I think the key to turning this around is McNeal. The consensus on this board last year was the McNeal was the heart and soul of this team. He is a very good defensive player and when he is able to drive to the basket and finish, he is a very good offensive player.
But he has not been playing well for quite a while now. While he's always been turnover prone, he's turning the ball over now more than ever. Moreover, he is shooting the 3s much more this year and that is not his game. His game is to drive and his poor decisions in shooting 3s is hurting the team.
Since we have no answer at 5, we need someone to be a playmaker. A healthy DJ is certainly that. but with him limited due to his injury the onus falls on McNeal to be the steady leader out there. Aside from the ND game, he has not been up to the challenge lately.
I think the team will turn it around and be OK. But in my opinion, it starts with McNeal.
Didn't James injure his wrist against Seton Hall? He didn't seem "limited" against Notre Dame. And he didn't reinjure it against Louisville until the outcome was decided.
Quote from: PuertoRicanNightmare on January 21, 2008, 10:12:48 AM
Didn't James injure his wrist against Seton Hall? He didn't seem "limited" against Notre Dame. And he didn't reinjure it against Louisville until the outcome was decided.
Agreed... but 6-15 from the field against ND isn't exactly setting the world on fire. He did go 3-6 from 3pt. but obviously in the 3 games since the injury he hasn't really been the same guy.
Not an excuse... just the facts as they are at this point.
I'm not jumping off the bandwagon... in fact, I predicted that MU would lose these games when I saw the schedule come out, unfortunately I didn't see them both as blow-outs... but if MU can get it rolling against DePaul, they should still be in good shape.