The 5 spot
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@drgnslayr said in The 5 spot:
Great post… hope it works out that way!
I get revved with this idea… Clem offers so many assets, including passing, and his footwork outside of the low post is like nothing we have ever had from a big. Put this guy on the perimeter and we have a lot less fouls called on us because Clem is skilled at setting a screen.
Imagine his potential for pick and pop, pick and roll?
He’s also a solid passer who can easily pass over defenses into the post for darting guys.
To really take advantage of Clem we will need to commit early to having him be our guy. There is pluses and negatives… the plus is we can have other traditional bigs back him up who run traditional offense and then we have two very different offensive approaches we can run at teams and they have to practice against this before facing us. The neg is we have to work hard to get proficient at both.
What do you mean by “his footwork outside of the low post is like nothing we have ever had from a big?”
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He recruited Zach knowing this about him already. Going to take time but I think he gets there
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@Kcmatt7 said in The 5 spot:
What do you mean by “his footwork outside of the low post is like nothing we have ever had from a big?”
Clem is nimble with his feet. For example, when he sets a pick he can position his feet the right way to prevent a lot of offensive fouls. He can also know how to set a better screen by being in the exact spot that will best slow down the defender’s path.
Sounds like a little thing, but it ends up counting big!
Think back on all the offensive fouls that were called on guys like Big Dave. He either arrives late or his position is ripe for drawing the call.
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@drgnslayr I wouldn’t say he’s doing things we’ve never seen before on the perimeter. Zach is pretty cinderblock footed in my opinion. Reminds me a lot of Carlton Bragg the way he moves to be honest…
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The only thing Zach has shown to be elite at so far is shooting. He could possibly be the best shooting big man we’ve ever seen under Self. Stroke is absolutely pure. I assume he probably has good BBIQ as well.
But he is physically weak in the post. He also appears to be pretty vertically challenged based on everything I’ve seen. Even his HS tape shows this. He’s not going to set better screens than probably any of the other bigs (all of whom are bigger in stature). He isn’t going to be a better rim protector than anyone but maybe Cam.
Now, if Zach can always be in the right spot and do the little things, he probably is the best option. Having a potential lineup where all 5 guys can hit it from deep is tough af to defend. Might force teams to play smaller, in which case Zach at 6’10 can go post guys up for easier buckets. The ideal situation is Zach taking a big step forward and owning the position.
I’m just not sure that Self is willing to concede some easy buckets when he has a 7’2 wingspan and two other freak athletes on the bench he can put in that spot.
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We’ll have to agree to disagree on that one.
I compare how he moves his feet to how Dave moved his feet and I see a huge difference.
I agree he needs more strength and think that is what works against him stealing all the 5 minutes. Probably not a great leaper. If he moves his feet well that can make up for a lot. Positioning and being a quick leaper can do that.
To be honest… we all need to see him play more to assess him and he might be better this year if he spent his summer wisely building his strength.
I met him a few months ago… he’s got some size. His height is real and isn’t as thin as I previously thought.
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@drgnslayr I can definitely agree we need to see more. I can imagine Bill knows what he is going to do already, but he is pushing some buttons here at the end of the preseason to see what else he can milk out of these guys. The master of pushing buttons. Easy to forget that he benched Dave midseason and started KJ for a hot second to prove his point.
I certainly hope Zach comes out and proves me wrong. Because a starting lineup with a good Zach, Dick and Wilson is a great shooting lineup that would keep opposing coaches up at night.
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I totally agree… would be great to see Zach earn the spot!
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The one thing the dump downs to the post did was draw the defense inside, which led to open perimeter shots. And Bill misses that. I think I will, too. But I keep thinking what MCCullars will do down low w/o a center to harrass him, and MJ … MJ is the premiere on the block guy we have. And Jalen will run past any ( hyperventilation moment- I should say almost any ) 4 in the country to the rim. Hell, set Clemence up at half court, and let our other players slice and dice.
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@Jethro You saw Bill post up both Och and CB last year.
