Five Big Questions
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HighEliteMajor said:
It’s the end of June, and there are five big questions looming over the 2018-19 Kansas Jayhawks. We’re projected to be a top five team, some have us as the number one team in the nation. Here’s my top five questions -
1. Dedric Superstar?: Much of the preseason hype is premised on Dedric Lawson and his presumed superstar status. He was impressive in his two seasons at Memphis and has the ability to stretch the floor, though his three point percentage in his sophomore year dipped to 27% after shooting 35% his freshman season. He looks like our best player, he seems to be the guy we’ll rely on, and he seems to be a potential all-American. A lot is riding on Lawson and his assumed stardom. Will he really be “the man”?
2. Moore Up Or Moore Down?: Is he a point guard, or is he just the dreaded short “combo” guard? Much of the opinion flowed against Moore, and against the possibility of Moore starting this season (other than perhaps early). But of late, there seems strong momentum that Moore is a much more complete player than we have thought and the Moore is fully capable of being one of our three starting guards, and excelling with the ball in his hands. Can Moore run the show?
3. DeSousa Eligible?: A disgusting topic. As other posters have observed, can we stomach another season of NCAA delays, a player sitting out, missed games, and the story line dominance that we recently suffered with Billy Preston? Self sounded a quite optimistic tune recently, saying everything from their end indicated DeSousa would be playing. But I’m not so sure. Apologies for the FBI rehash, but my pessimism stems from the core premise of the Federal indictment – that the defendants in that case defrauded the universities by the payments, which made the players ineligible under the NCAAA rules, thus depriving the schools of their anticipated benefit. If DeSousa plays, well, where’s the fraud? Bruce Bowen and De’anthony Melton are examples of where this could go. DeSousa is a force, and having this guy getting 25-30 is a game changer. One reasonable school of thought is that Dedric and DeSousa, together, might be our best post combo. The guy improved immensely in short period of time with the consistent game action Self provided (note the backhanded reference to past players who were denied such an opportunity to develop, but I digress). But you can’t play if you aren’t eligible, or if the NCAA indicates there are questions and then delays. I think this is why the NCAA moved to Indy many years ago, so we could protest and heckle. Will DeSousa be in uniform this season?
4. Backcourt Youth Ready?: We’ve had the luxury of upper classmen filling out the ranks of our backcourt. Now, that all changes. Devon Dotson and Quentin Grimes are presumed starters, Charlie Moore has one college season under his belt, as a redshirt sophomore, and most project Marcus Garrett, a sophomore, to be a big minutes guy as well (and possibly start). This is a huge reliance on youth. We’ve been focused on Grimes of late and his apparent path to stardom. We know it won’t be that easy. If Self and Vick are able to reach pact on his return, surely laden with Self’s strict requirements, that might change the dynamic. But odds are sharply against that. As is, we have huge unknowns with the ball in their collective hands. If this piece fails, we know the result. Can the youth step up in the backcourt?
5. Can We Drain The Three?: Lots of type space dedicated to the importance of the three pointer over these many years at this site, and what a change we have seen. Self has embraced the three, and went all in last season on the three ball. Even more, his team was eliminated by the ultimate three ball squad, which won the NC. Now we come off that three point high and see a team with question marks at every spot when it comes to the long ball. I asked the question a few weeks ago when it was suggested that we could shoot 37% from three as a team (after shooting 40% last season) – name one player on KU’s roster that you assume will shoot 37% by himself? By a plurality, it seemed, Mitch Lightfoot won the vote. I’m sorry, that ain’t gonna cut it. But there are leaps that can be made. I compared Grimes a bit to Victor Oladipo in style of play, and then looked at O’s stats. He shot 30% from three his freshman season, the just 20% his sophomore season, before leaping to just over 40% his breakout junior season. Regardless of the assumed return to a more conventional, feed the post offense, we will need effective three point shooting to win the national title, with reasonable volume. We can’t assume an alternative path. Are there any guys here who can breakout from three?
Those are my top five questions for the season, as we we sit here in June. Others might include whether Vick will return, whether McCormack can be denied minutes, whether Self goes back to the high/low (or if high three rates are here to stay), whether Doke’s weakness at the line will be exploited further by the opposition, whether Garrett can shoot without cracking backboards, and whether Mitch Lightfoot might redshirt (or if he forces a major role once again, by performance or circumstance).
