Let's get back to the root of all our problems

[marquetteff03]

Since we are so upset lets also hash out the fact that we have no one over 6'6" because lets be honest Lazar got nothing in the paint today and Jimmy was a non-factor anywhere near the basket.

I am ok with playing small ball but we better have some freak athletes to make it happen. Blue and the other guard should be HUGE upgrades over Cooby and Acker. But who is going to replace Lazar?

[chapman]

Will Blue and Smith ("the other guard") shoot close to 50% from three and rarely turn the ball over?  Sure as hell won't as freshmen. 

[Moonboots]

Will Blue and Smith ("the other guard") shoot close to 50% from three and rarely turn the ball over?  Sure as hell won't as freshmen. 

Much of the success next year will be based on Cadougan's development.

[GGGG]

I am ok with playing small ball but we better have some freak athletes to make it happen. Blue and the other guard should be HUGE upgrades over Cooby and Acker. But who is going to replace Lazar?

They won't be huge upgrades next year.  Acker and Cooby had pretty solid games tonight, after having surprisingly good seasons.

[marquetteff03]

I will give you that Cooby and Mo do not turn it over and play solid on O but when we have to put DJO on their 5'8" freak athlete where do you put Mo?

I just feel like we have major defensive liabilities, across the board really. Not just the short guys. Everyone is 1 or 2 notches out of natural position.

We need to get bigger more athletic people. West Virginia for instance, they do not play traditional 1-2-3-4-5's but they have a load of 6'6" freak shows. We need some athletic 2/3s if we are going to continue to play NOVA ball and then 1 6'8" banger/freak show. DJO and Buycks are a good start. Hoping Blue and Smith add to it although Smith is short i believe?

We need that 6'8" beast. I am not asking for 7 footers here. Just a little size. Lets hope Crowder keeps getting bigger. He may be our best hope.

[ATWizJr]

Our guys play extremely hard, but no amount of that will always compensate for being undersized across the board.  And yet, so far, no suitable, uninjured big man appears.  Maybe next year.

[marquetteff03]

I agree, they play extremely hard and consistently overachieve. But we need to build in some margin for error. I actually feel bad for Lazar and Jimmy having to bang all day on D and then be expected to get paint touches. That is tough and they are all we have.

[muhoosier260]

Since we are so upset lets also hash out the fact that we have no one over 6'6" because lets be honest Lazar got nothing in the paint today and Jimmy was a non-factor anywhere near the basket.

I am ok with playing small ball but we better have some freak athletes to make it happen. Blue and the other guard should be HUGE upgrades over Cooby and Acker. But who is going to replace Lazar?

I don't think our freshman guards next year will out-perform acker and cubillan. Those two shot out of their minds this season, and were seniors.

[77ncaachamps]

Mo played a stellar season despite being the undersized guard.

However, today it showed that he could get not only beat to the spot but physically intimidated/moved by larger, faster guards. The detriment of his size was shown today: he can't see the open cutter, the open man when double-teamed, or get anything off against a much taller player.

He's done well despite the height, but we need someone who can look over his defender for opportunities (unlike Mo) and take care of the ball (like Mo).

Coobs played with a lot of heart this season, but his inability to beat his defender and take it to the hoop strongly (and draw the foul) will not be missed.

Thank you for your dedication and hard play, Seniors, but we need to get longer and faster.

[GGGG]

I will give you that Cooby and Mo do not turn it over and play solid on O but when we have to put DJO on their 5'8" freak athlete where do you put Mo?

I just feel like we have major defensive liabilities, across the board really. Not just the short guys. Everyone is 1 or 2 notches out of natural position.

We need to get bigger more athletic people. West Virginia for instance, they do not play traditional 1-2-3-4-5's but they have a load of 6'6" freak shows. We need some athletic 2/3s if we are going to continue to play NOVA ball and then 1 6'8" banger/freak show. DJO and Buycks are a good start. Hoping Blue and Smith add to it although Smith is short i believe?

We need that 6'8" beast. I am not asking for 7 footers here. Just a little size. Lets hope Crowder keeps getting bigger. He may be our best hope.

I think eventually our new guys will be better...just not next year.  The loss in experience will mean too much.

[MerrittsMustache]

I think eventually our new guys will be better...just not next year.  The loss in experience will mean too much.

Agreed. I think the newbies will be more Buycks than DJO. They'll show some flashes, play decent minutes and have some nice games, but it will be clear that they still have work to do.

[GGGG]

Agreed. I think the newbies will be more Buycks than DJO. They'll show some flashes, play decent minutes and have some nice games, but it will be clear that they still have work to do.

