AJ - I don't see it | Page 3 | The Boneyard

AJ - I don't see it

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UCPharma11 said:
all you guys complaining about AJAX are a bunch of cry babies. I see the glass half-full personally. Note the nice lob pass to Whaley to end a tumultuous game against VCU in the Bahama Classic or whatever. He has instincts, just need to let him flourish.
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Sounds like the right prescription..............
 
3rdbass said:
Bad is handle, shot and guarding on defense. Can he improve yes but it isn't happening over night for sure.
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So.....can't dribble, shoot or guard. But let's play him 30 a night. Makes sense.
 
BigErnMcCracken said:
Same thing for the team as a whole. I'm amazed at how many people are saying that a blowout win over 3-5 Grambling will assuage their concerns.
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Down two of of the three best players, it would be encouraging. For me, the effort wasn't there against MES. The played like all they needed to do was show up. So if I see what I need to see in terms of hustle, intensity, effort and execution. Well, good. If they play that way they will be as good as they can be, and I can't ask for more.
 
Huskybass said:
I think the lasting memory of a freshman foul machine clouds their judgment. The kid rebounds well, is long and a pest defensively, and makes some great passes. A unique talent. I see the promise, but I can see the opposing viewpoint.
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His athletic ability has covered up some of his defensive flaws. Andre has been able to recover enough to block some shots from behind after his man gets by him. I find Jackson's biggest shortcoming is for a 6'7" guy with a decent handle he has no moves to the basket yet. He has improved a lot from his freshman year though and I expect this to continue. Just cutting down on turnovers will make him a much better player.
 
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navery12 said:
Why do people keep saying Andre is bad on defense? Am I missing something?
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Because he can't guard on the ball and he constantly gets beat back door. have you been watching??
 
AJack is starting to look like Stanley Robinson. Not identical games. Pretty different actually. but a nba level athlete without nba skills.

He's a fine player. Love he's on the team. Im actually a bit worried about him transferring. I'm worried he's going to start to wonder if he'd be developing better somewhere else.

I think you just need to adjust your expectations.
 
imno1 said:
His athletic ability has covered up some of his defensive flaws. Andre has been able to recover enough to block some shots from behind after his man gets by him. I find Jackson's biggest shortcoming is for a 6'7" guy with a decent handle he has no moves to the basket yet. He has improved a lot from his freshman year though and I expect this to continue. Just cutting down on turnovers will make him a much better player.
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I see everything you do, he's a unique talent that can thrill you and drive you nuts almost back to back. Very involved, I guess. I'm not sold on his handle, despite his vision and passing ability. If his handle was real good he would take guys off the dribble on occasion given his tremendous athleticism. Maybe I see it clicking for him because his ceiling is so high? I think mostly he is a high character kid who will work hard, figure it out and succeed. Then again, I'm definitely in the pro Ajax camp.
 
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HuskyHawk said:
Down two of of the three best players, it would be encouraging. For me, the effort wasn't there against MES. The played like all they needed to do was show up. So if I see what I need to see in terms of hustle, intensity, effort and execution. Well, good. If they play that way they will be as good as they can be, and I can't ask for more.
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I don't take much, good or bad, from the blowouts over overmatched teams. The MES game that caused this board to implode was an obvious game that they would come out flat for. In my opinion, it has absolutely zero predictive value and - even having been on this board for a long time - I'm still amazed at the freak-out it caused and the 180s people did on certain players.
 
Hurley got our players up defensively for the MSU game. That’s what this team is capable of against good opponents. We’re also capable of bad performances if the effort is not there and we have cold shooting.
 
Umami Zen said:
While TM is sidelined. I could easily see AJ being more assertive on offense when the openings are there. Not dramatically changing his role but helping make up for some of Martin's offensive output for the benefit of the team.
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But let me ask this, is a more assertive AJ on offense a really good thing? I mean him being a rebounder and defender is ok but a guy that doesn’t seem to finish and can’t shoot makes me nervous. Lots of empty possessions, prefer to have Hawkins go at it as much as possible and give him the rope.
 
mauconnfan said:
But let me ask this, is a more assertive AJ on offense a really good thing? I mean him being a rebounder and defender is ok but a guy that doesn’t seem to finish and can’t shoot makes me nervous. Lots of empty possessions, prefer to have Hawkins go at it as much as possible and give him the rope.
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AJ at the foul line is definitely a plus. And a more aggressive AJ probably gets there more.
 
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mauconnfan said:
But let me ask this, is a more assertive AJ on offense a really good thing? I mean him being a rebounder and defender is ok but a guy that doesn’t seem to finish and can’t shoot makes me nervous. Lots of empty possessions, prefer to have Hawkins go at it as much as possible and give him the rope.
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To answer your question--History suggests you don't necessarily want to see him being overly aggressive on O. My thought process is without TM/AS occupying space down low that driving lanes will open up more and the foul line extended area. This is where I could see him doing some damage converting his defensive stops to scores as well as potential mismatches. IMO.. He can be creative going to the hole when he has space.

Like you- I believe its time to feature JHawk more and his considerable offensive skills within the framework of Dan Hurley's offensive schemes. Patience for him-Letting game come to him will help.

