Doke



  • @jayballer73

    I know we often forget that players have nothing to come back to school for but Doke could certainly come back and graduate and have a chance to end his Jawhawk career on a high note as so many others have done in the past. Right now it looks messy but leaving KU with a degree wouldn’t be the worst thing for someone who came to this country to improve his quality of life.



  • @jayballer73 - if (IF!) Doke could get his free throw rate up significantly to say 75-80%, I’d have to think he’s a good NBA backup player. Even our beloved Embiid isn’t hanging around the 3 point line now but is playing more inside. I’d think he could find a niche to fill there, even if he doesn’t go in the first two rounds. And I think he’d kill it overseas somewhere.



  • @BeddieKU23 That is my feelings exactly. If he continues to be this injury prone, a diploma would be worth a lot. Plus he could continue to be a part of the team, which he seems to enjoy. Even if it would be in a backup role, I would welcome him back. Can not have enough bigs, which we are finding out. A roster of Doke, DMac, and Mitch, would still be extremely thin, unless we can sign another power guy.

    We need Dedric to come back and/or get Hurt on the roster, which I am not expecting.



  • @Texas-Hawk-10 I like the Dotson/Garrett in idea, but in reality, that’s just it. Dotson is more of a threat and keeps the D guessing. You put Garrett out there and the D will simply pack in the lane daring Garrett to shoot.

    I would have his butt in the gym shooting 50 arc shots a day. He needs to hit a minimum of 20/50 or better before he leaves. I would add Vick and Grimes to that shoot around too.



  • @Big-Clyde52 handlers



  • @Big-Clyde52 Crystal Ball has Hurt at 70% lean toward KU. The rest are in single digits.

    https://247sports.com/Recruitment/Matthew-Hurt-90273/RecruitInterests/

    Jerry Meyer 247Sports Director of Basketball Scouting 98 / 123 (79.67%) 880 / 1184 (74.32%) KAN 2/7/18 12:44 PM

    Andrew Slater The Devils Den 82 / 101 (81.19%) 622 / 820 (75.85%) KAN 6/6/18 1:27

    Evan Daniels 247Sports Director of Basketball Recruiting 85 / 88 (96.59%) 158 / 167 (94.61%) ?



  • truehawk93 said:

    @Big-Clyde52 Crystal Ball has Hurt at 70% lean toward KU. The rest are in single digits.

    That’s more a product of Hurt’s recruitment being something he hasn’t taken seriously until recently. We might have landed him if he announced during the summer. A lot has changed since then though.

    Follow the visits- Kentucky, UNC. KU supposedly in February according to his last update. KU recently watched him play so they are still pursuing. If he officials we must knock it out of the park on/off the court with him.



  • @BeddieKU23 I’m aware of UNC and UK. I really appreciate Ol’ Roy respecting our recruiting. UNC and Roy have come on strong, but I think Self had Hurt on the U17 team. He knows Self and it’s an advantage over the other coaches. I feel good about Hurt knowing Self and not taking Cal and Williams’ word for it either. They can’t pull any recruiting stunts against KU.



  • @truehawk93 That has probably already been done. And 50 is not near enough. Supposedly they worked on that all summer, but it sure does not show any good results.



  • @BShark Crimson is just feeling blue right now. She’ll be back.



  • @Big-Clyde52 Evan Daniel will be a huge indicator when he makes his prediction. But Meyer has predicted most all of KU’s recruits. if Daniel predicts Hurt to KU, count it.



  • Big Clyde52 said:

    @BeddieKU23 That is my feelings exactly. If he continues to be this injury prone, a diploma would be worth a lot. Plus he could continue to be a part of the team, which he seems to enjoy. Even if it would be in a backup role, I would welcome him back. Can not have enough bigs, which we are finding out. A roster of Doke, DMac, and Mitch, would still be extremely thin, unless we can sign another power guy.

    We need Dedric to come back and/or get Hurt on the roster, which I am not expecting.

