Chief’s Briefs - CCSU Edition

[CL82]

What about our start ? We we're playing #335 kempom, and three quarters of the way through the first half, the score was tied 33-33.

Seem to remember more than one game last year, where at the start it looked like our opponent was playing on a different setting then we were. (with the exception of Vital). If we don't learn intensity right out of the gate, well be spotting a good team 10 or 15 before we get started.

Mmm, 14 day layoff might have had a bit to do that. What was the final score?

 

[navery12]

Sanogo plays the 5, Whaley plays the 4 - comparing them is not worthwhile.

Whaley has a 10-12 foot jump shot, Sanogo does not. Sanogo is a wide body who takes up lateral space in box out situations, Whaley does not. Whaley can move laterally with a stretch big who can drive, Sanogo repeatedly got burned when his man drove to the hole. Sanogo is more a post-up defender, Whaley is a face-up defender.

They play different roles and can easily co-exist. Their PT should not be a zero-sum game.

Whaley is a 5, not sure why people still try to argue this. He started at the 5 and played all of his minutes at the 5 yesterday. Minutes at the 5 were Whaley 17, Sanogo 17, Carlton 3, Brown 3. All minutes for those guys were exclusively at the 5

 

[HuskyHawk]

I think its a hyperbole to say Sanogo is already better than Whaley. I mean we have a great sample size of what Whaley can do against legit D1 competition from last season. Whaley has earned a lot more respect than that. Hurley even said on the post game how lost Sanogo was on defense. Whaley is one of the better defender on the team and elite when it comes to pick and roll defense.

Polley...is a wait and see. Obviously he is shaking of some rust, but he did have 7 rebounds last night. Not many games last year where he did that.

I think people have some unrealistic expectations based on his last several games. He started 6 games last year. He averaged 5 RBs and 6 points overall. He was terrible against Cinci, who had a legit C. Then had 6 and 5 points before finally breaking out against Temple. He was terrific in those last 6 games, and solid last night against a weak front court. I like Whaley, he does a lot of good things. Solid at the line too. But we've exaggerated him a bit based on a handful of games.

With Polley I am hoping he can give us the rebounds against tougher competition. His ball handling seems better. His perimeter defense in a press is decent, his interior defense isn't.

 

[superjohn]

Whaley is a 5, not sure why people still try to argue this. He started at the 5 and played all of his minutes at the 5 yesterday. Minutes at the 5 were Whaley 17, Sanogo 17, Carlton 3, Brown 3. All minutes for those guys were exclusively at the 5

He is but Sanogo and Whaley will be able to coexist on the court together as will Sanogo and Akok.

 

[mussels]

Mmm, 14 day layoff might have had a bit to do that. What was the final score?

I hear you, and wouldn't have mentioned it, except we saw the slow start phenomena too much last year.

 

[nomar]

Took a while for Chief’s new Briefs to get filled up, but it was worth the wait. They were great to see — and I can imagine it felt wonderful for Chief to unload in them.

 

[navery12]

He is but Sanogo and Whaley will be able to coexist on the court together as will Sanogo and Akok.

Agreed, they can definitely play together. Sanogo is just as capable of hitting that 10-12 foot jump shot

 

[brasssbonanzaa]

Agreed, they can definitely play together. Sanogo is just as capable of hitting that 10-12 foot jump shot

I might've missed it - did he take any jumpers last night?

 

[brasssbonanzaa]

What about our start ? We we're playing #335 kempom, and three quarters of the way through the first half, the score was tied 33-33.

Seem to remember more than one game last year, where at the start it looked like our opponent was playing on a different setting then we were. (with the exception of Vital). If we don't learn intensity right out of the gate, well be spotting a good team 10 or 15 before we get started.

BREAKING NEWS: Team who missed 14 of their first 19 practices of a season struggled defensively in the first 20 minutes of their first game.

 

[Giddyup5]

I think people have some unrealistic expectations based on his last several games. He started 6 games last year. He averaged 5 RBs and 6 points overall. He was terrible against Cinci, who had a legit C. Then had 6 and 5 points before finally breaking out against Temple. He was terrific in those last 6 games, and solid last night against a weak front court. I like Whaley, he does a lot of good things. Solid at the line too. But we've exaggerated him a bit based on a handful of games.

