Open practice

[Vander Blue Man Group]

I think Oso is a bad comparison.  Didn't play freshman year but in his second year was a very adequate backup to Kur.  The talent and athleticism were apparent.  Then the following year he took off.    Apples to Oranges. 

I hope Clark has a year like Oso's third year in the program but I don't think that will happen. 

It wasn't remotely a direct comparison. He was simply stating that Clark still has an opportunity to become a productive player even thought his contributions have been minimal thus far.

[MU82]

What VBMG said. Shaka never even suggested that Clark could be the next Oso or that he was on the same developmental timeline as Oso was. Shaka simply used Oso as an example of a 5 who took time to develop.

[Scoop Snoop]

What VBMG said. Shaka never even suggested that Clark could be the next Oso or that he was on the same developmental timeline as Oso was. Shaka simply used Oso as an example of a 5 who took time to develop.

I remember posting about an impressive performance by Josh in one game last season and then you replied and agreed. It was not a lot of playing time or a typical performance, but he had one really nice game. And THEN...the sh!t hit the fan. One scooper in particular simply was not having it. We were pretty much accused of saying that Clark was a really good player.

Wash, rinse, repeat. Once again, a scooper is insisting upon twisting a comment about Clark to fit his personal opinion.

[muwarrior69]

To be fair, 40 years ago there weren't any 'nice' bars, either.  But they were ours and we loved them.

I remember the Avalanche and then my favorite was Calahans. It was on the corner of 15th and Clybourn just south of the Weir Life Science Building. It was actually nice inside. On St. Patrick's day they had nickle beer and your date went free.

[JoanofArcMascot]

Starters:  Nigel, Stevens, Owens/Minnesale, Royce, Fru

Rotation: Minnesale/Owens, Phillips, Hamilton, Johnston

Not sure yet: Clark, Egbuonu

Deep Bench: Miletic, Walker

Based on watching them play today and how the coaches rotated them through the scrimmages today.

Clark played more minutes than Hamilton and was far better. Not sure how anyone could watch that and put Hamilton ahead of Clark.

[Jay Bee]

Clark played more minutes than Hamilton and was far better. Not sure how anyone could watch that and put Hamilton ahead of Clark.

Remember who the HC is.

[Vander Blue Man Group]

What VBMG said. Shaka never even suggested that Clark could be the next Oso or that he was on the same developmental timeline as Oso was. Shaka simply used Oso as an example of a 5 who took time to develop.

Easy to complain when you don't actually listen to what he said.

[Shooter McGavin]

I remember posting about an impressive performance by Josh in one game last season and then you replied and agreed. It was not a lot of playing time or a typical performance, but he had one really nice game. And THEN...the sh!t hit the fan. One scooper in particular simply was not having it. We were pretty much accused of saying that Clark was a really good player.

Wash, rinse, repeat. Once again, a scooper is insisting upon twisting a comment about Clark to fit his personal opinion.

Ha!  Not sure it's like that at all.  Hope Clark develops (as all players do to some degree) into an impact player.  The point is it seems a little over the top to mention Oso who was, at baseline, way more talented than him. Clark showed flashes (small e in epiphany) last year of filling a role that can be very valuable.  Rebounder, rim protector and dunker.  Hope he does really well.  If you look at your and 82s posts about him last year I likely agreed with you.

[pbiflyer]

[Scoop Snoop]

Ha!  Not sure it's like that at all.  Hope Clark develops (as all players do to some degree) into an impact player.  The point is it seems a little over the top to mention Oso who was, at baseline, way more talented than him. Clark showed flashes (small e in epiphany) last year of filling a role that can be very valuable.  Rebounder, rim protector and dunker.  Hope he does really well.  If you look at your and 82s posts about him last year I likely agreed with you.

Fair enough. Where we differ is in the comparison to Oso. I think the point was it was simply that bigs typically take a while. And Shaka in "happy talk" mode in a presser is exactly where he should be after the first public scrimmage of the year. We both hope Clark "does well".

I would like to see Josh develop to the point where he earns the slot to be Fru's backup rather than (oh, I better not mention his name as it will trigger JayBee) . Josh has a long way to go.  Imagine an opponent enroute to the basket colliding with him, especially if he adds 25 more pounds. What's not to like? 

 

[BM1090]

I think Oso is a bad comparison.  Didn't play freshman year but in his second year was a very adequate backup to Kur.  The talent and athleticism were apparent.  Then the following year he took off.    Apples to Oranges. 

I hope Clark has a year like Oso's third year in the program but I don't think that will happen. 

