Posts made by ImmunoHawk

I’m less concerned with Flora’s problems this game than others seemed to be. He’s trying to learn how to be the outer big in a two-big set. Needs to able to put the ball on the floor and drive to the hoop. He’s obviously not very good at it yet, but an exhibition game is the right place to try things out. I was more concerned with the 5 bricks he clunked off the rim from the free throw line. On the flip side, it looks like Paul Mbiya has pretty good touch from the line for such a big man.

After watching the replay, the big thing that jumped out at me (other than Peterson) was that we finally have a defense that can chase the other team off the 3 point line. The last two years it seemed that opposing teams could launch a quality 3 any time they wanted to. It was also fun to watch a team with 2 mobile bigs who can rebound, block shots, and put the ball on the floor and drive to the hoop. Flory’s improvement in that area is impressive, and Tiller seems to be a natural.

I was going to watch but my local station in MN is playing infomercials! Guess they expected a route.

According to AI: You can watch the scrimmages from Kansas Late Night on ESPN+, KU Athletics’ website (KUAthletics.com), and the KU Athletics Facebook page. While the scrimmages are streamed, other activities like performances and speeches are not due to copyright issues.

Should be a very different style of basketball. I expect to see more defensive pressure and a much faster pace on offense. Probably lots of mistakes with so many new guys, but if they correct those as the season progresses should be a fun team to watch come March.

Saw a Sports Illustrated article that ranked Flory Bidunga as the likely 6th best college center for the coming year. From SI: 6. Flory Bidunga, Kansas A former five-star recruit, Bidunga seems primed to explode as a sophomore taking over for Hunter Dickinson as the starting center at Kansas. He’s not your traditional Kansas center, lacking some of the usual post-scoring skill that Bill Self has traditionally valued. That said, Bidunga is a pogo-stick athlete who is elite at protecting the rim and should be a huge asset as a lob target for Darryn Peterson.

They also ranked Zuby Ejiofor at number 1.

I think you need to add Mitch Lightfoot to that list. While not starter material there were many games where he came in and provided a quick spark with a couple baskets or a big rebound. A true 6th man, not a starter-in-waiting. And a National Championship on his resume.

I like having Perry ranked high. He was athletically limited but his skills and smarts made him a joy to watch.

@drgnslayr I watched replays of the games on YouTube 2 years ago, but they didn’t seem to be available last year. Please post if you find a way to do so this year.

I’m always a preseason optimist so I think we have a good year coming up. I especially expect to see a greatly improved Elmarko. Things didn’t click for him as we expected two years ago, but having taught undergrads for 30+ years I know the kinds of maturation that can occur between Freshman and Junior years. Playing beside Peterson should allow him to shine. I also think that Jamari will provide some solid minutes off the bench. Lots of folks complain how students don’t stick around any more, but here are two that took a redshirt year so are 3rd year athletes in some respects. I’m expecting good things from their perseverance.

@wissox I did get in a couple pickup games with members of the women’s team. While clearly I was the worst player on the court at least I could be marginally competitive. I was amazed at the physicality of the women’s game. Had to rely on my instincts from being a defensive lineman in high school football to survive playing in the paint.

Had a comparable experience when I was in the navy, serving at the Bethesda Naval hospital (now called Walter Reed) outside DC. I was shooting around with my pal Kenny, a skinny guy not much more talented than me. The only other people in the gym were a pudgy girl wearing a University of Maryland sweatshirt and three guys who thought they were hot stuff. So the three of them challenged us to a game, badly concealing their laughter about how badly they were going to beat us. That was my expectation as well. Turns out that the gal played like (and probably was) a D1 player. She made it rain from 3 point land. None of the hot stuff guys could guard her one on one, and when they doubled her she’d hit Kenny or me with a perfect pass for a layup. It was a slaughter, but not the one I expected. Our opponents kept screaming at each other “can’t you guard her?” While Kenny and I were the ones trying not to laugh.

Should check out the video. He attacked that rim with attitude all the way!

