[Paint Touches] How ‘easy’ have Morant’s assists been?

[PaintTouches]

You know how Henry only got the "easy rebounds" according to some. Well Ja Morant only gets the "hard" assists. He really is a magician.

https://painttouches.com/2019/03/20/how-easy-have-ja-morants-assists-been/

[MarquetteDano]

Puts to bed attempting to double him to take him out of game.  The other players would shred us.  Also shows danger of consistent zone.

[Cheeks]

Puts to bed attempting to double him to take him out of game.  The other players would shred us.  Also shows danger of consistent zone.

Exactly.  If the teams in his league that see him all the time tried to double and failed miserably, I think they would know best.  Go with got you there and hopefully it is enough to carry the day.

[brewcity77]

Great article. I think what it really illustrates is that you can't go with the "he'll get his, make the rest beat you" mentality because while he will get his, it's his passing that allows the others to beat you. He's going to find them. I'm both excited & terrified to watch him tomorrow.

[Cheeks]

Great article. I think what it really illustrates is that you can't go with the "he'll get his, make the rest beat you" mentality because while he will get his, it's his passing that allows the others to beat you. He's going to find them. I'm both excited & terrified to watch him tomorrow.

As slow as we are on defense at times, I don’t have a good vibe for tomorrow unless we are hitting our 3’s at an exceptional rate.

[mug644]

Impressive stuff by Morant, and he will be an absolute handful tomorrow. I'm particularly struck at how his most impressive assists seem to come from his left hand, while he shoots his three-pointers with his right hand.

That said, I hope our interior defense, with Theo and Ed, is better than most teams Murray St has faced (and it BETTER be better than Morehead St in the video!).

[MU82]

Great article. I think what it really illustrates is that you can't go with the "he'll get his, make the rest beat you" mentality because while he will get his, it's his passing that allows the others to beat you. He's going to find them. I'm both excited & terrified to watch him tomorrow.

When I think of "he'll get his," I think it means you play the kind of mtm defense you have all season to good results, defend Ja straight-up with Sacar (or BB or Cain), have a rim protector ready if needed (as any competent mtm defense does, and as we have all season with Theo and Ed and sometimes Sam), and rarely double-team Ja.

With Ja being a top-5 pick talent, "he'll get his" against Sacar -- maybe 20, 25, 30 points, who knows. But we won't leave other capable MS players open for him to dish to, and they will struggle to score on their own against the Warriors defending them (in theory).

So by that description, "he'll get his" is the exact strategy I want our heroes to employ.

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

Andrei, I'm disappointed. It's "easy" and "difficult" rebounds. It's "basic" and "complex" assists. Know your scoop terminology!

[brewcity77]

So by that description, "he'll get his" is the exact strategy I want our heroes to employ.

Yeah, I don't disagree, I was more trying to make the point that forcing the rest of the team mindset is difficult when you've got that one guy that is the catalyst to how they beat you. Part of Morant going off is by helping his teammates to beat you. Not sure if I said that well. (Honestly, still not sure I said it well  )

[MuMark]

I wonder if the Murray State blog is doing a similar article on Markus Howard highlighting all the incredible shots he has made throughout the season?


Should be a fun game

[muguru]

Make him a shooter, not a driver and they should be fine. LIMIT the TO's.

[MuMark]

Everybody tries to do that........He had 25 points 8 rebounds and 7 assists against them. Was 6-8 from 2 and got to the free throw line 11 times and made 10.


Saying it is one thing....doing it is another. He doesn't just settle for 3s. Only takes about 5 a game.

He shot 100 more free throws then 3 pointers....and 200 more 2 pointers then 3s.

Yeah if we can make him take 3s then we are probably in good shape.......People used to say the same thing about Wade......

[mu03eng]

The key is going to be two things: Theo/Ed(especially Theo) being disciplined and patient and the wing defenders being quick/aware of their post help responsibilities.

Theo/Ed need to wait as long as possible before committing to a block when Morant when he gets in the lane. Being too aggressive results in easy assists to post players and/or fouls.

The wing players need to know when to commit to help Theo/Ed in the post when they leave to protect the rim. I'm not as worried about Murray State perimeter shooting and if we get beat on a corner 3 on a skip pass from the alley from Morant, c'est la vie. We need to leave the wing late and fast to reduce the dump off options for Morant.

[MUEng92]

Well that article is a Marquette pessimist's nightmare

[MU82]

People used to say the same thing about Wade......

I will settle for Morant having a first-round NCAA tourney game similar to those that Wade had against Tulsa in 2002 and, especially, against Holy Cross in 2003.

In the latter, Diener saved our season, and saved Wade's legacy. I'm guessing that Murray State doesn't have a Diener to serve as Ja's sidekick. Or a Jackson or a Merritt, for that matter.

Or a Sam.

