New Rosiak Article On Vander Blue

[Tugg Speedman]

http://www.jsonline.com/sports/goldeneagles/115070264.html

Marquette's Vander Blue says he'll live up to hype

Philadelphia — Fair or unfair, right or wrong, deserved or undeserved, Vander Blue has been under a microscope since first suiting up for the Marquette Golden Eagles.

Because he was a prep star at Madison Memorial - highly ranked by the national recruiting services and a former University of Wisconsin commit - the attention makes sense.

But along with that have come high expectations - expectations the 6-foot-4 freshman guard is still trying to live up to as he finds his way in the Big East Conference.

After a promising November and December in which he closed the non-conference portion of the Golden Eagles' schedule with a flourish, Blue has seen his role change from starter to reserve, his minutes drop and his offensive game digress from developing to largely non-existent at the midway point of league play.

He isn't the first youngster to struggle in the nation's biggest and possibly best conference and certainly won't be the last. So Blue continues to work, believing he can turn things around sooner than later for an MU team that enters Wednesday's game at No. 12 Villanova in the hunt for a sixth straight NCAA tournament berth.

"All that hype I had coming in here - I believe it's true. I can do that," he said. "It's just a little stage right now that I'm not putting the numbers up that I can, but I'm still out there just trying to do whatever I can to help us win.

"Those are everybody else's expectations. I have my own, and I set those pretty high, too. And I feel like I'm not reaching those right now. But it's not 1 on 5; it's 5 on 5. I want to keep having good practices and going with the flow."

Blue, one of five players to see action in all 22 games for the Golden Eagles (14-8, 5-4), is averaging 7.5 points on 45.9% shooting, 3.1 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.2 steals in 23.0 minutes. But in nine Big East games, those numbers drop to 3.6 points on 34.4% shooting, 2.6 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 0.2 steals in 17.9 minutes.

Blue was expected to play more than an average freshman because of his defensive prowess, and that along with his versatility has kept him solidly in coach Buzz Williams' rotation. He's able to guard anyone from a point guard to a power forward depending upon what's needed.

On the other end, though, Blue has had major difficulties. In MU's 76-70 win over Syracuse on Saturday, for instance, Blue air-balled a three-pointer, was whistled for a charge on a drive to the basket and turned it over again on a move down the baseline when he got caught in the air with nowhere to go.

Take out his 12-point outing against last-place DePaul on Jan. 18, and he's scored 20 points on 23.1% shooting (6 for 26) in the Golden Eagles' other eight games.

Williams says part of the problem is the Golden Eagles' struggles on defense (opponents are shooting 48.4%, ranking MU 15th in the 16-team Big East), which limits Blue's ability to get out and score in transition. Also, the scouting report is out on Blue, which says back off him and let him shoot from the perimeter rather than drive.

"You can statistically say he has struggled offensively, but he hasn't struggled defensively, and there's been some games where he's really helped us on the glass," Williams said. "I just think that he wants to do so well for our team. He understands the value of what he gives our team."

Williams called Blue probably the hardest worker on the Golden Eagles aside from Darius Johnson-Odom, with whom Blue rooms. For his part, Blue said he spends most of his free time in Kasten Gym at the Al McGuire Center working on all aspects of his game, but particularly shooting.

Blue also said his recent struggles haven't shaken his confidence.

"I still have the same confidence I had before the Big East started," he said. "It's just not my time right now, I guess. My minutes have changed, and I'm just taking it game by game. Every night is not going to be my night, but I never lose my confidence.

"I'm just as confident as I was from Day 1. And I'm pretty sure I'm going to get back to where I need to be."

Because of his all-business demeanor on the court and in public, some have questioned whether Blue is happy at MU, especially when factoring in his current struggles. He says without question, he is.

"Nothing's changed from that point at all," he said. "I still feel the same way about Marquette as I did when I committed here."

Williams has enjoyed coaching Blue and thinks his attitude and work ethic will help to lift him out of his funk.

"He's never had bad body language to me; he's never been disrespectful in any sense. Zero," Williams said. "If you don't know him, you can misread him. He's such a fighter. You look at him and you're like, 'Man, he might hurt that guy.' But that's why I like him.

"But there's an ebb and flow to every player on every team, and I think when you're a freshman, that ebb and flow is much more volatile because it's emotional and it's new. He'll be more than fine."

[KC_Warrior]

Vander's situation reminds me of Jay Cutler.

His body language, at times, seems to indicate he doesn't care and isn't happy.  The same was said recently about Cutler.