One of my favorite basketball memories at KU actually occurred on court when I got my one slight taste of D1 basketball. Pretty amazing that I got even one considering my total lack of physical talent (slow, no hops, uncoordinated), a genuine triple threat to my own team. But I had some size and (I thought) some strength. While in grad school in KU (84-88) I played a fair amount of pick up basketball in the rec gym. On a few occasions we were joined by the recently graduated Calvin Thompson who was still playing in the G league equivalent of the time, in Topeka I think. He was obviously an order of magnitude (or two) better than anyone else on the court so he mostly joked around and had a good time while we desperately tried (and usually failed) to score on him. He didn’t shoot very often, but he would occasionally decide to score. We knew it was coming because he’d be out on the wing and he’d hold the ball for a moment with a wicked smile on his face. All 5 of us on the opposing team would try to stop him by any means; holding, ramming, shoving. Did no good. He’d go through us effortlessly and slam the ball home. I gained an appreciation of the speed and strength it takes to play D1 ball on those days that you don’t get from being in the stands or watching on TV. Fun times!

My guess is that one of the walk-ons from last year will get the last scholarship. 2nd guess would be a local kid who’s a long term project.

Looks agile for his size, and at least has a few shots away from the basket, out to the free throw line.

From the highlights. Rim punisher, finishes through contact, finishes with either hand. Some nice blocks. However, I didn’t see any shots beyond 3 feet from the basket so I question the fit.

@wissox we live in MN. Temps in the 40’s and wind driven rain the last two days. Not good roof siting weather.

@drgnslayr hope so. Wissox is getting cold!

@Texas-Hawk-10 win in a blowout without shooting very well. Defensive clinic indeed.

I’ve seen articles that quote Bill Self as saying they’ll find a place for him during during his rehabilitation year.

I wonder if this might be an apt comparison? Although I taught mostly lecture courses (biology), I did teach discussion-based courses from time to time where I learned how different each group of students was. One year I’d find a strategy to get students enthusiastic about the material and it would work great. The next year I’d try the exact same strategy and it would be a total dud. Some years I’d find an alternative that would work, but occasionally there’d be a group that I never could reach. I think that’s what coach Self has now, that rare group for which none of his old motivational ploys work. NIL may have a lot to do with that, but Covid might as well. I taught a few classes after retirement during and after Covid and the changes in students were profound. Many post-Covid students were very poorly prepared for college both in lack of high school level knowledge and an appreciation for how to work effectively. They seemed to think class attendance and assignments were optional, they could take exams anytime they wanted, and that they deserved a B for the class just for showing up. Wonder if some of that attitude has drifted onto the court?

Much of the discussion about AJ struggling this season, especially those that wonder why he came to KU when it doesn’t fit his style of play, seems to be missing what I think is a crucial point. I think he, and his advisors, knew he’d never make it to the NBA unless he learned how to play defense and how to play more team oriented offense. He had to know that guys who don’t play defense ride the pine at KU, and that Bill Self demands that even his scorers know when it’s time to pass. Clearly it’s taking longer for him to make strides in these areas than anyone thought, but hopefully his eyes are still on the end game. But for Self to let him go back to his old style of play would do nothing to increase his draft chances.

@wissox I started watching some pro basketball towards the end of Wilt’s career. About the time his Lakers were setting an all time win streak (since broken). Wilt was no longer a big scorer but had shifted his emphasis to defense. I’ve never seen since someone so completely control the paint. The other team rarely tried for short range shots and Wilt ruled the backboard. It seemed he could rise up for a rebound, turn in mid air, and hit Jerry West with a pinpoint pass at mid court in the time it would take to blink your eyes. Pure poetry. Most fun I’ve had watching non-Jayhawk basketball with the only competition being the epic Larry Bird/ Magic Johnson wars several years later.

While it was late in the game with nothing still on the line, I thought Zach C did a good job with his limited minutes. If I recall correctly, he had 3 rebounds, dove on the court for a loose ball and made a good outlet pass when he got it, and made a good pass on the fast break without taking a dribble. No fumbling the ball like earlier in the year. He always sprints up the court on O and D and gets involved in most plays. There will likely be a few games where, due to fouls and injuries, having a fourth playable big will be crucial, and I like seeing sign we may have one.

I was really happy to see the bench come through 2nd half. After 4 pts in the 1st they scored 15 (out of 34 total) in the 2nd half. We seem to have 9 guys who can rotate through without any big drop offs. Been awhile since we e had that.

