Brimah leads Huskies’ bountiful batch of bigs

[CallMeBruce]

I think some are missing the point here. Yes he was better at not fouling out no doubt. But was he better at not getting into fast foul trouble therefore eliminating minutes played in many big games? The answer to that is no. And that's more important than only having four fouls when the buzzer sounds. Agree, he's better and the minutes show that but the big games, where he was asked and pleaded to be smart were not very good. That needs to change.

Here comes OkForPrez

I think what you're calling 'missing the point' is actually 'taking the stats at face value instead of inventing our own narrative for them.' Brimah was much, much better at avoiding foul trouble last year. As a freshman, he played more than 20 minutes in only 8/40 games, while playing 10 or fewer minutes in 9 games. As a sophomore, he topped 20 minutes 27/35 times, falling below 10 minutes only once, and went from 3 to 11 games of 30 minutes or more. There's no rational way to interpret the data to say he wasn't better at avoiding fouls across the board.

 

[mauconnfan]

I think what you're calling 'missing the point' is actually 'taking the stats at face value instead of inventing our own narrative for them.' Brimah was much, much better at avoiding foul trouble last year. As a freshman, he played more than 20 minutes in only 8/40 games, while playing 10 or fewer minutes in 9 games. As a sophomore, he topped 20 minutes 27/35 times, falling below 10 minutes only once, and went from 3 to 11 games of 30 minutes or more. There's no rational way to interpret the data to say he wasn't better at avoiding fouls.

My point was he didnt do a good job against good bigs and tough teams staying in the game in the first half. Not sure what else you took from that? In other words the stat is overrated right? I mean 38 minutes vs Fordham and 8 minutes in the first half vs Duke can be misleading no? Not too difficult here.

 

[Matt1010]

Did you even look at Gibbs' numbers from last year? His effective FG% was higher than Boatright's, he had an ORtg of 118, and he hit 44% of his three-pointers (taking 6/game). Is that not efficient enough for you?

He's also coming in as a proven vet who was second team all big east, a league that was top to bottom 100% better than the AAC last year. Gibbs has also proven he has the "clutch" gene by hitting multiple game winners.

Edit: Responding to @SubbaBub not you Bruce

 

[mauconnfan]

I'm gonna drop way down in OkaFor's rankings. Again not a criticism just a fact he needs to be better at. I believe KO said the same thing by the way but hey, who the hell is he?

 

[CallMeBruce]

My point was he didnt do a good job against good bigs and tough teams staying in the game in the first half. Not sure what else you tool from that? In other words the stat is overrated right? I mean 38 minutes vs Fordham and 8 minutes in the first half vs Duke can be misleading no? Not too difficult here.

Funny, I don't remember playing Fordham last year. I do remember Brimah badly outplaying Shaq Goodwin in a 19-point, 12-rebound performance against Memphis where he logged 38 minutes, but I see you conveniently forgot about that one. You also missed 30 minutes against Texas, 32 against Florida, 35 against Cincinnati, and 36 in the other Memphis game. Was he perfect? No. But to try to pretend he wasn't vastly improved is absurd.

 

[SubbaBub]

My bad, Gibbs is Oscar Robertson reincarnated and AB is a few pushups from being an All American because he had a few bright moments for an NIT team.

If that's good for you by all means, hype on.

 

[CallMeBruce]

My bad, Gibbs is Oscar Robertson reincarnated. Hype on.

Man, you really knocked the hell out of that strawman.

Edit: And I see you doubled down on it.

 

[mauconnfan]

Funny, I don't remember playing Fordham last year. I do remember Brimah badly outplaying Shaq Goodwin in a 19-point, 12-rebound performance against Memphis where he logged 38 minutes, but I see you conveniently forgot about that one. You also missed 30 minutes against Texas, 32 against Florida, 35 against Cincinnati, and 36 in the other Memphis game. Was he perfect? No. But to try to pretend he wasn't vastly improved is absurd.

It's just me Bruce sorry to invade your area of expertise. I guess I was just thinking of one game.

“I want him to not make silly fouls like he made last year, where I had to pull him out of the game in the first two minutes and have to sit him down the whole first half. I want him to eliminate some of those foolish mistakes that he did. Some of them were trying to take charges, illegal screen way out 35 feet from the basket."

 

[HuskyBballFan]

My bad, Gibbs is Oscar Robertson reincarnated and AB is a few pushups from being an All American because he had a few bright moments for an NIT team.

If that's good for you by all means, hype on.

Hype on? Because you were proven wrong about Gibbs' efficiency? Who hyped him up?

 

[UChusky916]

Unless he suddenly figured out how to rebound, you guys are setting yourselves up for disappointment. AB needs to be the #3 guy, if he's #1 then we're sunk.

I have no idea is Miller can board at this level or if Gibbs can be the scorer he was at the Hall. Being the man on a mediocre team doesn't always translate up in class.

It has to be Pervis' team.

Lol, so much awful in this post. Even for the boneyard.