I believe him when he says he's happy but, just like Cutler, sometimes perception can become reality.

[CrazyEcho]

Vander's situation reminds me of Jay Cutler.

His body language, at times, seems to indicate he doesn't care and isn't happy.  The same was said recently about Cutler.

I believe him when he says he's happy but, just like Cutler, sometimes perception can become reality.

I couldn't think of a less apt comparison.  Vander works hard and does his best to get better.  (look at buzz's comments).  Jay Cutler doesn't.   (see e.g., http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/news/story?id=6017986). 

I've also never see Vander stamp his foot and be a pouty little girl . . . I hardly ever watch Bears game and I've seen Cutler do that many times. 

[jeffreyweee]

This is very encouraging so long as he is practicing better form. Also if you watch him before games warming up he's hitting the threes in warm-ups. I saw him drain 6-7 in a row more than once before the Syracuse game. Its hard to know what to think about that air balled three besides it just being a confidence thing.

[MauraDay]

I love Vander's quote: "It's not 1 on 5, it's 5 on 5." -- shows his maturity and realization of the big picture and that it's not all about making him a star in one year.

[warthog-driver]

Vander's situation reminds me of Jay Cutler.

Who is "Jay Cutler?"

[warriors1965]

How does Rosiak write an article about Blue without mentioning the change in his shooting mechanics? 

It's not confidence, it's shooting form.  Look at clips from his Junior year where he had good form and compare it to now with his modified shot-put and it doesn't even look like the same guy. 

It's a crime that his shooting form is not being worked on in practice (and it's not).  Shooting more shots with that crappy form isn't helping Vander one bit.  The longer he's allowed to do it the wrong way, the longer it will take to fix the problem.

You don't want this to go on so long that he never gets his shot back, which is what happened with James.

[warthog-driver]

It's a crime that his shooting form is not being worked on in practice (and it's not).  Shooting more shots with that crappy form isn't helping Vander one bit.  The longer he's allowed to do it the wrong way, the longer it will take to fix the problem.

Grounds for dismissal!

[Da 'Lanche]

Check out the yo-yos blogging comments on the article.....way to stay classy Madison.   

[warriors1965]

Did Blue really say this on twitter...

"Just dreamn; bout all the money Im gonna make"

If so, the guy really needs an attitude adjustment.

And he can keep "dreamn," because with that jump shot, he's not getting to the NBA.

[NYWarrior]

How does Rosiak write an article about Blue without mentioning the change in his shooting mechanics?  

With NCAA mandated practice limits, work on individual skills is the domain of the off-season.  Coaches and players have too much on their plate to prepare for opponents and to work on the team's own scheme (not to mention travel and study hall).  Plus, working on shooting form in-season is a great way to render that player useless and to shatter confidence.  Confidence is a shaky thing, especially for an 18 year-old kid who probably feels a lot of pressure already.  Breaking down shooting form at a time of the year when he can't get the reps or instruction would be the wrong move. As they say, basketball is played during the season but players are made in the off-season.

[NYWarrior]

Did Blue really say this on twitter...

"Just dreamn; bout all the money Im gonna make"

If so, the guy really needs an attitude adjustment.

Having big dreams and dreaming about striking it rich requires an attitude adjustment?  Wow.   Tough crowd. 

[MUEng92]

I read the article just before going to bed and when I saw the link to the Comments I told myself, don't press it, it will just get you pissed off.  But, of course, I pressed it...

Thankfully, only about 5-6 morons had commented at that point and I was able to convince myself they were all 35 year old fat guys living in their parent's basement, who show up at the YMCA to play basketball with long socks, short shorts, a white headband and stare at the ball as they dribble. 

Sorry if that describes anyone here.

[GGGG]

Did Blue really say this on twitter...

"Just dreamn; bout all the money Im gonna make"

If so, the guy really needs an attitude adjustment.

And he can keep "dreamn," because with that jump shot, he's not getting to the NBA.

Maybe he was just happy for the snow cause he shovels driveways during his downtime.

[mu03eng]

How does Rosiak write an article about Blue without mentioning the change in his shooting mechanics? 

It's not confidence, it's shooting form.  Look at clips from his Junior year where he had good form and compare it to now with his modified shot-put and it doesn't even look like the same guy. 

It's a crime that his shooting form is not being worked on in practice (and it's not).  Shooting more shots with that crappy form isn't helping Vander one bit.  The longer he's allowed to do it the wrong way, the longer it will take to fix the problem.

