Henny & Coke
2nd String
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- Aug 26, 2011
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Couple quotes from Jim Boeheim to begin this thread:
"Your seniors have to lead you this time of year."
"The two guys that are going to take us anywhere are the two seniors."
I didn't want to make yet another "Why doesn't MCW play more" post without making it a little different, because I feel this oft-repeated question has become somewhat of an annoyance to some to read over and over. People are quick to point to the number of wins Coach has as an example that he knows what he is doing, which I do not disagree with. But I'd also be lying if I said I completely understand why MCW has played less and less minutes recently even though both he and the team have played well in those few instances that he is given playing time.
OK, so of the many reasons why Coach would continue to play Scoop Jardine (instead of allowing MCW to get 8-10 minutes) although he has not been playing well the past 3 or so games (he trusts in his experience, he wants his leadership on the court, MCW is more of an "unknown" quantity, etc)...here is the question that I struggle with: Could the reason "Scoop has earned this playing time by doing all the right things the past 5 years and really being a great ambassador for this program, and thus, he is owed the opportunity to lead this team as far as possible, win or lose" be a legitimate reason? If Coach does feel this way at all, should this factor into his decision in determining playing time at this point? Honestly, I can see how that makes a little sense, that Scoop has earned the right to be out there, even when he's not playing well...but if winning is the only thing that matters, then this should not be a factor at all, right? It should only be about what players will give Syracuse the greatest chance to win each game. And it is by that logic that I question why Syracuse has gone from playing more guys more often (like the first half of the year), to tightening up the rotation like we have seen the majority of the second half of the year. And more specifically, to me, it seems that the games that MCW has played meaningful minutes have been games that Syracuse has been more dominant. (even if I try to adjust out the thinking that sometimes MCW would only get meaningful playing time in "blow out" situations.) I believe the offense runs a little better with him facilitating...he has a great sense of floor spacing, often dribbling to one area and drawing a defender where he wants so he can pass to an open teammate, and I also feel like he is the best at getting our big guys involved. He also plays with a lot of intensity, and excels at doing the "little things" within the game that help the team be successful.
(Another thought that has crossed my mind is that Coach has been so vocal in his defense of Scoop this year that he feels he has essentially "picked a side" on the Scoop debate...and that means he wants to be "right" about Scoop being a better player than most give him credit for. But I don't think Coach would let something like that determine playing time...just so he could be "right" and prove others wrong. But I have to admit, it does cross my mind from time to time, knowing how much JB seems to hate when people question his decisions at times.)
In thinking about the quotes again, part of me wants to respond to JB, "yes, your right, this team will go as far as our seniors take us...but it doesn't necessarily have to be like that! You do have control over the situation...in that, there are other talented players you have at your disposal. It is not a rule that senior players have to play in every meaningful situation...in fact, today's college basketball shows that younger players can often have a big impact on successful teams." To me, Syracuse played so well when we were going 10 deep and everyone was getting decent minutes. Everyone seemed more engaged and fresher, and it seemed like they wanted to make the most of the minutes they did have out there playing. Yes, there is some truth in the fact that we were playing lesser teams when subbing so often, but I don't see what it would have hurt to have tried playing like that even into the second half of the season against tougher teams...and if it really was holding us back & not working, then fine, tighten-up the rotation. But at least we'd know for sure that playing all our guys more often isn't the best way. I really can't think of a game we got far behind because of subbing too much.
But it is what it is now. I don't expect MCW to get much time outside of maybe our first round game. I just hope that Scoop and Kris can figure out what is ailing them recently and come into the next few weekends refocused and motivated. They have been great players and people for our program and I truely appreciate all the work they have done over the years to make Syracuse Basketball what it is today. But I just can't shake this fear that come next year, when we can really see how good MCW (and maybe even RAK) can play when given more playing time, there may be a temptation to look back to this year and wonder "why were we letting Scoop try to play through his mistakes so much when we had a talented player on the bench who may have been having a much better day? That makes no sense!" Hopefully, JB's win number will be 6 higher at that point, and the regret will be that we could have won the Championship by even more than we did, therefore making it inconsequential and proving JB right after all (won't be the first or last time I'm sure).
