Amin/Heldt

[MerrittsMustache]

It is not fouling out that I am concerned with.  It is Luke's 2nd foul in the first half with 8 min left.  That will happen.  If you go small and move HE to the #5- we may be exposing HE to more fouls as well.

I am quite confident that there will be games when foul trouble becomes an issue.

Yes, there will be games with foul trouble but you don't sacrifice minutes for your 8-man rotation playing together to get men 9-12 some run so that you're insignificantly more prepared for the couple of conference games with foul trouble. As others have pointed out, a player's biggest improvement comes during practice, not by playing 4 extra minutes against Nobody State.

Henry and Luke are MU's two best players. If either one of them is in foul trouble, there's no one on that bench who's going to come close to matching their production. Instead of counting on Anim and Heldt to come in and contribute, MU will be counting on the other rotation guys to raise their games.

[1SE]

While his eligibility has been discussed, I'll simply disagree with your assertion. We aren't making it through the season with Matt relegated to street clothes.  He's 9th man and 3rd big for crying out loud.  He's not 12th man and 4th big.

^This.  Other teams will have overwhelmed, inexperienced, bigs that they'll need to put in for 5 minutes a game, and when there is a favorably match up like that and circumstances are otherwise fortuitous (Luke/Henry both need a breath, or one needs a breath one is in foul trouble) then we can put Heldt in.   Or - if there are some bigs that are particularly poor FT shooters we can put him in to put on some hard fouals - a bit of "hack a Shaq" (Maybe Delgado tonight?)

[MUfan12]

Thank you! Anim is 4 letters long, and yet I still see it spelled wrong here about 1/4 of the time.

"I really like that Sacar A'min." - Chris O'Tule

[tower912]

So ... O'tule was here for six years and Outle was continuously spelled wrong.  How hard is it to spell Otule?

Everybody spelled Otule's name wrong.   Why are you picking on me for spelling Anim's name wrong?    Instead of 'my bad.   I will fix it.'

[GooooMarquette]

So ... O'tule was here for six years and Outle was continuously spelled wrong.  How hard is it to spell Otule?

A few people spelled it wrong...but it was annoying to most of us for six years.

As to the topic, I agree with the poster who said that another 20 minutes in non-conference wouldn't have made a big difference in either player's readiness.  We will undoubtedly need some minutes from both players as the season progresses - injuries, fouls, etc - but I doubt in any event that we would expect much more than "placeholder" minutes from the 9th and 10th men in the rotation.  I believe it's more important to develop the 8-man rotation as thoroughtly as possible, and hope for the best when you need minutes from 9 and 10.

And no, I don't see either player transferring.  My sense is that both recognize they need time to develop, but also that they can be solid contributors in the years to come.

[chapman]

"I really like that Sacar A'min." - Chris O'Tule

QFT.

-David Cubillion

[We R Final Four]

Yes, there will be games with foul trouble but you don't sacrifice minutes for your 8-man rotation playing together to get men 9-12 some run so that you're insignificantly more prepared for the couple of conference games with foul trouble. As others have pointed out, a player's biggest improvement comes during practice, not by playing 4 extra minutes against Nobody State.

Henry and Luke are MU's two best players. If either one of them is in foul trouble, there's no one on that bench who's going to come close to matching their production. Instead of counting on Anim and Heldt to come in and contribute, MU will be counting on the other rotation guys to raise their games.

Depending on the opponents lineup, I believe that Wojo will go to MH when Luke picks up his second foul in the first half--regardless that he hasnt played extended minutes in non con.
Of course we don't have a replacement for Luke and HE--goes without saying. When MH gets in the game, Wojo certainly isn't counting on MH for the offensive production missing with LF or HE sitting on the bench--that's not his role.
Setting multiple picks, rebounding, hedging the up screen, playing D on their 5,  and a putback here and there. But most importantly, MH is in the game to provide a stop gap for a few minutes.

[naginiF]

And no, I don't see either player transferring.  My sense is that both recognize they need time to develop, but also that they can be solid contributors in the years to come.

Paraphrasing Wojo from earlier in the year: "Matt and Sacar are more like 'normal' freshmen, very talented but need to develop their games.  And they are doing a great job at that but they happen to be in a class with exceptional freshmen"

[slack00]

Heldt will improve far more by practicing against Fischer as opposed to playing an extra 20 minutes in non-conference games against a 6-6 center.  Same for Anim.

[wadesworld]

"I really like that Sacar A'min." - Chris O'Tule

It's spelled O2Chainz.  Duh.

Anyhow, I think the only time you'll see much of Heldt or Anim in conference play is if both Hank and Luke have foul trouble.  We've seen even against high majors (maybe the ASU game?  Can't remember for sure) that Wojo isn't scared to go with one of Luke/Hank and 4 "guards" in the game (I remember a time there was Cheatham, Duane, Carter, and JJJ all on the court together).

[barfolomew]

[/u]


I agree, and I think it will be Sooner than Later.

Are you saying Anim is transferring to Oklahoma?
Tell us what you know, dammit!

[Loose Cannon]

Are you saying Anim is transferring to Oklahoma?
Tell us what you know, dammit!

Don't you ever sleep, how will I ever get one past you?

[mu03eng]

Well...

A little late for nuance from me but I meant in regulation.

[#UnleashSean]

So ... O'tule was here for seventeen years and Outle was continuously spelled wrong.  How hard is it to spell Otule?

Fixed

[bilsu]

It is hard to say how fouls will be called this year. However, in the past physical play was allowed in the Big East. If they are going to call it closer, who should be more worried? MU with two 6'11" guys or Seton Hall with a 6'9" rebounding machine? As long as they call the fouls equally I am not going to worry about it.

[The Equalizer]

If it is fair to assume that fouling will increase with the better competition in the Big East, should Wojo have made more of an effort to get Amin and Heldt more playing time in our weak cupcake schedule?

If we see a time when they are forced to play becasue of foul trouble, more minutes against the Chicago States and Presbyterians of the world could have only helped.

Thoughts?

Last year the increase in fouling amounted to exactly 1.0 more foul per game in conference play. 2014 it was 1.4 per game.  2013 conference fouling actually declined by 0.5 per game compared to non-conference.

I don't think Wojo is worried at all about having to stretch the roster in order to protect against fouls.

In fact, given that Hedlt, Anim and Wally are the three most foul-prone players on the team per 40 minutes, I would think Wojo would be more inclined to tighten up the roster as much as possible to keep the other team out of the bonus.

[Dawson Rental]

It is not fouling out that I am concerned with.  It is Luke's 2nd foul in the first half with 8 min left.  That will happen.  If you go small and move HE to the #5- we may be exposing HE to more fouls as well.

I am quite confident that there will be games when foul trouble becomes an issue.

Are you agreeing with the first post?

[We R Final Four]

Are you agreeing with the first post?

No--never said they should get more run in non con.

[nyg]

It may be a long bench season for both of these guys.

Amin came in for one play, fouled and gave up two free throw points.

Fischer had the foul problem and Heldt didn't make an appearance.  Which is good, since Wally had a good run there.  He may only see action if there is a serious blowout. 

[We R Final Four]

Matt Heldt has become the Oakland Raiders. I think the word is out on the Matt Heldt moving pick. Seton Hall and tonight he was called for a moving pick that was not a moving pick.....yet I knew it would be called.
Must be his 5th or 6th this year. First few were moving....now his reputation preceeds him.

[MUfan12]

Must be his 5th or 6th this year. First few were moving....now his reputation preceeds him.

The Mini-Reaper!

[brewcity77]

While Amin may be the new O'Tule, I've noticed that Chatham isn't far behind.