1) No one is saying Brimah needs to be the #1 guy
2) You fail to even mention Hamilton
3) There's nothing stopping Brimah from improving his rebounding numbers. But it wouldn't be a shock if he didn't either because we now have a more complete frontcourt.
4) We dont have #1, #2, etc guys anyways. It doesn't have to be ANYONE'S team in particular
5) Purvis*

 

[SubbaBub]

Hype on? Because you were proven wrong about Gibbs' efficiency? Who hyped him up?

Who was the last transfer that led a team to the FF? I'll wait.

Both Gibbs and Miller are upgrades over what we had coming back and their skill sets fill the huge rebounding and 3 point shooting deficiencies we had last year in games that mattered. We are a lot better with them here, but the idea that they are the certain answer to a deep run is just silly. Their teams seasons were barely better than ours.

As for AB, he has more talent than a lot of guys we've had, he just refuses to use it correctly. We'll see if he's a dominant two way post instead of a shot blocking foul prone novelty.

Purvis, Hamilton, and Brimah will determine how far we go more than the new guys. If all four step up, we could have something special, but I'll wait a few games to book my FF tickets.

 

[aceboon]

Who was the last transfer that led a team to the FF? I'll wait.

Both Gibbs and Miller are upgrades over what we had coming back and their skill sets fill the huge rebounding and 3 point shooting deficiencies we had last year in games that mattered. We are a lot better with them here, but the idea that they are the certain answer to a deep run is just silly. Their teams seasons were barely better than ours.

As for AB, he has more talent than a lot of guys we've had, he just refuses to use it correctly. We'll see if he's a dominant two way post instead of a shot blocking foul prone novelty.

Purvis, Hamilton, and Brimah will determine how far we go more than the new guys. If all four step up, we could have something special, but I'll wait a few games to book my FF tickets.

Yea, Brimah refuses to use his talent instead of the fact that he's inexperienced and relatively new to the game compared to his peers. Season hasn't even started yet and you are already establishing pole position for 2015-2016 WOAT.

 

[mauconnfan]

Geez Subba I see being pessimistic about anyone talking FF for sure right now but to not see the pieces in place is kind of weird. This could be a good team, could be a very good team and who knows after that. There is solid talent 9-10 deep and if all improve not many teams will have the same outside the obvious. They will rebound better than last year, more than likely shoot better than last year, they will defend better than last year in the interior and they will probably score better than last year. As much as people think I hammer on AB he will improve if only by maturity and if it's more, the kid could be a huge impact. Same goes for most others and the maturity and experience of Miller/Gibbs can't be denied. They're better than last year and will make the tourney, definitely. How far they go? We will see.

 

[intlzncster]

Yea, Brimah refuses to use his talent instead of the fact that he's inexperienced and relatively new to the game compared to his peers. Season hasn't even started yet and you are already establishing pole position for 2015-2016 WOAT.

And this does not get said enough: The guy missed all last offseason due to surgery!

College kids missing an offseason is killer for their development.

 

[OkaForPrez]

@mauconnfan Nah, just having fun with you at this point. We've said all there is to say and I don't think we're really far apart on AB. More glass half empty glass half full, all rooting for him. We can be bulls and bears and huskies all the same.

 

[Dogbreath2U]

I think what you're calling 'missing the point' is actually 'taking the stats at face value instead of inventing our own narrative for them.' Brimah was much, much better at avoiding foul trouble last year. As a freshman, he played more than 20 minutes in only 8/40 games, while playing 10 or fewer minutes in 9 games. As a sophomore, he topped 20 minutes 27/35 times, falling below 10 minutes only once, and went from 3 to 11 games of 30 minutes or more. There's no rational way to interpret the data to say he wasn't better at avoiding fouls across the board.

That does not mean, however, that it was not still a glaring problem last year. It was. He has to "think the game" much better to be more effective.

 

[champs99and04]

Unless he suddenly figured out how to rebound, you guys are setting yourselves up for disappointment. AB needs to be the #3 guy, if he's #1 then we're sunk.

I have no idea is Miller can board at this level or if Gibbs can be the scorer he was at the Hall. Being the man on a mediocre team doesn't always translate up in class.

It has to be Pervis' team.

1. As far as Miller boarding at this level, the likely answer is yes. Historically, rebounds tend to translate across levels as well as almost any other statistic.

2. There is no reason to think Gibbs can't be the scorer he was at Seton Hall given he played in a very good league last season and scored very efficiently, despite being the focal point of the scouting report. 19 against Wichita State, 25 against St. Johns, 20 against Villanova, 30 against Butler, 22 against Xavier, 17 and 22 against Georgetown. All tournament teams, most of them very good ones. It isn't like this is a Mike Rosario situation where he just jacked shots on a bad team.

3. I'm not sure what you're referencing when you say Brimah needs to be the #3 guy. #3 in shot attempts? That's reconcilable, though my guess is he'll be behind at least Hamilton, Purvis, and Gibbs. But it would not shock anybody if AB were the squad's most impactful two-way player.

 

[OkaForPrez]

It's just me Bruce sorry to invade your area of expertise. I guess I was just thinking of one game.

