Another scoreless half for DJ....strange

[ChicosBailBonds]

In the end, we're winning so I don't really care as long as he gets guys involved.  Just weird how many scoreless halves he has this year.

EDIT:  OK, spoke to soon.  He hit 2 FT's at the end of the half.

[ozmetal71]

I just don't think that he is all that great.....he is capable of taking a game over or completely disappearing....something is missing this year.

Oh well, we're winning.

[79Warrior]

Absolutely right. DJ just disappears during games. Very poor outing by him tonight.

[21rooster]

I wouldn't call it a poor outing.  It was a poor shooting outing, but I'll take 7 assists from my point guard.  He took some ill-advised shots, but he also made our other guys look good.  People need to be a little less critical on James.  His shooting decisions sometimes aren't great, but the rest of his game is outstanding.  Appreciate a kid who is giving it everything he has and getting his teammates open shots.  Oh yeah...he also had ZERO turnovers. 

[mu_hilltopper]

Offensively, he wasn't sharp, shooting 1-7.  But the more important part is the 7.  How often, on nights he was off, he'd chuck up 12, 14, 16 shots .. thankfully he put his mind on helping his teammates tonight and not forcing a bunch of crappy shots.. 7 assists, zero turnovers?  I'll take that.  4-4 FTs?  Bonus.

[Chili]

Absolutely right. DJ just disappears during games. Very poor outing by him tonight.

6pts, 4 rebs, 7 ast, 1 stl, 4-4 ft, 0 to's....

seems like a nice PG line to me. poor my ass.

[NotAnAlum]

I don't care what his box score was DJ didn't look good.  His shot was terrible.  Everyone was an airball or just barely hit iron.  He also didn't drive much.  Had a nice assist into Fitz for a layup but most of the other assists were perimeter passes to jump shooters.

I hope some NBA scouts were watching cause I'd love to have him here next year.  He certainly didn't look like an NBA player in either of the last 2 games.
It will be interesting to see how DJ plays at Georgetown.  In the past he has stepped up for Big Games.  We'll need everybody on Saturday.

[Chili]

I don't care what his box score was DJ didn't look good.  His shot was terrible.  Everyone was an airball or just barely hit iron.  He also didn't drive much.  Had a nice assist into Fitz for a layup but most of the other assists were perimeter passes to jump shooters.

I hope some NBA scouts were watching cause I'd love to have him here next year.  He certainly didn't look like an NBA player in either of the last 2 games.
It will be interesting to see how DJ plays at Georgetown.  In the past he has stepped up for Big Games.  We'll need everybody on Saturday.

So what you are saying is he let the game come to him and didn't force the issue after he realized his shot wasn't falling?

Hmmmm....

[bma725]

So what you are saying is he let the game come to him and didn't force the issue after he realized his shot wasn't falling?

Hmmmm....

That would be a nice theory, but in reality he was looking to pass from the opening tip and didn't even look to take a shot until well into the first half.  It looked like he was waiting to get everyone else involved and then he was going to take over, but when the first shot didn't fall, he decided against it.

[dwaderoy2004]

So what you are saying is he let the game come to him and didn't force the issue after he realized his shot wasn't falling?

Hmmmm....

That would be a nice theory, but in reality he was looking to pass from the opening tip and didn't even look to take a shot until well into the first half.  It looked like he was waiting to get everyone else involved and then he was going to take over, but when the first shot didn't fall, he decided against it.

everythign you said there is a major, MAJOR positive.  let's review:

-our starting POINT GUARD was "looking to pass from the opening tip" and ended with a 7:0 assist to turnover ratio
-he did not try to force his way into a VERY compact zone, which would result in turnovers and errant passes
-he took OPEN shots, that didn't fall, and thus stopped shooting...a sign of maturity we hadn't really seen from him
-he played stifling defense on their point...actually should have drawn a couple offensive fouls out behind the 3 point arc IMHO
-never seemed to get down on himself or the team despite his offensive struggles
-we won by 20

this was a good game by DJ...just not in the points column.

[Chili]

So what you are saying is he let the game come to him and didn't force the issue after he realized his shot wasn't falling?

Hmmmm....

That would be a nice theory, but in reality he was looking to pass from the opening tip and didn't even look to take a shot until well into the first half.  It looked like he was waiting to get everyone else involved and then he was going to take over, but when the first shot didn't fall, he decided against it.

