An Enoch comp

[GemParty]

Looking for some optimism after a rough game one, I noticed Enoch's catches on the block. We know he can score & has shown nice touch. He's a big dude. I think he could be at the free throw line several times a game. He's gotta use that big frame the next 2 years.

I believe he could be a Lonny Baxter type guy. Averaged 15 a game & 7 FT attempts per game. Gave teams fits. Caught pass, automatic foul, points, & fouled teams out. Steve has that type potential if he can be competent on D & stay on the floor.

Baxter also was pick #15 in the Draft.

 

[mauconnfan]

Yeah gem would love him to get close to that kind of player. He does some good things on O no doubt but he needs to slow down. When he makes a great move and gets to the point of scoring the ball, he's always ready to just go up. #1 he needs to explode more and use his size rather than a quick lay in where he's shooting at 6'5" and not his 6'10" frame. Also need to know when to use a ball fake and get the shoulder into the defenders better. He's not afraid of contact but he doesn't "use" it for now, needs to learn to do that and he will be very effective on that end.

But without a big man's coach, I'm not even sure how he got this far? Lord knows he won't get any better. LOL

 

[Onions]

Steve has that type potential if he can be competent on D & stay on the floor.

That says it all. "Potential" is the most dangerous word in sports.

 

[boog204]

Write it down... Enoch is our starting center next year and gives us double figure scoring, solid board game, en route to being a 1st round pick by graduation. How it happens, no idea... But it will. He has skill and the frame. It's all there, he just needs to play.

 

[Mr. Wonderful]

Looking for some optimism after a rough game one, I noticed Enoch's catches on the block. We know he can score & has shown nice touch. He's a big dude. I think he could be at the free throw line several times a game. He's gotta use that big frame the next 2 years.

I believe he could be a Lonny Baxter type guy. Averaged 15 a game & 7 FT attempts per game. Gave teams fits. Caught pass, automatic foul, points, & fouled teams out. Steve has that type potential if he can be competent on D & stay on the floor.

Baxter also was pick #15 in the Draft.

I never thought it was fair to blame Ollie for Brimah's lack of development, but if Enoch is still the same player as a senior as he is now, I will concede that Ollie struggles with developing bigs.

 

[mauconnfan]

I never thought it was fair to blame Ollie for Brimah's lack of development, but if Enoch is still the same player as a senior as he is now, I will concede that Ollie struggles with developing bigs.

Fair point agree. Only on the offensive end though LOL, he seems to have that problem which Facey and AB have of not thinking ahead of the play so as to know where he needs to be in the lane on the defensive end. Not sure who ever coached these guys prior to here, but I can tell you they weren't very good (yeah you Jere)

 

[auror]

I like the body type comp, at least for weight; Enoch has a few inches on Lonny, but wingspan might be similar (looks like 7'3 for Enoch, 7'1.5 for Baxter).

Lonny Baxter never shot less than 53% from the floor in his college career, though, while Enoch made 41% this year.
Baxter averaged 8 rebounds per game (about OR 9% and DR 20%) his last 3 years including sophomore, whereas Enoch is at 2 reb/g (OR 10%, DR 11.5%).
Baxter also drew a ton more fouls.

LOOOONG way to go, especially cleaning defensive boards, but you're right. These are the areas Enoch needs to work on.

 

[Chin Diesel]

Wasn't Baxter an AA at Maryland?

Yeah, sign me up for Enoch becoming that good.

 

[jibsey]

Enoch was not a focus of the offense the way Brimah was. Entry passes to AB are lost, followed by ill advised 'Post moves". I know Enoch got to the line a few times but if they threw the ball in to him something good is likely to happen. next year he gets the chance.

 

[spudzj6]

That says it all. "Potential" is the most dangerous word in sports.

Potential is very dangerous, it sets expectations.

