I had such high hopes Ben would turn into our kaminsky or happ

Quote from: Pakuni on Today at 01:06:05 PMSo, your theory is DO figured it out well enough in practice all off- and preseason to earn 10+ minutes per game over first five games, then abruptly stopped figuring it out in practice and lost playing time as a result.

Another theory. Shaka gave DO minutes during games, but DO was terrible during games and as a result ... wait for it ... stopped getting minutes during games.
Shaka's priority to this point has been winning games, not rewarding practice effort/performance. So, if a player is failing and can't be trusted during games, he's not likely to play, regardless of how hard he tries or how much he gets it in the basement of The AL.
For whatever reason, you're ignoring the obvious: DO isn't playing in games because when he's had his chance in games, he's been terrible.
Crazy idea, I know.

At some point soon, if we're not already there, Shaka's priority probably should turn from winning games to developing his players for next year. And if that means playing Owens more, he should do that.

I'm not sure it's ever a good idea for a coach's priority to turn from winning games.

Quote from: Vander Blue Man Group on Today at 10:15:47 AMFeel like Royce has shown some life lately. Still like his potential as an upperclassman.

Ben has been extremely disappointing the last couple of games, and just from a shooting perspective. Literally jogged back on defense yesterday and a big beat him down the court for a layup. Should never happen. Needed so much more from him this season.

Agree wholeheartedly on Ben.  He needed to make  the leap to alpha or at least a steady beta.  He is neither so far.  His defense has been fine but he looks offensively bankrupt right now.  He should have been a pressure release for this team by hitting a good percentage of his open threes and his layups as a senior. But with every wide open miss he adds to the pressure.  He adds to the burden of winning.  Chase needs to get in his face and have a come to Jesus talk.  His offense has been crippling the team.

Quote from: We R Final Four on Today at 10:31:04 AMIf he did........wait for it......he might get on the floor duting games. Crazy idea, I know.

So, your theory is DO figured it out well enough in practice all off- and preseason to earn 10+ minutes per game over first five games, then abruptly stopped figuring it out in practice and lost playing time as a result.

Another theory. Shaka gave DO minutes during games, but DO was terrible during games and as a result ... wait for it ... stopped getting minutes during games.
Shaka's priority to this point has been winning games, not rewarding practice effort/performance. So, if a player is failing and can't be trusted during games, he's not likely to play, regardless of how hard he tries or how much he gets it in the basement of The AL.
For whatever reason, you're ignoring the obvious: DO isn't playing in games because when he's had his chance in games, he's been terrible.
Crazy idea, I know.

At some point soon, if we're not already there, Shaka's priority probably should turn from winning games to developing his players for next year. And if that means playing Owens more, he should do that.

 

Quote from: The Sultan on Today at 12:06:59 PMI'm more of a stretch 4.

You're in luck - we need that too lol

Its disappointing that Jones can't stay healthy. Also disappointing that Owens can't seem to play at this level. Shaka and the players have to practice winning out of bound plays.

It's been a fun NFL year in a lot of ways. Nobody looks dominant except maybe LA. Everyone has holes. In the AFC you have the Patriots, Colts, Broncos, and Jaguars all as good teams. In the NFC it's the usual suspects plus Chicago. But this is the first year in a long time that I don't feel like I have a good idea on how the playoffs will play out.

Quote from: Pakuni on Today at 07:37:04 AMNow that it's I'd essentially a lost season, I wouldn't mind Owens get more opportunities. He's a mess right now, but at least there's the possibility of a high-major player there if he figures it out.

They should be doing their best to win the UW and Purdue games, however unlikely. After that I agree completely.

Agree with Jay Bee (and others) that it's pretty clear the best 5 on this team are James, Lowery, Chase, Parham, Gold. Those need to be your main 5 and that lineup should be playing as many minutes together as possible. Would play Stevens as a 6th man. Jones when he's healthy as a backup guard. Give Owens some minutes to try to crack that potential. The rest should be getting spot minutes.

Quote from: HutchwasClutch on Today at 10:44:01 AMOh my Lord, you're not being serious, right? Like for some wild reason, Shaka put him in the game late yesterday, only to watch Pack drive by him for a hoop and hack?  Among the many myths that are put out on this board, Tre being a good defender is one of the worst. He'll cheat up for an occasional steal.  That's all he's good for defensively.  We saw what he'll do if he's asked to actually guard a good player. 

He's a solid defender. Not a great one.

The issue with Tre really comes down to his shooting. When a defender forgets who they are guarding and closes out on him hard, he's been good at attacking closeouts and he's a patient finisher. But he's never going to be an effective offensive player in this offense with no threat of an outside shot.