Andre Jackson continues to impress

[UChusky916]

While Bouknight will get most of the attention (rightfully so), Jackson has played really well since his own return from injury and it feels like he's turned a corner.

Early in the year, Jackson struggled to find his role, pressing a bit too much as he adjusted to the college game. He struggled to find minutes before his injury. But now, he does so many things that help the team, it's hard to keep him off the floor.

Defensively, he's quickly become our best perimeter defender. He locked down Duke tonight. His length and athleticism is a real problem for opposing guards. He's quick and savvy to deny his man the ball altogether. He's not afraid to mix it up in the lane either... he's had a few uber-athletic blocks and skied for some rebounds among the bigs.

Offensively, he keeps the ball moving and gives our offense a nice flow. His solid ballhandling has really been a help, especially when Bouknight was out. We're starting to see his elite court vision and passing that was highly-touted coming out of HS. He made some great skip passes against Xavier that resulted in open looks.

Jackson's high IQ, court vision, and athletism allow him to shine in transition. His pass ahead to Whaley tonight was sublime.

Overall, Jackson is quickly becoming an X factor for this team, positively impacting the game in all facets. Like I said earlier, it feels like he's turned a corner... he has all of the tools to become an impact player and we're starting to see that happen.

 

[UCPharma11]

Anybody who has Duke as a top 10 pick is insane

Bouk has head to head annihilated Zegarowski (40+) and Duke (Easy buckets all day and plenty of and-1s) , NOVA up NEXT!

 

[Chief00]

Other than his shooting, which Chief knows he’s working diligently on and I am confident will get better, no one combines old school with new school better than Andre. Two hand rebounds, verticals shot block attempts, contagious top tier passing and lock down defense. The 3/4 plus full court pass he threw to have a teammate convert into a layup showed both mental and physical acumen. Chief is so happy Andre choose to be in the second Dam Break wave.

 

[August_West]

He was pissed because he did block the dunk, cleanly. All ball. No body contact either. I think it's one of those things with athletes like him, who haven't yet built a reputation, that the refs don't really think he can do what he just did.

It was the big arm swing swat/slap at the ball. It was totally clean and he was totally vertical (not to mention his head being above the rim, which was insane) but refs almost always automatically call big arm swings fouls in live action bang bang moments. Its a shame.

 

[BigErnMcCracken]

Chief is so happy Andre choose to be in the second Dam Break wave.

 

[superjohn]

 

[navery12]

It's crazy how much he impacts the game when he's not even a threat to shoot the ball unless there's no one within 20 feet of him. I don't think I've ever even seen video of him pulling up to shoot a jumper.

He pulled up and took a 3 early in the shot clock against Xavier. Not surprisingly Hurley immediately pulled him. He seemed to be get the message because he was still agressive, just within the flow of the offense

 

[StllH8L8ner]

I was a bit disappointed early on and while his jumper needs some help (I think I saw one of his threes from the corner hit the top of the backboard recently?), he does A LOT during his time on the floor and seems to be having fun out there now.

 

[husky429]

Can't say I've ever been as excited about a kid averaging 3/3/1. He's just improving so much every time he steps on the floor--he's a sponge out there and clearly prides himself on defense and making his teammates better. That's a recipe for a really, really talented college player.

I think he needs to start getting to the rim now. Against the guys that will be guarding him in the big east (usually the weakest wing defender on the team) he should be able to blow by or elevate for 2 at will. He has done a great job moving the ball and getting the offense going, but basically doesn't even look at the rim right now.

 

[AZHuskiePop]

He is a rare combination
The athleticism and defensive skills of Scott Burrell with the vision ,slashing and passing skills of Jalen Adams. If he could shoot like DD he would be a lottery pick.

 

[444JR]

Can't say I've ever been as excited about a kid averaging 3/3/1. He's just improving so much every time he steps on the floor--he's a sponge out there and clearly prides himself on defense and making his teammates better. That's a recipe for a really, really talented college player.

I think he needs to start getting to the rim now. Against the guys that will be guarding him in the big east (usually the weakest wing defender on the team) he should be able to blow by or elevate for 2 at will. He has done a great job moving the ball and getting the offense going, but basically doesn't even look at the rim right now.

He needs to improve his gather as he elevates to the rim. A better counter move when driving into the traffic. He’s attempted to get to the rim a few times this year and has been stripped during his gather move(at least twice).

I imagine that’s what’s causing his hesitation now. His handle is looking more fluid and I would bet it’s a combination of his confidence going up and the gym rat in him. Andre seems like a true student of the game, wants to learn and improve to maximize his talent. I think we’ll see him improve in each of these last 5 regular season games. Tournament time is going to be exciting.

The issue of concealing the ball on the gather when driving to the rim really showcases a players feel for the game, imo. I was watching Samson Johnson last night and it’s a skill he will really need to hone if he wants to be a perimeter oriented player at the next levels(Zion Cruz is very good btw).

Bouknight is elite at masking and protecting the ball on his gather and his strength and touch have helped him finish and1’s when he gets hacked. Martin has showed a great ability to conceal the ball on his way to the rim as well.

Helps to have some shake and rhythm to your game. BAdams does a decent job of using his body and physical strength to conceal the ball on the drive.

Once Andre gets this down, everyone will need to watch their heads.

 

[Guapo]

He does a tremendous amount on the floor that doesn’t show up on the stat sheet, but the impact is obvious.

his defense against Duke on Tuesday was just great.

the stats will come.

 

[Waquoit]

Can't say I've ever been as excited about a kid averaging 3/3/1.

Numbers are so overrated

 

[ScuderiaDiU]

I don't know that he deserves to be playing over Gaffney just yet.

 

[Chief00]

View attachment 64774
I don't know that he deserves to be playing over Gaffney just yet.

If you just went by just that, you wouldn’t need Chief. Brown is 50% better than Bouknight this season “per your table”. Suggest you “per Chief’s eye test” instead. It also doesn’t incorporate growth one’s Freshmen year for Sanogo and Jackson or factor in Jackson’s injury impact.

 

[freescooter]

He is very athletic but he had 2 points and 0 assists. Not sure we brought him here to be a defensive specialist. You can teach that. We’ll have to see if he is a basketball player.

 

[ScuderiaDiU]

If you just went by just that, you wouldn’t need Chief. Brown is 50% better than Bouknight this season “per your table”. Suggest you “per Chief’s eye test” instead. It also doesn’t incorporate growth one’s Freshmen year for Sanogo and Jackson or factor in Jackson’s injury impact.

I knew someone was going to fixate on Brown. Advanced stats are only valid when there is a statistically significant amount of data. Javonte's number is not statistically significant and should be ignored. For the players who have played significant minutes, however, it is telling. +/- is a great stat because it shows how the whole team performs when a player is on the court versus not.

 

[mauconnfan]

View attachment 64774
I don't know that he deserves to be playing over Gaffney just yet.

I'm hoping I missed the sarcasm here, please?