Who will be this year's DSC?
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In the oad era, there is a new designated role: the DSC aka the designated shit can-ee, aka the guy who ceases to be worth developing with PT, because he is never going to beat out anyone and so likely will transfer. AWIII got this role last year. The DSC is usually praised sometime prior to the first regular season game, as someone that will contribute only to motivate a player that will be developed with PT. So: who wi it be this season and might there be more than one?
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It seems like Self and staff are working harder in recruiting now than in any other year. We are on every big recruit’s list, and we’ve pursued most of them.
Hard to believe we are doing that just to fill one spot. But can we count on Kelly and Cliff going OAD? And if they do… think we are stopping at 3 new recruits coming in?
I’m kind of thinking we might create one or two DSC’s this year. But who would that be? What if all the guys are happy, even if they don’t get much PT?
Kind of seems like Greene was a guy last year that could have been unhappy with his PT… but he seems pretty happy right now. Someone on this talented team is not going to get the minutes they think they should (or would get somewhere else).
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The DSC’s are Self and Manning and I highly doubt either will transfer… I believe for a change that our bench could make the NCAA tournament this year. They might be a 14 seed or something like that but they would make it for sure. The next six weeks our team will be allowed up to 30 practices/exhibition games (against each other). HCBS has said that until now he has not been able to have 5v5 practice. Freshmen teamed up with Mickelson because none of them have suited up for KU against the rest of the team. Mason, Selden, Greene, Ellis, Lucas vs Graham, Oubre, Svi, Mickelson, Alexander? Who wins?
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@Statmachine Traylor!!!
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@Crimsonorblue22 Ok I would have used Traylor until HCBS said Lucas and Alexander are in a dog fight for major minutes! Alexander also said Lucas was stronger than he was.
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@jaybate-1.0 I’m going to say, minus abbreviations, that Hunter and Conner will not be happy w/pt. I hope I’m wrong, a little concerned about Greene too. Jmo!
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Me thinks it is fluid who the DSC will be.
Here are some analyses of a few guys.
Devonte: I think he is getting the treatment Frank Mason got last season. I believe this is how Self has decide to handle any freshman he knows aren’t good enough to start most of the season. He pumps them up pre season. He says they are going to be hard to keep out of the rotation and are going to vie for starting. He says this stuff at this time and then later says it does not matter who starts, but who finishes, which is a massive load of perfumed dung. It matters who starts because it usually determines who gets the most minutes and who is part of the rotation when Self shortens the rotation to seven or eight. Any way, all the talk of Devonte starting is a smoke screen to get opposing coaches thinking they are preparing for a guy they have never seen, Devonte may even be given a few starts against XTreme Cupcakes to prove to him that he is not ready to make the easy plays, as super cocky Frank Mason was sucked into realizing. The objective is to let the newcomer’s own failures temper his high school cockiness and make him accept whatever role Self decides to spoon feed him afterwards. This also lights a fire under the returning guys to come out blazing, plus keeps their new moves and new tendencies off the game tapes the opposing coaches will be studying a few games. Then boom, Self springs the real starter on the truly tough D1 team. If the first team we play is a really tough team, Mason, or Conner get the start, then Devonte gets the cupcake starts to prove to him that he’s not ready to make the easy plays. Self is a master deflator of egos. He lets to newbie deflate his own ego. Devonte is an experimental aircraft that a conservative defense contractor rushed in as a replacement for a model that malfunctioned the last couple of years and the Pentagon sent back. Once in a great while and experimental aircraft is so good that you can print some stars and a USA on it and go kill bogeys in it. The F14 was like that from the beginning. But the F-111, the first swing wing was never ready even after it was fully developed. You can’t rule out the possibility that Self is telling the truth about Devonte, but you can say it would be improbable and that Self has a whole lot of incentive to use him as a smoke screen to buy this team without a rim protector a few edges.