I watched Vander play yesterday.  While he is clearly quick and clearly talented, I don't think he has the game right now to be consistent at the college level.  It will be there eventually...maybe even toward the end of his freshman year...but not right out of the gate.

BTW, Memorial is hitting on all cylinders.  I didn't watch the second two quarterfinals because I was watching MU, but I think they may win another on Saturday night.

[NCMUFan]

Give the new players time. High level Div-I ball will take a bit of time to adjust to.  But the new players have high ceilings.  We have DJO, Dwight and Junior with a year under them now.  With practise, early season cupcakes they will start to come around.  It would be exciting to see players like Junior, Erik Williams  and Chris Otule become solid while new players adjust.  Fulce should be more confident and solid.  5 years in the NCAA and 7 of the last 9 is a great accomplishment.  The momentum is moving in the right direction.

[RawdogDX]

Chris Otule 6'10
Youssoupha Mbao 7'2

Joseph Fulce 6'7
Jimmy Butler 6'6
Erik Williams 6'6
Jae Crowder 6'6
Jamail Jones 6'6

Vander Blue 6'3
Darius Johnson-Odom 6'2
Dwight Buycks 6'2
Junior Cadougan 6'1
Reggie Smith 6'1
D.J. Newbill 6'4

I understand it's important to you that we have someone who is 6'8 but i don't think that is a short team.

[ErickJD08]

Will Blue and Smith ("the other guard") shoot close to 50% from three and rarely turn the ball over?  Sure as hell won't as freshmen. 

Nope... that's why we will look nothing like this year.  I will tell you that those guy will be better at finishing at the rim with traffic than DC and Mo.  No knock on those men, they shot well.  But when the defense collapsed and they drove, very rarely would they go to the rim and finish.  I think we will be one of the top FT shooting teams in the country next year.

[PGsHeroes32]

we will definitly have alot more size next year, and maybe not the experience but if DJO and Buycks improve i like our chances. Jimmy will be fine. Hopefully Fulce gets a little better and Crowder and Jones can make an impact. Otule i hope can get some big boards while vander, reggie and junior will have better size and more athletic even if they are young. If DJO and Buycks improve from this year, we will be solid. If those two are not much better than this year then we are going to be in trouble with the lack of experience that we lost.

[tower912]

Depth is the root of our problems.   Plenty of size for next year.    Assuming normal progressions, Fulce, Williams and Butler will be fine.   Crowder looks like the reals deal and Buzz certainly seems to know his JUCO's, so I think he will contribute.  If the only 4 guards who get a lot of time next year are Junior, Buycks, DJO and Blue, that is still bigger and faster than this year.   Probably more TO's, sure, but also less getting routinely thrown over.     Wild cards are Otule and Yous.   ANYTHING from them and this team will be OK.   

[HoopsMalone]

Depth was an issue.  We had some bad scoring droughts at times and we needed someone to step up and make some plays on offense.

We do get bigger next year.  Mo and Cubillan played out of their minds this year.  They were smart players, but we do get bigger at guard after 5 years of James and Acker.  Otule hopefull will be able to get out there and Fulce is a nice piece.  Crowder is also a nice addition.  We also have EWill and Jones with some some size.

Next year, Jimmy and DJO are not going to come out of the game.  DJO may even get up to 20 pts/game next year.  Buycks and Fulce can give 20-25 mins each if needed.  I think MU will be all right going forward.

[wojosdojo]

Yes, we have more depth but not experience. How many minutes did one of our freshman play this year? .4532? Honestly, if we had 3 Cadougans on the floor we'd be out of the game the first few minutes. I know he's going to improve, I know Vander is far better than Junior, and I know I might be wrong and have no clue for what's in store for next year.

[Big Daddy Z]

Syracuse & KY both played freshman in their starting line up...I'm not concernedwith us playing feshman next yr... Just as long as the frosh play D!

Jr C is not a good example of a fosh playing this year..injury took away his season.

[RawdogDX]

Yes, we have more depth but not experience. How many minutes did one of our freshman play this year? .4532? Honestly, if we had 3 Cadougans on the floor we'd be out of the game the first few minutes. I know he's going to improve, I know Vander is far better than Junior, and I know I might be wrong and have no clue for what's in store for next year.

Players learn more in 100's of hours of practice than they do in a few minutes of game time.  Have some faith. 

[Shack]

Nope... that's why we will look nothing like this year.  I will tell you that those guy will be better at finishing at the rim with traffic than DC and Mo.  No knock on those men, they shot well.  But when the defense collapsed and they drove, very rarely would they go to the rim and finish.  I think we will be one of the top FT shooting teams in the country next year.

+ 1

Did we replace Novak's three point percentage with anyone when he left?  There are other way to score points.