I would expect to see him expand that part of the playbook. Wilson, KJ, Dick, MJ and McCullar all of the size to abuse smaller guards. Just watch Bill do something disgusting like invert the high-low offense and have bigs feeding lob passes over the top to guards for 20 points a game. Would be too funny to watch honestly. And it’d probably work amazingly well.
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@drgnslayr said in The 5 spot:
We’ll have to agree to disagree on that one.
I compare how he moves his feet to how Dave moved his feet and I see a huge difference.
I agree he needs more strength and think that is what works against him stealing all the 5 minutes. Probably not a great leaper. If he moves his feet well that can make up for a lot. Positioning and being a quick leaper can do that.
To be honest… we all need to see him play more to assess him and he might be better this year if he spent his summer wisely building his strength.
I met him a few months ago… he’s got some size. His height is real and isn’t as thin as I previously thought.
Plus, He’s the only KU player who has ever tweeted me back…ever. That counts for something right there.
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McCullar should be a beast in the low post!
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@drgnslayr I can already picture the old man game down there ha.
My first thought was honestly Jalen Brunson absolutely dominating dudes down there with just an old school post up game. I could see McCullar doing this for sure.
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How about our Big 12 very own Niang? 6’8" and body. I loved watching that guy play! He schooled everyone… both outside and inside!
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Cam hurt, will be out a few weeks.
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Sounds like a little thing, but it ends up counting bi Think back on all the offensive fouls that were called on guys like Big Dave. He either arrives late or his position is ripe for drawing the call.
Yay, a grammar police moment.
I believe you mean “rife for drawing the call.”
also, your post is right on.
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Sounds odd. Might be a couple of weeks or might be surgery.
“the Jayhawks welcomed a group of ladies back into the Fieldhouse in person for a behind-the-scenes look at everything that goes into the program. That included a tour of the facilities, including the KU locker room”
I read this and thought the worst. Then it mentioned players’ moms.
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Hearings: would expect KJ to start at this spot against Pitt St. Will update if something changes.
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Sounds about right.
Grady, too?
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After last night I thought the position was Udeh’s to lose in the long run. I think KJ will play a ton there early. But Udeh and Zuby will slowly chip away at his minutes as the season goes on.
Here are some notes I took rewatching the game this morning:
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Udeh - got the start. He was out of position on ball screens twice his first run. Was a little lost on offense (but so was everyone). Clearly the other starters were not comfortable playing with him yet. 2nd run - GREAT defensive effort on the first possession. Basically cause the TO (and almost a shot clock violation). He isn’t posting up at all on O. Not sure if that is by design. I think he must just feel more comfortable on pick and roll lobs. I do think he is a shit rebounder for his size so far. Back in with the starters for his 3rd run - REALLY good help on ball screen action forces a DEEP 3 by Pitt. Then catches the lob the next possession. Next possession another really good help on a ball screen. Then misses the lob. Next possession Udeh gets away with a block, but no call. Ends up a layup from the chaos. Next defensive possession Udeh causes the turnover with a tipped pass that leads to THE OFF THE BACKBOARD LOB. Then KJ throws an idiotic lob and Udeh gets a little banged up.
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KJ got the start at the 4. Which was interesting. His confidence to launch a 3 early tells me we may see a few more of those… Not sure if that is good or bad. Nothing special though his first time on the floor. First run with KJ at the 5 - The switch everything defense caused some confusion between Joe/Jalen/KJ and we give up a wide-open 3. The next possession it works and forces a shot clock violation… Then a turnover the next… The next half court possession ANOTHER turnover. AND THEN ANOTHER TURNOVER WHERE ADAMS GETS AN AND-1. Now a tie-up (KJ had nothing to do with this). Halftime over and KJ get the start at the 5 again. Dumb turnover, stripped by a guard at the high post. But then sets the screen to get Dick open for 3. Forces a bad shot at the rim which gets us a bucket at the other end. Makes a good hustle shot contention in the corner the next play. Next offensive possession he makes a brilliant under the basket skip pass to Wilson in the corner for 3.