Frank: Frank gets his shot at being the team’s PG against the first really tough team KU plays. This is not intended to deflate Mason again. It is intended to find out if has improved enough and has the right stuff to stay on the floor with some great players? He doesn’t have to win the match up, but he has to prove that he has enough skill and moxie not to get run off the floor and to make most of the easy plays. If he holds his own, then he is worth developing for a full season for March. If not, then he’s a backup, and maybe not even a first backup. He gets two early quality starts, maybe 3 to make his case. Screw up those three starts and he won’t see daylight till next season and might get run depending on who far Svi comes in his stead this season, and on what the recruiting cat drags in. Frank is who Self wants to play the PG, but Frank is kind of like an F-35–operates at the limit with lots of bugs. The first generation didn’t really justify the investment. This year is his second generation. He doesn’t have to be perfect, but he has to become a usable combat aircraft through 35-40 regime change games.
Conner: in the midst of the manipulations of Devonte and testing of Frank, Self knows as usual that Conner can do what he can do and did last season late, when he finally got healthy and got a look. Conner is an A-10 Warthog, slow, steady, ground support with the ability to loiter into position , take a lot of hits without coming apart, and carries a GAU-8 automatic cannon from 3, that still needs some practice to site accurately.
Oubre: starts because OADs start and Self rarely lies about defense.
Greene: Anyone Self says has to learn how to go after every ball is not starting material. Period.
Alexander: went after every ball in high school and will start if he does so, and if Hunter can’t cut it doing the block and alter chores for Self also, but not if not, and not if Hunter can B&A. Self is leaving a crack in the door for Alexander to sit, because Alexander is totally not ready to start, just as TRob was not, but he doubts that Landen or Hunter are going to be better in March that a learn by fire Alexander for a long season. In short, Self wants to start Alexander to keep the OAD valve wide open, but isn’t sure he can stomach the learning curve and is shaping the battle field to now have to by: a.) comparing Alexander to TRob to help ease the blow to Alexander at not starting; and b.) recruiting some more bigs should Alexander get his nose bent out of shape sitting.
Hunter: My guess here is that Self is so sure he is going to have to start Hunter Mickelson and need to rely on him in the early big games to keep KU from getting blown out inside, that Hunter is experiencing something kind of unprecedented in Self’s tenure. Self is putting Hunter in the toughening box BEFORE late night. Hunter’s family jewels are being put in a vice that is in turn being placed in a pressure cooker on high. My guess is that Hunter is not sleeping well right now. My guess is that Hunter will not know which end is up until after the second exhibition game. My guess is that Hunter is going to experience a level of needling and yelling and hounding that unlike anything anyone has received since Self realized he had to relie on Kevin Young. Self loves blocking and altering the way George Patton loved tanks. Next to the spectacle of blocking and altering, all other forms of human endeavor in basketball shrink to insignificance. And Hunter is Self’s only chance at B&A. And that means Hunter is Self’s only chance at staying on the floor with UK and its fleet of footers. John Wooden proved you only need one rim protector and a high mobility attack to neutralize teams that come at you with a bunch of tall trees, but, really, you’ve got to have one. And he doesn’t have to be Lew Alcindor, or Bill Walton. He can be Steve Patterson. Yes, Self will go small if he has to at the 5, if Hunter vaporizes. But if Hunter stands up to what is being done to him mercilessly before the season’s first real game, the Self is set for the season. He can juggle everything else and make it work. Hunter is WWII aircraft carrier USS Lexington. He is an old battle cruiser converted to an attack aircraft carrier.
Landon Lucas: If Hunter plays, Lucas plays; that’s my hunch. If Hunter establishes that KU can play with a rim protector Self is sand-bagging about by saying they don’t have, then Lucas is the logical guy to sustain the standing height at the 5. I say he plays and releases Alexander to invest fully in learning the 4 to become a high draft choice as a TAD.
Perry: The Designer gets to swing 3/4, when Alexander plays 4, Perry moves to 3, and Oubre/Greene slide to 2 and Selden goes to 1.
