MUScoop
MUScoop => Hangin' at the Al => Topic started by: tower912 on November 27, 2021, 08:58:35 PM
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1. A cupcake. The first time all year MU hasn't had to fight like hell just to win. It felt like MU vs. itself.
2. Shaka sent a message with the line change.
3. It just seemed workmanlike. I am not sure if that is a good thing or a bad thing. Some good, some bad. Overmatched opponent.
4. Two straight blah games for Morsell. Is it possible that as Morsell goes, so goes the team? Can't have the frustration after a blocked shot.
5. Kolek only marginally better.
6. Kuath with some nice blocks.
7. Actually, a lot of guys had nice 'moments'. I am not sure anyone actually had a great game.
8. On the flip side, a lot of other teams have 'bad losses.' MU doesn't.
9. Building blocks and process.
10 Who sabotaged Butch's chair? Well done!
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Mostly slept-walked through this one. Pretty dull performance.
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Morsell is taking way too much time to launch his shot. I think he is playing head games with himself on O.
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6 negative or neutral points out of 10.
We won by 14. We are 6-1. Don’t be so hard on everything. Shaka is a good coach. This program is poised to make noise. Namaste.
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It was a win. It wasn't inspiring. Better that than a bad loss.
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Mostly slept-walked through this one. Pretty dull performance.
This is correct. We have a lot of work to do. And by a lot I mean a ton.
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These guys have played 7 games together. No one on the team has played together other than Greg and Jamal before this season.
I think we are ahead of schedule. Not worried.
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Stevie showed flashes of what he can do tonight….and had his best collegiate game.
He was one of the few who brought the energy.
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It was a win. It wasn't inspiring. Better that than a bad loss.
Hard to feel strongly one way or the other. On to the next one.
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Stevie showed flashes of what he can do tonight….and had his best collegiate game.
He was one of the few who brought the energy.
Yep. I thought he was the best player to wear the Marquette uniform tonight.
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Why did Kuath only play 16 min?
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Playing down to competition isn’t exactly new in sports. They did that and still won comfortably. More importantly this team has already shown they can play up to competition.
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Dropped from 78 to 83 in Kenpom. Nice!
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Really liked Shaka subbing all 5. Thought he should have done the same vs. St. Bonaventure. The second unit gave the team great energy, yes, but they also played quite well together. I can just imagine that while the subs were kicking butt, Shaka was telling the starters: "This is what I need from you!"
Mitchell was really good. He was in control, he looked to get to the rim, he hit a 3, he had only 1 TO (on a night when we had 20). Just a nice all-around performance for the freshman.
After averaging 22.5 ppg on 54% shooting (57% from 3) in our first 4 games, Morsell is averaging 8 points on 22% shooting (11% from 3) the last 3. He looked frustrated a couple times tonight, and perhaps it affected his D as he let his man past him on a few occasions. Here's hoping the first-4-games Darryl is closer to the real Darryl.
Kolek also has looked meh the last couple of games, and he has 11 turnovers the last 3 games. Need better, more predictable play from the guy who's gonna have the rock most of the time.
Another fine game for Lewis. After spotting Morsell a pretty large lead, Justin is now the scoring leader by 1 ppg. The picture of consistent scoring: 17, 17, 17, 21, 17, 17, 15. Also the leading rebounder at 8.1 rpg.
OMP reminds me of a young Juan Anderson. Lots of activity but not a lot to show for it.
Kuath doing his job, in limited minutes, as a rim protector.
Kam and Joplin are not shy to shoot.
Pretty boring game, but that's OK. A boring win is better than an exciting loss!
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Really liked Shaka subbing all 5. Thought he should have done the same vs. St. Bonaventure. The second unit gave the team great energy, yes, but they also played quite well together. I can just imagine that while the subs were kicking butt, Shaka was telling the starters: "This is what I need from you!"
Mitchell was really good. He was in control, he looked to get to the rim, he hit a 3, he had only 1 TO (on a night when we had 20). Just a nice all-around performance for the freshman.
