chance at getting minutes more likely depends on Bunch or Taylor being able to shoot at a high clip (and I think Taylor and Bunch will get the most run out of the freshmen forwards, and Brown and Carey will need developmental time). Brown would probably look better next to one of them instead of next to Benny. They would have different and complimentary skill sets.
I have been high in Benny, even through his struggles. I think he gets his mojo back and he will be a solid starter. I still don’t think he will be a knock down shooter from three, though. I think he can be a good shooter, but not a go to three point shooter. I think Taylor starts at the other forward, but Benny will slide to the SF spot when we go big.
Even if Benny shoots, I don’t think he has the ball handling to play the 3 too often. My assumption is Taylor could also function as the 3rd ball handler if he starts. A backline of Brown/Benny/Edwards could be our best defense/rebounding option but could be rough offensively.
The end result of the forwards battle is going to define the season, for sure.
If Girard is struggling with the ball, we can put Mintz and Torrence out there together to shore up the weakness. Taylor might be the best forward ball handler, since he's billed as a guard/forward, but don't sleep on Williams. He is one of those guys who outgrew being a guard only a few years ago. He should be much better than he demonstrated last year. For me he's more of a tall SF than a combo forward at this point.
