Ed Morrow

[Nukem2]

Has anyone obtained a copy of the letter yet?

For me, Ed was an x-factor to this season. Had the ability to push this team up a notch. Didn't pan out. The turnovers - especially the traveling - was borderline bizarre tbh.

I do hope he comes back and does well.

Agreed.

[WhoaJoe2020]

I heard he's on vacation. The guy loves to travel...

Man.  That.   Was.   Cold.

[Its DJOver]

IMO "High basketball IQ" is one of, if not the, most overused cliches in the sport.  The vast majority of the time, the player with the "higher IQ" just comes down to experience.  At the beginning of last year, Ed had played 2 full collegiate seasons, and had another year learning the system/working on his game, whereas Theo was a true Sophomore that only surpassed 20 minutes twice in his Freshman campaign due to learning how to play at the collegiate level/foul troube/"low IQ" if you will.  at that point in time, I would have hoped that Ed had a higher bball IQ.  Despite still needing to do a better job of knowing when to stay on his feet, IMO this season Theo's bball IQ has easily surpassed Ed's. 

[wadesworld]

LOL

+1

[Earl Tatum]

Frankly, I like Jayce in the middle--starter or number 2. He rebounds
and kicks the ball out for a break or reset more than Theo or Ed.
Knows his role.

[GB Warrior]

It's really a shame we'll see Ed retire from the program without having passed out of a triple-team 2 feet from the hoop.

[Cheeks]

Hope he comes back.  Senior leadership is important, he busts his butt and is a positive force.

I’d like to see him honored on senior day like the rest of the seniors.

[Silkk the Shaka]

On the flipside, our bigs are generally not very good at kicking the ball back out if they don't have a good look. Once the ball gets into the paint, it stays there. I think our big guys force too many shots just because they're close to the hoop. Especially for a group that is more defense-focused than offense-focused, I'd like to see them get the ball back out to scorers more often.

100%. I think they'd ultimately get the ball back more often and in even better positions to score if their defenders have in the back of their heads that they might need to sprint out to guard the 3 line off a pass. Get them thinking rather than read/reacting, and get them off their heels more.

[CTWarrior]

IMO "High basketball IQ" is one of, if not the, most overused cliches in the sport.  The vast majority of the time, the player with the "higher IQ" just comes down to experience.  At the beginning of last year, Ed had played 2 full collegiate seasons, and had another year learning the system/working on his game, whereas Theo was a true Sophomore that only surpassed 20 minutes twice in his Freshman campaign due to learning how to play at the collegiate level/foul troube/"low IQ" if you will.  at that point in time, I would have hoped that Ed had a higher bball IQ.  Despite still needing to do a better job of knowing when to stay on his feet, IMO this season Theo's bball IQ has easily surpassed Ed's.

Theo still sells out for the block.  He lets people drive instead of getting in their way, he does not wall up to make shots difficult, he abandons rebounding position, all to chase blocks.  He's pretty good at blocking or altering shots, but I think if he played with a little more smarts he could really be something on defense.

[CTWarrior]

100%. I think they'd ultimately get the ball back more often and in even better positions to score if their defenders have in the back of their heads that they might need to sprint out to guard the 3 line off a pass. Get them thinking rather than read/reacting, and get them off their heels more.

Good post, +1

[Goose]

DJO

Basketball IQ is very under rated by many. If you look back over just the Wojo era and grade out ball IQ, most our the best players from Wojo era. Some of them were grad school transfers and some game in as freshmen. Guys that know the game learn it a very young age. Becoming a sophmore or junior is making someone have a higher ball IQ. You can be a great player without having a high ball IQ, but do not underestimate the value of knowing the game.

Prime example, we still have guys that will jump four feet out of bounds under the defensive basket to save a ball. We have guys that do not know where to feed the ball to Theo when he open down low. Simple things done right make every team better. You can have your opinion, but I will take a high IQ  Cain over current Cain any day of the week.

CT Warrior
Spot on in regards to Theo.

[Its DJOver]

DJO

Basketball IQ is very under rated by many. If you look back over just the Wojo era and grade out ball IQ, most our the best players from Wojo era. Some of them were grad school transfers and some game in as freshmen. Guys that know the game learn it a very young age. Becoming a sophmore or junior is making someone have a higher ball IQ. You can be a great player without having a high ball IQ, but do not underestimate the value of knowing the game.

Prime example, we still have guys that will jump four feet out of bounds under the defensive basket to save a ball. We have guys that do not know where to feed the ball to Theo when he open down low. Simple things done right make every team better. You can have your opinion, but I will take a high IQ  Cain over current Cain any day of the week.

CT Warrior
Spot on in regards to Theo.

Not disagreeing that you would take a high IQ Cain over a low IQ Cain, jut think that the vast majority of the IQ development comes from in game experience, and time spent in the system.  When Theo and Ed first started competing for minutes, Ed had three years of college experience, while Theo had one.  There will always be some exceptions, but, the vast majority of the time, the player with three times as much experience is going to have a higher IQ.  Now that the percentages have naturally started to even out, Theo is catching/passing Ed in IQ IMO.  Also worth noting that as smart of a player that he is, he's never going to "think" his way into another 2 inches and 20 lbs that Theo currently has on him.