That was my point - I think we are agreeing.

[Harrison]

Chicos started the whole string and it got no better from there.  Let me just say this;  People that are down on DJ after last night's game either just dont like the guy for some unknown reason or are truly ignorant of the game.  My guess is noone making those comments has ever played or been involved with the game past maybe the 1st grade. 
Let me break it down into basics for you idiots, because I can't make a post without insulting anyone.  But I'll see how many more times I can get away with it before I am permanently banned.  [/color]
1. Rutgers played zone most of the evening and switched their zones.  All in an effort to stop the drive.  The most difficult position in the game of basketball to drive from against a zone is the top of the zone.  Even made more difficult when that player has the ball off the dribble.  That is, it is much easier to attack a gap off a pass that inherently creates an opening and a shift and a necessary reaction between the 2 defensive players responsible for that gap. When the ball handler brings the ball up there is no shifting involved and dribble penetration is 10x easier to deny. 

2. Secondly you same morons are the ones that come on here and attack James for shooting off the dribble and for shooting too much.  I do not recall 1 single occasion last night where DJ shot a 3 off the dribble.  He also missed a little J in the lane where he was able to penetrate.  All his shots were off ball rotation and skip passes, reversals, or kick outs.  All shots that MU works for, wants, and shots that he would be called out for in film session for not taking.

3. To DJ's credit...he must be listening to you geniuses.  He limited his shots when realizing his shot was not falling.  He has shown tremendous maturity in deferring to his teammates and not feeling like he has to do it himself.  Yes, he had 2 points at half and only ended up with 6.  So what!!!??? his team was up 9 at half and won by 20.  He played tremendous defense.  He has played the best defense of his career the last 5-6 games, yet none of you experts has once pointed that out.
4.  He did a tremendous job last night of getting his teamates involved.  Would you all like to revert to the days off 4 guys standing there for 34 seconds while they all knew the PG was going to shoot at the shot clock horn?  We had 5 players score in double digits last night in a 20 point win and none of the 5 was our All-American!!!!!!   That is not bad you idiots, that is good!!  He had everyone on the court looking to attack and looking to score.  He ended up with 7 assists and 0!!! turnovers.  Many of you morons feel we should retire Tony Miller's uniform for putting up those same type numbers!!!

5.  You guys are pathetic and ignorant. 

[dwaderoy2004]

thanks for repeating everything i said.  but the insults are a nice addition i think...

[Harrison]

Actually, your post out of them was good.  It just burns me up when people come on here and attack DJ for having a bad game.  When in fact he had a great game.  Just shows the level of ignorance and it's unfortunate.  I think maybe people are attacking him with some mnetality that the more they point out that he had a bad game that the better the chances he stays or something.  I loved the post that to paraphrase said..."yeah he had a terrible game hopefully he does not go pro so he comes back"...Gee why would you want him? 
 Attn retards:  Dominic James is not the best college basketball player in the country at every single aspect of the game.  Yet the sum of his parts especially when including the intangibles makes him arguably the best point gaurd in college basketball.  Were you the same fools that hated on DWade when he had games with alot of turnovers, or terrible shooting nights, or single digit games?  Maybe you guys are are revisionist historians but I remeber sitting thru many anight where Dwade did absolutely nothing in the first half but get his teammates involved I also sat thru many night where Dwade looked nothing like a pro or hwere certain aspects of his game were not at there best, yet he was still a great player.  Ignorant! 

[ChicosBailBonds]

Actually, your post out of them was good.  It just burns me up when people come on here and attack DJ for having a bad game.  When in fact he had a great game.  Just shows the level of ignorance and it's unfortunate.  I think maybe people are attacking him with some mnetality that the more they point out that he had a bad game that the better the chances he stays or something.  I loved the post that to paraphrase said..."yeah he had a terrible game hopefully he does not go pro so he comes back"...Gee why would you want him? 
 Attn retards:  Dominic James is not the best college basketball player in the country at every single aspect of the game.  Yet the sum of his parts especially when including the intangibles makes him arguably the best point gaurd in college basketball.  Were you the same fools that hated on DWade when he had games with alot of turnovers, or terrible shooting nights, or single digit games?  Maybe you guys are are revisionist historians but I remeber sitting thru many anight where Dwade did absolutely nothing in the first half but get his teammates involved I also sat thru many night where Dwade looked nothing like a pro or hwere certain aspects of his game were not at there best, yet he was still a great player.  Ignorant! 

