Expectations: RJ Cole

[imno1]

I don''t get it. Some one this board think Jackson will be drafted and RJ will less involved or effective. I expect Cole to make one of the All BE teams and he's probably our most important piece. Andre I hope will be vastly improved but I think RJ will have the better season

 

[Tenspro2002]

Off the dribble he has to be looking more to set other guys up (Jackson on the baseline for lobs; Hawkins or Gaffney on the perimeter for 3s) and he has to replace and be a spot-up shooter in his own right.

We have too many stud athletes to waste possessions with him trying to take it to the rim himself.

 

[Jbirdp5]

Wouldn't he have to improve his handle to actually be a point forward? I get that he can pass well but wouldn't he need to be a threat to penetrate and shoot or dish?

Hurley has stated he’s going to be a point guard type in the nba some day. I am sure that’s part of his development plan.

 

[freescooter]

Undersized mid-level point guard. He’s what he is. I don’t expect a big jump or a big regression. He got his wish, which is nice. Teams with bigger quicker guards will take advantage of him, just like they did last year. Basically he is fine, not great. Not terrible. On a bell curve he is within one standard deviation of the mean.

 

[husky429]

Just 5he opposite. I want Cole in the background conducting. I can easily see him being second on the team in scoring around 12 points but consistently being 4th leading scorer each game as other players take their turn leading the show.

I think this is likely a good option. Maybe 3rd-option or 2nd-highest scorer most nights, but the same principal. Rese, Hawkins, and Sanogo should all be capable of big nights, but probably inconsistent. RJs shooting alone at 35% or better from 3 is going to get him to double digits or so. Considering who well-rounded this team has been predicted to be... that should be good for 2nd leading scorer a good chunk of the time.

Though if Sanogo makes the jump to all big-east caliber big, then maybe he's a 14ppg every night kind of guy. That would make our team dangerous...

 

[jibsey]

Undersized mid-level point guard. He’s what he is. I don’t expect a big jump or a big regression. He got his wish, which is nice. Teams with bigger quicker guards will take advantage of him, just like they did last year. Basically he is fine, not great. Not terrible. On a bell curve he is within one standard deviation of the mean.

In most cases he’s not physically gifted enough to take it into the trees but he’s a key 3 point scorer for us.

 

[Umami Zen]

RJ now knows the speed and strength of BE guards after one year under his belt. Hopefully a full uninterrupted off- season w/conditioning and SnC will allow him to use his skills more effectively this season.

It was obvious last year--against the bigger guards-- that he was having trouble getting space/separation to get his shots off.

Expect him to have a more impactful season at the point and off the ball( on occasion).

 

[gtcam]

I don't think RJ will go down as one of the top guards in UConn history, however, he could prove me wrong by playing within himself, knowing when to dish and when to score and to have faith in his teammates. What he lacks in size needs to made up with a higher BB IQ. He started to turn in that direction during the NBE Tournament earlier this year and in taking control vs Maryland.
I look forward to seeing what progress he has made during the off season

 

[freescooter]

RJ now knows the speed and strength of BE guards after one year under his belt. Hopefully a full uninterrupted off- season w/conditioning and SnC will allow him to use his skills more effectively this season.

It was obvious last year--against the bigger guards-- that he was having trouble getting space/separation to get his shots off.

Expect him to have a more impactful season at the point and off the ball( on occasion).

Knowing and being able to do much about it are two different things. He was better than I thought he would be but he is so far from being an elite guard that it can’t be seen from his spot. He is overmatched by really good guards and struggles with bigger ones. He likes to drive but isn’t big enough to do it effectively against good front courts. He is like lots of point guards actually. Not great, not awful. Just sort of an average Joe. He is Tyrese Martin of point guards. If one of the frosh is really good, of if Jackson made the leap some he think he did, he is likely a back up. If not he will play and won‘t cause problems.

 

[husky429]

I'm confused. Trae young did not average 29 PPG. He averaged 27. Am I just reading the graphic wrong?

 

[imno1]

I'm confused. Trae young did not average 29 PPG. He averaged 27. Am I just reading the graphic wrong?

And in D1 history? or the last 10 years?

 

[Umami Zen]

Knowing and being able to do much about it are two different things. He was better than I thought he would be but he is so far from being an elite guard that it can’t be seen from his spot. He is overmatched by really good guards and struggles with bigger ones. He likes to drive but isn’t big enough to do it effectively against good front courts. He is like lots of point guards actually. Not great, not awful. Just sort of an average Joe. He is Tyrese Martin of point guards. If one of the frosh is really good, of if Jackson made the leap some he think he did, he is likely a back up. If not he will play and won‘t cause problems.

Have never used the term elite to characterize RJ.. He is one of the guys on the team who appears to accept the role of being a leader this year.. Always good to have PGs willing to step up. Some of the preseason polls have him emerging as a second-team BE performer this season.

Will he? Don't know. But he has skills to be a valuable role player who can get the ball to our shooters in their spots. If the defense rotates to the shooters and they reverse the ball (ball movement). He should be/will be free for open shots. He'll make his fair share. Over penetration into the teeth of the defense by RJ is not a good thing as we saw last year.

Our incoming freshman will be pushing for PT and were sold on competing for minutes by DH. Can only make the team deeper and better.