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Zach first run - didn’t set any really good screens. Did nothing on O. And gave up two layups I don’t think any of the other big men give up… Offers literally no rim protection. 2nd time out: Good little hook in the paint. 8:13 mark Zach comes over to help on a backside block and might as well not even try. Guy goes over him no problem. Zach in for his 3rd run now. With an awful lineup (wtf Bill). Zach for the 2nd time has the ball on the block and doesn’t realize he is sort of open. Makes a bad pass. Zach a few possessions later gives up on a rotation and guy drills a 3. Zach gets a steal here and it leads to him getting a nice bucket off of a nice pump fake. Very next possession he falls over on D (trips himself) and we give up a 3. Next D possession Zach overhelps on D and can’t close quick enough on his own man we give up a 3. Zach back in with 3 minutes left. Two big look with Zuby. Zach drills a corner 3 (man that stroke is pure).
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Zuby - He looks better on this first run than I remembered last night. But didn’t do anything special. He does take up a lot of room and set some screens. Him and Yes had a bad defensive ball screen action. Gave up the 3 that let Pitt go up 20-6. I though Joe should have gone over the screen, so not sure it was Zuby’s fault. Zuby’s 2nd run - set the screen to get Dick loose for his first 3. He did get abused on a possession. Needs to be tougher for a guy who is 250 lbs… Then got scored over pretty easily. Then he leaves his feet to try and block a 3 and lets his man draw a foul at the basket. Zuby back in for his final run. Posts up his man and makes a very award attempt at a basket, but misses. Gets his own rebound though and scores. Zuby gets a nice poke on a ball that leads to a fast break foul. Next defensive possession he gets a nice help side block. Tip in by Zuby off a missed shot. Zuby with another lob catch for a bucket.
So here is a power ranking of bigs after last night:
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KJ - I love this team playing small and fast. Because we aren’t small. This team is HUGE outside of Harris at PG. KJ lets us play some intense D. It makes sense to see 4 guards and KJ for a good 10-15 mpg where we just pump up the pace of play as fast as we can.
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Udeh - I thought he did the best job of the other bigs defending ball screens after his 1st run. Got his hands on the ball some. Clearly the guys feel like they can just throw the ball at he rim and he’ll go get it. I was disappointed by his rebounding. And I was surprised we didn’t post him up at all. But I like how active he was and I like his ability to defend a lot.
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Zuby - By far the best of the bigs at setting screens and rebounding. He did both of those really well last night (in comparison to the others). He looked raw, but that’s okay. I thought he defended okay and did provide some good rim protection. Overall, I liked what I saw and he easily could have been 2 over Udeh.
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Zach - I do think he is the savviest of the bigs. He’s in the right spot quite a bit. And that shot is something else. But otherwise he is a piss poor rim defender, average rebounder and slow footed in comparison to the others. He is the anti-Bill Self big. A guy who could be force fed for 15ppg at another program. But the truth is I’m just not convinced that he is a P5 big man… And I’m not sure he ever plays more than 15 mpg here ever with his athletic/defensive limitations.
Overall, I wasn’t disappointed by the bigs last night. I thought it was weird how we didn’t post them up very much (maybe that is telling). I continue to believe that while it is the position with the most minutes up for grabs, it isn’t going to kill us. I will say last night did make me appreciate Dave a bit… Hopefully Zuby and Udeh can progress quite a bit over the next 3 months though. I think they will. And what right now may look like a weak spot could turn into a strength. A 1-2 punch of Udeh and Zuby with the ability to go full Golden State Warriors if we need to in KJ.
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Perhaps Self was saving parts of the offense from getting scouted. One reason I can think of them avoiding the post ups. Or the offense is so vanilla right now because of the lack of experience they are running it certain way until there’s more practice and game reps. It is weird but there has to be good reason for it
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@Kcmatt7 Oddly Zach was the ONLY big who posted up and scored last night. And there was evidence last season he could post up and score as well. So, he seems like the perfect modern big to me. Assuming he proves he can shoot of course, which he hasn’t yet in a game. He even proved he’s mobile. He took it to the rack from the foul line and scored!
