MUScoop
MUScoop => Hangin' at the Al => Topic started by: MUSF on November 18, 2008, 08:17:52 PM
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The guy has played adequately against mediocre talent. Hardly a good indicator of future success against BEast competition. He definitely had some defensive lapses and his favorite offensive post move seems to be bringing the ball down below his waist, getting it slapped away, then jumping, throwing his arms up and screaming. I think he will struggle in conference if he doesn't make some major improvements.
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Of course he will struggle in conference, but you have to agree that he has done much better than burke against the same competition.
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the glass is half-full with Hazel. +1
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He is playing out of position to help the team and doing a good job.
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Hazel reminds me of a little better version of Jamil Lott.
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I'm not trying to be a buzz kill or trash Hazel. I just think we need to slow down here. Comparing Burke to Hazel over a two game sample against below average competition is unfair to Burke and Hazel. We are supposed to throw out Burke's body of work and start Hazel because he played better against Chicago State?
One thing I know is that Burke is a competitor that has spent his whole career playing out of position to help this team. Just look at the last play of the season last year. Burke, by effort alone, made a great defensive play to force a seven foot lottery pick to sink a fade away prayer to beat us. At this point, I would still take Burke against the likes of Thabeet and Harangody. Hazel could definitely change my mind if he continues to develop but his performance in the first two games just hasn't convinced me yet.
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I think the fact that Hazel is getting significant playing time after a year of nothing, and that we basically have to play him, he is doing fine. He's not making any huge mistakes and playing hard which is all we can ask for right now. It's not like any of our big guys since Robert Jackson would be of much help in current big east play anyway. We just have to take what we have and utilize Hazel the best way possible and hope Otule can provide a little help and have Burke step up his game. I don't think many are expecting great things from Hazel, but at least he is doing well enough to warrant playing time, even more than Burke at this point.
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No one has to be sold on Hazel. He is what we have with Burke and O'Tule. Every year since RJax left, we have never had a above average post option, but yet he have finished well in conference. Ooze was serviceable at best. The fact is big men won't be able to run with the guards that we have. Harangody or Aaron Gray would be sucking oxygen on the sidelines with our lineup. We need big bodies to run the floor, that is what we have right now.
I still believe we are a big man short of the Elite 8, but will gladly eat my words.
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"I don't think many are expecting great things from Hazel"
Here are some quotes from a thread below.
"Hazel is making Burke a non factor permanently."
"burke is basically a ghost and hazel has been going all out on every play, and making great plays. Hazel plays majority of the minutes anyways, and I know he would be better at getting the opening tip-off. Burke cannot jump."
Some are expecting great things and some are ready to throw Burke to the end of the bench permanantly because of 2 games against below average teams. I am simply saying that I don't think Hazel is as good as he has looked and I don't think Burke is as bad as he has looked in those 2 games.
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Just because people are saying how Hazel is doing better than Burke does not mean that they are expecting him to be amazing. They are just saying at the moment he is outplaying Burke, and if he continues he might get the starting nod over him (which I disagree with at the moment).
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The expectations for Hazel were near zero. He has exceeded them. He has outplayed Burke so far. He and Butler have been the pleasant surprises. No one actually expects Hazel to be a starting 5 in the BEast and give us 10 and 8 every night. But every little bit helps and we now know that if he goes in, the apocalypse is not at hand.
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I don't really understand this thread at all. If I told you I 'Was sold' on him what would that mean? I'm sold that he is better than i thought he was. I'm starting to be convinced that he's better than burk (your reference to burk's 'body of work' is somewhat laughable, when you have to go to a good defencive play where the guy he was guarding scored...). But I still think regardless of who is starting we will get out played at the 5 by pretty much every beast team we play.
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I think if he keeps up at this pace, he'll be able to develop his game even more by the time BEast play comes, and be a real solid contributor by then.
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Not to mention him developing gives us even more depth the following two years and a little more experience than the freshman. He would also be able to move back to his more natural 4 at times while Liam and Chris plug the middle.