Who gets lapped

[DoctorV]

That's a very small sample size.

Kam's 17 ppg last year are the most any player has ever averaged on a Shaka coached team. Kam will be relied upon to run the offense more this year. I'd expect his scoring to be about what it was last year, and would be shocked if he averaged 21 ppg.

Averaging 20ish ppg and 5+ apg would probably make Kam BEPoY and an All American.

I've always been super bullish on Kam and his abilities, but that's a tall task and it definitely won't be easy.

Oddly, my biggest concern for him offensively on the season is what I consider his biggest strength, his 3P shooting.
He's always been set up beautifully and effectively by TyKo, which has given him plenty of good looks.
This season, not only will he be lacking some of those looks, but he will also be much more tired having to run a ton of offense, and that may affect the freshness of his legs and in return his outside shooting effectiveness.

I do think that with as much as he will be on the ball if he shoots 37/38% or better from 3 he will come close to the numbers I listed above and have an all-time great type season at Marquette.
I'll go with 19ppg along with 5apg on 37% shooting from 3 as my prediction. 

[MuggsyB]

Averaging 20ish ppg and 5+ apg would probably make Kam BEPoY and an All American.

I've always been super bullish on Kam and his abilities, but that's a tall task and it definitely won't be easy.

Oddly, my biggest concern for him offensively on the season is what I consider his biggest strength, his 3P shooting.
He's always been set up beautifully and effectively by TyKo, which has given him plenty of good looks.
This season, not only will he be lacking some of those looks, but he will also be much more tired having to run a ton of offense, and that may affect the freshness of his legs and in return his outside shooting effectiveness.

I do think that with as much as he will be on the ball if he shoots 37/38% or better from 3 he will come close to the numbers I listed above and have an all-time great type season at Marquette.
I'll go with 19ppg along with 5apg on 37% shooting from 3 as my prediction.

Do you forsee 5-6 FT's a game for Kam Dr. V?

[BM1090]

Averaging 20ish ppg and 5+ apg would probably make Kam BEPoY and an All American.

I've always been super bullish on Kam and his abilities, but that's a tall task and it definitely won't be easy.

Oddly, my biggest concern for him offensively on the season is what I consider his biggest strength, his 3P shooting.
He's always been set up beautifully and effectively by TyKo, which has given him plenty of good looks.
This season, not only will he be lacking some of those looks, but he will also be much more tired having to run a ton of offense, and that may affect the freshness of his legs and in return his outside shooting effectiveness.

I do think that with as much as he will be on the ball if he shoots 37/38% or better from 3 he will come close to the numbers I listed above and have an all-time great type season at Marquette.
I'll go with 19ppg along with 5apg on 37% shooting from 3 as my prediction.

I think he'll shoot just fine. His step back is really effective and with the ball more he'll be able to get into the lane more to set it up.

I do worry about him wearing down, though.

[Hards Alumni]

Wrong and wrong, as their closest living relatives are 🐘 🐘 🐘.   Elephants are amazing members of the animal kingdom and behave with tremendous dignity and grace.  And if you think they aren't smart you better think again.

So it's true, you really DO love animals.

[brewcity77]

Do you forsee 5-6 FT's a game for Kam Dr. V?

This is not going to happen. Kam averaged 2 FTs per game last year and it's a feature, not a bug. The reason Kam is so good at the rim is because he's great at putting the proper weight on the ball and using the angles while avoiding contact. He doesn't go to the line because it's that aspect of his game that makes him so effective. He isn't going to start hunting contact because it will reduce his ability to score at the rim. We just need to accept that this is who Kam is and it's why he's so awesome at what he does.

[MuggsyB]

This is not going to happen. Kam averaged 2 FTs per game last year and it's a feature, not a bug. The reason Kam is so good at the rim is because he's great at putting the proper weight on the ball and using the angles while avoiding contact. He doesn't go to the line because it's that aspect of his game that makes him so effective. He isn't going to start hunting contact because it will reduce his ability to score at the rim. We just need to accept that this is who Kam is and it's why he's so awesome at what he does.

I'd line to see multiple guys attacking the rim Brew.  If our 3 ball isn't cooking we need to find a way to create offensive.  Jop is capable inside when he doesn't overdriibble or hold the rock. 

[tower912]

Like Stevie?  Like Chase?  Joplin gets complained about when he puts the ball on the floor.

[The Sultan]

That's a very small sample size.

Kam's 17 ppg last year are the most any player has ever averaged on a Shaka coached team. Kam will be relied upon to run the offense more this year. I'd expect his scoring to be about what it was last year, and would be shocked if he averaged 21 ppg.

I think Kam gets 20 ppg. He'll be on the floor more, with the ball in his hands more often.  Between TK and Oso, there are 20 shots per game leaving the team. I can easily see Kam getting at least four of those, and if he shoots at the same percentage as last year, that will get him to 20.

[The Sultan]

Like Stevie?  Like Chase?  Joplin gets complained about when he puts the ball on the floor.

I've watched Jop play for three years, and people keep saying that he should put the ball on the floor and drive past people, and he just can't do it consistently.  That's not going to change.  He is a shooter, who more often than not will just try to back people down.

[brewcity77]

I'd line to see multiple guys attacking the rim Brew.  If our 3 ball isn't cooking we need to find a way to create offensive.  Jop is capable inside when he doesn't overdriibble or hold the rock.

That's literally our offense. Rim and threes. But Kam will score at the rim by getting his shots to fall, not by going into contact and getting to the line.