After averaging 22.5 ppg on 54% shooting (57% from 3) in our first 4 games, Morsell is averaging 8 points on 22% shooting (11% from 3) the last 3. He looked frustrated a couple times tonight, and perhaps it affected his D as he let his man past him on a few occasions. Here's hoping the first-4-games Darryl is closer to the real Darryl.
Kolek also has looked meh the last couple of games, and he has 11 turnovers the last 3 games. Need better, more predictable play from the guy who's gonna have the rock most of the time.
Another fine game for Lewis. After spotting Morsell a pretty large lead, Justin is now the scoring leader by 1 ppg. The picture of consistent scoring: 17, 17, 17, 21, 17, 17, 15. Also the leading rebounder at 8.1 rpg.
OMP reminds me of a young Juan Anderson. Lots of activity but not a lot to show for it.
Kuath doing his job, in limited minutes, as a rim protector.
Kam and Joplin are not shy to shoot.
Pretty boring game, but that's OK. A boring win is better than an exciting loss!
Your best post ever.
Unbelievable 82 you nailed every word. Credit where it’s due.
Mu rah rah we will make a run in the BEAST.
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6 negative or neutral points out of 10.
We won by 14. We are 6-1. Don’t be so hard on everything. Shaka is a good coach. This program is poised to make noise. Namaste.
Pro-jo’s gonna Pro-jo
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These guys have played 7 games together. No one on the team has played together other than Greg and Jamal before this season.
I think we are ahead of schedule. Not worried.
??? I assume you meant Justin?
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Much of the drop due to the Bonnie’s bad home loss to Northern Iowa.
Dropped from 78 to 83 in Kenpom. Nice!
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Playing down to competition isn’t exactly new in sports. They did that and still won comfortably. More importantly this team has already shown they can play up to competition.
This. It’s why i don’t love playing such poor teams.
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1. Kur Kuath has been a pleasant surprise. I was hoping at best for a Ousmane Barro or Chris Otule. He has shown he is as good a shot blocker as Theo John and can finish at the rim.
2. IMHO Justin Lewis is the face of MU BB. It is awesome he didn't transfer.
3. Players still learning the system and playing with each other.
4. Morsell I hope is a team player and not one just wanting to showcase his talents for NBA scouts. A number of times it appeared he was determined to take the shot although he was well covered.
5. The sloppiness and turnovers looked very similar to MU the past two years. Can't give the ball to the opponent as easily as MU did last night.
6. I like the concept of two MU lines (term as used in hockey). Why not, if one line can't get the job done and plays poorly, maybe the other can and inspire the poorly playing one to up its game. Nice option to have high talent on the bench.
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??? I assume you meant Justin?
Yes, sorry.
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Much of the drop due to the Bonnie’s bad home loss to Northern Iowa.
This
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Jk76JUyh3g
Shaka post-game
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Much of the drop due to the Bonnie’s bad home loss to Northern Iowa.
From what we have seen of the NET rankings previously do they take into account wins and losses more than Kenpom? Are they weighted more than they are in ken Pom which seems to care much more about how the game is won or lost and not necessarily the binary outcome?
Just curious.
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This game was pretty boring
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Positives: We won and, unlike two of our BE brethren, were never in danger of losing. Justin is a leader we can depend upon. Stevie had a chance to show off some great moves.
Negatives: 19 TOs. Shaka needing to bench the starters after a 7-0 run by NI. Morsell and Kolek looking just OK vs. a #300 something team. Edit: I'm being kind regarding Morsell and Kolek.
We really need to play better vs. Jackson State. If not, the UW, KS, and UCLA games may be no fun at all.
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OMP reminds me of a young Juan Anderson. Lots of activity but not a lot to show for it.
Agree with pretty much all of your post, but I had this same thought exactly. OMP has a lot of athleticism (similar to Juan), and an do a little bit of everything (also like Juan), but seems to get himself into trouble right now when he goes full speed.
Mind isn't 100% caught up with his athleticism yet. Someone that can develop and has a very high ceiling. Let's see if he puts in the long term effort to refine his game and abilities like Toscano-Anderson.
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Agree with pretty much all of your post, but I had this same thought exactly. OMP has a lot of athleticism (similar to Juan), and an do a little bit of everything (also like Juan), but seems to get himself into trouble right now when he goes full speed.