I say Zach will prove very valuable over time.
As for us morphing into the Golden State Warriors…can’t do that without 4.5 shooters on the floor. We ain’t got the ponies for that. Best we can hope is that Self makes these guys dribble drive like Dotson did. I think the odds of us turning into a good driving team are higher than us turning into a good shooting team, outside of Gradey of course.
Just keep those bigs rotating …
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It was such a “newbie” game. Wow! All those first half nerves were hilarious. I’m almost positive a junior high school team would have taken an early lead on us.
The competition at the 5 will continue. None really grabbed me enough to give a thumbs up. I did notice how they were all trying to keep up with the speed of the offense.
What sticks out in this game is Self’s desire to run!
All of our 5 candidates are going to have to realize they can’t be “ball and chains” out there… slowing down our team pace. From what I saw, KJ holds the lead with speed!
VIEWS OF THE GAME:
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Gradey stuck out to me! Wow! That kid has an amazing shot! Great verticality, great form, super quick release… I can’t think of anyone we’ve ever had that had a stroke that clean as a freshman! He’s going to take some lumps this year, but he is going to get plenty of PT and will be making some amazing plays!
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McCullar is the real deal! 5 steals… and almost another 5 steals. When he is out there it seems like we have 6 defenders! He was the guy that flipped our lousy slow start into a big win! He started the charge on defense then others sped up and played better defense, too! If I was to give out a game ball for this game it would go to McCullar!
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JWil showing more scoring aggression. Many times last year he had the rock and was driving and pulled out… now he tries to finish more. It’s a good sign and I expect him to average some big numbers this year!
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Bobby has to stay healthy! His scrap should earn him plenty of minutes! His game is still untapped and he can be huge for us this year if he stays healthy and builds off his PT.
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Dajuan played it right! Only 6 points but 10 assists! How many games will we lose this year if he puts up 10 assists?
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Rebounds are in question! No one got more than 4 rebounds. I get it… this year will be a “team rebound” theme. I’m okay with that but hey, we only had one more rebound than Pitt State! It’s hard to send everyone to the boards on defense if we plan to be a fast break team! ANSWER: We need a big that will dominate the boards!
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@drgnslayr said in The 5 spot:
It was such a “newbie” game. Wow! All those first half nerves were hilarious. I’m almost positive a junior high school team would have taken an early lead on us.
The competition at the 5 will continue. None really grabbed me enough to give a thumbs up. I did notice how they were all trying to keep up with the speed of the offense.
What sticks out in this game is Self’s desire to run!
All of our 5 candidates are going to have to realize they can’t be “ball and chains” out there… slowing down our team pace. From what I saw, KJ holds the lead with speed!
VIEWS OF THE GAME:
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Gradey stuck out to me! Wow! That kid has an amazing shot! Great verticality, great form, super quick release… I can’t think of anyone we’ve ever had that had a stroke that clean as a freshman! He’s going to take some lumps this year, but he is going to get plenty of PT and will be making some amazing plays!
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McCullar is the real deal! 5 steals… and almost another 5 steals. When he is out there it seems like we have 6 defenders! He was the guy that flipped our lousy slow start into a big win! He started the charge on defense then others sped up and played better defense, too! If I was to give out a game ball for this game it would go to McCullar!
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JWil showing more scoring aggression. Many times last year he had the rock and was driving and pulled out… now he tries to finish more. It’s a good sign and I expect him to average some big numbers this year!
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Bobby has to stay healthy! His scrap should earn him plenty of minutes! His game is still untapped and he can be huge for us this year if he stays healthy and builds off his PT.
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Dajuan played it right! Only 6 points but 10 assists! How many games will we lose this year if he puts up 10 assists?