    A few things to add. If Doke returns and recovers from this injury he’d be Option #1 in the offense unless something crazy happened next season. He was option #1 this season when healthy so I would expect he’d start and be a focal point of the offense once again.

    The injury certainly puts a cloud on his career here. He missed most his freshman year, he was healthy for most of his Soph year then wasn’t 100% to end it, and now he’s going to miss the bulk of his Jr year. Each season he has single handily changed the direction of KU’s season. So if he returns will he get hurt again, that’s the risk I guess and I get the concern of having him on the squad and wondering will he ever play a full season?



  • @truehawk93 I sure am hoping. We need some good news to bring everyone out of this funk we are in. Also hoping McBride, Braun, and Ochai, can push everyone next year, and be better shooters. Will not be any help this year however.



  • @Big-Clyde52 Now I wonder if Ochai stayed instead of RS, what if? Oh well, no sense second guessing. We could sure use some firepower.



  • truehawk93 said:

    @BeddieKU23 I’m aware of UNC and UK. I really appreciate Ol’ Roy respecting our recruiting. UNC and Roy have come on strong, but I think Self had Hurt on the U17 team. He knows Self and it’s an advantage over the other coaches. I feel good about Hurt knowing Self and not taking Cal and Williams’ word for it either. They can’t pull any recruiting stunts against KU.

    I’m glad your feeling optimistic about Hurt. I hope we land him and I hope we sit in a better place then it looks currently. Who knows how much the trial will have an effect on his recruitment. Most ran from KU after which is no surprise. I don’t think we’ll know one way or the other until after the season with him though is my guess.



  • Self and Ochai/parents have talked about removing his red-shirt since Doke’s injury news. Can’t see it happening though since he’s been out with a stress fracture injury. He isn’t exactly ready to contribute



  • @BeddieKU23 Yes. Especially since KU was NOT on trial. The judge even made it clear. But people can’t get that out of their head. Now many believe KU is guilty. Most do not even know the judge said ADIDAS was trial, not players or even programs. Emmerts even said NO program will be punished.

    I don’t get it at all. I have more objectives based on facts but little time to type. If we are innocent, why doesn’t Self play SDS. He obviously knows something or believes something about SDS’s case and is choosing not to play him. Puke is sure gambling with Williamson. I hope the FBI has all kinds of trash on Puke right now.



  • He also said in order for them to burn his RS they would have to make it worth his while. So the fact that they are talking about it makes me think the stress fracture wouldn’t be a issue.



  • @BeddieKU23 That is why I hope DMac will make huge strides the rest of this season and surpass Doke to be the starter. Still would like him for a backup if he can stay healthy. He really needs to graduate because of his health concerns. Does anyone really believe he can stay injury free in the NBA or overseas? I guess we need to weigh the good or bad of him taking up a scholly. Like I said, at this time our roster looks awfully thin next year. We need bodies.



  • @BeddieKU23 Removing? What’s the rule on conference play and redshirting? It’s so many games into conference play? 2-3 games?



  • @truehawk93

    If Ochai enters a game his red-shirt is gone. Unlike Football where you’re allowed up to 4 games of play now.



  • @Big-Clyde52

    I think we’re about to find out how much Dave can help us going forward. No question his role just expanded as much as Self will allow it. I think the expectation was Doke was going to leave after this year and Dave got a year to be groomed by a Veteran (Doke) so he’d be prepared to take over next season. We’ve seen flashes from Dave and he doesn’t lack in effort or size so I’m optimistic he’s got enough time now to carve a role with this team. He’s got a lot of pressure now to produce because Dedric can’t do it alone in the post and KU doesn’t have the personnel to lean on a 4 guard lineup. Dave could literally be the key to the season.



  • For an athlete to receive a standard redshirt, the NCAA requires that player not be involved in any competition for the year he is redshirted. Any amount of competition time, even 1 minute on a basketball court during a regular season game, for example, counts as a season of eligibility.