"Your seniors have to lead you this time of year."
"The two guys that are going to take us anywhere are the two seniors."
I didn't want to make yet another "Why doesn't MCW play more" post without making it a little different, because I feel this oft-repeated question has become somewhat of an annoyance to some to read over and over. People are quick to point to the number of wins Coach has as an example that he knows what he is doing, which I do not disagree with. But I'd also be lying if I said I completely understand why MCW has played less and less minutes recently even though both he and the team have played well in those few instances that he is given playing time.
OK, so of the many reasons why Coach would continue to play Scoop Jardine (instead of allowing MCW to get 8-10 minutes) although he has not been playing well the past 3 or so games (he trusts in his experience, he wants his leadership on the court, MCW is more of an "unknown" quantity, etc)...here is the question that I struggle with: Could the reason "Scoop has earned this playing time by doing all the right things the past 5 years and really being a great ambassador for this program, and thus, he is owed the opportunity to lead this team as far as possible, win or lose" be a legitimate reason? If Coach does feel this way at all, should this factor into his decision in determining playing time at this point? Honestly, I can see how that makes a little sense, that Scoop has earned the right to be out there, even when he's not playing well...but if winning is the only thing that matters, then this should not be a factor at all, right? It should only be about what players will give Syracuse the greatest chance to win each game. And it is by that logic that I question why Syracuse has gone from playing more guys more often (like the first half of the year), to tightening up the rotation like we have seen the majority of the second half of the year. And more specifically, to me, it seems that the games that MCW has played meaningful minutes have been games that Syracuse has been more dominant. (even if I try to adjust out the thinking that sometimes MCW would only get meaningful playing time in "blow out" situations.) I believe the offense runs a little better with him facilitating...he has a great sense of floor spacing, often dribbling to one area and drawing a defender where he wants so he can pass to an open teammate, and I also feel like he is the best at getting our big guys involved. He also plays with a lot of intensity, and excels at doing the "little things" within the game that help the team be successful.
(Another thought that has crossed my mind is that Coach has been so vocal in his defense of Scoop this year that he feels he has essentially "picked a side" on the Scoop debate...and that means he wants to be "right" about Scoop being a better player than most give him credit for. But I don't think Coach would let something like that determine playing time...just so he could be "right" and prove others wrong. But I have to admit, it does cross my mind from time to time, knowing how much JB seems to hate when people question his decisions at times.)
In thinking about the quotes again, part of me wants to respond to JB, "yes, your right, this team will go as far as our seniors take us...but it doesn't necessarily have to be like that! You do have control over the situation...in that, there are other talented players you have at your disposal. It is not a rule that senior players have to play in every meaningful situation...in fact, today's college basketball shows that younger players can often have a big impact on successful teams." To me, Syracuse played so well when we were going 10 deep and everyone was getting decent minutes. Everyone seemed more engaged and fresher, and it seemed like they wanted to make the most of the minutes they did have out there playing. Yes, there is some truth in the fact that we were playing lesser teams when subbing so often, but I don't see what it would have hurt to have tried playing like that even into the second half of the season against tougher teams...and if it really was holding us back & not working, then fine, tighten-up the rotation. But at least we'd know for sure that playing all our guys more often isn't the best way. I really can't think of a game we got far behind because of subbing too much.
But it is what it is now. I don't expect MCW to get much time outside of maybe our first round game. I just hope that Scoop and Kris can figure out what is ailing them recently and come into the next few weekends refocused and motivated. They have been great players and people for our program and I truely appreciate all the work they have done over the years to make Syracuse Basketball what it is today. But I just can't shake this fear that come next year, when we can really see how good MCW (and maybe even RAK) can play when given more playing time, there may be a temptation to look back to this year and wonder "why were we letting Scoop try to play through his mistakes so much when we had a talented player on the bench who may have been having a much better day? That makes no sense!" Hopefully, JB's win number will be 6 higher at that point, and the regret will be that we could have won the Championship by even more than we did, therefore making it inconsequential and proving JB right after all (won't be the first or last time I'm sure).