Selden: Wayne is the streaky load that will post up 2s and 1s inside. Self said he doesn’t care if Wayne only shoots 35% from trey, because one infers Wayne is going to be a kind of heavily armored and armed attack helicopter that is going to show up every where unexpectedly. This tells me that his explosiveness in no-step vertical jump is gone, but that he still can get up on the run, or in a back to the basket pivot. Without the no step vertical, his trifectation is never going to be 40%. But his strength and size and mobility is going to make him a kind of Aaron Aflfalo in crimson and blue. Basically, Self is going to move Selden to whatever position the other team uses a short perimeter player at. He could show up anywhere from 1 to 4, when some team tries to use four guards and center.
Given the crystal ball gazing above, any one or two of Conner, Hunter, Landen and Greene could go DSC.
Self has made it plain: no rouge smoking jackets. Its produce or disappear.
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P.S.: Jam Tray is the wild card. Jam Tray is the energy bringer. Jam Tray is the guy that can make a press effective. And Jam Tray is the guy Self is most invested in emotionally. Jam Tray is the Brady Morningstar of this team. Jam Tray is going to play a lot of minutes, because a lot of guys are going to fold under the pressure, or not be able to make the easy plays, or not be able to guard hard and explode out of position to make plays, or not be able to help. Jam Tray has learned to do too many things too well to keep him off the floor. Self is conspicuously not talking in specifics about him. We can infer he is going to start out as the bringer of energy at 5 minutes, but at which position is not yet clear. It depends which position needs the most energy brought to it. But anyone that lets down a beat, Self is going to give their minutes to Jam Tray. Jam Tray will find 20mpg in scraps and pieces over time, as the newbies slowly hit their freshman ceilings.
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@jaybate-1.0 My guess is Bill “Spilotro” Self finally figured out he had a couple of pusses last year & is letting them all know that none will be tolerated or babied this go round. jMO
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@globaljaybird
LOL!
Self did look really hard and bitter, didn’t he. He was not even letting quite a few of the reporters finish their questions before jumping into answer. He has had his manhood questioned by we fans the same way he has questioned other’s manhood, and he didn’t like it.
Time for Self to wear a Borsalino with his wide pin stripe suit.
Go, Bill, go!!!
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@jaybate-1.0 love Mari! Can’t stand bm. Mari completely different player, far more energy and passion! Big motor!!!
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@globaljaybird
Let’s start calling Self “The Crimson Ant.”
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That may be the way you see him, and you are not wrong in your description, but to go with @globaljaybird 's Tony the Ant analogy, Bill “The Crimson Ant” Self likes one soldier that is loyal only to him; that will do ANYTHING he asks him to do; that will get it done cleanly and without complaints; that doesn’t make excuses; that has a cold hear about his work; that was Brady; and that is Jamari. The Jam Tray just passes a different kind of eye test.
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@jaybate-1.0 said “Hunter: My guess here is that Self is so sure he is going to have to start Hunter Mickelson and need to rely on him in the early big games to keep KU from getting blown out inside”.
Bingo!!! I have said all along he was either starting or first off the bench. He is going to HAVE to play in the UK game PERIOD. If he does well he is safe, if not we are in bad shape. He would be a senior this year if he didn’t have to sit! He was in the ESPN top 100 coming out of hs with 3 years under his belt! He is going to play!
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@jaybate-1.0 and @Statmachine Bingo!!! with you guys all the way on the bigs.
JB with you on all the masking and diversion techniques. I believe Self when he says that he doesn’t really know yet what the lineups will be until he sees them in practice. But the groupings that he predicts for himself are being kept close to his vest. This is still a young team and I think he is giving them a chance to fly under radar, get some live fire thrown at them without being schemed against by opposing coaches. There are some soph. and Jrs. waiting to cross the channel while some freshman are inflating tanks on the other side of the island.
Are far as the DSC goes, a couple thoughts. One I don’t think we sign PG next year. All the guards we seem to be in on are SG types. PG’s are thin next year, which I believe IMO, was why we saw the full court press for Graham. So faced with the fact that we have what we have at pg for the next two seasons, Self needs to keep the rust knocked off all of them for injury insurance. Second thought is that we are loaded at the SF position and we seem to be in on some of those type guys for next year. I worry for Greene. Granted I haven’t followed recruiting much so I could be wrong about a lot of this. If we land a high ranked pg for 2016, then one of our pgs it’s safe.