[UticaBusBarn]

Maybe it my old eyes, or the tape, but as good as Morant appears, he seems a click
slow compared to Big East play. His passes, as great as they are, seem flat and "pluckable"
by any number of Big East lane men.

Regardless, this ought to be a really interesting "show."

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

Maybe it my old eyes, or the tape, but as good as Morant appears, he seems a click
slow compared to Big East play. His passes, as great as they are, seem flat and "pluckable"
by any number of Big East lane men.

Regardless, this ought to be a really interesting "show."

Slow is not an adjective I would use. Many of his passes are "pluckable". Making a "tough" pass is another way of saying making a "risky" pass. Challenge I see is that we don't force a lot of turnovers so when Morant makes those risky passes, I'm not sure we will be ready to pick them off.

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

Everybody tries to do that........He had 25 points 8 rebounds and 7 assists against them. Was 6-8 from 2 and got to the free throw line 11 times and made 10.


Saying it is one thing....doing it is another. He doesn't just settle for 3s. Only takes about 5 a game.

He shot 100 more free throws then 3 pointers....and 200 more 2 pointers then 3s.

Yeah if we can make him take 3s then we are probably in good shape.......People used to say the same thing about Wade......

Making him a shooter doesn't just mean making him take 3PMs. It also means making him pull up from 10-15 feet out. I've been watching some of their past games this season including the Auburn one your referencing and Morant can be frustrated into pulling up early.

Key is limiting their transition opportunities. Morant, Buchanan, Brown, and Cowart put up elite numbers in transition. They are very average in half court sets. Don't turn it over and make them face a set defense and they will struggle.

The Cowart kid is really good too. Reminds me of Davante. Has nice footwork and a baby hook that is nigh unstoppable. I'm not sure how John and Ed will handle him, unique offensive player.

Their defense is great at shutting down individuals. They really struggle to guard the pick and roll. Their bigs are too slow and don't really come out to help. Markus could have a lot of those "take one step around the screen and take a three" looks. They also don't cover the pick and pop at all, Sam and Joey should have open threes all day.

Morant also ALWAYS goes for the block. Always. Pump fake will be Markus and Sacar's best friend.

All this being said, Morant is the real deal. I think Sacar could slow him down but he is an incredible talent.

[NorthernDancerColt]

Maybe it my old eyes, or the tape, but as good as Morant appears, he seems a click
slow compared to Big East play. His passes, as great as they are, seem flat and "pluckable"
by any number of Big East lane men.

Regardless, this ought to be a really interesting "show."

I’m glad you were first to say this. I watched a portion of a bunch of his games and this is how I felt as well. Also, the guys he was beating off the dribble don’t have the length of Bailey or the strength and foot speed of Sacar. He still has to be contained, and he is worthy of all the attention defenses pay him.  I was impressed enough to think this game could be close throughout.

[Juan Anderson's Mixtape]

I will settle for Morant having a first-round NCAA tourney game similar to those that Wade had against Tulsa in 2002 and, especially, against Holy Cross in 2003.

In the latter, Diener saved our season, and saved Wade's legacy. I'm guessing that Murray State doesn't have a Diener to serve as Ja's sidekick. Or a Jackson or a Merritt, for that matter.

Or a Sam.

Wade had a very good game against Tulsa.

18 points, 7 boards, 6 assists, 3 steals, 2 blocks, 1 turnover, 8-13 FG 2-3 FT

Granted, I'd be thrilled if Morant only had that stat line.  But Wade had a good game until the final 10 seconds against Tulsa.

[MU82]

Wade had a very good game against Tulsa.

18 points, 7 boards, 6 assists, 3 steals, 2 blocks, 1 turnover, 8-13 FG 2-3 FT

Granted, I'd be thrilled if Morant only had that stat line. 

That was my point. Wade got his, had a very good game. I also would be thrilled if that's Ja's line.

I think we'll win by double-digits if so.

[NickelDimer]

Pack the paint and clog the middle, eh? Maybe this would be the game to play Theo and Ed together

[mikekinsellaMVP]

The key is going to be two things: Theo/Ed(especially Theo) being disciplined and patient and the wing defenders being quick/aware of their post help responsibilities.

Theo/Ed need to wait as long as possible before committing to a block when Morant when he gets in the lane. Being too aggressive results in easy assists to post players and/or fouls.

The wing players need to know when to commit to help Theo/Ed in the post when they leave to protect the rim. I'm not as worried about Murray State perimeter shooting and if we get beat on a corner 3 on a skip pass from the alley from Morant, c'est la vie. We need to leave the wing late and fast to reduce the dump off options for Morant.

I think the natural progression from "Oxtule" would be "Thed."

[muwarrior69]

I think the natural progression from "Oxtule" would be "Thed."

Let's make Ja, OfThed!

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

I think the natural progression from "Oxtule" would be "Thed."

Edeo?

Jorrow?

Mohn?