Butler Postgame Thread

[superjohn]

High flying Rueben Chinyelu has 27 dunks this year, public enemy #1 Tarris Reed Jr has 20 dunks in 67 less minutes. So adjusted for their minutes that's 0.3 more dunks per game. Not exactly a difference

Tarris didn't dunk through anyone or catch an alley oops but it's nice to at least see some powerful dunks from him lately. He was pretty much laying everything in for a lot of the season. Could he possibly be getting some explosiveness back? Even a couple of his blocks have looked more emphatic recently.

 

[Edward Sargent]

Tarris didn't dunk through anyone or catch an alley oops but it's nice to at least see some powerful dunks from him lately. He was pretty much laying everything in for a lot of the season. Could he possibly be getting some explosiveness back? Even a couple of his blocks have looked more emphatic recently.

More than that I like his passing out of double teams rather than dribbling into a TO. 7 assists! He already is a double - double machine. A few more for a triple - double

 

[Edward Sargent]

StJ - Mitchell
MSU - Carr

But you're right, not many of them to go around. Those two stand out, might be missing some.

Budinga at the 5, same with Florida's 5.

None of them are Steph or Ajax like I said

 

[RashadRay11]

A win is a win, but it's not impressive after the loss to St. John's, in which they were completely outplayed.

So much for “a half full kind of guy” 😂

 

[RuffRuff]

None of them are Steph or Ajax like I said

 

[KingAG]

Hurley for his championship teams recruited IQ. Athleticism isn't what makes this team different than 23 and 24. Basketball IQ and passing ability are. AJax as a brilliant player who understood angles, Alex elite level IQ, Cam elite level IQ, Steph elite level IQ, Donovan elite level IQ, Hawk elite IQ with using screens, etc. Our guys are more than athletic enough. It's the boneheaded moments and the times where we suddenly forget how to run the offense. We need to recruit more elite passers. The improvements from "really good" to Number 7 will happen in the mind if it happens at all.

I think Silas and Braylon are the 2 that can make the IQ leap for us. Solo and Taris aren't IQ guys. They are supremely talented, but I don't want them necessarily at the forefront of our decision making. This is where Malachi is killing us. He was supposed to be another IQ guy and just hasn't been that.

Our championship culture is based on execution and being better at thinking "basketball" than everyone else. If an athletic freak has those high IQ attributes(AJax, Steph) then they'll be here.

 

[Marat]

Hurley for his championship teams recruited IQ. Athleticism isn't what makes this team different than 23 and 24. Basketball IQ and passing ability does. AJax as a brilliant player who understood angles, Alex elite level IQ, Cam elite level IQ, Steph elite level IQ, Donovan elite level IQ, Hawk elite IQ with using screens, etc. Our guys are more than athletic enough. It's the boneheaded moments and the times where we suddenly forget how to run the offense. The improvements from "really good" to Number 7 will happen in the mind if it happens at all.

I think Silas and Braylon are the 2 that can make the IQ leap for us. Solo and Taris aren't IQ guys. They are supremely talented, but I don't want them necessarily at the forefront of our decision making. This is where Malachi is killing us. He was supposed to be another IQ guy and just hasn't been that.

Our championship culture is based on execution and being better at thinking "basketball" than everyone else. If an athletic freak posses those high IQ attributes(AJax, Steph) then they'll be here.Alwx

I dont think anyone on the team can top Akex for IQ decisions, but others can improve.

 

[KingAG]

I dont think anyone on the team can top Akex for IQ decisions, but others can improve.

Definitely. I think that what Hurley is hoping to get in Pierce. He seems like he understands the game at a high level as well. Stewie has flashes, but never consistently. He has games where his passes to Reed are phenomenal. I think Reibe has a high IQ ceiling as well. The game just has to slow down for him. Hass was an underrated IQ guy, he was just small and beat up his last year.

 

[3rdbass]

Wasn't Butler down a few of their top players who are out for the season? I'm really not sure how good a team the Bulldogs are at this stage of the season.

With that said, a win is a win. The eye test tells me UConn has a lot to work on and improve to ready themselves for a long post season run.

They were only down their point guard since the last time we played them. They have had another player out since the beginning of the season but they have played good ball since the beginning. Still nice to win on the road against any Big East team and in double figures makes it sweeter.

 

[HooperScooper]

I knew the Huskies were hitting more threes but I didn't realize it's been this dramatic of a change.

3. UConn Huskies (23-2)​

Previous ranking: 2

Even when UConn was struggling from the perimeter, coach Dan Hurley maintained that his team was getting good looks -- the shots just weren't falling. "We haven't changed anything on offense," he said after last week's win over Xavier. "We're just starting to make shots at the clip and at the level that this team should be making shots." Whatever it is, UConn's newfound shotmaking is real. The Huskies have now made at least nine 3s in five straight games after doing it five times all season (before that); over that span, they're making 11.8 3s per game at a 44.7% clip.

