Duane in crunch time

[g0lden3agle]

So, a better play would have been Duane kicking it to an open man and having the ball go through that guy's hands out of bounds?

Are you just trolling or do you legitimately not understand the concept of not using the outcome of a play to determine how good/bad the decision was?

[tower912]

 + Duane wants the ball.   
- Duane wants the ball to the exclusion of others.
+ He is not afraid of the big moment.
- His lack of fear and desire for the big moment has led to questionable choices.
+ Despite earlier poor decisions, he still wanted the ball last night.
+ He didn't fire up a 3!
+ In his mind, he was either going to get to the rack or get fouled. Made the aggressive play.

On balance, the pluses are winning.   I am glad we have a player who isn't afraid of the moment.  It is a step in the right direction.   

[brewcity77]

Are you just trolling or do you legitimately not understand the concept of not using the outcome of a play to determine how good/bad the decision was?

Has to be trolling, Merrits isn't that oblivious to the world around him

[Skatastrophy]

Surprised by lots having Henry 1st.  JayBee teaches us one thing, eFG% rules, so going with that order...

1. Haanif
2. Luke
3. Sandy
4. Duane
5. Jajuan
6. Henry
7. Wally
8. Traci

I was wondering. Using your method, here are the guys that we wanted taking the last shot between the 09-10 season and today. I omitted the players that haven't played over a couple hundred minutes to weed out statistically anomalous players.

	Name	Year	eFG
1	Chris Otule	12-13	.634
2	Haanif Cheatham	15-16	.613
3	Luke Fisher	14-15	.609
4	David Cubillan	09-10	.595
5	Chris Otule	13-14	.591
6	Davante Gardner	12-13	.588
7	Davante Gardner	10-11	.576
8	Jae Crowder	11-12	.568
9	DJO	09-10	.564
10	Davante Gardner	11-12	.561

To me, it looks like a list of either the guys that were taking the last shot those years, or the guys that we dreamed we could have fed it to down-low to take a shot.

[jsglow]

Spot on, Joe. Leadership is a rare commodity.

I agree with this too.  Duane made a very solid basketball play.  Tried the first time and got stopped.  Successfully reloaded.  Probably got fouled both on the drive and certainly on the shot as the post defender came down with his arms rather than walling up.  Still Du pushed through with strength and got a very good shot up that happened to go in.  I'll take that against AP #8 on the road every time.

[MuMark]

Duane also had the game winner against IUPUI in OT IIRC.

I want somebody that can create his own shot and isn't afraid.

1. Henry/Duane
2 Haanif(will probably be 1 next year)
3 JJ
4 Sandy

[MerrittsMustache]

Are you just trolling or do you legitimately not understand the concept of not using the outcome of a play to determine how good/bad the decision was?

Has to be trolling, Merrits isn't that oblivious to the world around him

It's a little bit of trolling

I understand the concepts of good/bad decision-making and "playing the percentages" and all that but, in the end, the result is what matters. The "right" decision is always going to be the right decision, regardless of the outcome. However, there are times when the so-called "wrong" decision can be right as well.

If a player makes a decision that gives the highest probability for success and it doesn't work out, it's still the right decision to make. However, if a player decides against that play and makes a decision with a low-probability for success but it results in the best possible outcome, how can one ague that it was the wrong play to make? In other words, how can a decision that directly results in your desired outcome be considered incorrect? Sure, a coach would probably channel Lou Brown after Willie Mays Hayes' basket catch, but for that one particular instance, it was the right decision.

[PGsHeroes32]

As just mentioned Duane had the play to win us IUPUi and avoid disaster. He had some awful plays too, but made the winner.

I'd draw up a lot of winning plays for Haanif and JJJ too. Those guys know how to drive and get to the rim. That's always kinda the idea if you don't need a 3.

Pray Henry or Luke can board a miss.

[willie warrior]

He wants the ball in his hands at crunch time that is a gift. I will take a guy who wants the ball and not afraid to make a play any day of the week. Last year Carlino wanted it and prior to that Vander did. Most guys run from the ball.

Bingo. The guy has balls as big as a basketball. He wants it at crunch time. He knows what to do. We need a guy like that. He is not afraid to take it to the hole or shoot the 3.

[willie warrior]

Maybe approach this another way, where would all of our scorers ranking in terms of who you want with the ball with a shot to win the game?

For me:
1. Henry
2. Luke
3. Haanif
4. Duane
5. JjJ
6. Sandy
7. Traci

No on Luke, Cheatham is still a frosh. Maybe Henry, but I would rank him and Duane as the top two.

[willie warrior]

+ Duane wants the ball.   
- Duane wants the ball to the exclusion of others.
+ He is not afraid of the big moment.
- His lack of fear and desire for the big moment has led to questionable choices.
+ Despite earlier poor decisions, he still wanted the ball last night.
+ He didn't fire up a 3!
+ In his mind, he was either going to get to the rack or get fouled. Made the aggressive play.