Mind isn't 100% caught up with his athleticism yet. Someone that can develop and has a very high ceiling. Let's see if he puts in the long term effort to refine his game and abilities like Toscano-Anderson.
Yep-yep.
It should be noted that although I am not saying Juan didn't put in the effort while he was at Marquette, the light bulb didn't really go on until he spent years post-Marquette learning and growing as a player.
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Positives: We won and, unlike two of our BE brethren, were never in danger of losing. Justin is a leader we can depend upon. Stevie had a chance to show off some great moves.
Negatives: 19 TOs. Shaka needing to bench the starters after a 7-0 run by NI. Morsell and Kolek looking just OK vs. a #300 something team. Edit: I'm being kind regarding Morsell and Kolek.
We really need to play better vs. Jackson State. If not, the UW, KS, and UCLA games may be no fun at all.
“We need to step it up against New Hampshire otherwise U of I and Charleston classic are going to be no fun.”
Fact is, these buy games tell us very little about quality of team/team mentality. Win the game and move on.
I’d be much more concerned if we struggled the last few games playing against levels of competition we’ll be competing against for the remainder of the season.
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“We need to step it up against New Hampshire otherwise U of I and Charleston classic are going to be no fun.”
Fact is, these buy games tell us very little about quality of team/team mentality. Win the game and move on.
I’d be much more concerned if we struggled the last few games playing against levels of competition we’ll be competing against for the remainder of the season.
I do not think that the first 2 buy games and the second 2 buy games are equal in the sense that in the first ones we had a ragtag army of newbies and in last night's game and Jackson State we have some experience and success under our belts. Morsell and Kolek not playing well against a very weak team is, to me, a legitimate area of concern. With that said, its early in the season and hey, we won.
Your third sentence is fair and we agree. I'm not ready to dismiss last night's performance-yet.
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I do not think that the first 2 buy games and the second 2 buy games are equal in the sense that in the first ones we had a ragtag army of newbies and in last night's game and Jackson State we have some experience and success under our belts. Morsell and Kolek not playing well against a very weak team is, to me, a legitimate area of concern. With that said, its early in the season and hey, we won.
Your third sentence is fair and we agree. I'm not ready to dismiss last night's performance-yet.
Well good thing they both played great against all of the real teams we’ve played so far.
You’re manufacturing concern.
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Relax folks.
They won! On to JSU and let’s win again!
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Well good thing they both played great against all of the real teams we’ve played so far.
You’re manufacturing concern.
They both played well against the other "real teams" except SBU. Have you forgotten their performances in that game? I am expecting both of them to be major contributors this season and thought that they would both put on a show after the SBU game but they did not. We need them to play well in all games- even buy games-so that we know we can count on them.
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Relax folks.
They won! On to JSU and let’s win again!
Yo brother dgies, this is Scoop, no time to RELAX.
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What the poor performances of Morsell and Kolek meant is that the young guys got more run. Which is far more important long term.
https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/boxscore/_/gameId/401365033
Box score
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They both played well against the other "real teams" except SBU. Have you forgotten their performances in that game? I am expecting both of them to be major contributors this season and thought that they would both put on a show after the SBU game but they did not. We need them to play well in all games- even buy games-so that we know we can count on them.
O Max’s overall performance is much more concerning than what you claim to be an issue. You’re fishing for complaints to make yourself sound like an expert.
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O Max’s overall performance is much more concerning than what you claim to be an issue. You’re fishing for complaints to make yourself sound like an expert.
Not pretending to be an expert at all (I'm not!) -just expressed an opinion that you disagree with but I will take any "complaints" offered. I'm done here. Have a nice evening.
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I’m not seeing what OMax is bringing to warrant a starting position. I would like to see a change come Saturday.
Guy has the body and athleticism, needs time to find his game still.
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I’m not seeing what OMax is bringing to warrant a starting position. I would like to see a change come Saturday.
Guy has the body and athleticism, needs time to find his game still.
Who takes his spot?
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Who takes his spot?
That’s the tough part. Omax doesn’t have much business playing at this point, but there isn’t a natural replacement.