I've missed you....your anti-Crean rants have been quiet of late, I wonder why.

You will note in the opening thread post I simply said it was odd how many scoreless halves he has had.  I did not say he was having a bad game nor would I at the conclusion of the game.  To his credit, he plays tough defense and distributes the ball well.

I believe it would be fair to rate DJ at this point of his career as a very "streaky" shooter.  He's not one of those guys that seems to typically go 8 points in the first half and 7 in the second.  That might be more perception then reality I admit, but it seems that he's had many games where he scores 0,1, or 2 points in a half and then explodes in the other half.

Great to have you back Harrison.  Cura Personalis.

[bma725]

So what you are saying is he let the game come to him and didn't force the issue after he realized his shot wasn't falling?

Hmmmm....

That would be a nice theory, but in reality he was looking to pass from the opening tip and didn't even look to take a shot until well into the first half.  It looked like he was waiting to get everyone else involved and then he was going to take over, but when the first shot didn't fall, he decided against it.

That was my point - I think we are agreeing.

To a point, but to me it looked like more than that.

It seemed from the beginning of the game, he was going to look to pass at all costs regardless of whether that was the best option on that possession.  It was almost as if someone had questioned his passing ability so he decided to try to prove them wrong.

It reminded me a bit of the Sebastian Telfair during the McDonalds All American game, where in that mini-series about him he talks about how scouts were whispering that he was too much of a shoot first point guard so he decided to try to break the record for assists in the McD AA game.  And in doing so, he often forced things, when his own shot would have been a better option on some possesions.

I kind of saw that last night with DJ.  While its great that he's willing to set up his teammates, sometimes he made some passes to guys for looks that either weren't open or weren't as high quality as what he could have gotten himself if he was looking to score. 

[ecompt]

now some posters are ignorant "retards" because they don't agree with you.

[ozmetal71]

I guess I am one of those ignorant retards because I said that I don't think that James is all that great and that he disappears in games at times.  I guess that when a player has a habit of not scoring for entire halves when he is the supposed best player on the team is an example of basketball knowledge that I apparently lack.

James is a good player, but he has regressed since last year.  I think he has been jacking up way too many three point shots and he has been mostly terrible at shooting this year.  When I think of great players, I think of Diener and Wade who were irreplaceable guys for their teams.  James isn't even the best player on the team.  McNeal gets that nod.

I like James and think he is a fine player, and he is capable of taking games over.  However, he is inconsistent and when you have a habit of not scoring in an entire half, I think that is safe to say that he disappears at times. 

To your point about the zone defense taking away James' penetration....McNeal and Matthews have been attacking the zone recently by penetrating, so it can be done.

James did a great job of distributing the ball last night.  However, we are not going to win in the tournament if he keeps on shooting 1-7 and jacking up awful three-point shots. 

Also, the only ignorant retards around here are people who insult those who disagree with them.  At no point did I personally attack James or say that he was a bad player.  I just expect more from a supposed first-round NBA draft pick.

[MisterJaylenBrownMU]

Let me preface this post by saying that I love Dominic James.  I think hes arguably the best point guard in the country, there's not another player that I'd want starting for MU at the 1, and I think that he's going to make a hell of a player in the pros some day.  That being said, I just don't see how he can go pro after this year, barring some ridiculous play towards the end of the year and in the NCAA tournament.  Here are the fatal flaws that I see as scaring away teams from using a 1st round pick on him:

1.  Inability to penetrate.  Dom is one of the best in basketball at taking his defender one-on-one and cutting down the edges of the lane before help-side defense can get there in time, but he almost never will go through the center or penetrate with the purpose of finding someone on the perimeter.  He also seems to get a step on his defender on the drive and decide to shoot a pull-up jumper far too often rather than attacking the rim like McNeal and Matthews.  That won't work in the NBA because the opposing guards will be faster and have the vertical to block his shot.  The GTown game could be a good place for him to improve on this with their inferior guards and tendency to zone teams with great ball handlers...but I'd imagine that you'll see DJ shoot a lot more jumpers than in the past few games rather than taking the ball in hard to collapse the zone.  I have to admit that the ball movement has really improved during the recent streak, but I see that as a result of McNeal, Matthews, Barro, Fitz, and Cubillian more than a change of play in DJ.  He seems like he's still playing the same game as v. TT/Duke, for better or worse.

