Milwaukee Pro-Am Week 3

[brewcity77]

I finally found time to get down to the Pro-Am tonight and it was nice to see both past and present Marquette players out there. Lazar Hayward also made an appearance and did an interview with Tim Van Vooren of Fox 6 (probably airing about now), though he didn't play.

Here are my thoughts on some of the guys I paid attention to:

Junior Cadougan: Looks every bit the prototype floor general. Drives and kicks well, and sees the court very well. He's not exceptionally quick, especially when compared to our other guards, but I could see him starting simply because he coordinates the offense and can get into the lane.

Davante Gardner: I love his hands. He had a few nice scoring plays and really seemed to have a good idea of what he wanted to do under the hoop. But there were drawbacks to his game. He didn't run the floor particularly well, and often was caught up around the three point line instead of getting under the hoop on defense. He also was a bit too fancy, trying a couple coast-to-coast dribbles that usually ended in turnovers. But he's clearly got great size and strength, and in warm-ups his range surprised me. I doubt he'll contribute much as a freshman, but will as he gets into better shape.

Joe Fulce: He got end-to-end very quickly, was good rebounding and was one of the few in his game to flash any defense. He also dropped at least a couple threes, but what stood out the most was his rapport with Dwight Buycks. I expect both to fight for starting jobs, and I think that this Pro-Am will really benefit them when they are on the court together. At times, it seemed they were the only two guys playing for their team, but they were still playing well.

Dwight Buycks: Tremendous fun to watch. Good strength and balance. My favorite moment was just before halftime, when he was being goaded by guys in the stands to shoot from three. Buycks glanced over at them, then set and shot, draining it. He took a couple steps back and screamed in celebration, clearly enjoying himself. Good quickness, I think he'll challenge for a starting spot alongside DJO. Really played well with Fulce.

Chris Otule: Early on, he seemed to have some good ideas off the ball and had pretty good positioning (which is about all the defense you see in this). But as the game went on, he got better and better. Hayward mentioned that he was Otule's biggest fan in the fourth quarter, and you'd think Chris heard him as he pretty much took over down low. He held his own on a team with Wes Matthews and Trend Blackledge, and I would guess Otule went for double digits in the fourth quarter alone, attacking the rim and really getting aggressive. The more the game went on, the more I liked what I saw.

Dave Singleton: I know he's a walk-on, but he was surprising. Showed some good range, and this guy is an athlete. I'm not saying he's going to be a revelation, but I think that with an extra year in the system he could actually contribute more than just garbage time minutes. Good hops and will definitely help in practice.

Vander Blue: His jumper needs work. At times, he looked very good, at others he looked a bit off. You can see the athleticism, but at times it looks like he's just playing a bit too fast for his own good, which leads to turnovers.

Reggie Smith: Oh wow, this kid is fast fast fast. He was also playing with Matthews, Blackledge, and Otule, but at times Smith simply controlled the game. When he took off, he made both teams play to his speed, very impressive for a freshman. I think when defense factors in, his breakneck pace will be a bit risky, which could limit his early playing time, but I think he has great upside.

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Wes Matthews: I know he's not really pertinent to the current team, but wow. Wes was without a doubt the best player on any court tonight. Great range, great defense, he just controlled the game when he was out there. He's come a long way since he graduated. It's worth driving out to Homestead just to see him play.

Trend Blackledge: Threw down some amazing dunks, including one windmill that would have been on ESPN's Top 10 had it been in a game. Not much more to his game, but it was a lot of fun watching him and Wes playing together.

[GGGG]

Wes Matthews: I know he's not really pertinent to the current team, but wow. Wes was without a doubt the best player on any court tonight.

The Blazers certainly hope so!

[brewcity77]

The Blazers certainly hope so!

Yeah, I really think he's improved notably since he was here, and he was really good the first time we saw him in this area. At one point drained triples on three consecutive possessions, and in a tournament not featuring much defense, Wes was frequently intercepting balls and blocking shots. The last time I felt that the "man amongst boys" comparison was so blatant was when I watched Keyshawn Johnson destroy Northwestern in the Rose Bowl some 15 or so years ago.

[syscokid]

I might add frosh jamil jones looked spectacular tonight!!! a ray allen type. played really good defense. i was impressed. not afraid to go right at wesley.

[ATWizJr]

Would love to hear what Wes thinks of the MU players.

[MUMBA]

Is there any chance of a jerel mcneal sighting either this weekend or next?

[wadesworld]

Did Jamil Wilson play?  Also, isn't it JamAil Jones?

[Daniel]

Did Jamil Wilson play?  Also, isn't it JamAil Jones?

Jamil Wilson did not play tonight - was overheard telling someone that he was getting an MRI tomorrow on left leg I think - not sure exactly why, but he didn't seem alarmed

[Tommy Brice for Coach]

b]Trend Blackledge:[/b] Threw down some amazing dunks, including one windmill that would have been on ESPN's Top 10 had it been in a game. Not much more to his game, but it was a lot of fun watching him and Wes playing together.

Sounds like his game hasn't changed too much since he was at MU. Seemed like he wasn't really an impact player except for the fact that every time he got in he threw down a sick dunk that ended up on sportscenter that night.

[Markusquette]

a ray allen type. played really good defense.

nice oxymoron

[MarkCharles]

nice oxymoron

I think the word you are looking for is "contradiction", not "oxymoron". Thats not an oxymoron

[HoopsMalone]

Is there any chance of a jerel mcneal sighting either this weekend or next?

As long as he is a professional free agent, I don't think that he would risk the injury in a game like this.  There are ways to stay in shape without risking injury and I am sure his agent would not want him out there.

[Markusquette]

I think the word you are looking for is "contradiction", not "oxymoron". Thats not an oxymoron

okay, so Ray Allen and playing good defense aren't officially deemed mutually exclusive, but you get my gist anyway.

[HoopsMalone]

Joe Fulce: He got end-to-end very quickly, was good rebounding and was one of the few in his game to flash any defense. He also dropped at least a couple threes, but what stood out the most was his rapport with Dwight Buycks. I expect both to fight for starting jobs, and I think that this Pro-Am will really benefit them when they are on the court together. At times, it seemed they were the only two guys playing for their team, but they were still playing well.

Thanks for the update my friend.  I am glad you mentioned Fulce because he has gotten almost no talk this offseason.  I think he may be our starting center, if not getting 60% of the time at center with Otule getting the rest of the time. 

Fulce came on strong at the end of the year.  I expect Buzz to send Jimmy, Bucks, DJO, and maybe Crowder hard to the basket in many sets and Fulce's shooting will be nice. 

Did Fulce look any bigger?  It would be nice for him to add a little weight for defense.

[brewcity77]

Did Fulce look any bigger?  It would be nice for him to add a little weight for defense.

Not sure if he's added weight, but he looks chiseled. Of all the guys I saw, Fulce probably had the most sculpted physique, though Butler was only in warmup clothes, so tough to compare the two. At a glance, I would say he looks stronger than he did last year.