Kam made 65.0% at the rim last year and 68.7% the year before. He's awesome at the rim. The reason for it is because of how well he avoids contact, not by finishing through it.

[Uncle Rico]

I've watched Jop play for three years, and people keep saying that he should put the ball on the floor and drive past people, and he just can't do it consistently.  That's not going to change.  He is a shooter, who more often than not will just try to back people down.

I'd like to see Jop take some 10' jump shots

[MuggsyB]

Like Stevie?  Like Chase?  Joplin gets complained about when he puts the ball on the floor.

Jop is fine when he goes 2 dribbles with force and no hesitation. He gets into trouble when he tries to be Carmelo Anthony and bounces it forever, which leads to kick aways and bad shots.  I'd like to see him catch it deeper and cut to the rim more. 

[MuggsyB]

That's literally our offense. Rim and threes. But Kam will score at the rim by getting his shots to fall, not by going into contact and getting to the line.

Kam made 65.0% at the rim last year and 68.7% the year before. He's awesome at the rim. The reason for it is because of how well he avoids contact, not by finishing through it.

What do you forsee with the freshmen Brew scoring wise? 

[Uncle Rico]

What do you forsee with the freshmen Brew scoring wise?

4.20

[PGsHeroes32]

Whoever goes medieval the least, has to be front runner to be lapped.

[Lennys Tap]

I've watched Jop play for three years, and people keep saying that he should put the ball on the floor and drive past people, and he just can't do it consistently.  That's not going to change.  He is a shooter, who more often than not will just try to back people down.

I don't recall anyone suggesting Joplin should put the ball on the floor and drive past people - but if they have they're dead wrong. He doesn't have the quickness to drive around or past people. I'm not even particularly fond of him backing his defender down - too many turnovers/missed shots. As you say, he's a shooter. Sometimes a great one. Let him be who he is.

[MUfan12]

He doesn't have the quickness to drive around or past people. I'm not even particularly fond of him backing his defender down - too many turnovers/missed shots. As you say, he's a shooter. Sometimes a great one. Let him be who he is.

Yup.

But the one thing I would add is he needs to be a more willing cutter. Teams will overplay him if he hits a couple threes. Some baseline cuts could get him some easy ones.

[Goose]

I believe that Jop had the ability to learn to be a great post up scorer, but too many bad habits to break. Hopefully he has a strong shooting year because it will be needed.

[Billy Hoyle]

This is not going to happen. Kam averaged 2 FTs per game last year and it's a feature, not a bug. The reason Kam is so good at the rim is because he's great at putting the proper weight on the ball and using the angles while avoiding contact. He doesn't go to the line because it's that aspect of his game that makes him so effective. He isn't going to start hunting contact because it will reduce his ability to score at the rim. We just need to accept that this is who Kam is and it's why he's so awesome at what he does.

In the game at X, where he played PG, he took 17 shots, 11 inside the arc, and only had 3 free throws. He averaged 1.5 free throws a game and only had more than 3 free throws attempted in a game six times (four attempts on three of those occasions), with a high of 7 at home against X and that was a game where he had 10 three-point attempts. You are right in that getting to the line just isn't a part of his game. His body control to avoid contact and yet still make shots is amazing.

That said, last year half of Kam's FG attempts were three pointers, and I could see that percentage coming down as he plays more point, as he attempted a smaller percentage threes when Kolek was out injured, which could mean getting to the line more often (Kolek averaged 3 FT attempts per game).

[PJDunn]

Every time Jop puts the ball on the floor I cringe...and usually for good reason. I like the idea of a 10' jump shot...

[MU82]

Yup.

But the one thing I would add is he needs to be a more willing cutter. Teams will overplay him if he hits a couple threes. Some baseline cuts could get him some easy ones.

Outstanding point.

[brewcity77]

What do you forsee with the freshmen Brew scoring wise?

It will depend on roles. If Owens is indeed the sixth man, I think 8-10 ppg is realistic.

My guess is Parham is 9th or 10th on the depth chart. If that's the case, minimal impact. Probably no more than 2-3 per game with quite a few DNPs.

[Goose]

I cannot wait to see Ben Gold this season. He might just have some new wrinkles to his game and surprise some people. He is 100% my X factor guy this year and think he comes up big. I will add, this post is not doubling down Ben simply for the sake double down. He might prove to be the most improved player over the summer.

[BM1090]

Yeah, Ben will figure it out. He's not been afraid of the moment in big games in his career. Hit big threes in all three BET games and the first two NCAA tournament games. He hit a 3 in both NCAAT games that broke a tie in a pretty big moment. To make it 58-55 with 11 minutes left against WKU after they'd tied it, and to make it 67-64 against CU with 8 minutes left.

He's got the shooting, I think we'll see more shot fakes this year. It was effective when he did it last year. He got into the lane and finished a few times at the end of the half against Creighton and against WKU. He also got into the lane and kicked it out to Jop for a three against WKU.

The positive plays are there. The skills are there. Game just needs to continue to slow down, and I think it will.

[Shooter McGavin]

I cannot wait to see Ben Gold this season. He might just have some new wrinkles to his game and surprise some people. He is 100% my X factor guy this year and think he comes up big. I will add, this post is not doubling down Ben simply for the sake double down. He might prove to be the most improved player over the summer.

You and I are on the same page with this.  I see this as the greatest unknown of the off-season with the greatest potential impact on the ceiling of this team.  Hope what you are hearing out of the Al is legitimate.