Is Markus a point guard?

[The Hippie Satan of Hyperbole]

It’s not just that he doesn’t make his teammates better, he makes them worse.

I really can't take people seriously who say this.

Is he a point guard?  Not really.  He is a shoot-first combo guard.  However the idea that he makes his teammates worse is beyond absurd. 

[The Hippie Satan of Hyperbole]

Marcus Howard’s assist rate: 27.2%. Junior Cadougan his senior (Elite 8) year: 28.3

Markus turnover rate: 18.4.  Junior: 25.8.

Markus usage rate (possessions): 36.1.  Junior: 23.9

Discuss.

I'll start!

Scoop has an odd thing for nitpicking and bashing Markus despite the fact that he was the BEPOY and has made some first time all-American lists.  It's beyond strange.

[ATL MU Warrior]

I really can't take people seriously who say this.

Is he a point guard?  Not really.  He is a shoot-first combo guard.  However the idea that he makes his teammates worse is beyond absurd.

how does he make them any better?

[The Hippie Satan of Hyperbole]

how does he make them any better?

You mean beyond his 27.3% assist rate?  Pretty much the same rate that Junior had on the Elite 8 team.

[GoldenEagle323]

I've been hearing Kobe McEwen is the real deal

[RJax55]

I've been hearing Kobe McEwen is the real deal

Perhaps he is, but this a common Scoop refrain. I remember when Bailey was looking like our best player in practice during the summer session and Morrow was a beast in practice last year.

[ATL MU Warrior]

You mean beyond his 27.3% assist rate?  Pretty much the same rate that Junior had on the Elite 8 team.

Since when is Junior the benchmark for good PG play?

It is fairly clear to me that he dominates the ball too much, and by only getting others involved as a last resort, makes the game much more difficult for himself.  Is that all on him or is their blame on everyone, including coaches for devising that system?  Obviously the latter. 

The difference between MU's offense and MSU's offense was night and day.  Their off-ball movement was so much better than ours.  And having someone who would actually make the passes to them in the right spot and at the right time made very clear what Markus lacks in that respect. 

Hopefully Kobe has the ball in his hands the majority of the time next year and the staff devises a system like MSU's.  I cannot believe I just typed that.

[GoldenEagle323]

Perhaps he is, but this a common Scoop refrain. I remember when Bailey was looking like our best player in practice during the summer session and Morrow was a beast in practice last year.

I also did go to the open practice at the beginning of the year, he was the best player on the floor by far

[shoothoops]

Markus is undersized at either the 1 or 2.

He is an excellent perimeter shooter, mid range shooter, and he can also finish at the hoop against much bigger players. He can create his own space and shot. He is an excellent free throw shooter. He is not a great defender but he was much improved there this year.

Markus averaged 4 assists per game to go along with 4 turnovers per game. At times he turned the ball over off of the dribble, and at times,
he turned the ball over via the pass.

At times when the team was struggling, he forced ill advised decisions. He also frequently would commit a foul 94 feet from the defensive hoop after missing a few shots in a row in frustration. It happened v Murray St. late first half.

Ball handling, passing, frustration fouls are areas of needed improvement.

When teams ran him off the 3 point line he did well to get his teammates involved early, being patient and his time would come in a game.

His awards and accolades are well earned and well deserved. He would benefit from a more offensively skilled front court post player.  He would also benefit from quicker, faster teammates to take some pressure off of him.

I hope he returns next season. It would be a big loss if he didn’t.

[bilsu]

Everyone talks about Markus and hero ball.  Two questions.  1.  Who else could get their own shot. 

Was there anyone on Murray St. that could get their own shot? It is the point guards job to get the ball to players who are in position to score. That is what we saw yesterday.

[ATL MU Warrior]

Was there anyone on Murray St. that could get their own shot? It is the point guards job to get the ball to players who are in position to score. That is what we saw yesterday.

+ infinity

[ATL MU Warrior]

Markus is undersized at either the 1 or 2.

He is an excellent perimeter shooter, mid range shooter, and he can also finish at the hoop against much bigger players. He can create his own space and shot. He is an excellent free throw shooter. He is not a great defender but he was much improved there this year.

Markus averaged 4 assists per game to go along with 4 turnovers per game. At times he turned the ball over off of the dribble, and at times,
he turned the ball over via the pass.

At times when the team was struggling, he forced ill advised decisions. He also frequently would commit a foul 94 feet from the defensive hoop after missing a few shots in a row in frustration. It happened v Murray St. late first half.

Ball handling, passing, frustration fouls are areas of needed improvement.

When teams ran him off the 3 point line he did well to get his teammates involved early, being patient and his time would come in a game.

His awards and accolades are well earned and well deserved. He would benefit from a more offensively skilled front court post player.  He would also benefit from quicker, faster teammates to take some pressure off of him.

I hope he returns next season. It would be a big loss if he didn’t.

Agreed completely.  I also hope Kobe can be a guy that can play point so that Markus has the ball in his hands a LOT less.

[jimmybutlerfanatic]

I assume some things about all posters on this board:

1. We're all MU Bball fans, especially of Markus Howard.
2. Most of us are high school and/or college graduates.
3. We have a good understanding of college basketball.


There are a few things Markus is not:

1. Markus is not a point guard. The last true point guard we had that I can remember was Junior Cadugan.
2. Markus is not 5'11" (https://gomarquette.com/roster.aspx?roster=167&path=mbball)
3. Markus is not leaving early for the NBA or any other pro program.

He is an unbelievable college basketball scoring talent who is destined to break the MU scoring record by an incredible margin which likely will stand for many years.

In every interview I've seen he comes across as incredibly humble and intelligent; a great ambassador for the university and game (think how Seton Hall couldn't even risk sending a player to talk to the TV crew after the game!).

He likely doesn't make the NBA but still has an opportunity to carve out an incredible professional career should he want it. And if he does make it to the NBA, fantastic! I'm sure he's the type of person who would make the most of it however long or short it was.

He was probably hurt and banged up far more than he or the university are willing to admit.