Brimah's Efficiency

[Chief00]

- Foul Shooting - Brimah is shooting 60%. He has taken 21 more FTs than Purvis and 24 more than Adams - both of whom are shooting 18% higher. Jim Calhoun use to say the best way to improve team foul shooting is getting the best foul shooters on the line rather than depending on a guy to substantially improve.

- Assist to Turnover Ratio - LOL - I know this is one of the first things Kevin looks at and for Brimah it's 0.1, that's not a misprint since he has 4 assists to 38 turnovers. Quite frankly, we are not looking for a center to lead the team in assists, but the turnovers are killing us. My advice - other than doing various hand strengthening exercises - is to see the ball into his hands before making a move. He is not a natural player so he needs to do things in stages unfortunately.

- FG Shooting - Brimah is Shooting 588% - very good to both the casual and more serious fans. However, this is not really his efficiency - if you factor in his turnovers it's about 10% lower.

- 3 PT FG - Quite frankly, not necessary to cover.

- Rebounds - Rodney has 1 more defensive rebound 99 vs 98. In overall rebounds Facey leads the team but Brimah has shown some improvement recently.

- Block Shots - That's where he shines - 69 blocks or about half the team's total blocks.

At another time I will break down some other aspects of his game beyond the numbers - this post is long enough.

I hope this helps.

Chief00

 

[Jerry1714]

- Foul Shooting - Brimah is shooting 60%. He has taken 21 more FTs than Purvis and 24 more than Adams - both of whom are shooting 18% higher. Jim Calhoun use to say the best way to improve team foul shooting is getting the best foul shooters on the line rather than depending on a guy to substantially improve.

- Assist to Turnover Ratio - LOL - I know this is one of the first things Kevin looks at and for Brimah it's 0.1, that's not a misprint since he has 4 assists to 38 turnovers. Quite frankly, we are not looking for a center to lead the team in assists, but the turnovers are killing us. My advice - other than doing various hand strengthening exercises - is to see the ball into his hands before making a move. He is not a natural player so he needs to do things in stages unfortunately.

- FG Shooting - Brimah is Shooting 588% - very good to both the casual and more serious fans. However, this is not really his efficiency - if you factor in his turnovers it's about 10% lower.

- 3 PT FG - Quite frankly, not necessary to cover.

- Rebounds - Rodney has 1 more defensive rebound 99 vs 98. In overall rebounds Facey leads the team but Brimah has shown some improvement recently.

- Block Shots - That's where he shines - 69 blocks or about half the team's total blocks.

At another time I will break down some other aspects of his game beyond the numbers - this post is long enough.

I hope this helps.

Chief00

I for one, cannot wait until the next break down!

 

[Robertelamin]

Good write up Chief. You are only 120 games late.

 

[Stainmaster]

So much brand-new information, all in one handy place!

 

[nomar]

I agree. He should play better.

 

[tcf15]

That's where he shines - 69

nice?

 

[champs99and04]

Sort of felt like a shot at me when you said the post was long enough after like two paragraphs but I'll take the trade-off for analysis like this. Could you maybe walk us through what hand strengthening exercise, specifically, might be beneficial? Physical therapy type stuff? From your experience, how do you identify hand strength when you're scouting a player? Does the handshake tell you? I'll PM you my other questions.

 

[RichZ]

I hope this helps.

Chief00

Helps what? Who? How?

 

[Chin Diesel]

Good write up Chief. You are only 120 games late.

So much brand-new information, all in one handy place!

Well, at least with Chief00's info I can cancel my optometry appointment. My eyes haven't deceived me regarding what Brimah brings to the game.

I will add this. I've seen Brimah grab more rebounds out of his rebounding zone in the past 5-6 games than I did his first 3.5 years at UConn. Used to be the ball had to fall in to his hands for him to get a rebound. Now, he can actually track a ball in the air, adjust and move outside his area to grab and maintain control of rebounds.

 

[Chief00]

Sort of felt like a shot at me when you said the post was long enough after like two paragraphs but I'll take the trade-off for analysis like this. Could you maybe walk us through what hand strengthening exercise, specifically, might be beneficial? Physical therapy type stuff? From your experience, how do you identify hand strength when you're scouting a player? Does the handshake tell you? I'll PM you my other questions.

No shot at all - always there to share!

 

[Chief00]

Helps what? Who? How?

I understand there are some informal, casual fans, apparently like yourself, who may not have more than a cursory interest in the actual game itself other than who won. That's 100% fine with me, UConn needs fans like you too. But, many on this board do have an actual interest in the game itself and how players contribute to the team. So this post is for them.

 

[Chief00]

Good write up Chief. You are only 120 games late.

My friend, you miss what is the grind to improve. For those close to sports that's the real challenge or should be - when they wake up every day. 120 games ago so much of the current performance was unknowable. For example, his foul shooting, I believe without looking it up, has actually regressed. Now if you knew all this 4 years ago that this is who Brimah would be today - quit your day job and become an NBA scout or GM.

 

[Chief00]

So much brand-new information, all in one handy place!

Thanks. Like I said before the first step to learning is the willingness to do just that.

 

[mauconnfan]

Well, at least with Chief00's info I can cancel my optometry appointment. My eyes haven't deceived me regarding what Brimah brings to the game.