One play last night from Enoch that I had a "was that Enoch" moment - he had the ball out by the top of the key, and no guard could get open. So he dribbled the ball to the block, and got himself in a back-to-the-basket position. And looked confident in doing so! It may not be much for any other program when a big can skillfully handle the rock to get into a good scoring position, but when we have suffered through 4 years of Amida turning into a self-inflicted flail of a hook and en up on the ground - that kind of move by Enoch got me thinking he has, wait for it, potential! I'm hopeful he gets more confident and fouls less so he can stay on the floor. His size and nice free-throw touch are needed next year.

 

[eireman]

Fair point agree. Only on the offensive end though LOL, he seems to have that problem which Facey and AB have of not thinking ahead of the play so as to know where he needs to be in the lane on the defensive end. Not sure who ever coached these guys prior to here, but I can tell you they weren't very good (yeah you Jere)

You can only spend so much exasperating time working with one kid when he comes to you for 1 year......he's always been a liability on defense....much better now than 3 yrs ago.....i'm hoping he matures finally physically and mentally.....at least he's not taking 30 footers all the time.....he still needs more strength......and confidence....i thought we'd see something better by now but i'm starting to wonder

 

[uconngb]

Looking for some optimism after a rough game one, I noticed Enoch's catches on the block. We know he can score & has shown nice touch. He's a big dude. I think he could be at the free throw line several times a game. He's gotta use that big frame the next 2 years.

I believe he could be a Lonny Baxter type guy. Averaged 15 a game & 7 FT attempts per game. Gave teams fits. Caught pass, automatic foul, points, & fouled teams out. Steve has that type potential if he can be competent on D & stay on the floor.

Baxter also was pick #15 in the Draft.

The problem, and it's a big one, is that he is absolutely useless on defense. I focused in on it last night, and it wasn't pretty. They ran a couple pick and rolls on him and he had no clue what to do. As Bill Parcells used to say, he was like a golf ball in high grass: ......lost. Someone needs to school him this summer on footwork and how to play defense, or all of his offensive potential won't mean a damn thing.

 

[pj]

Lonny Baxter as a sophomore at Maryland averaged 15.6 points, 8.8 rebounds, 2.3 blocks for a Maryland team that went 25-10 and finished 2nd in the ACC. Enoch has a long way to go to catch up to sophomore Baxter. Hope he can do it ... but he'd better put in the grind and get a lot more savvy.

 

[jibsey]

Enoch disrupted a breakaway dunk last night and had a nice block. AB gets lost on defense plenty, especially when he comes out to guard beyond the foul line on the pick and roll.

 

[awfuldan]

There was a good stretch in the first half where I felt really comfortable when Enoch was in the line-up. That doesn't happen very often!

Hoping he starts for us next year and makes the most of it.

 

[upstater]

Amida was a disaster last night when they fed him down low.

But when he was replaced by Enoch, the middle opened up for USF and it was a layup drill.

 

[Hans Sprungfeld]

Write it down... Enoch is our starting center next year and gives us double figure scoring, solid board game, en route to being a 1st round pick by graduation. How it happens, no idea... But it will. He has skill and the frame. It's all there, he just needs to play.

IF we're going with the 'no idea how it happens' narrative, I'll just say, "Please."

I freely admit to having no clear sense of the particulars (especially defense), but I recall Pitt's Darren Morningstar who had a late growth spurt that sized him like Enoch. He transferred in from Navy as a clueless, lumbering, generic white guy big and then somehow became a fairly skilled & reliable presence as a senior. Even got drafted.

 

[mauconnfan]

Potential is very dangerous, it sets expectations.

One play last night from Enoch that I had a "was that Enoch" moment - he had the ball out by the top of the key, and no guard could get open. So he dribbled the ball to the block, and got himself in a back-to-the-basket position. And looked confident in doing so! It may not be much for any other program when a big can skillfully handle the rock to get into a good scoring position, but when we have suffered through 4 years of Amida turning into a self-inflicted flail of a hook and en up on the ground - that kind of move by Enoch got me thinking he has, wait for it, potential! I'm hopeful he gets more confident and fouls less so he can stay on the floor. His size and nice free-throw touch are needed next year.