Edit:The more effective JHawk/RJ/Tyler/Gaff are from 3 pt line.. The more the lanes open up for others.
 
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Andre has certainly been better than last year. He's still turning the ball over too frequently and he needs to start ironing that out, but that's to be expected considering how much bigger his role is this year. He's better on the defensive end, providing blocks and steals while also fouling at a MUCH lower rate than last season. He's already made more 3's than he did all of last year, and so far has improved his 3pt% by 17%.

I think with the onus on Sanogo to be a reliable scorer for us this year has limited Andre's ability to get easy buckets because teams are packing the paint. Right now, he has the most steals on the team, is the 2nd leading rebounder behind Martin, is 3rd in blocks, 3rd in FT%, all while being 5th in minutes. He's got things to work on for sure, namely limiting turnovers and asserting himself offensively, but he does a lot of the dirty work while also providing highlight plays that give the team energy and confidence to go on big runs.
 
I’d like to see him at the 4 more often with Sanogo out so he can slip behind slower PFs when the matchup allows. He’s fine defending most 4s and no matter what position he plays, he’s our best defensive rebounder.

He ultimately just needs to find more confidence scoring wise, and needs to focus more on limiting turnovers than making an immaculate pass. He’s a project, but the ceiling is still as obvious as ever and he’s bringing value defensively and on the glass already.

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There was a nifty sequence in yesterday’s game where Jackson threw the ball at the basket apparently he was attempting a three pointer. The ball hit the side of the backboard and then Jackson’s man beat him down the court and drained a three. That summed up Jackson’s year. I expected much better from him. Why on earth Hurley constantly positions him at the three point like is pointless. Jackson should constantly be moving towards the rim.
 
WeAreUCONN said:
There was a nifty sequence in yesterday’s game where Jackson threw the ball at the basket apparently he was attempting a three pointer. The ball hit the side of the backboard and then Jackson’s man beat him down the court and drained a three. That summed up Jackson’s year. I expected much better from him. Why on earth Hurley constantly positions him at the three point like is pointless. Jackson should constantly be moving towards the rim.
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Yeah, side of the backboard was embarrassing... how bout after his nice dunk, then giving up back to back three pointers on defense immediately afterwards.... or the two lazy passes into the defenders hands within 5 seconds apart? I think he gave up 15 points on defense in the first half. But yeah, we say he's a good defender...
 
Dunking while fun, doesn't win games. We have plenty of guys who can rebound. On a team this deep, you need to bring more to the table. It stuns me the same people leaning to heavily on AJ's obvious athleticism are the one dumping on Gaffney's all around contributions.
 
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You have to play the game to understand Jackson. He makes lots of winning plays ... even with being a hesitant shooter. With lots of aggressive defensive rebounders on our team, he might be the most fierce. His defense is intense and surely puts the fear of God into some. Then what the dunking does ... it swoons momentum to another planet. He is a whirling dervish that carries the other guys.

We talk about how important Whaley is. He could not shoot a lick 2 years ago. Look at his value now. Jackson is competitive and the best fundamentals in block out and hedge. He has a role. And basketball is not always the fluid skillset of a Bouknight or Hawkins.
 
That Guy said:
You can definitely question his shot and his overall ability to score the basketball, but I don't think you can question his athleticism, BBall IQ, heart, or toughness.
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His offense is what it is at this point. Pressure will be on him going forward to improve or lose minutes. He's been doing a lot of lazy passes as well. What he does well is attacking the glass on both ends for rebounds and putbacks on the offensive end, runs the floor better than anyone on the team, and off a missed shot on defense he immediately pushes the tempo to set up the offense in transition
 
Pudge said:
You have to play the game to understand Jackson. He makes lots of winning plays ... even with being a hesitant shooter. With lots of aggressive defensive rebounders on our team, he might be the most fierce. His defense is intense and surely puts the fear of God into some. Then what the dunking does ... it swoons momentum to another planet. He is a whirling dervish that carries the other guys.

We talk about how important Whaley is. He could not shoot a lick 2 years ago. Look at his value now. Jackson is competitive and the best fundamentals in block out and hedge. He has a role. And basketball is not always the fluid skillset of a Bouknight or Hawkins.
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I think what you say about him above is what you and we all want out of him, but he's simply not there yet.
 
Kitaman said:
Hilton, Boone and many others had 'slow' developments, but with determination, coaching and inherit skills they proved their worth by their junior/senior years. AJ has the tools and skills to excel, it will take time.

Its a matter of is AJ 'much' better today than a year ago? So far to me its a yes.
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Yes he is. I think the problem is that when a recruit is labeled a stud, in hoops terms that usually means they can score. He definitely does some very good things, but his scoring ability isn’t close to his incoming hype. The guy he is sometimes compared to athletically is Sticks Robinson. But way different skill sets. Sticks could score. He couldn’t handle at an elite level. Jackson is so athletic and coordinated I’d hope he can get his shot up to snuff. He’d be unstoppable. If you’re old enough, think Tony Hanson. Super athlete, good outside shot and great attack of the hoop which his shooting opened up.
 
Waquoit said:
Hawkins and Jackson showed flashes of chemistry that could really develop.
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That chemistry could really be important to putting this team solidly into the top 10 (this year and/or next). :)
 
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