I will add this. I've seen Brimah grab more rebounds out of his rebounding zone in the past 5-6 games than I did his first 3.5 years at UConn. Used to be the ball had to fall in to his hands for him to get a rebound. Now, he can actually track a ball in the air, adjust and move outside his area to grab and maintain control of rebounds.

The other night he actually had 2, yes TWO rebounds in which he actually left the ground and took them from above the rebound. I swear, besides a missed FT I am not sure I have seen many of those in 3.5 years. Because I'm mau I have to say this, he could have had 20 plus the other night because there are still many which fly by his ear while he is battling for position too late, but he has shown great improvement in the last few games in going after rebounds. Maybe even reading them? hmmmmmm

 

[gtcam]

I've seen Brimah grab more rebounds out of his rebounding zone in the past 5-6 games than I did his first 3.5 years at UConn. Used to be the ball had to fall in to his hands for him to get a rebound. Now, he can actually track a ball in the air, adjust and move outside his area to grab and maintain control of rebounds.

I can see how this can be a perception because in the last few games he has actually taken a hop and reached far out to grab a rebound. It is, as far as I can see, not a case of him actually reading a balls bounce/path/flight. He has increased his desire to get anything near him which has translated into more bounds and could increase that number with more footwork, but we have talked that to death. Yes his numbers have increased and that is a positive but he certainly is not anywhere near a proficient rebounder that a guy his size should be- that comes with footwork, positioning, muscle, hands and desire. He has been more aggressive getting the balls within arms reach, his hands seem to have been a bit softer recently and I think he controls the ball a bit better.

 

[Onions]

My friend, you miss what is the grind to improve. For those close to sports that's the real challenge or should be - when they wake up every day. 120 games ago so much of the current performance was unknowable. For example, his foul shooting, I believe without looking it up, has actually regressed. Now if you knew all this 4 years ago that this is who Brimah would be today - quit your day job and become an NBA scout or GM.

Without looking it up you would have to be blind to miss the fact that Brimah's FF shooting has regressed this year. He was around 80% last year and he was around 50% for much of this season. It is worth noting that his FF shooting has gotten much better the past few weeks, but he is not the guy you want on the line in the last few minutes of a close game. For that matter neither is Vance Jackson and what's his excuse? The one person who has gotten better every single season at the line is Purvis, who I am now quite happy to see receiving an inbound in close games.

 

[jibsey]

AB is getting better overall and that is good but sadly his career is almost done here. With offseason improvement he would have been a beast for us next year or even the year after. Same with Facey.

 

[CardiacAndre7]

AB is getting better overall and that is good but sadly his career is almost done here. With offseason improvement he would have been a beast for us next year or even the year after. Same with Facey.

I do agree with this on Facey definitely, but at this point, I think Brimah is what he is at this point. I don't think he would improve much with another year at school, as he hasn't really the last few years, but playing in a league overseas would help him much more to improve his game.

 

[nomar]

I understand there are some informal, casual fans, apparently like yourself, who may not have more than a cursory interest in the actual game itself other than who won. That's 100% fine with me, UConn needs fans like you too. But, many on this board do have an actual interest in the game itself and how players contribute to the team. So this post is for them.

This is hilarious since RichZ writes very thoughtful discussions following each game.

 

[Husky68]

That rebound, put back, and plus 1 was pretty nice against St. Joe's. Amida is Amida, Chuck was Chuck, Andre was Andre; can't fault the effort and that's all I hold these big guys to.

 

[mauconnfan]

That rebound, put back, and plus 1 was pretty nice against St. Joe's. Amida is Amida, Chuck was Chuck, Andre was Andre; can't fault the effort and that's all I hold these big guys to.

That's what most of us do. But it's a basketball board and if they're playing for UConn they will be critiqued, comes with a free education at a major program. Unfortunately besides his great passion and his work ethic, that's what everyone turns to when they speak of his career. You said it all.

He's been better and most admit that, not sure why everyone has to always go there?

 

[jibsey]

We have had these discussions about AB since day 1 but I feel strongly that most of his issues would have been mitigated if he had stronger (better) hands, as simple as it sounds the ability to just catch and hold a basketball securely. That affected his rebounding, takeaways, turnovers and putbacks. And this year it's definitely better.

 

[ctchamps]

His rebounding improvement has been significant in recent games. His problem has always been anticipation of rebounds and overcoming his reflex to block everything. The coaching staff has been working on this since his sophomore season and he's just starting to figure things out. That's been unfortunate for UConn's success (up to now) and for us as fans, but I'm happy for him. It will help his future career. The next thing he'll need to do his improve his footwork and not leave his arms in a position for opposing players to lock his arms. He has the hand strength imo and I expect that now that he's getting the grasp of understanding the game better he'll pick up the footwork and arm positioning quickly.

On offense his to's are also the inability to anticipate plays quickly enough. But even that is coming along as well. I think the kid has a decent pro career ahead of him even if it is overseas.

I'm hoping in two months we'll be posting about his postseason success and not just pointing out the St. Joes moment.

 

[Chief00]

That St Joe's game was awhile ago.

 

[Chief00]

This is hilarious since RichZ writes very thoughtful discussions following each game.

To each his own.