This PG thing is so intriguing! After watching the player interviews, a couple thing stood out to me. One, Frank referred to the team as “my team”. Maybe some politicking on his end, showing confidence, taking ownership, etc… But very positive! Conner seems pretty comfortable talking about lineups and playing with other players. Graham didn’t get many of those kind of questions. When coupled with the comments from Self about playing two ball handlers a lot and about taking away some of Franks aggressiveness, it made me think of this in a different way. When Frank is out there alone, scoring will be done by others with him setting them up. When Frank is out there with one of the other PG’s, then Frank is to stop thinking and be a major scoring option. The other guards job is to be a safety release for Frank incase of trouble and be enough of a threat to keep a defender occupied and out of the play.
I don’t know, just a thought. I could be way off!
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One thing is as sure as Ray Charles having Georgia on his mind: Brannen Greene is not going gently into that DSC night.
Brannen had a wild hair. Wild hairs are a no-no with Self. Travis Releford had a wild hair. But Self believed in him. And broke him down until Travis the freshman people thought would start wound up having to give up his high school game as a glamour two, take three years of retrofitting, and play two years as old man’s game 3. I am not sure Brannen Greene can learn an old man’s game 3. I always knew Travis could learn it, it was just a matter of when he was willing to do it. Greene I am not sure can convert to the old man game. But clearly, Self is signaling that the only way Greene is going to become a starter, or even a big minute rotation guy is if he commits to being a lock down, old man 3, and he’s got to do it without a red shirt, if we are to believe Self, which I do not.
I believe there will be a red shirt. I believe it will be Brannen. I believe Self has decided that Brannen is going to become an exceptionally tall version of Travis Releford and Brandon Rush, or he’s a transfer.
I believe Brannen will get the lock down religion and decide to take a red shirt, bulk up, and become indispensable to Self the following season.
Note: I realize I am ice skating on frozen cellophane with some of these forecasts, but Self is basically inviting everyone to crab a thin limb and let him cut it off with whatever he eventually decides on. So: I’m willing to play along.
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@jaybate-1.0 Yep! same conclusion I had earlier in the week. Self saying no redshirts threw me, but what you say makes sense. Either buy in and take a red shirt, or save that year for a transfer AWIII style. I guess it’s up to him.
That tree has to be getting weak with all of us hanging onto thin limbs!
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Let’s not forget that BamBam was half of the “Bruise Brothers” last year.
Why wouldn’t we find an energy connection this year running BamBam with Cliff?
Those guys should form a high-energy, muscle-bound synergistic force in the post. It shouldn’t matter how tall our competition is. These guys should rule the paint.
Think real estate and think about two bruisers who should be able to own real estate with their thighs and butts.
Refs are still stuck on last year… they are looking to call fouls with the hands and arms. The Bruise Brothers should use their thighs and butts and force the competition to use their hands and arms to fight for position. Advantage: Bruise Brothers. And they should be drawing a lot of fouls!
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@drgnslayr There are just so many ways to spec this team. Yours accounts for refs and so makes the most sense. I will back off my takes and go with yours.
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@jaybate-1.0 All I have is salt-will that suffice?
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@jaybate-1.0 Great summary … really was. Of course, I have a couple comments – you said Jamari Traylor is this team’s Brady Morningstar. I choked a bit there. But your logic as to why is impeccably correct. And I remain flummoxed (good word, huh?) by the belief that Perry will flex to the 3 at times. Do you really, really think that Perry will do that, with all of our perimeter players, and when Marcus never really did? If that happened, and I don’t think it will except in some fluky 2 minute stretch with foul trouble, it would more likely be like Mason, Graham, Ellis, Traylor, Alexander. Your scenario has Greene or Oubre at the 2 and presumably Lucas or Mickelson at the 5. Taht would be big, lumbering, team.
Holy crap … if we wanted to play big … and if Selden could dribble … Selden, Oubre, Ellis, Alexander, Traylor. But back to reality.