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Rebounds are in question! No one got more than 4 rebounds. I get it… this year will be a “team rebound” theme. I’m okay with that but hey, we only had one more rebound than Pitt State! It’s hard to send everyone to the boards on defense if we plan to be a fast break team! ANSWER: We need a big that will dominate the boards!
Your spot on about Grady , and that’s what we as fans have to keep in mind.- Like you say Grady gonna take some lumps -so later this year he hits a wall - gotta remember he is a Freshman , with a showing like he put out last night isn’t going to help him any as far as fans expectations go lol - -he is human - -just got to be there to support him not get down on him - - and it will happen. Other teams start keying on him if he keeps showing like he did. - Spot on guy
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I didn’t get to watch last night’s game, but I do have some thoughts on the bigs rotation.
This is a bit of a mess (if you can call anything on a national championship contender a mess) because KU does not have a single big man that can truly do all of the different things you want out of a big man. They don’t have a lob catcher/rebounder/post up threat/ stretch shooter/ rim protector/ PnR defender in a single package.
KJ can catch lobs and defend the PnR, but his rim protection will be at issue with bigger players, and his rebounding will be roughly average. He can’t post up against bigger guys and his shooting remains to be seen, though I am probably higher on his shot potential than most. So out of those six things, KJ can probably do 2 well, 2 okay, and 2 poorly. Zach can shoot, but can’t protect the rim, guard the PnR or catch lobs. So he can do three things (post, stretch and rebound), but really can’t do the other three (protect the rim, PnR, lobs).
You can combine Zach and KJ in the lineup and that gives you 5 of the 6, but you still lack rim protection. Zuby or Udeh could protect the rim, and both look to be okay on PnR (though they are freshmen, so they will struggle against more advanced PnR players), but neither is as good a shooter as either KJ or Zach. I don’t think either is a real post threat at this moment, so basically you just get lobs with them. And while Zuby is a good rebounder, I worry about Udeh’s hands in the rebounding game. And Cam, while a good shooter and adept offensive player, is likely not a P5 level defender. He can get spot minutes for his offense, but against teams with good bigs, he will be a liability.
And with the talent KU has on the perimeter, I don’t know how much you can legitimately play 2 bigs without compromising having your best 5 on the floor. Wilson, Dick, Harris and McCullar are going to play big minutes. Rice is super talented, but may not have a spot right now. Either Yesufu or Pettiford is going to get squeezed on minutes as the season continues, especially if the big rotation remains this crowded.
KU has a lot of questions to answer over the next three weeks because the rotation is crowded and there are things that different guys do really well, but also things that they don’t do as well.
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@justanotherfan I’d settle for average rebounding from KJ I fear it will be much worse. Early on at least he is going to get more minutes than most fans would probably like.
I suspect Dajuan/Kevin/Jalen are all 30+ minute guys. Maybe Gradey gets there too but I think 25+ at a minimum. I think Bobby is the clear back-up PG and I see him getting steady minutes as long as he is healthy. When Joe was in there he was playing off the ball exclusively from what I remember. I hope MJ can prove good enough to grab those minutes because Joe showed me what he did last year which is that he isn’t very good. I do feel confident that those 4 are the top 4 though, and that we see 2/3 of the other three round out of “small” rotation. As for the two bigs that separate, I truly have no idea at this point.
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@BShark wasn’t it Zach, 2x, that lacked total court awareness? Easy buckets! I think that’s what coach was so po’d about.
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I’m in favor of really looking to the future with Udeh. Get him time. They all were clogging the middle, hoping the screening gets better! Getting the ball side to side a few times like self and Juan said after game instead of Wilson shooting so quick at the beginning, which he said too. Pretty green. It’ll be fun to watch them mature!
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@Crimsonorblue22 said in The 5 spot:
I’m in favor of really looking to the future with Udeh. Get him time. They all were clogging the middle, hoping the screening gets better! Getting the ball side to side a few times like self and Juan said after game instead of Wilson shooting so quick at the beginning, which he said too. Pretty green. It’ll be fun to watch them mature!