 

[navery12]

I'm confused. Trae young did not average 29 PPG. He averaged 27. Am I just reading the graphic wrong?

It's points produced per game, not just points scored, but I have no idea how these are being calculated. I thought it was just points per game + points scored off your assists, but Trae averaged 27 PPG and 8.7 assists which would definitely be higher than 29.22

 

[husky429]

It's points produced per game, not just points scored, but I have no idea how these are being calculated. I thought it was just points per game + points scored off your assists, but Trae averaged 27 PPG and 8.7 assists which would definitely be higher than 29.22

Okay so I had it wrong and it still doesn't make sense, lol. Good to know I'm crazy, but the author is too

 

[Get a Job]

It's points produced per game, not just points scored, but I have no idea how these are being calculated. I thought it was just points per game + points scored off your assists, but Trae averaged 27 PPG and 8.7 assists which would definitely be higher than 29.22

Just a guess, but maybe credit is shared for assisted buckets. So, for example, some of his 27 PPG were scored with an assist, so the total points he "produced" is some number less than 27. Similarly, he is credited with producing some fraction of the points scored off of his assists. I'm assuming the calculation works something like that.

 

[auror]

It's likely using the Dean Oliver formula, which is complicated. The numbers are on sports-reference for college, but here's the formula...

• PProd = (PProd_FG_Part + PProd_AST_Part + FTM) * (1 - (Team_ORB / Team_Scoring_Poss) * Team_ORB_Weight * Team_Play%) + PProd_ORB_Part

where:

• PProd_FG_Part = 2 * (FGM + 0.5 * 3PM) * (1 - 0.5 * ((PTS - FTM) / (2 * FGA)) * qAST)
• PProd_AST_Part = 2 * ((Team_FGM - FGM + 0.5 * (Team_3PM - 3PM)) / (Team_FGM - FGM)) * 0.5 * (((Team_PTS - Team_FTM) - (PTS - FTM)) / (2 * (Team_FGA - FGA))) * AST
• PProd_ORB_Part = ORB * Team_ORB_Weight * Team_Play% * (Team_PTS / (Team_FGM + (1 - (1 - (Team_FTM / Team_FTA))^2) * 0.4 * Team_FTA))

 

[UCLJ0211]

Something about his game reminds me of KEA. Maybe because they were both undersized PGs who could score. If he can give us similar production like 15 ppg and 5 apg, I think that’s all we can ask for.

 

[Chin Diesel]

RJ now knows the speed and strength of BE guards after one year under his belt. Hopefully a full uninterrupted off- season w/conditioning and SnC will allow him to use his skills more effectively this season.

It was obvious last year--against the bigger guards-- that he was having trouble getting space/separation to get his shots off.

Expect him to have a more impactful season at the point and off the ball( on occasion).

I hope you are right but off the top of my head I don't know too many PG's who become much faster and quicker after they've been in college 3-4 years. I yam what I yam.

 

[Husky Alien]

Have never used the term elite to characterize RJ.. He is one of the guys on the team who appears to accept the role of being a leader this year.. Always good to have PGs willing to step up. Some of the preseason polls have him emerging as a second-team BE performer this season.

Will he? Don't know. But he has skills to be a valuable role player who can get the ball to our shooters in their spots. If the defense rotates to the shooters and they reverse the ball (ball movement). He should be/will be free for open shots. He'll make his fair share. Over penetration into the teeth of the defense by RJ is not a good thing as we saw last year.

Our incoming freshman will be pushing for PT and were sold on competing for minutes by DH. Can only make the team deeper and better.

RJ will not be a role player on this team. He will be one of our go to guys. Don't understand why RJ gets no love here. He's a dog, he will not let up.

 

[Umami Zen]

I hope you are right but off the top of my head I don't know too many PG's who become much faster and quicker after they've been in college 3-4 years. I yam what I yam.

I get what you're saying. Was thinking more about added strength helping him on D than O .He is who he is size-wise. His on- ball D with our shot blockers helping in the lane will be key.

We have had short PGs over the years who could get their shots. Maybe their footwork/foot speed was just better.

 

[ClifSpliffy]

i like tuff.
rj is tuff.
i like rj.

 

[Umami Zen]

RJ will not be a role player on this team. He will be one of our go to guys. Don't understand why RJ gets no love here. He's a dog, he will not let up.

IMO. A role player has a role to play. PG. It does not mean he is a bench player . A matter of semantics I guess.

I expect RJ to be a 15/7/game PG this yr. who has scorers/shooters around him. Does not need to be ball-dominant as he was at Howard. Too much talent here to share the ball with. Wouldn't be surprised to see him among assist leaders in the BE

 

[August_West]

Undersized mid-level point guard. He’s what he is. I don’t expect a big jump or a big regression. He got his wish, which is nice. Teams with bigger quicker guards will take advantage of him, just like they did last year. Basically he is fine, not great. Not terrible. On a bell curve he is within one standard deviation of the mean.

I still have bad dreams about Nova guards pushing him off the block like a rag doll .

 

[Chin Diesel]

Something about his game reminds me of KEA. Maybe because they were both undersized PGs who could score. If he can give us similar production like 15 ppg and 5 apg, I think that’s all we can ask for.

There's nothing similar about them other than height and build. Games are entirely different.