With Polley I am hoping he can give us the rebounds against tougher competition. His ball handling seems better. His perimeter defense in a press is decent, his interior defense isn't.

And I think again you are under estimating his individual and team defensive value by stating his points and rebounds.

Specifically with how Hurley likes to play defense I think he is going to be very hard to take Whaley off the floor.

 

[navery12]

I might've missed it - did he take any jumpers last night?

Not last night from what I remember. There's been some videos posted from practice of him taking 3's/FT line extended jumpers though. I don't think it's a shot either should take consistently, but I think both can hit enough for the defense to have to respect the shot

 

[HuskyHawk]

And I think again you are under estimating his individual and team defensive value by stating his points and rebounds.

Specifically with how Hurley likes to play defense I think he is going to be very hard to take Whaley off the floor.

He and Sanogo both had 17 minutes so maybe not that hard.

 

[gtcam]

My observations:
1. I am hoping that Gaff didn't fall into the JC issue of putting on bulk and in turn altering his foot movement and overall speed. He was beaten on D so bad yesterday - something that didn't happen to him last season. He looked noticeably slower to me.
2. This team cries for a leader - CV and AG are gone and they were the leaders. Was hoping Bouk would start the transition over the summer but it doesn't appear to have evolved - maybe RJ can step in
3, RJ looked good with his shooting from the 3 but I expected more from him overall - the passing and D got better in the 2nd half but it was CCSU. I hope he can handle the NBE guards that are much bigger and more physical .
4. Sanogo is a true diamond in the rough. The kid is going to be a good one
5. I agreed with the announcer that said Adams doesn't get much love from the refs. He was the only Husky who came to play his game - where he shines and makes mental errors within the span of minutes. I like his spunk
6. I thought JC could have scored a lot vs CCSU - it was his type of game vs a smaller foe - I think his psyche
might be a bit low now that he is looking at being #3 option.
7. While he needs time to come back fully from his injury, Polley looked like he did earlier last season. He does look bigger and can be a real weapon if he plays physically - I want to see him be at his best.
8. Looking forward to seeing Martin
9. I'm not worried at all with AJ - man that kid has hops - he is the type that plays a bit reckless and he will learn that in top D1 hoops he needs to harness that energy into productive use - he will be fine

 

[mussels]

BREAKING NEWS: Team who missed 14 of their first 19 practices of a season struggled defensively in the first 20 minutes of their first game.

So, after being understandably rusty due to the layoff, after only 14 and a half minutes of basketball they suddenly remembered how to play, and went on a 15 to 3 run. Do I understand your position correctly ? (or would you concede it to be lack of intensity/ a slow start)

 

[nashusky109]

Does anyone know if they’ll keep this camera view the whole season for home games? I love seeing coaches and bench reactions and was bummed that we didn’t get to see that yesterday

 

[KembaStepback]

Does anyone know if they’ll keep this camera view the whole season for home games? I love seeing coaches and bench reactions and was bummed that we didn’t get to see that yesterday

I THINK it was due to them needed multiple rows for the bench due to COVID. Correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[KembaStepback]

Javonte is a big dude but hes gonna have to get his hands right. He couldn't catch an entry pass.

Cole to me hit some nice shots but quietly put up a bunch of points. Ill take it.

I like Gaffney. He did get beat on D a bit but a lot of guys did.

Jackson is gonna be fun to watch.

 

[Ts5034]

I THINK it was due to them needed multiple rows for the bench due to COVID. Correct me if I'm wrong.

Yes, and having multiple rows for the bench on the side they usually are would interfere with the big sponsors covering the seats.

