Nova thoughts

[Loose Cannon]

He was constantly being moved off his spots, even by guards. Just isn't physical enough.

More Deep Dish Pizzas.

[ChitownSpaceForRent]

Yep, as I said earlier, we're not a Matt Carlino away from being top 10 - more like a Kris Dunn.

Or a Damion Lee.

[WarriorPride68]

Or a Damion Lee.

Lee would have been enormous for this squad:
D.Lee - 17 ppg, 4 reb, 2 ast. 56 % FG

Here are the other 3 immediate eligible players Wojo offered:

S.Miller (6'7, 210) - 13 ppg, 5 reb.
Gielo (6'9, 225) - 8 ppg, 4 reb.
D.Johnson (6'6, 210) - 12 ppg, 4 reb, 2 ast.

[vogue65]

A friend watching on TV - the same feed as everyone else - said that Traci "got in Jay Wright's face after he sank it".

From the stands it wasn't exactly clear what happened once it went in, only that Traci was 6 inches away from the Nova bench when he buried that 3.  Had Traci not already been in that corner I'm guessing there would not have been an issue.  In part, Traci got in Wright's face because he was already right next to him. 

What a shot though ...

Thank you for answering the question.  I have never liked Mr. Wright, seems like a cry baby to me.
I know that taunting is a foul, but come on, man up a little and don't go crying to the ref.

What, he hurt my feelings?  Nevrrtheless, I think it took the wind out of our sales and turned the game around for Nova.  It negatively impacted Traci.

The old saying applies, don't chirp till the game is over.....

[mu03eng]

I am not denying that Carlino -- or a player of similar experience and skill, and there are many out there -- would have helped this team. We need shooting and we need more experience.

I'm saying that it's a stretch to say adding one decent college player would have made the difference between an NIT team and a legit Sweet 16 team.

I'm not a Carlino "hater." I appreciate what he did for us last season. But let's please not elevate Matt Carlino beyond the level of "decent college player."

Now, a senior Novak or a senior Wes or a junior D-Wade or an actual college star ... now you're talkin'.

Robert Jackson wasn't an all star player....he was an above average college player with a lot of experience. Without Robert Jackson I'm not sure we make the sweet 16 that year.

I completely get what you and Lenny are saying, and you very well could be right. I just think this team is on the cusp of greatness, it just needed one more ingredient to get there sooner.

[jsglow]

Following on what all have said, it'll be interesting to see if next year's team minus HE and plus an eligible transfer/juco PF coupled with a years more experience is actually a better team.  My guess is yes.

[warriorchick]

Hey,  and don't forget about Rowsey.

[mu03eng]

Following on what all have said, it'll be interesting to see if next year's team minus HE and plus an eligible transfer/juco PF coupled with a years more experience is actually a better team.  My guess is yes.

I think we're a very good team in that scenario.....I think we're an elite team if HE comes back(doubt it). If we can find a grad transfer/juco bruiser of a PT, I think we can really do some damage next year.

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

Following on what all have said, it'll be interesting to see if next year's team minus HE and plus an eligible transfer/juco PF coupled with a years more experience is actually a better team.  My guess is yes.

Even without a grad transfer big, I think next year is better. If Henry stays or we do get a grad transfer, we'll be really really good

[jsglow]

Even without a grad transfer big, I think next year is better. If Henry stays or we do get a grad transfer, we'll be really really good

We have no answer at the #4 right now assuming HE departs.  But someone will certainly want the gig as 25+ minutes will be available immediately.

[CTWarrior]

Even without a grad transfer big, I think next year is better. If Henry stays or we do get a grad transfer, we'll be really really good

On the surface we should be better next year even without Henry, but if he does go we absolutely will need a rebounder.  We don't have another 4 on the roster right now.

[terrykelly]

Enough with the 3 point attempts.  Seems to always kill our momentum.

[Lennys Tap]

Robert Jackson wasn't an all star player....he was an above average college player with a lot of experience. Without Robert Jackson I'm not sure we make the sweet 16 that year.

I completely get what you and Lenny are saying, and you very well could be right. I just think this team is on the cusp of greatness, it just needed one more ingredient to get there sooner.

You're right about Robert Jackson - not an All Star, but a really good college player (freshman player of the year in the SEC) - but - and this is key - at a position where we had nobody else.

At Matt's position, we have somebody else - Duane. Carlino would be an upgrade but IMO not a game changer.

Without Jackson, the 2003 Warriors had a junior future NBA Hall of Famer, an NBA point guard, a 6'10" NBA sharpshooter and a solid 6'10" power forward. To me, that was a roster on the cusp of greatness. I really hope I'm wrong, but I just don't see that with the current roster.

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

On the surface we should be better next year even without Henry, but if he does go we absolutely will need a rebounder.  We don't have another 4 on the roster right now.

We will need to work on team rebounding, but 4 guard lineups can work in the BEast. See Nova. I think a lineup of Carter, Duane, Haanif, Sandy, and Luke is very quick and could be deadly on offense and defense. Especially with JjJ, Rowsey, and Wally to throw in the mix. Rebounding would need to be a team effort.

[GooooMarquette]

We will need to work on team rebounding, but 4 guard lineups can work in the BEast. See Nova. I think a lineup of Carter, Duane, Haanif, Sandy, and Luke is very quick and could be deadly on offense and defense. Especially with JjJ, Rowsey, and Wally to throw in the mix. Rebounding would need to be a team effort.

I agree with this.  To me, the key would be Luke putting on some beef.  When you look at Nova's 4-guard teams that have succeeded, they've generally had strong guys like Ochefu and Dante Cunningham in the middle.  Yarou wasn't as wide as those guys, but he had a bigger 4 in Pinkston

[forgetful]

We will need to work on team rebounding, but 4 guard lineups can work in the BEast. See Nova. I think a lineup of Carter, Duane, Haanif, Sandy, and Luke is very quick and could be deadly on offense and defense. Especially with JjJ, Rowsey, and Wally to throw in the mix. Rebounding would need to be a team effort.