Not much else to do with that starting 5 out there but have Wilson try to chuck. Certainly can’t get anything out of a structured offense when you are playing Dajuan (non-scorer period don’t care what Bill lied about), KJ (non-existant on offense period far less value than Harris) and Udeh (a lob/rebound only guy at this point who also isn’t good setting screens yet). Would imagine (hope) we never see that exact 5 again. Gradey should start.
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@BShark didn’t gradey start 2nd half? Wilson shot us out at the beginning, to quick. Guess we have to disagree. Glad we started pressing. Won’t be that easy from now on. Bet we work on screens but not much time before mon. Let’s hope roberts can get them to start better.
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@Crimsonorblue22 said in The 5 spot:
@BShark didn’t gradey start 2nd half? Wilson shot us out at the beginning, to quick. Guess we have to disagree. Glad we started pressing. Won’t be that easy from now on. Bet we work on screens but not much time before mon. Let’s hope roberts can get them to start better.
I’m talking about the start of the game when we played like complete crap.
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We have two choices in the post:
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Go small
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Go big
Zach is big… just thin. I consider him “going small.” So we have KJ and Zach on the “going small” side. Also… we have potential to stick someone like McCullar in the low post. Maybe sometimes even someone like JWil.
Zuby and Udeh have size and are players who will eventually develop into traditional bigs… back to the basket scoring, rebounding, and low post defense.
Question is… how many teams will we play that have a real low post threat? I’ll tell you… not many! The biggest issue (and need) we have with a big is offering rebounding. We need rebounds to get out and run! If we could have a big capable of pulling double-figure rebounds… this contest would probably be over. Low post scoring is pretty basic. Not too hard to have your back at the basket and shoot a mini hook. Glad more people are now appreciating what Big Dave had to offer. He had great low post scoring %.
Right now… I like the idea that we play games with some minutes small, some big. We adjust as the game goes along with what works best.
Starters… I don’t always put faith in the +/- stat… but checkout this game. It is glaring… Harris, Wilson, McCullar, Adams, Dick… and then Bobby… Very telling.
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@Crimsonorblue22 said in The 5 spot:
@BShark didn’t gradey start 2nd half? Wilson shot us out at the beginning, to quick. Guess we have to disagree. Glad we started pressing. Won’t be that easy from now on. Bet we work on screens but not much time before mon. Let’s hope roberts can get them to start better.
I agree early in the game Jalen was pressing. - -I think maybe his thought process was early when we fell behind like 21-6 - -he has in his head that this was one of those times this year where he thought he needed to step up and provide leadership role - - kinda try and put the team on his back, IF that was his thinking I can understand , yet I think he came down and took like possibly 5 straight shots- -and forced shots at that.
He was actually hurting us more then helping at that stage of the game. - -I think Jalen wants to be the leader for the team this Season - which is not a bad thing but just has to realize when to temper things a bit
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@jayballer67 It’s in large part because we only had two guys in that starting line-up even interested in/capable of scoring much. It was not a good/sustainable line-up at all. Doubt we see it again.
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I think Udeh wins the 5 mystery. I hope he gets 20+ min from here on out.
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@BShark said in The 5 spot:
@jayballer67 It’s in large part because we only had two guys in that starting line-up even interested in/capable of scoring much. It was not a good/sustainable line-up at all. Doubt we see it again.
very true & hopefully not
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@drgnslayr saw lots of excitement in your post and i concur. We have a wealth of talent! Sky is the limit!
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@BShark The starting lineup was Bill’s defensive dream and we got down 15 to a D2 school
The lineup only works if Juan looks to score. I won’t say Bill lied but all we’ve heard is talk about Juan taking a huge step offensively to lead the team. He doesn’t drive (reason he shoots such few free throws) and if he can’t knock down a three he’s offensively just a hockey assist guy.
Juan can’t score, kj can’t score, udeh can’t score so it leaves Wilson and McCullar to chuck and they were off to start. Pair that with atrocious defense and you get down quick.