Kam and Jop are the two most likely candidates. I think if you’re looking long term, Joplin should take those minutes. He is behind Kam progress wise, but he will grow into the role and add more length/strength than Kam can at this point playing the 3/4 spot in Shaka’s system.
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Embiid, hey?
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Who takes his spot?
Exactly.
Would’ve hoped Greg fills that role, but he’s not up to speed either.
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That’s the tough part. Omax doesn’t have much business playing at this point, but there isn’t a natural replacement.
Kam and Jop are the two most likely candidates. I think if you’re looking long term, Joplin should take those minutes. He is behind Kam progress wise, but he will grow into the role and add more length/strength than Kam can at this point playing the 3/4 spot in Shaka’s system.
I'd go with Joplin. Still provides some length, has a nice outside shot and seems pretty comfortable out there. We'll take some bad with the good and maybe OMax will find his way, but he really isn't bringing much to the table right now. I like Kam's scoring punch off the bench, which is part of the reason I'd go with Joplin ahead of him.
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It may not jump off the screen, but OMax keeps them from getting into a lot of bad mismatches defensively. Joplin isn't there yet.
If they go three guards I'd probably start Kam.
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It may not jump off the screen, but OMax keeps them from getting into a lot of bad mismatches defensively. Joplin isn't there yet.
If they go three guards I'd probably start Kam.
Agree. As some said here, body is a bit ahead of his mind on offense. But his length creates mismatches.
I expect a lot from him still this season. See a Trent Lockett trajectory on his growth as the season goes (in terms of "oh man he sucks" to "glue guy" forum opinions).
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End of the day, MU has a good defense and a poor offense so far. Not unexpected with this roster and for this time of the season.
That said, teams have learned to pinch our guards because MU doesn't have a threat anywhere else. The half court offense right now is ugly and getting uglier. Stevie saved us yesterday as he found the penetration lanes.
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I wasn’t trying to insinuate that OMax should be starting, because I don’t think he should. I just honestly didn’t know who takes his spot.
Nothing against him but I think he’s still working his way into becoming a productive player, and I think the team is very stagnant offensively with him on the court. He isn’t the only culprit, but I would argue that he is a big part of the reason for the slow offensive starts.
Obviously his size and rebounding ability help him keep that starting role.
I do see Shaka making a change soon, and I would wager it’s either Stevie or Oso.
Obviously neither is a natural change. With Stevie, the team goes small with Mitchell and Kolek handling the ball, Morsell at the 3 in the 3 guard system, and JL/Kur up front.
Darryl then has to guard bigger guys and all 3 guards carry heavier rebounding responsibilities, which I think might be a good thing.
Problem with Oso is that he’s Kurs direct backup and Kuath has been playing less than 20 mpg. Good news there is that MU becomes even bigger, with JL becoming a 3. Kur hasn’t been fouling out so if he can handle the extra minutes this might not be a bad move, Oso has earned it with his play.
I like Kam off the bench for scoring, same with Joplin and Greg. I like OMax off the bench until he settles in more as the season progresses and maybe he wins back a starting gig down the line.
My vote would be for Stevie to start. I think this MU team plays better with the two good pg/ball handlers. I think having Mitchell start would jumpstart the offense from the tip- Lewis, Kur, and Morsell would get better looks and shots with both Stevie and Kolek in the lineup and both guys have shown they can score/create on their own if things go stagnant.
Mitchell is also an excellent defender. He’s shown the deer in headlights in some games, has had the “he doesn’t quite belong just yet” look at times, but he’s also shown some really good poise at times as well.
If he starts off shaky/looking lost or overmatched you can go bigger with OMax, or bring in Greg/Kam and let Kolek handle it more. If he starts off well and Kolek looks off you can replace him instead.
The “it doesn’t matter who starts” crowd will argue it doesn’t matter, and it can change again as the season progresses, but for this team at this time I think Mitchell replacing OMax in the starting lineup would make a positive difference.
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It really DOESN’T matter much who starts.
And I’m also gonna trust the coach who sees these guys in practice every day.
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It really DOESN’T matter much who starts.
And I’m also gonna trust the coach who sees these guys in practice every day.
Ok fine, trust Shaka over me.