Would like to try to throw my 2 cents worth in on these - that’s about all my opinion is worth but would like to give it a shot:
the 1st question you bring up" - - My gut feeling is on Dedric that he WILL indeed be the man on this team, I feel that he will establish himself as the season progresses during the season as that go to guy - the one we want to look to during crunch time. - I realize pretty big difference between Memphis & Ku but yet I think he has the moxy - I think he has the chance to be a real stud.
2nd: As far as Moore - -I was in the majority I think that thought Moore would be coming off the bench. Now not so sure, myself I would love to have Dotson start from day one but that is me - I’ve been on the Dotson bandwagon from day one long long ago - the kid is a bulldog and fast as greased lightening. - Having said that here of late I’m hearing a lot of good things about Moore - I think Devon is in for a dog fight - I don’t think we lose either way. - I still think Devon will over take Charlie at some point but what a sweet dilemma to have.
3rd: Silvio? - -me personally I’m getting more of a feel as time goes by and hearing Coach on multiple occasions now say - I think Silvio WILL suit up and play this season - and the kid is going to be a a stud - his body right now is built like a mac truck and with him in the rotation our front line is going to be insane. - At first I thought there was no way he would ever play, now I’ve done almost a complete 360 - feel pretty good about his chances now
4th: - -very good question. - -I think we have a very sweet backcourt- -however like you mentioned the youth. I think we may struggle a bit in the beginning. No matter how good the talent is - -they are still Freshmen - big difference going from High School ball to major College P-5 ball. I just think we might take a few knocks early have some growing pains , but as the Season advances I think these guys Dotson & Grimes look the hell out - doesn’t hurt either that Charlie has already experienced College ball either might be that stabilizing influence for our two babies - Gonna take time - will be sweet to sit back and watch them develop -Grimes is going to be a monster
5th Our 3 point shooting is going to be probably my biggest concern for this team really at this point no one that has proven themselves yet. - Heard where Garret’s AAU Coach or whatever he was worked with him having him work on his shot into the hundreds daily working on the mechanics, Dedric hoping he can be right close to the 37-38% - - I think Moore might be a little better then some think - -then we need Grimes to work hard during these remaining months and get his stroke we need 2-3 guys to keep defense’s honest not sag in on the big’s - -I think this will be our challenge. - Again just my 21 cents for what it’s worth - - 2 cents - -lmao . - ROCK CHALK ALL DAY LONG BABY
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Regarding Lawson, this worries me…
Draft Express after the 2016 combine
“The Memphis freshman tested out as the worst athlete at the NBA Combine, and that certainly did not appear to be a fluke based on watching his performances in the games,” the report says. “Lawson really doesn’t have a position at this stage, as he’s undersized for a post player and not skilled enough to play on the wing. He didn’t make a single 3-pointer in Chicago and struggled badly to do anything effective inside the arc.”
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Here’s a nice article concerning this year’s team. I really like the pull quote:
Although the FBI report spoke on Kansas being the victim and not a suspect in the case, Jayhawk haters, Missouri fans, and social media trolls have worked overtime in calling the Jayhawks cheaters and suggesting that they will be playing under sanctions in the near future.
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HighEliteMajor said:
It’s the end of June, and there are five big questions looming over the 2018-19 Kansas Jayhawks. We’re projected to be a top five team, some have us as the number one team in the nation. Here’s my top five questions -
1. Dedric Superstar?: No.
2. Moore Up Or Moore Down?: Starts and makes the “entry pass”. Lots of short treys in pre-con and con. None against Nike-EST in Carney.
3. DeSousa Eligible?: Since he is coming back, no victimization of KU, but since some one got paid, he gets “Prestonization” and never plays.
4. Backcourt Youth Ready?: It will take till late January to get consistency, and decide who is money under pressure. Then it will be a solid perimeter defensively that scores mostly on open look kicks.