2.  Free Throws.  I don't think I've ever seen a star point guard shoot a free-throw with the low percentage that he has.  I think this will improve and I think it's an aberration, but he needs time to prove to scouts that he can hit an uncontested shot before a team in the 15-30 range will look at him.  I just can't see a team like Denver thinking to themselves that they'd rather take a guy like DJ over someone like Steele, Aaron Brooks, or even Neitzel at MSU - guys that are less talented than DJ, but who are more consistent and project as a more immediate talent.  Another year would be a big help in this area.

3.  Jumpshot.  Some games it will look smooth as silk and other games it looks like he's not getting enough lift on his shots.  It's like Dom has an alter-ego that is trying to keep him at MU for another year (which I'm ok with).  In order for him to be a 1st round pick, he needs to cut down on his sub-10 point games and scoreless halves.  Granted, Oden went an entire half without taking a single shot, but he's also been more consistently dominant and game-changing than Dom has.  It's hard to see a team taking a guard that is, by most standards, a shoot-first guard (meaning only that he'd prefer to hit a shot rather than dish up an assist) who is so streaky.  Again, his height is also a disadvantage here.

4.  Size.  He's got tremendous speed, but in the NBA that will be equalized for the most part.  I worry about his ability to defend a 2-guard on a switch or play any sort of zone in the big leagues.  He's fast enough to keep up and has good defensive instincts, but he's an aggressive defender and will be giving up a lot of position to an average-sized guard.  Dee Brown was the same way and you saw how fast he fell out of favor with the scouts.  People compare DJ with Lowry a lot and I don't completely understand the analogy.  Lowry didn't have the speed that DJ has, but he put up great numbers at 'Nova passing to guys like Ray and Foye.  DJ has McNeal playing out of his mind, Barro taking the next step, and Matthews really coming around into a solid and stable player...but still is having games where he struggles to get into the lane or get off a decent-looking shot.  Again, he's a great athlete and manages the game better than anyone, but that's not a 1st round type of player. 

Maybe some of this is just wishful thinking because I think that MU would be top-5 next year if he comes back.  At the same time, I watch Dom play and I get the feeling that he could really use another year with Crean before he tries to play with the likes of Nash, Arenas, and Kidd.  There's so much potential in there that hasn't been tapped yet.

Bring on the ambush...

[Harrison]

To your point about the zone defense taking away James' penetration....McNeal and Matthews have been attacking the zone recently by penetrating, so it can be done.

That's a good one...typically when they attack and drive the zone...... again...It is off a pass.  i apologize for the insults but then I read this agiain. 
I will just have to realize that you do not at all understand the difference between the two different positons and the two different situations.  i am attempting to illustrate it but you obviously have no clue so I will drop it.   You're right last year James drove really well but this year his "alter ego" is not allowing him.  Probably has nothing to do with the man we saw last year and the zone we see this year.  Oh while we are at it please show me your versions of great point guards that continually attck and drive against zones off the dribble.   will eagerly anticpate this loong list, I am sure. 

[MisterJaylenBrownMU]

There are guards who are great at it.  At the professional level I'd say that Kidd, Arenas, and Paul are the best at it.  Others like Jason Williams, Deron Williams, and TJ Ford show flashes of the ability to effectively penetrate, but aren't as efficient.

On the college level, I think Steele is clearly the best this year.  I vaguely remember Tre Kelley at So Carolina being ok at it and I've been impressed with the Ohio State guards the few times that I've seen them.  In terms of past years, I think that Dee Brown, Jameer Nelson, and Aaron Miles were decent examples.  All of these guards were pretty versatile and used space better than DJ has been doing.

I don't think he was great at it last year either - I just think that Novak had NBA 3-point range that we don't have this year.  It may not seem like much, but when your shooters can be 2 or 3 steps farther from the basket, it gives everybody else a lot more space to work in.  It's something that I think he will get a lot better at; I just don't see it improving enough this year and I can't see him in a position at the end of the year where he is guaranteed to go in the 1st round.  I think he can't risk it by going pro.