What extended situation, meaning type of game, could possibly lead Self to play Ellis at the 3? I just don’t see any benefit.
Another thing, reading your post above – I caught “jewels are being put in a vice” and “Patton” in the same glance. Patton kind of spoke like his jewels were in a vice. Not a George C. Scott-like tone, for sure.
Is this guy a bad ass or what?
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@drgnslayr Actually, I think Traylor-Alexander is the type of grouping in the post you could see quite a bit. Assuming Alexander is what we think he is, that is some high-level srappin’. And as we’ve discussed, Ellis’ defense cost him some pine time in favor of Traylor last season. I expect that this season, too.
I think there are only three guys that we can say that we know their ultimate roles “for sure” – Ellis, Selden, and Traylor (as the first big off the bench). Or at least high probability.
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@HighEliteMajor and if Selden disappears, we have guys to replace him too.
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@HighEliteMajor I am still scratching me head that you don’t think Mickelson will start or be first big off the bench. HCBS said Mickelson will not beat out Ellis for minutes and he needs to play bigger if he wants to play. Implying that he needs to play the 5 or ride the pine. HCBS knows what motivates each player and I think he was doing so on media day. HCBS and KU NEEDS a shot blocker or rim protector and he stressed that on media day. He also said that Mickelson blocked more shots than Joel last year during his sophomore year. I completely believe that Mickelson will get the 3rd most minutes out of the bigs after Alexander and Ellis.
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@Statmachine didn’t Self say something to the effect that Hunter needs to improve in a lot of areas if he wants minutes? As far as comparing blocks, Embiid didn’t have many games or minutes last year.
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@Statmachine Based on Selfs comments, Ellis is the top post guy. Self said pretty clearly in the press conference that Mickelson was a “prototypical four”, and that he was a “face-up” guy. Many of the thoughts on Mickelson playing was that he was a Center/5. Self also mentioned that with Ellis, he needed more of a post guy and rebounder when commenting about Mickelson. Seemed clear that he didn’t like the idea of Ellis and Mickelson together.And as @Crimsonorblue22 said, Self said that Mickelson will need to play bigger than he is, and that he’d have to do some more things to “compete” for playing time.
Would be curious as to your interpretation of Self’s comments from the press conference on Mickelson.
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@HighEliteMajor hem, if you had to pick a starting 5 defensive team, who’d you pick? I’m guessing, Mason, Selden, oubre, Svi and Mari? Pressing 5, maybe?
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I mostly agree with what you wrote. As you know, I have been saying all along that Mickelson might open at center, even when his natural position is PF (as per HCBS), but being the tallest player he gets the position by default. It is difficult to draw any conclusions form a press conference before practice starts since most of the coach-talk is speculation and you have to read deep between the lines to get even bits of factual information.
This what Coach Self said about Mickelson:
"The reality is, Hunter, with his skill set, will probably have to do some more things in order to see playing time just because of what our needs are based on our other personnel."
And this is what he said about Lucas:
"Landen may have had the best spring and summer of anybody. He’s had a good fall, too. He’s going to play. He’s fighting for major minutes. He and Cliff are probably right now based on what I’ve seen going to head-to-head for a lot of major minutes."
After watching Coach Self presser, it sounds like Lucas might be further along and might get more minutes… I still think tat Mickelson is the more logical candidate but I am not privy as to what has transpired over the Summer and how far along in their development the players are; however, based on the comment above, a reasobale person would have to give the edge to Lucas.
As far as Ellis playing the 3, I can see why that could happen. While Perry fits best as a 4 in the KU team, any chance he has of playing in the NBA will likely be as 3 and not as 4. I can see where Coach Self might allow him to play the 3 or maybe a stretch 4 where he can show his longer distance shooting skills. Interesting comment by Alexander when asked about Ellis, he indicated that he tries to guard him on the perimeter but Perry is much faster than he is; I am not sure if this indicates that Perry has increased his speed over the Summer, Alexander is slow or more likely a combination of both. If Perry has indeed improved his speed and outside shooting, I can see him playing a hybrid 3-4 combination.