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In post game interviews it is obvious Shaka really likes what OMax brings and really trusts him. As long as that is the case it doesn't matter what anyone thinks. Shaka will keep playing him as he has.
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In post game interviews it is obvious Shaka really likes what OMax brings and really trusts him. As long as that is the case it doesn't matter what anyone thinks. Shaka will keep playing him as he has.
If Shaka limits his offensive game at this point, he’ll be fine.
He’s had some really poor shots/drives that the misses end up being as bad as turnovers.
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Just need Omax to be there defensively and not totally screw up on offense.
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It may not jump off the screen, but OMax keeps them from getting into a lot of bad mismatches defensively. Joplin isn't there yet.
If they go three guards I'd probably start Kam.
Agree 100%. O-Max definitely adds value on the D end. Think he can get there offensively in another year. Kam of course adds value on the O end. I like Kam off the bench as instant offense.
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OMP plays d, handles the ball well, runs the floor well. He can guard 4 positions. Keep shooting, young man.
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OMP plays d, handles the ball well, runs the floor well. He can guard 4 positions. Keep shooting, young man.
Given the sample size so far, not sure about all of this. But I have no problem with him starting (not that it would matter if I did), and I am hopeful we'll see improvement as the season goes on.
As I said, he reminds me of Juan at a similar stage of Juan's career, and I also like the comparison someone made to Lockett. Willing to work hard and defend and be a team guy, not always able to do much on offense. Shaka thinks he has a high ceiling, so why not?
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He needs to keep grabbing rebounds. Had good games vs Ole Miss and WVU in that category, but 4 combined in the ILL, SBU and SIU games.
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OMP plays d, handles the ball well, runs the floor well. He can guard 4 positions. Keep shooting, young man.
I don’t follow this at all. Guy can board….when he decides to blockout.
J Cain doesn’t even think that he handles the ball well.
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O-Max plays because he's disruptive and versatile on defense. He's second on the team in steal% (behind Greg Elliott surprisingly), gets blocks/deflections, and is probably the 3rd or 4th best rebounder on the team (and two of the guys above him, Oso/Kur, can't be played at the same time). Offensively, he's been a liability but he actually doesn't turn it over that much and most of his threes are in rhythm (but not falling). His wild drives to the bucket are what hurts the offense. Shaka clearly prioritizes effort/defense over offense so I suspect he will hang on to his starting spot for now. If Joplin's defense continues to improve (he did some very nice things against an admittedly dreadful NIU) he could possibly bump O-Max if he doesn't find his shot.
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The thing is there isnt a real pivot from OMax unless you go to 3 guards. I understand people like Joplin, but hes by far the worst man defender on the team thus far, and has an 81 offensive efficiency rating.
I think he'll be a great offensive player in the future, but for now its Omax or a guard.
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The thing is there isnt a real pivot from OMax unless you go to 3 guards. I understand people like Joplin, but hes by far the worst man defender on the team thus far, and has an 81 offensive efficiency rating.
I think he'll be a great offensive player in the future, but for now its Omax or a guard.
Yes….and that is the conundrum of this team that Shaka has his work cut out for him each game.
Stevie, Kam, Joplin, OMax, Greg, Etc.
Need to extract the best out of each of them….at the risk of exposing their deficiencies.
Kam can go off. So you give him another shot….he doesn’t. Enter Stevie. Hasn’t done much of late……boom solid game.
Each of the guys on this team has the ability to contribute (11 guys—which is so great for so many reasons)……but Shaka will need a committee effort to get wins. His ability to call the right combo this year will be a game by game effort on his part. Every game will be a huge fight and struggle at the same time.
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Yes….and that is the conundrum of this team that Shaka has his work cut out for him each game.
Stevie, Kam, Joplin, OMax, Greg, Etc.
Need to extract the best out of each of them….at the risk of exposing their deficiencies.
Kam can go off. So you give him another shot….he doesn’t. Enter Stevie. Hasn’t done much of late……boom solid game.
Each of the guys on this team has the ability to contribute (11 guys—which is so great for so many reasons)……but Shaka will need a committee effort to get wins. His ability to call the right combo this year will be a game by game effort on his part. Every game will be a huge fight and struggle at the same time.
Bingo. Excellent analysis.