Transfers Impact on Howard's Approach

[Vander Blue Man Group]

Obviously there are enough threads here on this situation, who is to "blame", etc. 

Does the transfer of two core players potentially due to Howard's style of play potentially cause him to look inward and make any adjustments in his approach, even small ones?  With the additions of McEwen and Elliott as additional ball handlers and creators, as well as the fact that Markus needs to improve his passing and court vision, do we see any difference in this upcoming season in terms of usage, shot selection, etc.?  Obviously part of this is the scheme.

MH seems like a smart guy - what kind of impact does this have on him and his play, if any, going forward? 

Thoughts?

[tower912]

There are other guards on the team.  He will probably play off the ball quite a bit.

[MU82]

My only thought on this in mid-April is: We'll see.

[bilsu]

McEwen starting at point will initially take the ball out of Howard's hands and that in itself will change the game plan.

However, when we had Rowsey at point he rarely got the ball back from Howard once he gave it to him. Every year Howard has been a black hole the ball has disappeared in.

I think Howard is a remarkable player, but he believes the ball is better with him than passing the ball. That is the way he has played all three years.
Howard can win games on his own, but he also can lose games because of his style of play.

I also think that is how Wojo wants him to play.

[The Hippie Satan of Hyperbole]

McEwen starting at point will initially take the ball out of Howard's hands and that in itself will change the game plan.

There are other guards on the team.  He will probably play off the ball quite a bit.

I know we all WANT something like this to happen.  But really I just don't see it happening.

[NickelDimer]

I’m not sure the transfers don’t create MORE iso ball from Markus but we’ll see

[KampusFoods]

I’m not sure the transfers don’t create MORE iso ball from Markus but we’ll see

I see your point but I don't think we can stretch the defense enough next year to allow it.

[Class71]

Markus has the green light and the coach does not see anything wrong or at least is incapable  of changing the situation. Who will replace the 3 point shooting of the Hauser's at 40%? No one. Odds are Markus will shoot more and turn the ball over more. He will easily break a number of school shooting records.

Will they win more games next year, will they win the BE, will they make the NCAA? Rabbits are pulled out of hats by magicians. Wojo is no magician. 

[Windyplayer]

Markus has the green light and the coach does not see anything wrong or at least is incapable  of changing the situation. Who will replace the 3 point shooting of the Hauser's at 40%? No one. Odds are Markus will shoot more and turn the ball over more. He will easily break a number of school shooting records.

Will they win more games next year, will they win the BE, will they make the NCAA? Rabbits are pulled out of hats by magicians. Wojo is no magician.

Ha, yes, they will make the tournament. Markus is still a top 5 player in the country with a pretty decent supporting cast even without the Hausers.

[Class71]

Ha, yes, they will make the tournament. Markus is still a top 5 player in the country with a pretty decent supporting cast even without the Hausers.

I believe Markus is the best shooter that Marquette has even had but there is more to basketball than being the best shooter. Great shooting with high turnovers, poor passing, lack of team play and poor defense does not carry a team. With better guidance and focus on team play he might play in the NBA. There is a reason why he did not go into the draft this year.

As to the supporting staff there is talent there but it will take a coach to mold this team into a powerhouse. I would also add, without a more team oriented approach, even with the Hauser's we would not have lived up to expectations next year. That is why the Hauser's are gone. The problem is not Markus or the Hauser's or the rest of this talented team, it is Wojo not understanding how to use the talent he has effectively. That includes using the entire team's talents not just a Hauser or a Markus or being stuck with  motion offense that simply did not work for this team.

[swoopem]

Obviously there are enough threads here on this situation, who is to "blame", etc. 

Does the transfer of two core players potentially due to Howard's style of play potentially cause him to look inward and make any adjustments in his approach, even small ones?  With the additions of McEwen and Elliott as additional ball handlers and creators, as well as the fact that Markus needs to improve his passing and court vision, do we see any difference in this upcoming season in terms of usage, shot selection, etc.?  Obviously part of this is the scheme.

MH seems like a smart guy - what kind of impact does this have on him and his play, if any, going forward? 

Thoughts?

Doubtful. If he were going to change his style of play I think the Hausers would still be on the roster and we’d all be talking about our travel plans to Atlanta

[Vander Blue Man Group]

Doubtful. If he were going to change his style of play I think the Hausers would still be on the roster and we’d all be talking about our travel plans to Atlanta

There's a difference between changing your style of play and improving your shot selection, ball handling, court vision, etc. 

The Hausers left because of how the season played out, it seems.  My guess is nothing that anyone would have said after the season would have changed their minds.  That doesn't necessarily equate to Howard being unable or unwilling to make an adjustment moving forward.  I have no idea if he will but I don't think it's out of the question. 

[BM1090]

We'll have more players with the ability to get their shot. Greg showed a knack for getting to a floater his first year. Koby can get his own shot. Will make us better end of shot clock at the very least.

Maybe Symir too but no idea.

[Daniel]

The coach must control their players and the players need to do what the coach says.   Al said at practice, locker rooms etc the players can say what they want, but on the court during the game I am the master.

If Wojo was fine with Markus playing the way he played, great. That was his plan.  It happened to p/o other players.   If Wojo told Markus hey knock it  off and he didn’t, then he lost control of the team.  I have no idea which way it was. 

But there was no balance to the offense. Period. That’s a fact.

[Spaniel with a Short Tail]

If Markus is as smart as people say, I believe he would have realized he needs to upgrade his passing if he wants to sniff the NBA. He should have come to this conclusion well before the Hausers transferred. They would have been the beneficiaries.

Or I could be all wrong since this is based on my active imagination.

[Vander Blue Man Group]

If Markus is as smart as people say, I believe he would have realized he needs to upgrade his passing if he wants to sniff the NBA. He should have come to this conclusion well before the Hausers transferred. They would have been the beneficiaries.

Or I could be all wrong since this is based on my active imagination.

Or is it like baseball where it takes an offseason to make such a big change? 

[Oregon Warrior]

I know we all WANT something like this to happen.  But really I just don't see it happening.

Markus knows he needs to play PG to have a chance of making a NBA roster. I have a hard time believing he’s going to play off the ball.

[rocky_warrior]

Markus was going to work on his PG and distribution skills this offseason, regardless of what his teammates did.

So...Does it impact his approach?  Not at all.

Do I think he'll be a better passer next year?  Yes, just like he was a better defender, ball handler, and distributer after last offseason.

He has deficiencies (mostly height), and I've certainly criticized him when he's "off", but I don't know that Marquette has ever had a guy that worked as hard as Markus to improve every year. 

[MUHoopsFan2]

If Markus is as smart as people say, I believe he would have realized he needs to upgrade his passing if he wants to sniff the NBA. He should have come to this conclusion well before the Hausers transferred. They would have been the beneficiaries.

Or I could be all wrong since this is based on my active imagination.

Excellent. I agree...and the Hauser's should have waited for this to happen. But they didn't. They left.

Wojo could not change Howard in midstream. You don't do that in college. Howard started off hot coming off a season with Rowsey and him being dynamic shooters.

You had to ride his ability to score which Wojo did. They won with him doing that. You can't stop that in the middle of the season or going in the BE tournament.

I am glad that he sees he can improve on his passing instead of ALWAYS looking to for his shot first.

But...as good as he was as a scorer, on a team that lacked more than 1 pure scorer [the  Hausers are shooters...] and the injury to Greg and the absence of McEwen he had to do it.