Kolek's Shooting % (or lack thereof)

[Porky's Butthole]

Did anyone else besides Porky catch when the announcer mentioned that Kolek was actually a 2 Guard at George Mason last season, and that this is his first year as a PG?  Most of you probably were aware of this but not Porky.  Even more interesting, the announcer mentioned that Kolek was apparently #2 among all D1 Freshmen in 3PT shooting percentage last year.   Pretty sure that's what Porky heard.

If true, that's pretty impressive so Porky wonders if Kolek's shooting struggles are related to this transition to PG from 2G.  It's a lot easier to wait, catch and shoot than shoot under the duress of handling PG duties for the first time.  Not only is Kolek transitioning from 2G to PG but also from a mid-major to a high major conf.   Porky agrees with the consensus that Kolek's shots should eventually start falling at a better clip, but curious what everyone's thoughts are on this.  Porky Out.

[GOO]

I believe he was essentially a 2 last year. Believe I read that on scoop. I also agree with your other thoughts.  He has a lot to think about and adjust to.

I am not too worried about his three point shooting over time. I look at this like he is a freshman. It is not unusual for freshman to struggle at the high D-1 level with shooting. Unless I misremember, Lazar came into MU as someone who could hit the 3. He struggled early.  Now, I do hope he improves this year instead of it taking a summer to adjust. I think he'll be okay as I don't think he has to adjust his form.

[Milkshakes]

The thing that worries me is he sure seems to be way, way up in own head about it. Glad to see him playing hard on defense and still creating but he is passing up or over thinking open looks - or so it seems to me.  That worries me. If he was still launching when he has the open look I would feel better about it.

[The Lens]

The amatuer shooting coach in me thinks his shot is a little flat, leaves very little room for error.

THAT BEING SAID: Kolek will be an all-timer at MU.  I do not worry about him at all.  It will come and when it comes, it will be something.  You can't teach the vision and passing he already has.  We have seen shooting guards stuck in PG bodies who are almost afraid to pass bc they have no understanding.  Kolek is the opposite.  Everything he struggles with, can be taught.  He'll be fine great. 

[BrewCity83]

Shaka said in last night's post game radio show that Kolek is consistently the team's best 3-point shooter in practice.  It looks to me like he has excellent mechanics, but he might just be rushing his shots a little bit in games.  I agree with the prior comments that he will find his groove and become a really good shooter, and I think it will be soon.

[CTWarrior]

Right now he's not even close to making them, that is what is troubling.  He missed one open 3 "wide left" (may have been "wide right") in the words of the announcer.  When you miss everything left or right on an open three,  you should probably stop taking them for a while, because you don't have it.

[avid1010]

Shaka said in last night's post game radio show that Kolek is consistently the team's best 3-point shooter in practice.  It looks to me like he has excellent mechanics, but he might just be rushing his shots a little bit in games.  I agree with the prior comments that he will find his groove and become a really good shooter, and I think it will be soon.

Agreed...and Shaka said that his other duties are hurting his shooting.  He just needs to hit a few and get rolling.  He's getting plenty of open shots. 

[JakeBarnes]

Agreed...and Shaka said that his other duties are hurting his shooting.  He just needs to hit a few and get rolling.  He's getting plenty of open shots.

Interesting. Is this a conditioning problem? Learning curve?

[NCMUFan]

Kolek should probably take the shot if he has time to setup well and release well.
Otherwise, him driving and dishing has been very effective.

To me, Morsell seems to be having major problems just about any time the ball touches his hands.
I don't believe he was in the last 3 minutes of regulation with the game in the balance.

Kolek: 0 Points, 8 Rebounds, 7 Assists, 3 TOs
Morsell: 8 Points, 2 Rebounds, 2 Assists, 4 TOs

[Jockey]

Right now he's not even close to making them, that is what is troubling.  He missed one open 3 "wide left" (may have been "wide right") in the words of the announcer.  When you miss everything left or right on an open three,  you should probably stop taking them for a while, because you don't have it.

Yeah. The shots are not even close to going in. When the ball leaves Kam's hand, it just looks good. That almost never the case with Kolek. The defense is goading him into shooting. He should never be shooting seven 3s in a game until he gets things figured out.

[MUfan12]

I see a guy who is sped up when he shoots. Sloppy hand placement, particularly the guide hand. Leads to a funky release with some sidespin.

Do agree he needs to get some air under it.

[Jay Bee]

Even more interesting, the announcer mentioned that Kolek was apparently #2 among all D1 Freshmen in 3PT shooting percentage last year.   Pretty sure that's what Porky heard.

I can assure you this is nowhere near reality. His % as a frosh was solid, but not very good or great.

[JamilJaeJamailJrJuan]

I can assure you this is nowhere near reality. His % as a frosh was solid, but not very good or great.

I believe he said he was 2nd in 3P made among freshman last season. 

[TSmith34, Inc.]

The thing that worries me is he sure seems to be way, way up in own head about it. Glad to see him playing hard on defense and still creating but he is passing up or over thinking open looks - or so it seems to me.  That worries me. If he was still launching when he has the open look I would feel better about it.