5. Can We Drain The Three?: No.
This team is geared strictly to win another conference title. No long trey. Come Carney time, no short trey. Only one scoring big in Dedric, unless DaSousa plays. Mitch will be made to appear 1911 .45 against .500 teams, be .38 caliber against B12 good teams, but will be .22 caliber against the NIKE-EST. Udunka will make 60% of his dunks till Carney, then the refs will stop him cold. Marcus will be stronger and defend prison bodies and/or high scorers on the wing, when our two 5-Star Sushi are cannot and for 5 minute blows each half. That means Marcus sees 20 minutes every game minimum, and 30 when the Sushi get fouled up.
Everything beyond conference hinges on two things:
a.) does DaSousa play? and
b.) does anyone in the B12 field 3-6 > 39% trifectates?
If someone in the B12 catches 3point Fever, then KU likely loses the B12 to them. Not if not.
Ring talk is pipe dreaming.
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I think this is one of our more talented teams, but success will be determined by many factors… most… .how these guys come together as a team. The game isn’t played on paper. We simply never know our real potential until they start playing. How will they respond when being down by 15 in the first half?
I’m optimistic about what I’ve seen and read about our new players. And the returning players are quality. Doke is going to really explode this year!
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Doubtful he’s a “superstar” but should be an All Big-12 and All American candidate. If he was a bouncy athlete he wouldn’t be in College today. KU’s gain I suppose. I don’t see him on the first mock draft for 2019. He looks to be a highly skilled player who can play inside/out and should be a great sidekick to Doke. Will he show leadership? Will he be a big shot taker/maker? Will his stats translate to KU? I hope all the above is true.
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I’m still of the opinion he’ll be better for us down the road. If he’s ready to play 15-25 minutes a game for us that’s fine too. He’s tiny, there’s no way around it. He looks to have a knack for getting into the paint and dishing a lob or pass to a big. I can see a lot of Moore to Doke lobs this season. His defense is the biggest ? mark for me. Has a bit of an unorthodox shot as well so we’ll see.
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Who knows. I hope he gets to play. He makes the front-court depth unreal. He impressed in some big time games, I think he was able to give the team exactly what it needed at opportune moments. Given a full offseason of work and natural progression you have to be a bit excited what he could do. KU should be able to roll out a 1-5 lineup that can compete with anyone. However what might separate this KU team from the rest of the country is the depth at 6-7-8-9. That could be Silvio, Charlie, KJ/Garrett, Dave/Mitch.
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Moore is good to have because of the youth. Still I have zero doubts both freshman will start. Self didn’t recruit them for the bench. Of course Self will sit those who don’t do what he wants. I can’t see either of them being the type that will require that kind of tough love coaching.
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Huge concern, maybe the biggest other then chemistry. A game that’s transitioning to 3 pt shooting and we have a roster reverting back to the old ways. I guess that’s why Self gets paid the big bucks to figure it out.
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@BeddieKU23 and others I think it depends on your definition of superstar. In the sense of KD or Michael Beasley at the college level? Doubtful. But superstar for a Self team entails something different, imo. Especially when Self has options. He’s just not going to play 35 mpg and have an insane usage rate because of all the depth.
What about when Oklahoma in 2015-16 had 4 trey ballers over 40% and a big in Spangler at 37%? Self and KU still beat that team. Expanding brain stuff as usual.
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Dedric will likely be a college basketball star but he is also a “tweener” with limited athletic ability that hopefully Hudy has helped improve over the last year. In the NBA he would be overpowered by bigger, more athletic players so his NBA potential is very limited.
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BeddieKU23 said:
- Huge concern, maybe the biggest other then chemistry. A game that’s transitioning to 3 pt shooting and we have a roster reverting back to the old ways. I guess that’s why Self gets paid the big bucks to figure it out.
Lets say Dedric can be around 36% (doable, imo assuming he only takes good looks), Moore gets to 38-39% with a year off to train and playing under Self instead of LOLCUONZOLOL, Grimes is around 37% and Garrett drags himself up to low 30s? The wildcards imo are Dotson and KJ. I think the team is so good these 3 point numbers can be overcame. The bigger issue imo is overall youth and replacing almost all the rotation players.
JayHawkFanToo said:
Dedric will likely be a college basketball star but he is also a “tweener” with limited athletic ability that hopefully Hudy has helped improve over the last year. In the NBA he would be overpowered by bigger, more athletic players so his NBA potential is very limited.
Exactly. It’s a fortunate situation for KU.