 

[Chief00]

My observations:
1. I am hoping that Gaff didn't fall into the JC issue of putting on bulk and in turn altering his foot movement and overall speed. He was beaten on D so bad yesterday - something that didn't happen to him last season. He looked noticeably slower to me.
2. This team cries for a leader - CV and AG are gone and they were the leaders. Was hoping Bouk would start the transition over the summer but it doesn't appear to have evolved - maybe RJ can step in
3, RJ looked good with his shooting from the 3 but I expected more from him overall - the passing and D got better in the 2nd half but it was CCSU. I hope he can handle the NBE guards that are much bigger and more physical .
4. Sanogo is a true diamond in the rough. The kid is going to be a good one
5. I agreed with the announcer that said Adams doesn't get much love from the refs. He was the only Husky who came to play his game - where he shines and makes mental errors within the span of minutes. I like his spunk
6. I thought JC could have scored a lot vs CCSU - it was his type of game vs a smaller foe - I think his psyche
might be a bit low now that he is looking at being #3 option.
7. While he needs time to come back fully from his injury, Polley looked like he did earlier last season. He does look bigger and can be a real weapon if he plays physically - I want to see him be at his best.
8. Looking forward to seeing Martin
9. I'm not worried at all with AJ - man that kid has hops - he is the type that plays a bit reckless and he will learn that in top D1 hoops he needs to harness that energy into productive use - he will be fine

Interesting points. I actually thought Gaffney looked fairly athletic on offense and I remember any number of others getting beat on defense. I will keep an eye open on Gaffney’s defense on Friday night. Sometimes Chief’s eye test misses something.
One thing I will say without giving it context, we don’t know who tested positive, since that would involve protected health information. Therefore, we don’t know what role that may have played in playing time. Nor do I want to know.

 

[Report Card]

First Coo-coo take of the season. Couldn't disagree with you more. To start, what speed last year are you referring to? The kid was scrawny and SLOW due to a lingering ankle injury.
Gaffney's transformation has him looking and playing like he belonged out there. And I thought his defense was better than the rest of his teammates'. He made a block yesterday that last year, was only a dream for the kid. To compare him to JC's transformation?! Bonkers
I thought he played a great/complete game and will be a very key piece to this team; in my humble expert opinion.

My observations:
1. I am hoping that Gaff didn't fall into the JC issue of putting on bulk and in turn altering his foot movement and overall speed. He was beaten on D so bad yesterday - something that didn't happen to him last season. He looked noticeably slower to me.

 

[Chief00]

Javonte is a big dude but hes gonna have to get his hands right. He couldn't catch an entry pass.

Cole to me hit some nice shots but quietly put up a bunch of points. Ill take it.

I like Gaffney. He did get beat on D a bit but a lot of guys did.

Jackson is gonna be fun to watch.

I mostly agree. The strong but soft hands of Sanago stood in contrast to Brown struggling with receiving the ball. When a guy posts he has a responsibility of establishing a target. Sanogo did that well Brown less so. Then the actual catch itself. Sanogo just vacuums up the ball into his hands, while Brown fumbled and bobbled the ball. Brown is very young and he has grown very tall. It’s entirely fair to give his body some time to catch up to all that growth.

 

[UconnU]

We’ve seen Bouk do that 4 point play attempt in transition a number of times now. It’s a genius move, to step back into the trail defender to get him to foul you on a three in transition.

 

[Ewekon]

Generally agree with your observations. Gaffney is well thought of by the staff and displays improved athleticism recovered from his injury, which gave some well meaning casual fans the wrong impression. With AJ it’s all about improving his shot, he has the rest of the package and as I have said, he is an old school student of the game despite being a high flyer. With James, the only thing in the next dozen years that will keep him off the court is what he does off the court. No real on court concerns and I do like him as a person.

2nd time you have alluded to James' off court "behavior"

What's up Chief?

 

[The Funster]

Sanogo may not play 3 years with us. Good feet, soft hands and has a pro body already.

Cole is going to be fun to watch.

We've got great depth.

I expect to see better D tonite.

chief nails it for game 1

 

[Chief00]

One thing Chief should add is 19 of our 43 rebounds were offensive. That’s a very impressive mindset to attack the glass. I know the competition was relatively weak, but still it’s an indicator of being much better in that area.
I do agree with a couple of posters, that against a better team a leader needs to emerge? Perhaps, the coaches can influence somewhat, but that’s really up to the players.