Bingo liked that same play, he had no one open and he was one on one with his guy, dribbled twice left then backed him in, loved the fact he did it would've liked the finish but I believe he went to the line and made them.

 

[Danzz]

I never thought it was fair to blame Ollie for Brimah's lack of development, but if Enoch is still the same player as a senior as he is now, I will concede that Ollie struggles with developing bigs.

There was a time when JC was criticized for not developing bigs. Player development is more about the player than the coach.

 

[ctchamps]

Amida was a disaster last night when they fed him down low.

But when he was replaced by Enoch, the middle opened up for USF and it was a layup drill.

And USF started getting offensive rebounds. Steve was well ahead on offense in high school versus defense. The complete opposite of Amida coming into UConn.

He's got foot speed and he's not a stupid kid. It's either motivation or a mental block on defense. If, and that's a big IF, he figures out defense this kid can help next years team significantly because he's really got the tools to be terrific on the offensive end.

 

[boog204]

IF we're going with the 'no idea how it happens' narrative, I'll just say, "Please."

I freely admit to having no clear sense of the particulars (especially defense), but I recall Pitt's Darren Morningstar who had a late growth spurt that sized him like Enoch. He transferred in from Navy as a clueless, lumbering, generic white guy big and then somehow became a fairly skilled & reliable presence as a senior. Even got drafted.

I know it's a ridiculous premise to assume... I just think the kid is good and is soooo close to being a real player, at least offensively. The defensive awfulness is something that just is going to come with time. Hilton used to get lost defensively, pushed around, and out smarted despite his physical skills and it met him very "hookable" in the JC days. Given, he was always playing better players, but he was better than what he showed his first three years. But then senior year, Hilton was a force. We do not need Enoch to be a defensive "force," but we cannot have a layup drill either.

 

[Mr. Wonderful]

There was a time when JC was criticized for not developing bigs. Player development is more about the player than the coach.

Player development is both coach and player. The player has to have some abilities to build on and tools to work with, and the coach has to be able to motivate and teach that player.

Brimah had limited abilities and no tools. No matter how much motivation and teaching he got, he was never going to be more than a minor contributor. Good kid, hard worker...not a foundation player.

Enoch has more natural ability and tools to work with than Brimah. If he never gets better, if Ollie can't light a fire under him, well...

 

[upstater]

I wonder if most of these skills are gained in practice. Gavin Edwards had to battle with players like Jeff Adrien and Thabeet. I'm sure this contributed significantly to his growth.

Imagine Hilton going up against Okafor, Josh Boone and even Ed Nelson.

 

[mauconnfan]

Amida was a disaster last night when they fed him down low.

But when he was replaced by Enoch, the middle opened up for USF and it was a layup drill.

Sorry hardly that way. A couple plays but one time he made a nice help and Facey wasn't there to cover, looked like Steve's fault but not. Both were bad on D, they both go to cover incoming offensive player and never have their hands out to deflect the passes that go to the man they left. Crazy should be a natural instinct.

 

[ctchamps]

Player development is both coach and player. The player has to have some abilities to build on and tools to work with, and the coach has to be able to motivate and teach that player.

Brimah had limited abilities and no tools. No matter how much motivation and teaching he got, he was never going to be more than a minor contributor. Good kid, hard worker...not a foundation player.

Enoch has more natural ability and tools to work with than Brimah. If he never gets better, if Ollie can't light a fire under him, well...

You're falling into the same trap people did after Amida's freshman year. People took his incredible blocking gifts as indicators that he could pick up other aspects of the game and of course he didn't. Steve has been only at the game for four years so it's possible he can develop on defense. But the assumption it's a given, and the assumption it's on the coaches if he doesn't is foolish imo.

There are a lot of us who have limitations in what we do, no matter what opportunities we have. It's part of life which is what makes sports exciting and exacerbating at the same time.