I love me some D-Burt

[MarquetteDano]

Second, I didn't say Jake doesn't deserve to play. What I said is that a sign that this team is improving would be if Jake plays significantly fewer minutes because the freshmen -- who potentially are much more skilled -- are taking minutes away from him. I stand by that statement, because Buzz won't play the kids over Jake until he's sure they will be an improvement.

"But our best 3-point shooter? Hell, I'm not sure he's better than Davante."

"and Jake Thomas, who has shown less than nothing"

"I respect you too much, brew, to think you actually believe that Derrick/Jake have a prayer of being even a mediocre imitation of Junior/Vander"

Some of your recent posts about Jake.

[bilsu]

You see the little things Jake does, if you like him. You only see the things he does wrong, if you hate him.

[MU82]

"But our best 3-point shooter? Hell, I'm not sure he's better than Davante."

"and Jake Thomas, who has shown less than nothing"

"I respect you too much, brew, to think you actually believe that Derrick/Jake have a prayer of being even a mediocre imitation of Junior/Vander"

Some of your recent posts about Jake.

OK. Since some of those posts, Jake has shown more than nothing.

I'm still not sure he's our best 3-point shooter, still don't think Derrick/Jake is a very good backcourt, still think Jake had a bad game at both ends of the court against SDSU.

And I absolutely still believe that it will be a very good sign for our team if Jake plays fewer minutes.

If I implied that Jake was pure garbage -- and I guess my "less than nothing" comment did imply that -- I shouldn't have. He is a classic role player: a guy who should play 5-10 minutes per game on a good team to hit the occasional 3 and help space the court in certain situations. If he gets hot, he should play more. If he struggles, he should sit.

Last season, Jake averaged 18 minutes over the first 7 games and played double-digit minutes in each of the first 11 games. As others outplayed him, though, his playing time decreased significantly. That was a good thing because it meant others earned Buzz's trust and playing time. Had Jake still been playing 15, 18, 22 minutes during the heart of the Big East season, that would not have been the best sign for the team.

And I think the same is true this season.

[Marqevans]

"But our best 3-point shooter? Hell, I'm not sure he's better than Davante."

"and Jake Thomas, who has shown less than nothing"

"I respect you too much, brew, to think you actually believe that Derrick/Jake have a prayer of being even a mediocre imitation of Junior/Vander"

Some of your recent posts about Jake.

I think Jake had some sort of mental block going.  He seems to be getting over it and actually hitting 3's now.  It's too early to know if it will continue but if it does he will continue to get the playing time.

[forgetful]

You see the little things Jake does, if you like him. You only see the things he does wrong, if you hate him.

I think this is the most cogent analysis of most of our abilities to analyze the players during a game (replace Jake's name with anyone else's).  I like Jake and see a lot of the good things he does, so I defend him.

[ATL MU Warrior]

OK. Since some of those posts, Jake has shown more than nothing.

I'm still not sure he's our best 3-point shooter, still don't think Derrick/Jake is a very good backcourt, still think Jake had a bad game at both ends of the court against SDSU.

And I absolutely still believe that it will be a very good sign for our team if Jake plays fewer minutes.

If I implied that Jake was pure garbage -- and I guess my "less than nothing" comment did imply that -- I shouldn't have. He is a classic role player: a guy who should play 5-10 minutes per game on a good team to hit the occasional 3 and help space the court in certain situations. If he gets hot, he should play more. If he struggles, he should sit.

Last season, Jake averaged 18 minutes over the first 7 games and played double-digit minutes in each of the first 11 games. As others outplayed him, though, his playing time decreased significantly. That was a good thing because it meant others earned Buzz's trust and playing time. Had Jake still been playing 15, 18, 22 minutes during the heart of the Big East season, that would not have been the best sign for the team.

And I think the same is true this season.

Maybe you should email Buzz and share your thoughts on the proper amount of time that Jake should play.  I am sure he would appreciate the insight.