Juan not even looking to score and Joe being atrocious were the two biggest takeaways from that game to me.
Grady, Wilson and McCullars gotta score 15-20 a piece to carry us offensively.
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@drgnslayr to name a few post threats
Duke - 7-1’ Lively Tenn - 7-1 (don’t know his name) Indiana - 6-9 trace Jackson Kentucky - Oscar Baylor - has 3-4 6-8 to 7’ athletic bigs
Pretty much any team you’d have to beat to win a natty
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@kuballin10 Yeah I agree with this completely that line-up simply can not score. Gradey needs to start going forward. You can’t have 3 non-offensive players in the game at once and 2 is pushing it.
I am hoping MJ proves good enough to take those minutes from Joe who was playing back-up off ball roles. Bobby is clearly the back-up guard and he looked really nice. He just needs to look to score more and he can be a great player. I don’t think it’s outside his dna like Dajuan I think it boils down to what the staff asks him to do.
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I was surprised by how small Udeh is. Zuby is the only big that physically looks the part. Clemence can stretch the floor. KJ is a tweener with unreal energy. I’m curious to see how this plays out.
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@dylans Udeh looked like a very large man live.
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anyone know if we’ve pressed that much in a preseason game before? Was it just a result of being way down or an actual glimpse at a possible strategy this year? Normally the bill self full court defense is just straight man to man pick up your guy on the inbounds but I saw Juan and jalen working traps and trying to really disrupt, leaving a ball hawk like McCullar to get in passing lanes. Will be interesting to see if self pulls that out again or goes back to his normal stuff.
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@Kcmatt7 Not sure if that’s a rebuttal or just you dropping that you went to the game. Either way - I had never seen him until the game. I was expecting a large bruiser McCormack type, not a Darren Hancock 6’6” post type. That’s all not disparaging the guy.
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@benshawks08 said in The 5 spot:
anyone know if we’ve pressed that much in a preseason game before? Was it just a result of being way down or an actual glimpse at a possible strategy this year? Normally the bill self full court defense is just straight man to man pick up your guy on the inbounds but I saw Juan and jalen working traps and trying to really disrupt, leaving a ball hawk like McCullar to get in passing lanes. Will be interesting to see if self pulls that out again or goes back to his normal stuff.
Yup, that was seemingly new territory for Self. Pressing really hasn’t been part of his strategy over the years. If i were to guess i’d say he dabbles in pressing a bit more this year, given our potential scoring issues. He likely wants to create his “havoc” and some turnovers for easier buckets.
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@dylans said in The 5 spot:
@Kcmatt7 Not sure if that’s a rebuttal or just you dropping that you went to the game. Either way - I had never seen him until the game. I was expecting a large bruiser McCormack type, not a Darren Hancock 6’6” post type. That’s all not disparaging the guy.
Hmm, not sure we were looking at the same guy. Seemed pretty big to me. For sure not a Hancock 6-6 type to my old eyeballs. Not well defined and muscular yet. true.
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@rockchalkjayhawk short. I meant he is short. I was expecting more of a true 5. Just had the wrong expectations, that’s all. He’s not skinny or weak. Not super explosive like Hancock - bad example. Doesn’t have t-Rex arms. First impression after the recruiting hype - He just appears shorter than I expected for a “bruising” post. Not a true 5 type. It’s might be better or worse depending on matchup.
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@Kcmatt7 yeah he’s tall and lanky maybe that’s what the other poster meant (he looked skinny but said small). He’s a legit 6-10/6-11 guy I think
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@rockchalkjayhawk this year he will do it more than any year however, his talk down in Houston he explained his philosophy, “no easy baskets ever”.
He thus hates pressing because if beaten correctly a press often ends in a layup or dunk and isn’t worth the risk compared to potentially getting a steal.
I agree with him here but in todays game you gotta defend the three point line and not just the rim
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I need to watch more apparently. Just saw about half of the first half. Udeh is 6’10”? but I thought he looked 6’6” maybe I had him confused with another player. Lots of new faces.
