AJ Storr to Kansas

[auror]

I honestly had never heard of it until that tweet.

Gravity is essentially how much attention the defense pays you when you don't have the ball. It's usually shooting, but can be from a roll man on a pick and roll, a cutter, etc.

Hawkins had the most gravity I've seen in college since Steph Curry. Steph Curry one game in college got double teamed all game even when he didn't have the ball.

So that tweet was saying that since most of the players on Kansas aren't catch and shoot threats, the defense can collapse and not have to stick on their men. Of course, it's misleading. The tweet specified catch and shoot attempts as a proportion of total shots taken. When you assemble a super team, your guys are coming from places where they had the ball a lot. So for example Zeke Mayo didn't have a high ratio of catch and shoot. But he did shoot 39% on 3s, it's just that half of them were off the dribble. Kugel took more than half his 3s off the dribble. AJ Storr only shot 32% from 3 this past year (but 40% the year before), but he still took 150 3s (but 50 of them were off the dribble). He's still good enough to be guarded. It's harder to shoot off the dribble. Transitioning to more catch and shoot 3s is easier. They will likely all shoot a better % this year. Dickinson also has to be guarded from 3. Harris will have to be respected at least a little. Their shooting is fine, and they're probably bringing in Griffen or Brea as well.

 

[caw]

all bark, no bite and a lot of dollars in this lineup.

I agree with most of them but Adams has some bite. That kid tries.

Kansas guys I know wish Harris and Dickinson would just move on already.

They shouldn't. The problem this year with Harris is that he is a pure PG and they had nothing around him for him to do his job. He doesn't have the mental makeup of a scorer but he is a great defender, a very good distributor and solid enough to keep defenses honest. The problem came this year when it was him and Adams and Hunter and no on else who could throw the ball in the basket. Throw in the fact their was no decent backup. Put a decent roster around him and he will be back to playing good as a PG.

Dickinson is an odd case. Fantastic offensive player, a good one-on-one defender against stronger post players, but a horrid defender outside that. Again he was hurt by having no backup. I don't know if there are many better college centers next year. Outside of Kalkbrenner, I don't know of a single one who dominates at least one side of the ball as much. With Edey, Bacot, Filipkowski, Oso, Hawkins, Burns and Clingan gone, the center position is a bit weak/unproven next year. The best upperclassmen centers are probably Ike, Hunter, Kalkbrenner, Bona and Ballo? That is a major step down.

Just a horrific roster last year for KU and not on the four good players they had (plus Furphy who was decent for a freshman but inconsistent). Even if Timberlake had been good they would have been pathetically thin with little bench.

 

[HuskyHawk]

I agree with most of them but Adams has some bite. That kid tries.



They shouldn't. The problem this year with Harris is that he is a pure PG and they had nothing around him for him to do his job. He doesn't have the mental makeup of a scorer but he is a great defender, a very good distributor and solid enough to keep defenses honest. The problem came this year when it was him and Adams and Hunter and no on else who could throw the ball in the basket. Throw in the fact their was no decent backup. Put a decent roster around him and he will be back to playing good as a PG.

Dickinson is an odd case. Fantastic offensive player, a good one-on-one defender against stronger post players, but a horrid defender outside that. Again he was hurt by having no backup. I don't know if there are many better college centers next year. Outside of Kalkbrenner, I don't know of a single one who dominates at least one side of the ball as much. With Edey, Bacot, Filipkowski, Oso, Hawkins, Burns and Clingan gone, the center position is a bit weak/unproven next year. The best upperclassmen centers are probably Ike, Hunter, Kalkbrenner, Bona and Ballo? That is a major step down.

Just a horrific roster last year for KU and not on the four good players they had (plus Furphy who was decent for a freshman but inconsistent). Even if Timberlake had been good they would have been pathetically thin with little bench.

Which is what I said about the roster back in the summer. Self has since admitted it as well.

As far as I can tell (so far) Jackson is staying and McDowell is staying. The freshmen haven't decommitted. If that holds, KU has a hell of a team next year and hasn't sacrificed the future. Dickenson is a very impactful player and if they can reduce his minutes I think he can be more effective on the defensive end. I think he gives up on plays to avoid foul trouble and stay on the court.

 

[PNolanFan]

I coudl be off base here but this team does not feel like it is gonna have enough spacing? Both this team and the duke situation seem full of big man and guys who can get to the basket but not enough floor spacing. Is this just me ? or are other people thinking this roster construction is not gonna work out

 

[HuskyHawk]

I coudl be off base here but this team does not feel like it is gonna have enough spacing? Both this team and the duke situation seem full of big man and guys who can get to the basket but not enough floor spacing. Is this just me ? or are other people thinking this roster construction is not gonna work out

Big men? The team has 6-7 wings and guards. Two bigs plus Adams. I don't know if Clemence stays if Hunter comes back.

Harris, Jackson, McDowell, Mayo, Kugel, Storr, Philon, Passmore all guards/wings. If Furphy is back, he's long but a shooter. Lots of 6'3-6'6" guys who are somewhat interchangeable.

 

[JB75]

College sports = The Titanic.

The P5 high society elites are partying it up on the main deck while the low and mid majors dregs are locked 5 floors below deck fantasizing about what it’d be like to be one of the elites.

None of them see the iceberg ahead and when they hit it they’re all going down.

This might be the analogy of the year. Great comment. Hopefully not true. Lol

 

[nomar]

AJ Storr? More like