You don't want this to go on so long that he never gets his shot back, which is what happened with James.

As NYWarrior said they don't work on that sort of thing during the season, there is just no time, but it takes hours of repetition and games do not provide the right kind of repetition.

Secondly, yes his mechanics are no good, but his airball at Syracuse had nothing to do with mechanics.  I am aware of no mechanical hitch in your shot that makes you shoot two feet beyond the rim...he was just over-jacked and has a confidence issue in his shot.  I am certain this time next year he will have a decent shot and as a result his drives will be much better.

[jfmu]

I guess this can lay all the Vander playing point to rest...

From Rosiak

Seems like Buzz values what Blue can do at the 2-3 more than what he can do at the 1. Let's see who joins Wilson...

[NYWarrior]

I guess this can lay all the Vander playing point to rest...

From Rosiak

Not quite ... See Todd's follow-up in our Twitter exchange re: Vander at the point

http://twitter.com/#!/Todd_Rosiak/status/32870191587131392

@CrackedSidewlks That's what I was saying. If there aren't any better options, he might see some time there after all.

[Skatastrophy]

Did Blue really say this on twitter...

"Just dreamn; bout all the money Im gonna make"

If so, the guy really needs an attitude adjustment.

And he can keep "dreamn," because with that jump shot, he's not getting to the NBA.

I realize that you're just here to troll, but I'll take the bait anyway.

The three that Blue took (and airballed) against 'Cuse was the prettiest shot that I've seen him take all year mechanics-wise.  The problem is that he had all day to think about the shot and seemingly psyched himself out.  Hopefully it'll continue to become natural enough over time that he won't have to think about it long enough to eff it up.

I'm solidly in Blue's corner.  I love his attitude because it's the attitude of a winner.  He'll keep working hard and I'd bet that his shot continues to look better throughout the rest of the season. 

[GGGG]

The three that Blue took (and airballed) against 'Cuse was the prettiest shot that I've seen him take all year mechanics-wise.  The problem is that he had all day to think about the shot and seemingly psyched himself out.  Hopefully it'll continue to become natural enough over time that he won't have to think about it long enough to eff it up.

Anytime you mess with someone's shot, even if it is to get them better form, you are going to eff it up in the short run for the sake of the long run.

[Skatastrophy]

Anytime you mess with someone's shot, even if it is to get them better form, you are going to eff it up in the short run for the sake of the long run.

Totally agree.  But when you're in the flow of things and have that extra second or two you can really overthink things, ya know?  It was a pretty big assumption on my part that that's a contributing factor to how bad the miss was.

[GGGG]

I was actually agreeing with you.  Until he gets a new form, and it becomes something he just "does" instead of "think about," he is going to have troubles.  He thought about that Syracuse shot too much instead of just letting it go.

[MisterJaylenBrownMU]

I agree that Blue's jump shot hasn't been falling lately and that he might need to put in some work during the offseason, but it's funny how badly some people overreact to him missing a shot or two.  According to Ken Pomeroy, Blue is 58-115 from inside the arc (50.4%).  Compare that to DJO's 71-144 (49.3%).  But you don't see entire threads dedicated to DJO not being what we expected.

I concede that Blue need to improve from behind the arc (4/20, 20%).  But for a guy playing in only 58% of our minutes, I don't get the anger.  He's a young player and he works hard.  It's like the Acker/Cubillan hatred early last season -- don't let one bad shot blur your perspective.  When his jump shot improves a little bit and his assist/TO rates get a little better, I think he's going to be a monster.

[NickelDimer]

I was actually agreeing with you.  Until he gets a new form, and it becomes something he just "does" instead of "think about," he is going to have troubles.  He thought about that Syracuse shot too much instead of just letting it go.

What I can't figure out is what caused his form to regress from highschool to now?  He had a pretty pure jumper in highschool with a release above his head.  Now he pushes the ball from below.  It's the opposite of a normal progression for a jumper from someone young as they get older.

[GGGG]

What I can't figure out is what caused his form to regress from highschool to now?  He had a pretty pure jumper in highschool with a release above his head.  Now he pushes the ball from below.  It's the opposite of a normal progression for a jumper from someone young as they get older.

My memory is that he never had a nice form on his jump shot.  He was able to get away with bad form in HS, but cannot do it now.

[TomCat]

Jerel McNeal, the leading scorer in the history of Marquette basketball, did not become a great (errrr good) shooter until his senior year, especially from the perimeter. Feedback?