[JamilJaeJamailJrJuan]

I've never watched Ed and thought he was a high IQ player.  He is a high motor player.  Plays tough.  But very few times when he makes plays am I like "wow, that was a smart play."  Not ragging on the guy - I hope he comes back.  But I don't think our team IQ went down if he doesn't. 

[WhoaJoe2020]

Not disagreeing that you would take a high IQ Cain over a low IQ Cain, jut think that the vast majority of the IQ development comes from in game experience, and time spent in the system.  When Theo and Ed first started competing for minutes, Ed had three years of college experience, while Theo had one.  There will always be some exceptions, but, the vast majority of the time, the player with three times as much experience is going to have a higher IQ.  Now that the percentages have naturally started to even out, Theo is catching/passing Ed in IQ IMO.  Also worth noting that as smart of a player that he is, he's never going to "think" his way into another 2 inches and 20 lbs that Theo currently has on him.

Classic subjective vs objective.

[Marcus92]

One measure of Theo's improvement on defense is his foul rate:

2017-18:  8.3 fouls/40 min
2018-19:  7.4 fouls/40 min
2019-20:  6.3 fouls/40 min

He's still too foul-prone, which limits his minutes and overall effectiveness. And he's wildly inconsistent; after one of his strongest defensive efforts of the season against Villanova (4 blocks and 1 foul in 33 minutes), he fouled out of the next two games, playing just 14 minutes in each.

Overall, he is getting better -- slowly but surely.

[onepost]

onepost

I have little interest in having interaction with you on any basketball related topic. I find you to be combative and generally lacking in understanding the game. Best of luck to you!!

Can't say I'm heartbroken to hear that, as I generally don't agree with you on many things and find you equally unpleasant.
If you feel I'm particularly awful to deal with, I'm stunned you've stuck around this board long enough to rack up 6400 posts (a feat I'm sure you're very proud of!!).

But please don't confuse my sporadic posting history and preference to primarily talk in-game MUBB with friends who don't outwardly loathe this program with a lack of understanding about the game.  And coming from someone who thinks Ed Morrow is an intelligent basketball player.......pot meet kettle.

[Shooter McGavin]

I've never watched Ed and thought he was a high IQ player.  He is a high motor player.  Plays tough.  But very few times when he makes plays am I like "wow, that was a smart play."  Not ragging on the guy - I hope he comes back.  But I don't think our team IQ went down if he doesn't.

Correct, high energy and tough.  If he could have perfected two to three basic moves around the basket so that he could have made more layups without traveling his value would have been very high on this team.  Not sure I’m seeing the IQ argument either way.

[Goose]

onepost

Sounds good.

[Pakuni]

Correct, high energy and tough.  If he could have perfected two to three basic moves around the basket so that he could have made more layups without traveling his value would have been very high on this team.  Not sure I’m seeing the IQ argument either way.

Yeah ... Ed might very well have a brilliant basketball mind, but that doesn't often translate into what his body does on the court.
I hope that doesn't sound like a knock. I hope he comes back and continues to contribute to the team, obviously.

[Johnny B]

Hes a very good player. Worked hard. Absolutely sucks if we lose him.

[Goose]

Pakuni

Agree with your post. I simply said I feel Ed has a higher ball IQ than Theo and I would have played him over Theo. I am not confusing Ed with the great player IQ minds out there, was comparing him to Theo.

[WhoaJoe2020]

Correct, high energy and tough.  If he could have perfected two to three basic moves around the basket so that he could have made more layups without traveling his value would have been very high on this team.  Not sure I’m seeing the IQ argument either way.

All this, and the obvious size disadvantage for the role he was being asked to fill at times. Traveling is often the byproduct of trying to get a shot off quickly to avoid having it blocked.

[Nukem2]

All this, and the obvious size disadvantage for the role he was being asked to fill at times. Traveling is often the byproduct of trying to get a shot off quickly to avoid having it blocked.

Actually, Ed’s traveling issue is more about taking too long to shoot.  It seems like an eternity when he backs his man down and he takes the extra step(s) to finally get around his opponent who he really can’t shoot over.

[Markusquette]

Hes a very good player. Worked hard. Absolutely sucks if we lose him.

I agree that I don't want to lose him. I agree that he works hard. But I disagree that he is a very good player. A very good senior would not be contributing very little.

[The Love House]

UPDATE: One of my all-time best MU buddies has a son that goes to MU now and knows many of the players. So here's the true story...he said the word all over campus is that Morrow quit the team because of the coaches and won't be coming back. No teal here - that is the inside scoop. He bailed out on the rest of the season and the potential to play in the tournament just to get away from WoJo. And that comes after wanting to transfer here so bad he sat out for a year.

So think about that...Morrow is a 5th year senior with no chance of transferring anywhere now. And yet he quit the team and gave up on any chance of playing in the tournament in his last season simply because he couldn't stand another minute of playing for WoJo. I think that's what we were all afraid of but were hoping wasn't the case. So now the reality is that 25% of last year's scholarship players walked away from a team that was projected to be in the top 5 this year solely for the reason that they didn't like playing for WoJo. 

Don't shoot the messenger here - I'm just telling you what I heard from a very reliable current student on campus.

Discuss...

(p.s. - for the record I'm a WoJo supporter)