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Last season Coach Self did not have the luxury of mixing and choosing player to get optimal chemistry since the roster was extremely limited. Fortunately Coach Self has now a number of players he can use in various combinations to get the perfect chemistry going.
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JayHawkFanToo said:
Last season Coach Self did not have the luxury of mixing and choosing player to get optimal chemistry since the roster was extremely limited. Fortunately Coach Self has now a number of players he can use in various combinations to get the perfect chemistry going.
There will be some growing pains early on but hopefully Self gets optimal line-ups figured out by Feb/Mar.
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I spent Saturday at a youth camp with a few of the Jayhawks and even Sherron came down. Been doing this for a few years now and I get a kick out of watching the KU guys coaching up the kids. I also get to watch them interact with each other and shoot a bit.
Things that caught my eye this year;
They all got along well Dedric, Doke, Moore, Grimes, and Silvio were there and hung together pretty tight when they had the time. that is not always the case.
No one has told Charlie he isn’t going to be the leader. He is not an alpha dog like Frank but he has guys looking to him. He spent quite a bit of time talking with Sherron, I count that as a plus. He is very very quick has a good shot and a ton of confidence.
Doke has found a 10’ shot that actually looks decent and goes in the hoop regularly. Shocked me when I looked over and saw him knocking in down. He also shot some FT’s at better than 50% with a bunch of screaming kids running amuck around him
. I was to busy to get an accurate count but his elbow was staying where it belonged. He looks lean and strong as an ox too.Grimes is smooth, but pretty much took a backseat to the others, true freshman that he is I kind of like that.
Sherron needs to be a coach someplace down the road! The team he coached went undefeated and the way he worked with the kids was special. Talked to him awhile, he just moved his family to Lawrence, his knees are back to full health, and he is working on getting back into playing shape and make another run at playing for money.
No real insight on Silvio his enthusiasm for the game is obvious. He ran the floor with the kids he was coaching cheering them on and lived and died with each shot they took. I can’t help but like the guy and his teammates appear to feel the same way. I kind of wondered if the rumors would make him a bit of an outcast but that is not the case.
No earth shaking info there but you get what you pay for
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great stuff, love to hear these type of stories
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Nice reporting. Looks like Doke has listened to what he probably heard at the combine and is working on a mid range jumper and free throws.
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Here is an interesting ESPN story on the Lawson family…
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JayHawkFanToo said:
Here is an interesting ESPN story on the Lawson family…
Lots of good quotes in here thanks.
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“K.J., he’s just a big guard,” Self said. “I look at him as a guard that would be a guy like we played [Josh Jackson]. He’s an intangible guard. He really understands the game. Dedric, on the other hand, is different. Without question, he’s our best passer. He’s a low-post player with guard skills. We’ll play big. It allows you to space the floor at all times, invert the floor, like Villanova did. The biggest thing is you can run your offense through your bigs.”
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I am not sure if this is the right thread but here it is anyway…looks like Coach K is expanding to soccer…
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@JayHawkFanToo Nice read. Here’s the quote that has me intrigued:
"K.J., he’s just a big guard," Self said. "I look at him as a guard that would be a guy like we played [Josh Jackson]. He’s an intangible guard. He really understands the game.
This is what I suspected- KJ will play the 3.
Starters: Moore/ Dotson/Grimes/Dedric/Doke
Primary back ups: BIGS : Silvio/McCormick Backcourt : Garrett/ KJ Lawson
What a massive team we will have. We could have a lineup that rivals an NBA team size wise.
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I would make one change to your starters:
Dotson/Grimes/K. Lawson/D. Lawson/ Doke
Sub Moore in for Dotson if you prefer, but the bottom line is that KJ probably starts and defends the other team’s best player, unless that player is a true post. He gives KU the same versatility that Jackson did on the defensive end with his size and quickness.
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justanotherfan said:
I would make one change to your starters:
Dotson/Grimes/K. Lawson/D. Lawson/ Doke
Sub Moore in for Dotson if you prefer, but the bottom line is that KJ probably starts and defends the other team’s best player, unless that player is a true post. He gives KU the same versatility that Jackson did on the defensive end with his size and quickness.
I hope this is the starting line-up. Garrett and Moore will be the key bench guards and if they do start, the non-starters from the first group there are the key bench guards. I just don’t see Cunliffe playing much at all and Agbaji should take a RS.
