USA East Coast Basketball trip with Benny Williams

[Noexcuse]

Is that one coach dude 8-ft tall?

He’s also the security guard at Lord and Taylor

 

[Orangezoo]

Yea, he’s #0 in the dark uniforms. In the one short video I saw him make a FT and miss a 3. And get pushed under the basket a couple times at the 4. I hope he’s not a player without a position. He’s kinda thin and weak for a 4 and doesn’t have the shot for a 3. He’s gonna have to just rely on his superior athleticism.

Agreed. Also he still looks too stiff out there. Needs to play loose and just play for that matter. So athletic but just way too mechanical at times.

 

[RF2044]

Yea, he’s #0 in the dark uniforms. In the one short video I saw him make a FT and miss a 3. And get pushed under the basket a couple times at the 4. I hope he’s not a player without a position. He’s kinda thin and weak for a 4 and doesn’t have the shot for a 3. He’s gonna have to just rely on his superior athleticism.

My concern as well. He was a pretty good shooter in HS, but it doesn't appear to be translating [yet].

And if he lacks perimeter scoring capability / a handle to face the basket and create, then his best path toward being a contributor this year is as an undersized but quick, uber-athletic 4 in the mold of Hak / Damone / Grant. Doesn't seem like he's comfortable playing inside, though.

 

[stlorange]

Just doesn't look comfortable on the court, much like Kaleb Joseph did early in his career at cuse. Hoping the light will go on and game slow down.

 

[pearl31]

This thread is starting to make me feel... less hopeful

 

[Orangezoo]

This thread is starting to make me feel... less hopeful

Making the loss of Cole and also the need for freshmen to be good seem like a much bigger matter.

 

[DoctorBombay]

This thread is starting to make me feel... less hopeful

I refuse to get pessimistic based on grainy practice footage of an international USA Tour...in August, no less! Amirite??

 

[tee1222]

Just watched the scrimmage and practice. The only positives I have are

1. He had one segment where he helped on defense which prevented anything easy from happening.
2. He almost beat one of the guards when doing sprints. Was faster than any other big man, but it was just sprints. Doesn't necessarily make him better during game time. Doesn't hurt!
3. Had good position on one free throw to grab the offensive rebound. But the shot went in.

Otherwise and truthfully

• He stood out on the perimeter.
• Didn't cut enough.
• Wasn't interested in the paint. To expand, he got out-muscled by a bigger dude, definitely a 5 with weight and strength.
• Missed a three and another jump shot.

The major point here is that he's either doing the wrong things for his game or everyone is telling him he's Glen Rice. He's not! Should stop shooting and somehow make plays closer to the basket, on both ends. Get into the lane. Post up when a wing is on him, etc. I just don't see the value in Benny hanging out on the perimeter. I don't think he's a scoring threat that way. At least until he gets the yips out of his system. Best way to do that is to attack, and at least try to force contact or make a play within the paint.

Also, I could swear that early or pre season last year, he had a handful of assists once. That also would build confidence in the rest of his game. Seems lost and needs to make plays. Think Marek and maybe young CJ/Robey on the defensive end.

 

[tee1222]

One more positive is although he missed his outside shots, no longer are they Daryl Strawberry line drive home runs anymore
Let's hope that part of his game is done. In fact, he almost got the shooter's friendly bounce from the far baseline on his second jumper.

 

[UpstateSM]

It’s been established that without Benny we don’t get Judah.

So do you guys think we would be better without both and trying to grab guys from the portal/beg Cole to come back?

Or will be better with Judah and crossing our fingers that Benny and a freshman forward or two are ready to go?

I don’t think that we were getting guard out of the portal as good as Judah but man, the Cole we saw play for the Lakers had an All-American ceiling if he came back. Interesting thought exercise.

 

[cliftonparksufan]

Just watched the scrimmage and practice. The only positives I have are

1. He had one segment where he helped on defense which prevented anything easy from happening.
2. He almost beat one of the guards when doing sprints. Was faster than any other big man, but it was just sprints. Doesn't necessarily make him better during game time. Doesn't hurt!
3. Had good position on one free throw to grab the offensive rebound. But the shot went in.

Otherwise and truthfully

• He stood out on the perimeter.
• Didn't cut enough.
• Wasn't interested in the paint. To expand, he got out-muscled by a bigger dude, definitely a 5 with weight and strength.
• Missed a three and another jump shot.

The major point here is that he's either doing the wrong things for his game or everyone is telling him he's Glen Rice. He's not! Should stop shooting and somehow make plays closer to the basket, on both ends. Get into the lane. Post up when a wing is on him, etc. I just don't see the value in Benny hanging out on the perimeter. I don't think he's a scoring threat that way. At least until he gets the yips out of his system. Best way to do that is to attack, and at least try to force contact or make a play within the paint.

Also, I could swear that early or pre season last year, he had a handful of assists once. That also would build confidence in the rest of his game. Seems lost and needs to make plays. Think Marek and maybe young CJ/Robey on the defensive end.

Hopefully it will kick in. CMac was the same way when he first started and had just started playing inside the 3 pt line and inside the paint when he got injured. So it doesn't appear he will outmuscle anyone so the coaches better make sure he understands the proper positioning and anticipation. If he doesn't have natural instincts then the coaches need to work harder. If he has great chemistry with Judah and company that will go a long way.