    Redshirted athletes are allowed to travel, practice and even dress for competition for their team during their redshirt season, but the minute they step on the playing field, they lose their redshirt status and use a season of eligibility.

    I think he needs to play. He would give us another gun. I haven’t heard much of his shooting. He’s been hurt too?



  • @BeddieKU23 Totally agree. He will have around 20 or so games to prove his worth. Hopefully he can make similar improvement to what SDS did when he got his shot.



  • If Ochai can step on the court any game, let’s see how we develop with Big Mac. Let’s see how the shooting improves. Self loves that minimal rotation of 7-8 players. My guess is we will see a lot of small ball and Lightfoot gets some Doke mins. I don’t see Self changing much. Lightfoot will give us FTs. He is capable of keeping the defense honest too.

    Dotson/Garrett

    Grimes

    Vick

    DLaw/KJ

    Meeotch/Big Mac/DLaw



  • Just go 4 guards and a tight rotation at this point. Grimes, Garrett, Dotson and Vick all for 40 minutes a game. Dedric for 30. Big Dave for 10. Moore if someone has foul trouble.



  • If ochai can shoot and his leg is healed, rip that sucker off. I think he can dunk too.



  • Ochai is a 6’5” guard, recovering from a stress fracture. I’m not thinking he will be much help.

    Doke should at least be able to help coach Big Dave. That’s something…



  • @HighEliteMajor Optimism is good! So, to set a good example, perhaps we could change that one negative sounding word in your 3rd paragraph so it reads “unless we lose in the tournament,” yes?



  • @mayjay Works for me …



  • How old is Doke? That guardian or handler will have to help him. He’s awfully young!



  • 5th year Ochai is more valuable than freshman Ochai will be. This team needs to figure its own problems out. There is no savior in waiting.



  • Gorilla72 said:

    Ochai is a 6’5” guard, recovering from a stress fracture. I’m not thinking he will be much help.

    Doke should at least be able to help coach Big Dave. That’s something…

    Read the article on Ochai - -and I think this might actually happen , and at this point I think it could very well happen.

    From what I remember Ochai - is 100 % all in for KU - -seems like I remember on some kind of situation he stated he was more then willing to do what he could do to help the team. - -I think he would give up his red shirt if asked. - - I also think his parents will back him 100 % - I think they totally love the school also.

    Coach Self said they were for sure thinking about it , BUT hadn’t made a decision - but reading between the lines - -I think I get that feel that this is going to happen - at this point I’m all in - I think he can help = =might work as they are talking about going that 4 guard lineup again - here is hoping. - -ROCK CHALK AL DAY LONG BABY



  • I don’t think the RS gets taken off Ochai but I could be wrong. He’s probably better than KJ right now and can shoot but…as Bill said playing in a game is totally different.

    I am very intrigued to see how the team comes out against TCU.



  • @BShark I agree. The good news is we get TCU at home and then @ Baylor who is not very good. Hopefully they can find something and build on it in the coming games. Jan 19 @ WVU and then the return game with Iowa St on the 21st loom large.



  • truehawk93 said:

    @Texas-Hawk-10 I like the Dotson/Garrett in idea, but in reality, that’s just it. Dotson is more of a threat and keeps the D guessing. You put Garrett out there and the D will simply pack in the lane daring Garrett to shoot.

    I would have his butt in the gym shooting 50 arc shots a day. He needs to hit a minimum of 20/50 or better before he leaves. I would add Vick and Grimes to that shoot around too.

    The defense wouldn’t be able to pack the paint like that with Dotson and Vick on the wings. Dotson is going to be a very good 3 point shooter, but he’s not where he do what Mason or Graham did to create their own shots. Dotson needs to be set right now. Defenses that pack the paint with Vick and Dotson would regret that decision because Garrett with the ball would create more space on the perimeter for our only good shooters to operate and get off open looks.