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@HighEliteMajor My assessment is more of an assessment of our roster. Which one of our guys on this years roster is listed as a 5? How many guys are big enough to play the 5? Who else has a history of being a terrific shot blocker? HCBS is going to be forced into using him because of his height and skill set. We have tons of scoring options but who else is taller and known for blocking shots? We have seen what a good rim protector does to the confidence of guards that like to drive the lane. We need his skill set on the court more than anyone thinks. I could be wrong but I bet he plays more than some of you might think.
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@Statmachine if he’s the man, I’d be thrilled! I’d rather go small and have Mari and Cliff in there, BUT thankfully I’m not the coach!
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None of the players on the official roster are listed as centers, even Mickelson is listed as Forward. However, much like in the NBA, in college the line between Centers and Power Forwards is blurry and more and more is interchangeable. Players that you would think are centers such as Ibaka, Duncan Griffin are all in reality power forwards. As Coach Self indicated, Mickelson is a power forward but will be playing more of a center, although it is really a “distinction without a difference.”
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On another note, listened to ljw guys on the road. They ask nick Krug which jhawk stood out on the bb media day shoot, and he said Kelly and devonte. Great kids and were engaging, not just get it done attitudes.
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What? No votes for Brady Morningstar?
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Yeah, its all speculation at this point. But, thats what makes it fun! This team has a lot of unknowns, even with all the guys that were here last year. A few things are set in stone. This team is loaded, more so than last year. I like Self’s remark about how this team reminds him of 08. I can see that, but at the same time its not entirely accurate. The 2008 team was a battle tested hungry wolf pack. In 2007 they would have gone further if not for UCLA beating them in the elite 8. That motivated them, made them mad, and we all know what happened next. Both 07 and 08 teams excelled on defense. Last year plainly sucked at defense. Even with JoJo being the stud shot blocker and Wiggs being our best perimeter D guy. Will this team be better at defense than last year? Most certainly. But, will it be top 5 rated defense? I think boot camp plus a couple days with the Marines putting the hurt on the team will do wonders for their toughness and molding into a defensive wolf pack. We also know the offense will be spread around a lot more with this team. Nobody will break Wiggs freshmen scoring record for the foreseeable future, or single game scoring record. But, who ever the starting 5 are, they could very well each average double figures, not unlike the 08 team.
I have a good feeling about Oubre and Selden on the wings this season. I also have a good feeling about Frank Mason, I think he can give us a presence like Sherron did in his sophomore season. Im calling him Sherron 2.0. If Coach is saying Greene still needs to buy in on D, then he probably does. Conner is going to light it up from trey this season. The lid will finally come off. With all the praise Coach has given Devonte’ I just don’t buy a freshmen PG starter. I am impressed that he got top honors from the Marines though.
Traylor and Alexander are The Bruise Brothers 2.0 Perry will see his share of playing time but if he doesnt improve on D this year, I bet he gets to ride the pine a little bit more. Lucas seems to be ready to have a break out year and I hope Mickelson gets his chance to shine too. Like I said, this team is deeeeep. Coach could easily have 2 five man teams this year. We all know that wont happen.
If Greene cannot show he can defend, I agree he may get the DSC role. If Mickelson cannot play outside his comfort zone, he may get one too. KU vs UK will be a very very tough game for us to win. But I hope we do.
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@JayHawkFanToo I agree with your PF vs. C distinction … that it is blurred. But there are some guys, of course, that have the look of true centers, like Embiid, Withey, Aldrich, and don’t look at all like power forwards.
You mentioned that Mickelson is “power forward but will be playing more of a center …”
The importance in the power forward distinction I think is really what coach Self thinks. It certainly sounded like Self does not think Ellis on the court with Mickelson will work. He took particular time to mention the need for things Mickelson apparently doesn’t do in reference to what he needs on the court with Ellis.
He also mentioned specifically the idea that Mickelson is the “prototypical four”, and a face up guy. That, to me, removes him from the possible blurry middle.
This makes sense then. Self thinks Ellis is better with a buy who is more of a true post player. A post presence. That doesn’t mean that player has to be a center. It’s just the style of play.
