Change Now

[Hamms30]

Do you think basketball begins and ends on the offensive end of the floor?

Gilbert was incredibly poor last night, and if as many people played and coached horrifically you want to single him out, fine. But he is light years ahead of where Gaffney is defensively. Light years. Bringing Gaffney is may make us marginally better on offense, but it's not going to make us a better team. Yet. Unless Gilbert plays like this every game (which to be fair he hasn't).

Same with Carlton compared to Whalley. Carlton made an awful, awful boneheaded defensive play to start the game, but the rest of it he played well in his 20 minutes. He defended. He blocked shots. He rebounded. Whalley gives you nothing but minutes to rest Carlton. He was totally, totally overwhelmed by very mediocre bigs on the defensive end.

If there is one thing I would fix after last night it wouldn't be the lineup (especially where all 9 guys who played were given plenty of opportunity to show they could do better than the other guys). I would make everyone watch not primarily how Cincy set picks and screens, but how the dribblers used them by actually dribbling closer to the man setting the pick or screen so that daylight opened up. If you want especially to blame the coaches for something, blame them for this. It can't be a point of emphasis to use your pick better because it's not that difficult.

Agreed. Always love AG's defense, but the problem I see there is you are now relying on three people to create scoring opportunities if AG and JC are in more for a defensive role. You could see a few times where AG had an open jump shot and he wouldn't pull the trigger. There was no presence in the paint last night. The times JC got the ball down low his footwork was incredibly sloppy and was extremely reluctant to put the ball on the floor to give him a chance to get position. It was always a lazy fade away hook and one handed tip attempts instead of getting a two handed rebound and going up strong.

For me it was just frustrating to watch them run the weave at the top of the paint and then when they wanted to set up a pick and roll, Cinci would hedge with their big and time stood still. Like, really? AG can't get around a 7 foot Center and JC can't cut to the hoop for a lob over the smaller defender?

 

[Huskybass]

Desperate to put players on the floor who have earned the right to be there or who have shown the potential ability to do so.

They are certainly the 5 who provide the most hope going forward. Wish I could add Polley to that list because he is our best shooter in awhile, but the complete inability to rebound is baffling. At 6'9" or so, 3 or 4 rebounds per game should be nearly automatic. Vital averages double that at 6'2".

 

[coachn]

Great assessment

Gaffney is a terrible on ball defender - at this point of his career - as are most incoming players. They are not taught this skill in HS/Prep school. He will get better but it will take time.
Whalley is a back-up not a starter.
Dan Hurley may be a great technical coach but this team seems to be tactically inept. They play with no offensive plan, no strategy. Other teams run plays, pick and roll etc. UConn is offense that flies by the seat of their pants. Everything is instinctive. It makes you wonder what do they work on in practice - is it skills only?

When you play basketball you fight for position on both D &O. MM D principle front your man below ft line saw none of that too many times.On O we didn't fight for position could have gone backdoor to beat C aggression but no basketball sense or teamwork good enough for this. Got to have BB IQ.

 

[Hurleyman216]

We need Akok at the top of the key more. He should be able to roll to the basket off a pick and roll and get lobs all day long and is quick enough to beat his man to the basket off a switch.

 

[Watchdog]

Vital at the 4? What???

Put 40 pounds on him and it'd be like Herndon and McCoy at UMass when Calipari was in his heyday.

 

[coachn]

Positionless basketball with my lineup. Villanova and Golden State do it. Why can't UConn?

 

[rcarj]

Vital and AG need to play bench minutes regardless of who starts. Wish it weren’t, but it’s time.

No scenario where vital needs to come off the beach right now. I think, naturally, that is the perfect role for him, but this (as currently constructed) cannot afford to have him not start.

 

[coachn]

You need a point guard on the floor who is an extension of the coach and gets done what the coach wants done. Responsible for the outcome.(Gafney)Gilbert has to make the coaches system work or get sombody who can make it work. Maybe give him some better tools to work with? Maybe a change in system?Gilbert is not working out. That's why wholesale change is needed either the system or the players?

 

[husky429]

Positionless basketball with my lineup. Villanova and Golden State do it. Why can't UConn?

I really hope you're not serious, Coach.

 

[BLUEDOGHOUSE]

I really hope you're not serious, Coach.

It probably is more the concept in general than equating talent.

Do you think I may be on to something?