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@BShark Self doesn’t typically redshirt freshmen though. The only guys I can think of who redshirt as freshmen were Traylor and McLemore because of academic issues. I believe everyone else who has taken a voluntary redshirt at KU has done it their 2nd season or later on campus.
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Texas Hawk 10 said:
@BShark Self doesn’t typically redshirt freshmen though. The only guys I can think of who redshirt as freshmen were Traylor and McLemore because of academic issues. I believe everyone else who has taken a voluntary redshirt at KU has done it their 2nd season or later on campus.
Oh no mistake it would up to Agbaji. Lucas took one his first year.
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@jaybate-1.0 pessimistic much? Or does Self take this mess and polish it into wins?
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@justanotherfan I am probably underestimating KJ. It’s going to be very interesting to see the various combinations Self will have to work with.
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Bwag said:
@jaybate-1.0 pessimistic much? Or does Self take this mess and polish it into wins?
I have made my journey always with both great optimism recognizing what works AND fittingly corrosive pessimism recognizing the mountains of confused thinking covered with avalanches of yellow and brown snow!
KU wins title. No ring.
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I think this team’s success will be based on their ability to defend. It’s the one area that doesn’t change every game. The only reason to be “cold” at defense is if our guys aren’t hustling and focused. Defense should be a constant that gives us an edge, especially with our potential lineup and depth.
If we can’t defend, we become another potential Cleveland Cavs; able to produce easy buckets in the paint but just can’t stop the offense (especially from trey) of Golden State.
What I want to know… are we going back to BAD BALL again? Actually, this is the team to do it!
What if next year we have another 30-win season but we average scores in the 50-60s?
Curious what the expectations are of others in here…
I think Jesse built some graphics showing how Self has focused more on bringing offense in these last years. Was that just Self taking advantage of what tools he had?
Just how far can a coach shift the perspective of his players? How many players go to college with their offensive-mindedness, and leave focusing more on defense? That percentage is surely microscopic.
What’s the answer for guys like Jay Wright? Might he just be different on what players he recruits? More the “buy in” type and less the super star HS players busy building their own stat sheets?
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Bottom line? If Coach is at the helm, then KU will be in the mix. Without much hoopla KU has gotten pretty good in the tourney in recent years, all the while without ever really catching fire. At some point odds would say KU and Coach will catch fire. Maybe this new group is the one? Maybe this is the year?
I’m more concerned about team chemistry. I have no doubt these young men can play. Coach wouldn’t recruit them if they couldn’t. Coach rarely makes a mistake in evaluating and recruiting players. The key as I see it. Is these new players finding themselves and roles in Coach’s grand scheme.
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@drgnslayr Good stuff, as usual. I don’t think we’ll become Virginia if we go to 2 bigs, and away from the 4 out. Under Coach Self, our very worst offensive efficiency was 2006, when we were rated 50th. Over Self’s tenure, we’ve had multiple top 10 finishes in offensive efficiency b4 we ever went to the 4 out. The one thing that changed during the 4 out phase was that our def efficiency numbers were worse than before. The Lawsons are known for defense. Dotson, Grimes, and Garrett are considered very good defenders, and we all saw what an impact Silvio had in our run to the FF last year. I have hope for Doke that he becomes more of a shot blocker, and rebounder this year. I think defensively, we are light years ahead of last year’s team.
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We need to save this post and revisit when the season starts and again in mid December. Just so we can see who the prophets are in here.
I’ll chime in too.
Yes I think Lawson will be a great player this season. Him and Doke
Charlie Moore might start the season in the starting 5 and give his starting spot up later to Dotson. And yes it appears he can shoot very well.
Remember KU fans, our backcourt this year is not as inexperienced as our backcourt in '14 with Wiggs, Selden and Frank. Grimes has already had some great experience this summer with Coach Self at the U-19 games and we have Garrett and Moore heading into their second years. We are far deeper than we have been in quite some time. The competitiveness within the team should help everyone get better and learn Self’s system. We will be fine people. Quit freaking out!
DeSousa will play.
We wont have as many >40% trey shooters this season but I think we will have enough to be just fine. I’ll list my probabbles. lol. (Moore, Garrett, Ochai, Lightfoot, Dedric and KJ.