I prefer a lineup of Howard, Duane, Haanif, Sandy and Luke.   

[wildbillsb]

"Howard?" Who Howard?

[Marcus92]

Enough with the 3 point attempts.  Seems to always kill our momentum.

Think it depends on who's making the 3-point attempt.

Henry's shooting less than 25% from long range. But he's taken the 3rd most attempts (57). Traci's making just 30.6%, with Jajuan at 32.3%.

He may not be setting the world on fire, but Duane is hitting at a decent clip by comparison (34.7% on 95 attempts). Sandy has been one of our best outside shooters (39.7% on 58 attempts).

I don't know Henry's true shooting ability, how he's shooting in practice, or how Wojo is coaching him. But based only on his game performance, he needs to be more selective from 3-point land. Haanif has taken 33 fewer 3-point shows than Henry, but he's only 1 behind in the makes column (hitting at an impressive 54.2%).

I'd like to see Wojo find a way to get Haanif and Sandy more open looks. And encourage Henry to ease up on the trigger.

[KampusFoods]

"Howard?" Who Howard?

Markus Howard, 2017 but maybe reclassifying to 2016 PG we're recruiting hard. Top 30-40 recruit, I think.

[Silkk the Shaka]

Think it depends on who's making the 3-point attempt.

Henry's shooting less than 25% from long range. But he's taken the 3rd most attempts (57). Traci's making just 30.6%, with Jajuan at 32.3%.

He may not be setting the world on fire, but Duane is hitting at a decent clip by comparison (34.7% on 95 attempts). Sandy has been one of our best outside shooters (39.7% on 58 attempts).

I don't know Henry's true shooting ability, how he's shooting in practice, or how Wojo is coaching him. But based only on his game performance, he needs to be more selective from 3-point land. Haanif has taken 33 fewer 3-point shows than Henry, but he's only 1 behind in the makes column (hitting at an impressive 54.2%).

I'd like to see Wojo find a way to get Haanif and Sandy more open looks. And encourage Henry to ease up on the trigger.

I'd love to see Duane's %'s from 0-2 feet outside the arc vs. 2+.  Seems like the deeper it is the better he shoots it. Almost like taking a full swing in golf vs. a 3/4 swing. I'd rather be a full pitching wedge out vs. a 3/4 swing.

[barfolomew]

I'd love to see Duane's %'s from 0-2 feet outside the arc vs. 2+.  Seems like the deeper it is the better he shoots it. Almost like taking a full swing in golf vs. a 3/4 swing. I'd rather be a full pitching wedge out vs. a 3/4 swing.

He misses the closer 3's on purpose to impress the NBA scouts.

[Marcus92]

I'd love to see Duane's %'s from 0-2 feet outside the arc vs. 2+.  Seems like the deeper it is the better he shoots it. Almost like taking a full swing in golf vs. a 3/4 swing. I'd rather be a full pitching wedge out vs. a 3/4 swing.

Duane has hit some big 3s. But he can be pretty streaky. Maybe he hasn't found his sweet spot just yet. Seems to take (and make) most of his from top of the key or the left corner.

To my eye, his form looks somewhat unusual, with a big hitch of the legs as he releases the ball. Almost like he's forcing it. Steve Novak he's not. But for the number of shots he takes, around 35% is a decent number.

[keefe]

You're right about Robert Jackson - not an All Star, but a really good college player (freshman player of the year in the SEC) - but - and this is key - at a position where we had nobody else.

At Matt's position, we have somebody else - Duane. Carlino would be an upgrade but IMO not a game changer.

Without Jackson, the 2003 Warriors had a junior future NBA Hall of Famer, an NBA point guard, a 6'10" NBA sharpshooter and a solid 6'10" power forward. To me, that was a roster on the cusp of greatness. I really hope I'm wrong, but I just don't see that with the current roster.

That team should have run the table. The fact that we were not just beaten but humiliated on the game's greatest stage remains one of the most shameful moments in the long, proud history of Marquette basketball.

[warriorfred]

That team should have run the table. The fact that we were not just beaten but humiliated on the game's greatest stage remains one of the most shameful moments in the long, proud history of Marquette basketball.

I am not sure that the Warriors should have won it all in 2003 (Melo and Syracuse were on a roll), but I agree that it was of the worst moments in Marquette Basketball (Jim Nantz still jokes about it).  Fortunately or unfortunately, my sister got married that day and I saw maybe 5 minutes of the game in hotel bar.  I don't remember seeing the Warriors make a bucket and they gave up at least a dozen easy transition points.  Sometimes I wonder if Crean and his staff actually scouted Kansas.

All that being said, this year's team is good, but it does not have the talent of the 2003 team.  Besides HE, who else is going to the NBA?

[bilsu]

Enough with the 3 point attempts.  Seems to always kill our momentum.

Wilson's threes is why we beat St. John's. In retrospect I think the Villanova game was a repeat of last year's problem where the team got tired at the end of games. When the wheels started coming off we were getting a lot of touch fouls on defense, which we were not getting before. During the game I thought the refs were just calling it tighter, but now I think we were tired, which resulted in us using our hands more. Being tired leads to poor decisions and poor execution. Normally, we play eight players and the prior two games we played 9 with Heldt getting some minutes. With Johnson out and Heldt not being used we only played 7 players in a game that basically required effort on every play. I am not saying we would of won with Johnson, but I do believe we were hampered by having only 7 players. Again, if we would of played Heldt and Sacar some we probably would not of won, but we would not have been as tired at the end of the game.