“I want him to not make silly fouls like he made last year, where I had to pull him out of the game in the first two minutes and have to sit him down the whole first half. I want him to eliminate some of those foolish mistakes that he did. Some of them were trying to take charges, illegal screen way out 35 feet from the basket."

Not really a counterpoint though. Bruce's main argument is that Brimah's vast improvement in this area from a freshman to a sophomore indicates a potential for further growth along that plane into his Junior year. Quoting Ollie saying Brimah needs to doesn't negate that, we all agree he's got further to go.

The debate comes down to this, do you think its more likely that AB will mostly shed the yips in this area against all levels of competition or not. The glass half fulls think the evidence points to yes, the glass half empties think it points to no. We all hope it does because that means a final four in all likelihood. That last part is my opinion.

 

[Kitaman]

Funny, I don't remember playing Fordham last year. I do remember Brimah badly outplaying Shaq Goodwin in a 19-point, 12-rebound performance against Memphis where he logged 38 minutes, but I see you conveniently forgot about that one. You also missed 30 minutes against Texas, 32 against Florida, 35 against Cincinnati, and 36 in the other Memphis game. Was he perfect? No. But to try to pretend he wasn't vastly improved is absurd.

Must you guys always use facts and figures to support your statements. Some of you guys cut short a good off-season spat by doing that. If so at least piecemeal it so we can enjoy it longer, you're dropping fact bombs.

Some of the reasons I enjoy coming here is for the ignorance and brain farts, college educated or not.

 

[intlzncster]

2. There is no reason to think Gibbs can't be the scorer he was at Seton Hall given he played in a very good league last season and scored very efficiently, despite being the focal point of the scouting report.

And Gibbs will likely benefit from having good players around him, perhaps becoming even more efficient. He'll be able to pick his spots and rely on others around him to do their thing. His overall stats might improve (ass/to etc). I'm wondering if this will help his D as well, not having to be THE guy on the offensive end.

All will depend on chemistry though.

 

[James]

And Gibbs will likely benefit from having good players around him, perhaps becoming even more efficient. He'll be able to pick his spots and rely on others around him to do their thing. His overall stats might improve (ass/to etc). I'm wondering if this will help his D as well, not having to be THE guy on the offensive end.

All will depend on chemistry though.

Interesting you bring up his defense, its clearly his biggest question mark ( gibbs that is). However I believe KO is one of the best at 'defensive player development', he dogs you all game a la tom thibodeau, he also plays mostly man2man which shines the light on a player if they aren't 'digging in', and it allows him to extend a wider array of philosophies on that end of the floor. He turned brimah into an incredible force in the paint defensively, also countless players on the '14 squad. It makes sense since the only reason he stayed around so long in the nba was for his defensive iq and decision making. He's a very very good defensive coach.

 

[Dogbreath2U]

Interesting you bring up his defense, its clearly his biggest question mark ( gibbs that is). However I believe KO is one of the best at 'defensive player development', he dogs you all game a la tom thibodeau, he also plays mostly man2man which shines the light on a player if they aren't 'digging in', and it allows him to extend a wider array of philosophies on that end of the floor. He turned brimah into an incredible force in the paint defensively, also countless players on the '14 squad. It makes sense since the only reason he stayed around so long in the nba was for his defensive iq and decision making. He's a very very good defensive coach.

In many ways, KO is the "X" Factor in regard to how this team will come together. Wow, this will be fun to watch.

 

[mauconnfan]

Not really a counterpoint though. Bruce's main argument is that Brimah's vast improvement in this area from a freshman to a sophomore indicates a potential for further growth along that plane into his Junior year. Quoting Ollie saying Brimah needs to doesn't negate that, we all agree he's got further to go.

The debate comes down to this, do you think its more likely that AB will mostly shed the yips in this area against all levels of competition or not. The glass half fulls think the evidence points to yes, the glss half empties think it points to no. We all hope it does because that means a final four in all likelihood. That last part is my opinion.

Simply pointing out it was still a weakness because of early stupidity and it was in fact. And he was obviously going to improve his minutes he's a year older and a shot blocker while being our best big, he saw the court a lot more. You can point out how many minutes he played in any games you want but foul trouble was still an issue with him last year there's no debating that. Improvement? Absolutely but I expect it will be a much bigger jump this year if he begins to understand the game, hence no stupid fouls early.

 

[Walker11]

And this does not get said enough: The guy missed all last offseason due to surgery!

College kids missing an offseason is killer for their development.

College kids missing an offseason is always rough for development - when the college kid is a freshman big who just starting playing basketball, that effect is amplified by a billion.

 

[OkaForPrez]

Simply pointing out it was still a weakness because of early stupidity and it was in fact. And he was obviously going to improve his minutes he's a year older and a shot blocker while being our best big, he saw the court a lot more. You can point out how many minutes he played in any games you want but foul trouble was still an issue with him last year there's no debating that. Improvement? Absolutely but I expect it will be a much bigger jump this year if he begins to understand the game, hence no stupid fouls early.

Which was Bruce's exact point. Consensus reached.