I'd love Clark to have a year like Oso's 2nd year in the program. If he could average 3-4 points efficiently over 10 MPG that'd be a win and give me hope he'd double that as  Jr and be a legitimate starter candidate as a Sr

[Shooter McGavin]

Agreed it would be nice.  If he is truly lagging only one year behind Oso's productivity  (year 3 Clark vs year 2 Oso) but continues that trajectory it will be a huge bonus. 

[Spaniel with a Short Tail]

The lack of bars on campus is sad but I know that's what the university wants

#BringBackAngeBloWs

[Vander Blue Man Group]

Ha!  Not sure it's like that at all.  Hope Clark develops (as all players do to some degree) into an impact player.  The point is it seems a little over the top to mention Oso who was, at baseline, way more talented than him. Clark showed flashes (small e in epiphany) last year of filling a role that can be very valuable.  Rebounder, rim protector and dunker.  Hope he does really well.  If you look at your and 82s posts about him last year I likely agreed with you.

You're still not getting it.

[onepost]

Hey fellas, and chick if she's still on the board. I went up for practice last week in Mequon (Al court was sweating) and sent my thoughts to a couple people. Wasn't worth starting my own thread (s/o Muggsy) but worth it to add here.

- Nigel is such a stud. Has gotten stronger, always making great reads, didn't see many 3's but hopefully that becomes more consistent to go with his rim finishes.
- The Nigel-Fru connection could be fantastic. Lobs, PNR, post feeds. Fru is really quiet and a bit passive though and I'm sure that's personality/newness to team, but Shaka really pushed for him to speak up and be heard. Fantastic hands, good defense.
- Adrien and Nolan look like the next-in-line ball handlers. Adrien and Royce clearly the 2nd/3rd steady hands that will be consistent for us.
- I'll be curious who stands up to be our vocal leaders. With Kolek, Oso, Kam, Stevie I took for granted having incredible leaders at the top. We saw how much that screwed us last year with Chase and Ben being total duds on that front. Nice guys, awful leaders. Shaka was constantly pushing for vocal leadership. Nigel and Royce looked like and should be the logical choices to keep guys in line. Caedin is a total zero BUT...he does bring energy and hype and on a team of young-to-passive leaders, I do think it's important for this group. Sad as that is.
- Egbuonu really struggled, he was terrible. Looked too heavy and way too slow. No confidence that day. Shaka laid into him ad nauseum. To be expected but I was as unimpressed as I could be which is a shame. He'll get much better, sounds like the scrimmage was an improvement.
- If Ethan Johnston can get some consistency with his offense and shot, he could be VERY interesting. He's so long and athletic, he was in passing lanes and making defensive stops left and right. Was disruptive with Nigel on multiple occasions. We all know that's the first indicator to be PT ready. Really encouraging.
- Damarius and (less so) Ian are the wildcards for me. DO keeps making strides, hopefully he makes that jump as our go-to 6th/7th man. But I thought the back half of last season was that springboard and he kinda plateaued. Ian is no doubt the best non-Phillips shooter on the team, would love for him to show flashes, but sounded like the scrimmage was meh.
- Michael Phillips stood out as my most impressive player today. By far. Shot is pure as ever, but he's put on a LOT of muscle. And his athleticism can be jaw dropping too, ala Jamal Cain. He JAMMED on Adrien (?) and soared for a block on Ian where he actually landed very scarily. Head at the rim. Got up and kept pushing. I'm so glad Mark Miller and others felt the same.
- If he can improve his handles and gain confidence going to the rim, he could be really REALLY good. My most exciting development at practice.
- Minessale I didn't get a real read on. Looks like he can be a Tyler Lockett 2.0 as more of a ball handler and is just a solid rotation piece every good team needs.
- Josh Clark will look absolutely pathetic one possession, then look like an NBA talent the next. Shaka even made a comment like "that face you make when I get on you for getting boxed out by CB (GA Cam Brown) is why you're not good". Hatt was on him hard. But he responded and had some nice moments.
- Crowdis looks like a walk-on to me. Basically Fran Fraschila's "he's 2 years away from being 2 years away". If he ever plays here I'd be stunned.
- Nash I hear all these things about from people on the board but haven't seen anything from the guy. Didn't do anything the day I was there.
- Shaka was as fiery and animated as I've ever seen him. Getting on guys constantly, hammering mistakes, lighting people up, but still showing the love and support we all know during good plays. Any thoughts the guy is checked out (a valid concern last season) are just flat out wrong.
- Hope to make it up for another practice this summer.