On balance, the pluses are winning.   I am glad we have a player who isn't afraid of the moment.  It is a step in the right direction.   

No, Duane does not want it to the exclusion of others. He dishes off plenty. Now Henry is that guy who would want it to the exclusion of others.

[LAMUfan]

Pray Henry or Luke can board a miss.

Really good point, if you don't have those guys shooting it gives you a good opportunity for a follow

[bilsu]

A player that is willing to take the key shot is going to miss some of them. A player who is not willing to take shot will never make one.

[ChitownSpaceForRent]

Duane attacked the basket. As a coach for a last shot situation, that is what you always ask for. People here are criticizing the shot but here's how I look at it.

Duane was going to the basket. Usually a higher percentage shot and their biggest threat of a shot blocker is Bentil, which I wouldn't be too scared of.

Duane has the cajones to take the last shot. Say what you want about the kid, but wanting to be in that moment is half the battle. He has that clutch gene where he has ice in his veins. Remember how many free throws Haanif missed at the end kf the Wisconisn game?

Wit this team, I would much rather take a shot through contact than jacking up, even an open outside shot. Duane has the ability to break defenders down to get into the lane.

Finally, would you rather take what Duane did? Or the shot Dunn did that Henry blocked, pull um mid range shots are so tough.

Criticize all you want but from a coaches perspective on a final shot, that is a great look from Duane. No complaints here.

[ChitownSpaceForRent]

Bingo. The guy has balls as big as a basketball. He wants it at crunch time. He knows what to do. We need a guy like that. He is not afraid to take it to the hole or shoot the 3.

A player that is willing to take the key shot is going to miss some of them. A player who is not willing to take shot will never make one.

Both of these +10000. You can't undermine the fact that he doesn't shy away from the spotlight, that is huge in those kind of situations.

[Herman Cain]

1. JJJ
2. DW
3. HC
4. HE
5. SC
6. LF
7. TC

I dont believe in giving it to a big for the last shot unless they are right next to the hoop unguarded. JJJ and DW get nod over HC because of experience.

I like this order.  Ability to get to the rack is key.  With their quickness they are likely to get fouled as well.  The first two guys can step up and make the free throws if they get hacked as well.

I am never uncomfortable with Duane. I think he has a Warrior mentality and believes he can make every shot he takes. Obviously a few are taken too soon in the clock but hopefully that habit will fade.

[wadesworld]

Duane attacked the basket. As a coach for a last shot situation, that is what you always ask for. People here are criticizing the shot but here's how I look at it.

Duane was going to the basket. Usually a higher percentage shot and their biggest threat of a shot blocker is Bentil, which I wouldn't be too scared of.

Duane has the cajones to take the last shot. Say what you want about the kid, but wanting to be in that moment is half the battle. He has that clutch gene where he has ice in his veins. Remember how many free throws Haanif missed at the end kf the Wisconisn game?

Wit this team, I would much rather take a shot through contact than jacking up, even an open outside shot. Duane has the ability to break defenders down to get into the lane.

Finally, would you rather take what Duane did? Or the shot Dunn did that Henry blocked, pull um mid range shots are so tough.

Criticize all you want but from a coaches perspective on a final shot, that is a great look from Duane. No complaints here.

Yes.  A whopping 1.

[wadesworld]

Down by 1?  Duane, Haanif, Hank.

Up by 1 and needing a good possession?  Duane is the last guy I want with the ball.  Give me Haanif or Luke in that situation.

As far as the last play it was a great decision.  Force the action.  He got hammered and should've been going to the free throw line as well, especially with the new "emphases" that lead to 50 foul games.  But even if there is no whistle and he doesn't make the shot, he forced help and their players would've been scrambling for rebounding position.

[PGsHeroes32]

Yeah Haanif and Sandy both missed 1 and 1s at Wisco.

He didn't miss a lot

[dgies9156]

Spot on, Joe. Leadership is a rare commodity.

AMEN!

I want somebody shooting who is going to stick it down their throat and make them like it as the ball shimmers through the net!

That was Duane last night.

Maybe next time it will be Hannif or Henry or Luke. But for my money, I liked Duane last night.

[forgetful]

1. JJJ
2. DW
3. HC
4. HE
5. SC
6. LF
7. TC

I dont believe in giving it to a big for the last shot unless they are right next to the hoop unguarded. JJJ and DW get nod over HC because of experience.

I like your list.  I had JJJ way too low.  He is likely the best at getting to the rack and finishing.  That is the most important aspect. 

[ItsaBargen]

On Twitter, Duane has said Kobe is his favorite player. As a Kobe/hero-ball hater, that kinda scares me. It seems to explain some of Duane's shot selection late in games.

Having said that, it's really nice to have a guard that can both drive and shoot after a few years of having rather one-dimensional guards.