Last night was pretty much the definition of "still launching". 0-7 does not indicate that was became hesitant to shoot.

The good thing is that his looks were mostly open and he was mostly squared up the basket (unlike the first few games where he was jacking up threes on the move). The bad thing was that he was so off target that the defense was happy for him to take those wide open looks.

[BrewCity83]

I see a guy who is sped up when he shoots. Sloppy hand placement, particularly the guide hand. Leads to a funky release with some sidespin.
Do agree he needs to get some air under it.

This is what I see too.  He'll need to either get comfortable with the faster speed he's playing at or slow it down just a tad so he eliminates the sloppiness.

[lawdog77]

I believe he said he was 2nd in 3P made among freshman last season.

Nothing against Tyler, but I dont believe that stat. My limited search shows he made 53  3pt shots, that is not even in the Top 100 overall, so I am assuming there was more than one freshman making that many. Too lazy to look at all of the names
http://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/statistics/player/_/stat/3-points/sort/threePointFieldGoalsMade/year/2021/count/81

[JamilJaeJamailJrJuan]

Nothing against Tyler, but I dont believe that stat. My limited search shows he made 53  3pt shots, that is not even in the Top 100 overall, so I am assuming there was more than one freshman making that many. Too lazy to look at all of the names
http://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/statistics/player/_/stat/3-points/sort/threePointFieldGoalsMade/year/2021/count/81

Don't blame ya.  I am just restating what was said on the telecast.  Zero idea of its accuracy. 

[OffTheGlass]

Kolek should probably take the shot if he has time to setup well and release well.
Otherwise, him driving and dishing has been very effective.

To me, Morsell seems to be having major problems just about any time the ball touches his hands.
I don't believe he was in the last 3 minutes of regulation with the game in the balance.

Kolek: 0 Points, 8 Rebounds, 7 Assists, 3 TOs
Morsell: 8 Points, 2 Rebounds, 2 Assists, 4 TOs

Great point about Morsell!!!

He is absolutely killing us offensively. While Kolek may not be hitting his shots right now, at least he's finding the open guy.
Morsell was 3/13 from the field and 2/9 from 3's, with only 2 assists. The fact of the matter is that he does nothing when the ball is in his hands. The offense stands around watching and waiting while he either jacks up a brick or has an unforced turnover.

I could be mistaken but I think Shaka took him out in the final minute or two. Stevie was also not in the game either, which I credit Coach recognizing that these guys either need to protect the ball or ride the bench when the game is on the line.

[tower912]

Correct.   Kam, Kolek, Greg.   

[Uncle Rico]

He reminds me of Travis Diener

[MUBurrow]

I'm somewhere between -1.0% and 0% worried about Kolek's shots not falling.  He is, at a minimum, a good enough shooter to keep defenses honest and that's what I care about most. 

Illinois: 5 assists to 2 turnovers
Ole Miss: 6 assists to 2 turnovers
WVU: 8 assists to 5 turnovers
St Bonaventure: 0 assists to 2 turnovers
Wisconsin: 8 assists to 2 turnovers
KState:  7 assists to 3 turnovers

If Kolek gets out of a game with 7-8 assists and 2 turnovers, I like our chances to win.

[mileskishnish72]

Re: Kolek, I think it's in his head. He nailed some nice 3's in earlier games with a smooth, relatively quick shot. I'm open, bing! Lately he seems to be releasing it in a more studied fashion, and trying to steer it. And he hasn't been off just a smidge, he's been way off.

As for Morsell, one wonders if he's focused on showcasing his offense to increase his appeal to scouts rather than respecting the process.

[avid1010]

He reminds me of Travis Diener

I happen to think he's a little bit past TD at this point in his career. 

In all seriousness...he seems like a great kid...and Shaka commented on his solid defense last night.  I love Morsell as well...but his play and body language was extremely poor last night.  The one thing that should always be there is hustle and defense...I wouldn't have thought that would be an issue for him.  Shaka made the right call in sitting him down. 

How about sticking Kam at the line at the end...If I were going to criticize Shaka for anything last night...he got that wrong purely from a results standpoint.  I fully understand he was clutch in the moments prior...good learning experience. 

[barfolomew]

0-7 from three.
0-7 from the field overall, zero points.

Still flirts with double double.
Still talks smack to the upper deck of the octagon as game ends.

[avid1010]

I'm somewhere between -1.0% and 0% worried about Kolek's shots not falling.  He is, at a minimum, a good enough shooter to keep defenses honest and that's what I care about most. 

Illinois: 5 assists to 2 turnovers
Ole Miss: 6 assists to 2 turnovers
WVU: 8 assists to 5 turnovers
St Bonaventure: 0 assists to 2 turnovers
Wisconsin: 8 assists to 2 turnovers
KState:  7 assists to 3 turnovers

If Kolek gets out of a game with 7-8 assists and 2 turnovers, I like our chances to win.

Agreed, and Shaka got the team to make the right passes last night.  They had a few turnovers trying to feed the corner three off the drive early in the game...when they started looking to wing knowing K-State was cheating to the corner...we were money.  Loved the adjustment...just never saw that type of thing under Wojo.