Next seven days: vs. Georgetown (Feb. 14), vs. Creighton (Feb. 18)

Men's college basketball Power Rankings: The top 5 gets a big reshuffle

The latest top 25 features plenty of movement after a week of ranked upsets, including a new No. 1.

www.espn.com

 

[superjohn]

Hurley for his championship teams recruited IQ. Athleticism isn't what makes this team different than 23 and 24. Basketball IQ and passing ability are. AJax as a brilliant player who understood angles, Alex elite level IQ, Cam elite level IQ, Steph elite level IQ, Donovan elite level IQ, Hawk elite IQ with using screens, etc. Our guys are more than athletic enough. It's the boneheaded moments and the times where we suddenly forget how to run the offense. We need to recruit more elite passers. The improvements from "really good" to Number 7 will happen in the mind if it happens at all.

I think Silas and Braylon are the 2 that can make the IQ leap for us. Solo and Taris aren't IQ guys. They are supremely talented, but I don't want them necessarily at the forefront of our decision making. This is where Malachi is killing us. He was supposed to be another IQ guy and just hasn't been that.

Our championship culture is based on execution and being better at thinking "basketball" than everyone else. If an athletic freak has those high IQ attributes(AJax, Steph) then they'll be here.

Of course athleticism is a part of it which you admit in your last sentence.

 

[KingAG]

Of course athleticism is a part of it which you admit in your last sentence.

Abdou Toure doesn’t fit that mold.

There actually aren’t many guys who do.

Abdou went to the perfect spot for that he does.

Yes. We all agree we should bring high IQ athletic freaks.

 

[superjohn]

Abdou Toure doesn’t fit that mold.

There actually aren’t many guys who do.

Abdou went to the perfect spot for that he does.

Yes. We all agree we should bring high IQ athletic freaks.

We haven't going on three years now.

Toure would be by far our best athlete and I think he'll be better than Jaylin and Ross his freshman year.

 

[KingAG]

We haven't going on three years now.

Toure would be by far our best athlete and I think he'll be better than Jaylin and Ross his freshman year.

He should be. I just don’t know if he fits our system. He isn’t a high level passer yet or a consistent shooter. Have to be able to do one. It’s why Stewie and Ross struggle. Ajax couldn’t shoot but he was play maker. He also stayed until his Junior year. Steph was just special. If I thought Abdou would stay and develop I’d be all for it. I just don’t think that the path he wants. He wants to go to a system that will get him to the NBA sooner than later. Arkansas with Calipari is a good fit. I think he’d struggle here his first year.

Who were the high IQ Athletic freaks we should’ve brought in?

 

[HW611]

Not sure why my points get twisted - no, I didn't say those teams were entirely based on that, what I said was that guys like AJx and Steph were core to our success, and dominance. We overwhelmed teams.

Newt, Spencer, AK, are not great athletes. We have one player on each of those teams that was a difference maker athletically and complimented the stable of shooters in other positions. Nowadays, we are just shooters everywhere.

A huge part of our back to backs were being bigger, stronger, and faster than everyone else.

Newton gave us a PG bigger than 99% of the teams we played both years.

Hawkins gave us a 2G who was physically and athletically superior than 99% of the field. Cam didn’t but had Newton and Castle next to him with Clingan behind him to make up for it.

Andre and Steph are known. Their ability to suffocate 1-4 was incredibly important. Was the best athlete on the floor in 99% of the games we played in.

Karaban was the outlier both years (with Cam in 24).

Sanogo wasn’t athletically superior. Was more super skilled like Cam. But we had the cheat code in Clingan who was bigger and stronger than 99% of the centers in the country coming off the bench. Then a full time starter the next year.

A good part of our championships was being bigger, faster, and stronger than our opponents.

 

[KingAG]

A huge part of our back to backs were being bigger, stronger, and faster than everyone else.

Newton gave us a PG bigger than 99% of the teams we played both years.

Hawkins gave us a 2G who was physically and athletically superior than 99% of the field. Cam didn’t but had Newton and Castle next to him with Clingan behind him to make up for it.

Andre and Steph are known. Their ability to suffocate 1-4 was incredibly important. Was the best athlete on the floor in 99% of the games we played in.

Karaban was the outlier both years (with Cam in 24).

Sanogo wasn’t athletically superior. Was more super skilled like Cam. But we had the cheat code in Clingan who was bigger and stronger than 99% of the centers in the country coming off the bench. Then a full time starter the next year.

A good part of our championships was being bigger, faster, and stronger than our opponents.

Hawkins was in no way shape or form physically and athletically superior than 99% of anybody

 

[HW611]

Hawkins was in no way shape or form physically and athletically superior than 99% of anybody

Who were the 2Gs that year that were physically bigger/more athletic than Hawkins that year?