    If defenses still pack the paint, Garrett can drive for a layup, he can make those, or a kick out to open Vick or Dotson or a lob to Dedric for an easy basket.



  • @Crimsonorblue22 He is only 19.



  • Well Coach kind of hinted he thought Doke might be back next year - -but really can’t say - -the sports talk show here in Topeka today thought he will come back. - I’m not thinking so - I mean I guess there is always a chance.

    A lot of what they are basing things on is - -that he will miss the NBA camp they have where they watch potential players – -the combine that what it is - - he will miss that this year - -I just don’t see where he is going to improver enough to come back for that Senior year - -could be wrong – kind of mixed feelings would love to have him back - but yet in a way might hurt our recruitment in bigs for next year if he comes back - - ROCK CHALK ALL DAY LONG BABY



  • @jayballer73 probably doesn’t want to risk getting hurt again. His handlers/babysitters will move him down the road.



  • It seems that short of individual team workouts, pro scouts have only last years combine and this years play upon which to base their draft position. If he goes pro, it will be Europe or D League. I can see him coming back to prove he can play a year without injury AND get a degree. We shall see before long. He may declare soon…



  • Hardships can often help a team reach to a higher place… like 2012.

    I’m not losing sleep over this team. I feel horrible for Doke. He has such a great spirit of competitiveness. His future is really up in the air. But we will see how this team responds. I like our guys and we have an outstanding young PG.

    All we can do is take each game, one at a time.

    Move forward. Conquer… and be KU!



  • Crimsonorblue22 said:

    @jayballer73 probably doesn’t want to risk getting hurt again. His handlers/babysitters will move him down the road.

    ya that’s what I am thinking - - -because of how injury prone he has been probably thinking that he better move on and try to avoid yet - -ANOTHER injury where it quite possibly cause him to never get any money - -I just don’t think he will be back - -yet never say never. – ROCK CHALK ALL DAY LONG BABY



  • Doke is still 19 years old so a year isn’t going to effect him. Just look at the latest mock draft, Doke is younger then half of the projected first round picks and he’s a Junior.

    If he’s going to miss all the pre-draft festivities then what choice does he really have. 1 year away from a degree and being in a position to better himself no matter what his basketball career has in fold for him. I wonder where his mind will be in regards to this whole thing. He can come back and be a Senior Leader and get treated like royalty or he can try his luck professionally. If he wants the NBA proving he can stay healthy for a year could do wonders but after this injury there will be concerns with him going forward. His body might not be able to handle the rigors and grind of this game. We’ll see. I hope if he comes back Hawks fans welcome him



  • Let DM be the guy who is told to go out and concentrate in accomplishing two tasks - rebound the ball and set good screens. Tell him not to worry about scoring. Let his confidence build up and eventually scoring will come.



  • @AsadZ

    I think he can do both of those things well. He does have some offensive skill that we’ll see as he gets more comfortable. There’s no way to expect he can match Doke’s production but I’m hopeful he can help this team going forward. I’m sure his mindset is going to change now that expectations will be placed on him to produce. Silvio did well last season when called upon. I’m hopeful Mitch and Dave can do the same now



  • The best thing KU can do for McCormack is to not post him up. He’s decent in the post, but not so good that KU should be force feeding him the ball in there.

    Better to make him a PnR man. That’s his role at the next level anyway, so it benefits both KU now (by avoiding having him trying to navigate the post in trying to force feed him the ball to score) and McCormack later (by helping him refine a skillset coveted at the next level). That’s a win win scenario.



  • @justanotherfan Couldn’t agree more. He never looks to kick the ball back out, and forces every it every single time when he gets the ball in the post.



  • @Woodrow Interesting … So does/did Doke. Doke is/was a black hole. Now, Doke could usually get the ball in the hoop.



  • @HighEliteMajor When you shoot 75% from the field its OK to be a black hole.



  • @Woodrow he had good hands, just bad wrists


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