So could Mickelson work with Alexander, Traylor, or Lucas? Sounds like he could.
Of course, Mickelson’s a decent shot blocker. But that fact alone doesn’t mean he has any propensity to be a rim protector. There are different types of shot blocking. The “I can block you when you start to shoot” shot blocking (Kirk Hinrich was very good at this); the “I can swoop in and block your shot from another spot” shot blocking (Traylor does this well); and the “You drive into the lane, and I’ll block your shot” shot blocking (like Embiid and Withey) – this last one is the rim protecting element of shot blocking.
I am betting that Mickelson’s shot blocking isn’t near 1/2 “rim protector.” Just a hunch. Meaning, I don’t think we’ll see him in a rim protecting role anymore than we would otherwise see Traylor, Lucas, and Alexander.
Because Self raised the issue of Mickelson not being suited to play with Ellis, and Ellis is likely our biggest minutes guy in the post, by consequence, it sounds reasonable to think that Mickelson might not be a significant minutes guy. Couple that with Self’s comments about Mickelson’s “skill set” and needing to do more to see “playing time”, well, I think it will be interesting.
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I like your idea of redshirting Brannen. That makes sense. We have too much talent around the positions he should play, and he’s a guy that another year of pure development could turn his game from being a marginal contributor to a major contributor.
We should be willing to invest in Brannen. He is a guy that is worth focusing on. He is a guy worth keeping around an extra year. He is a guy that could be a major example of how we can develop players.
Brannen is a guy that needs more time to really buy in to Self’s philosophy. He is kind of like TT… imagine if we had TT around another year?
Brannen needs to add strength and he needs to adapt his mind into playing with more physicality. He’s a guy that needs to learn to bend his knees. He plays too upright. I believe that guys that play too upright do so for two reasons; their bodies need to be strengthened and stretched for flexibility and they need to work on mentally getting deeper into the game… more focus.
If Brannen can make that leap he is a guy that could definitely become a lottery pick. The assets are there.
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I really like how you broke out differences in shot blockers.
“I am betting that Mickelson’s shot blocking isn’t near 1/2 “rim protector.” Just a hunch.”
That is exactly how I thought of Hunter last year. But if the stories are true, and he has increased his vertical 6", then I’ve suddenly opened my mind to thinking he may fit more in the Embiid/Withey category.
It really isn’t the 6" vertical increase that has me buzzing… it is the inference that if he had that kind of vertical increase, he must have even more of an increase in lateral movement!
Your description of Withey and Embiid guarding the block is only possible because both of those guys could move well laterally. Lateral speed is what it takes to leave your man and go after another man’s shot. You have to be quick to get over and you have to have the quickness to retreat if the pass goes to the man you left.
A huge part of making a shot blocker like a Withey or Embiid is lateral speed and agility.
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Nicely done. My comment about the C vs PF issue was to point out that in the old days teams tended to have a lineup composed of a traditional C, PF, SF, SG and PG. Now a days, many if not most NBA team do not use what we would call a traditional Center and use two PFs instead. This is true for other positions as well where the line between SG and PG or SG and SF are almost gone. Many team list players simply as G or F and do not differentiate between the positions.
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@JayHawkFanToo Well you’re absolutely correct. That traditional center is a rare thing. The game has changed.
@jaybate-1.0 and @drgnslayr - Wow. Greene redshirting? I never really thought about that. That does make some sense … some. I personally think that if Greene isn’t getting the time he wants, he’s gone. Never know when the next Kelly Oubre (Jaylen Brown, for example) might sign. The OAD effect. If you’re Greene, you would blow a redshirt year hoping that a coach that won’t really play you in your first two seasons will play you if you stay and redshirt, all with the significant chance that you could be recruited over?
When I hear Self still questioning whether he’s buying in on the defensive end, that is concerning to me. When I hear “buy in”, that makes me think effort and attitude, as opposed to ability.
Self ain’t changing. He is isn’t adjusting his approach. Greene better adjust his.
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See @drgnslayr 's eloquent response to my fumbling one.
And thanks for making me think. It hurt. But I did it.