 

[dennismenace]

Listen any “complaint”/observation is nit picking obviously. We are 23-2 and poised for a one seed. I’m certainly not suggesting the program needs wholesales modifications. We have a wonderful product. It’s simply an observation that we’ve moved away from a key ingredient in record breaking teams of just two years ago, to a profile that tends to lead towards a less dynamic roster and much less “bullet proof”. If this team has an off shooting game against the top 15 of the country, how confident are we that we can still win? We just lost to the most athletic team in the conference while shooting 55%.

I think there is a happy medium here. Our offense and defense systems are complicated (need some semblance of bbiq) and Dan Hurley notorious
practices are not for everyone. We are looking for recruits who fit into a defined culture of personal commitment to our systems and the coaching philosophy. Many high level recruits will lack the character and humility (teachable) to buy into this so we are going to lose out on some recruits (probably quite a few) as well as issues such as highest bidder NIL's guys. Ok. That said we need some very physical people to fill out this roster to drive the ball to the hole and for rebounding/shotblocking. Speed (floor length) or quickness can add to strength as desirable physicality as well. We don't need five guys shooting threes if someone can't drive and make a layup or is afraid to mix it up inside and on the boards. I don't think you can create tough physical people unless you reorient some of the practice demands to include weight lifting. Most of our guys look like they need more "T" to me. It is a blend though so getting shooters and complicated offense was a very good adjustment to Dan Hurley and staff system. We can always balance/improve. I just recently found out that Kimani was an asst. coach for Pitino at Minn for many years. Guy is a winner and we are very fortunate to have him on staff as well as the other assistants.
We really need consistent aggression and heads up play from Reed down the stretch. He can add a whole new dimension if he gets it right.

 

[dennismenace]

Good observation

Nice but what we really need to see from him is a love for the boards and shot blocking. Finesse on offense around the hoop is ok but his bread and butter at 7 feet and 250 lbs is savvy physicality around the basket. He's facing it in practice every day. Opponents need to fear coming in the paint with the tandem of Reed and Reibe. They can open up the floor for the three pointers when they establish the inside game.

 

[Mr. French]

Hawkins was in no way shape or form physically and athletically superior than 99% of anybody

I don’t want to get into a whole thing but most of that post isn’t correct. Other than Newton and Clingan being tall it’s just not super accurate.

 

[KingAG]

Who were the 2Gs that year that were physically bigger/more athletic than Hawkins that year?

Just shooting guards on our schedule, though there were more:

RJ Luis
Terrance Shannon
Kadary Richmond
Anthony Black
Julian Strawther
Colby Jones
Brandon Murray
Simas Lukosius

I could go through the rest of the country but that’d be overkill.

What made Hawk great was not his physical attributes. He wasn’t the biggest 2 guard. He’s 6’5 190 lbs. And 190 lbs is gracious.

 

[Glastonhusky]

We haven't going on three years now.

Toure would be by far our best athlete and I think he'll be better than Jaylin and Ross his freshman year.

Don't forget, we did recruit Isaiah Abraham. Many said he was the best athlete on the team last year. Unfortunately, it didn't work out for him here.

 

[HW611]

Just shooting guards on our schedule, though there were more:

RJ Luis
Terrance Shannon
Kadary Richmond
Anthony Black
Julian Strawther
Colby Jones
Brandon Murray
Simas Lukosius

I could go through the rest of the country but that’d be overkill.

What made Hawk great was not his physical attributes. He wasn’t the biggest 2 guard. He’s 6’5 190 lbs. And 190 lbs is gracious.

Didn’t make it to Brandon Murray or the last guy because all the guys you named previously either didn’t play that year or actually played the 3.

RJ Luis and Terrance Shannon were on 24s schedule. They may also have played the 3 but I haven’t checked.

Hawk was typically matched up with someone shorter than him, lighter, or both. Arkansas was as close as it got because of freshman Nick Smith who was the same height but a 180 pound freshman.

Most of college basketball 2 guards are smaller guards. Like Solo and Cam are.

 

[HW611]

And defensively in 23 that’s what it looked like… we were suffocating and had size advantages on every part of the floor except the 4 and 5. And at the 5 we had a 7’ that can make Drew Timme look like a middle schooler if need be.

We were one of the top defensive teams in the country both years because the best defensive coach in the country had superior physical talent to sick on teams.

 

[KingAG]

Didn’t make it to Brandon Murray or the last guy because all the guys you named previously either didn’t play that year or actually played the 3.

RJ Luis and Terrance Shannon were on 24s schedule. They may also have played the 3 but I haven’t checked.

Hawk was typically matched up with someone shorter than him, lighter, or both. Arkansas was as close as it got because of freshman Nick Smith who was the same height but a 180 pound freshman.

Most of college basketball 2 guards are smaller guards. Like Solo and Cam are.

They weren’t all on our schedule but they were all in CBB. And who was a 3? lol