Liked your comment on David Coit. Over the years there have been several players who just make me smile to see on the court. Sometimes they were stars (Devonte Graham), sometimes bench players (Kevin Young), but they all played with energy and enthusiasm, but, more importantly, they just seemed to be having great time being on the court. David Coit is becoming one of those guys for me. There’ll be times when his size won’t allow him to excel, but it will never be for lack of effort.

I thought Rylan Griffin started playing like more than just a 3 point shooter in this game. Made some good plays on both ends of the court.

While it wasn’t for long, Zach Clemence came in at an important time and played quality minutes. There are games where that 4th big is needed and hopefully this was the start of good things for him.

I still see hope for Zack. He was in the middle of every play while he was in, showing hustle and desire. But he was so sped up it turned into fumble finger results. I think (hope) with more playing time the hustle and desire will win out.

I hoped Zeke would be a solid addition, maybe a good 6th man. I was not expecting him to come in and immediately go off for 20+ against a top 10 team with so much speed. Good stuff!

@Zabudda I thought Zach had some good minutes against Howard, especially in the 2nd half. Got enough run time to get comfortable so he didn’t 't look lost. Made me think he’ll play some good minutes later when fouls or injuries star to pile up.

Just looked at the box score. Great to see so much scoring off the bench.

just watched the replay on Youtube. Coit looked good on his threes, certainly not shy about putting them up. Thought KJ looked better on his pull-up and turn-around shots in the paint, still looked awful on his three pt. attempt. Might be the last one we see. I think we’ll see a lot of KJ bringing the ball up this year, along with some of the new guys as they get comfortable. Less wear and tear on Juan.

When I had Covid a couple years ago I went on Paxlovid immediately. Think it really helped. Had bad fatigue and headache for a day, then several days of sinus drainage and that was it. My age and other factors made me a prime candidate for severe disease so I’m a big fan of this drug. There’s lots of misinformation circulating about Paxlovid (causes rebounds, only for people with severe disease), none of it true.

A high flyer at the 3 and a freight train at the 4. Sounds like a fun combo.

I am not the student of basketball that many of you are so I need someone to explain to me why so many on this board seem be down on KJ Adams and so high on AJ Storr? I have not seen AJ play other than a few highlights but looking up their stats I see that AJ does score more, but not by a lot (16.8 vs. 12.6 pts/game). The other categories favor KJ: 4.6 vs 3.9 rebounds (both need to improve), 3.1 vs. 0.9 assists, 60% vs 48% shooting, 1.2 vs 0.6 steals. Others have mentioned that AJ has been questionable on defense while that’s KJ’s calling card. Even I could see his outstanding help defense in the paint when Hunter got pulled away. Does AJ have a much higher ceiling? Or is there some “the grass is always greener” thinking going on?

I have absolutely nothing against AJ, most happy to have him on board, and look forward to seeing both of them in action soon. While KJ will probably still not be much of a threat to score outside the paint, I think we’ll see him doing more dribble penetration for dunks, short passes to Hunter, and outlet passes to the new 3 point shooters. And I think he’ll be bringing up the ball more often on fast breaks; not many want to stand in his way at full speed. What new characteristics do you think AJ will be bringing to this team?

@Crimsonorblue22 No, I did grad school in the KU microbiology department. Then spent 30 years teaching undergraduates, most of whom were planning on going to medical school. Had that dream job of teaching (mostly) highly motivated kids with excellent character.

@nuleafjhawk I have a bad case of professorial verbosity, not sure if it’s curable.

Hi. New contributor, but long term lurker here. Testosterone is an iffy guide to sex determination. There is a wide range of normal testosterone levels in people, with many women in the upper level of normal having higher levels than men at the lower level of normal. And suppressing testosterone can have serious health consequences; what might be a population-wide normal level may not be adequate for an individual. I often told my students that strict on/off, yes/no, this or that situations are rare in biology. The species concept, for example, is a human construct for making classification easier; in nature there are often intermediate forms between two species and where we draw the line is arbitrary. Likewise for testosterone (and many other hormones that can affect athletic performance), there is less difference between males and females than many suspect. While we need rules for who plays on which sports teams, any rules we make will be arbitrary and there will always be special cases that just don’t fit. And yes, I did study biology (immunology and microbiology) at KU!