 

[pearl31]

Yes it's just observations of a practice in the summer, but...

I just don't get what the deal is with Benny. I mean, did all the scouts/high-major coaching staffs/analysts regarding him so highly coming out of HS just completely whiff? Did something happen to him between HS and arriving at SU last year? Did Boeheim wreck him?
ugh

 

[OrangeXtreme]

Yes it's just observations of a practice in the summer, but...

I just don't get what the deal is with Benny. I mean, did all the scouts/high-major coaching staffs/analysts regarding him so highly coming out of HS just completely whiff? Did something happen to him between HS and arriving at SU last year? Did Boeheim wreck him?
ugh

Benny's just trolling us.

He's good for 20 & 10 this season.

 

[BigNastyJon]

I watched nothing today, sounds like you guys are talking about a practice session abroad?

I’m not sure what folks were hoping to see, but everyone’s gotta relax. Poor kid probably having fun in Europe till he gets back to his room and reads this. Chesus Krist

 

[Orangezoo]

Practice was stateside before they left.
Why is even this of significance? Well JB had a lot to comment about him and how he practiced last year. It was also clear of his struggles outside a selection of games.

So when you see the same things we saw last year on the court months later it's concerning.

 

[tee1222]

It's simple and I'm rooting for Benny like all SU players. If he isn't shooting well, he has to do something else with the ball. Pass, score in the paint or take your man off the dribble. Marek did a lot of little things well and that made a huge difference. Another guy who didn't particular have a feel for the outside shot but made it happen. Benny's got a lot of athleticism he can use to his advantage. Not giving up on him.

 

[the villager]

Joe,Judah and Jesse should provide enough o fence hope Bennie can give us 4-5 rebounds a put back or two and 2 blocks a game and we should be happy.

 

[stlorange]

Joe,Judah and Jesse should provide enough o fence hope Bennie can give us 4-5 rebounds a put back or two and 2 blocks a game and we should be happy.

That's not gonna cut it. I'm 6-4, 190 lbs and 69 years old, still play pick-up twice a week and I'm pretty confident I could get 4-5 rebounds and a put back or two playing 20 minutes. No blocks though--no more quickness when I jump--my mind knows when to jump but my legs are 2 seconds behind! LOL PS I can still dunk the ball with a running start--although just barely.

 

[OrangeXtreme]

 

[rrlbees]

Finally some info.

 

[xc84]

Just watched the scrimmage and practice. The only positives I have are

1. He had one segment where he helped on defense which prevented anything easy from happening.
2. He almost beat one of the guards when doing sprints. Was faster than any other big man, but it was just sprints. Doesn't necessarily make him better during game time. Doesn't hurt!
3. Had good position on one free throw to grab the offensive rebound. But the shot went in.

Otherwise and truthfully

• He stood out on the perimeter.
• Didn't cut enough.
• Wasn't interested in the paint. To expand, he got out-muscled by a bigger dude, definitely a 5 with weight and strength.
• Missed a three and another jump shot.

The major point here is that he's either doing the wrong things for his game or everyone is telling him he's Glen Rice. He's not! Should stop shooting and somehow make plays closer to the basket, on both ends. Get into the lane. Post up when a wing is on him, etc. I just don't see the value in Benny hanging out on the perimeter. I don't think he's a scoring threat that way. At least until he gets the yips out of his system. Best way to do that is to attack, and at least try to force contact or make a play within the paint.

Also, I could swear that early or pre season last year, he had a handful of assists once. That also would build confidence in the rest of his game. Seems lost and needs to make plays. Think Marek and maybe young CJ/Robey on the defensive end.

Hmmm...when you try to find positives and one is "Had good position on one free throw to grab the offensive rebound. " ... that's not good.

 

[Sbucketball]

Was really hoping he would play to his potential in November, but I'm not sure that's going to happen based on these scouting reports. I could see it unfolding in a way where Benny starts the season looking more or less the same, especially on offense, and we just hope that with solid playing time he starts figuring it out by middle to end of the season. In that scenario, I'm not sure if we'll win enough games to make the tournament, but hopefully we do and hopefully he's starting to come alive by then. He'll really need to be good on defense all year, and let the offense come to him.

 

[gmoney44]

Losing Cole was a dagger to this team but if Benny is the same as last year or just marginally better we are probably in for a long season. Unless we hit a home run with the incoming class we are looking at another sub par season.

 

[jgeorge322]

I obviously want benny to do well but not sure how anyone can be optimistic about it after last season’s performance. It was shockingly bad for his rating. Also, I don’t ever see him becoming a good 3 pt shooter. As everyone has stated, he needs to get in the lane and bang. He needs to find one move that works, and grab a bunch of rebounds. He looks like he should be very strong eventually, if not already, so he should be hitting the weights hard.

 

[hoopsupstate]

Chill people. August doesn’t count. We’ve had reports that we’re going to win the national championship in August and it didn’t happen. It means very little. All Star games are not conducive to SU basketball. Benny will never be a pro. He doesn’t do one thing that well that sets him up for an NBA career. He might end up being a really good four year college player and there’s nothing wrong with that.