I spoke with Zenger a couple of months ago… just before our first game. I asked him what he thought of this team. He told me, “WE are excited! Devonte is an original. A unique player.” He gave me a bit of an odd expression. I think “WE” meant himself and Bill.
That short moment with Zenger has puzzled me all this time. I’ve been the guy who always felt like Devonte was capable of being everything Trae Young is showing the world now… but better. Experienced. I still think that. I remember when he stepped up in Norman against Buddy.
I still think Devonte has just one more thing to conquer; himself. He needs to find a way to stay focused during games… with the right kind of focus. It really is a mystery watching him play. He still is a streaky player. Hot and cold shooting… hot and cold in a leadership role.
Everyone loves Devonte. Players, fans, students. He’s extremely personable. He has that “people person” charm that can really help a team leader lead. I’ve come to not understand this part of what I am seeing, anymore than understanding Devonte’s streaky game.
I really thought he was going to bring us a refreshing look different from Frank. And we have seen some of that. But many of the leadership aspects I expected from him are still missing. I expected he would be the most vocal/animated leader we have ever had in the Self era. I felt like Zenger’s coded message to me was about Devonte being a great leader for this team.
This one area is the area that will turn this team around. Devonte is the key. For example… where was Vick in this last game? That should have been asked with 15 minutes left in the first half. And the one asking should have been Devonte. “Hey man… we need YOU! Come on!”
Someone needs to step up and rally our troops. Someone needs to bring them together when they aren’t playing like a team. Getting a couple more post players wasn’t the answer for this loss. Anyone believing that Silvio and Billy will be our big remedy will be in for a shock.
Our biggest weakness isn’t our post depth. Our biggest weakness is the ineffectiveness of our guard play. We can make any opposition’s offense look like Golden State! We aren’t controlling pace… nothing. You could see this last loss within the first 2 minutes of play.
Maybe our guys are handcuffed by their own thoughts… more… FEARS about losing the streak! Look back at that Texas game. The only reason we won was because we couldn’t miss from trey. To shoot that well from trey an eek out a victory should have been a sign. I feel bad for Self. He must feel stumped on how to get these guys motivated. Maybe the problem isn’t motivation. Maybe the problem is just an execution problem. From my experience, defensive softness is an attitude problem. You can’t just make players hungry. I think our guys feel like they are stuffed with steak and shrimp.
We need chemistry. We need synergy. We need life. We need optimism. We need hustle. We need team play. We need leadership.
I’m not giving up on these guys. At any moment in this season the light bulb might come on. And if it does… we are going to go on a streak!
